This Week in Literary News, Week of November 8

Things have been… interesting in the US recently, and there will certainly be. some stories to tell about the last four years. As the Associated Press reports, “In 2021 and beyond, look for waves of releases about the Trump administration and about the president’s loss to Democratic candidate Joe Biden.” But as for a book from Trump himself, “Several publishers told the AP that they don’t believe Trump will have the same global appeal as former President Barack Obama […] Any publisher signing with Trump or a top administration official might face the anger not just of Trump critics among the general public, but from within the industry.”

Scholastic announced a three-book deal with Ruby Bridges. Bridges, who at age six de-segregated New Orleans’ all-white William Frantz Elementary School on November 14, 1960, will “pen three new picture books to bring her trailblazing story to a new generation of children,” Publishers Weekly reports. Sadly, this week saw the death of Bridges’ mother Lucille. Of her own childhood, Lucille told the Courier-Journal in a 2009 interview, “The bus would come pick up the white kids, but I couldn’t go to school. I would watch them go with tears in my eyes. I prayed if I ever got married, I wanted my kids to go to school.”   Continue reading “This Week in Literary News, Week of November 8”

This Week in Literary News: Week of October 4

Awards abound! The Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to poet Louise Glück this week. The committee chose Glück, who has also won the Pulitzer prize and the National Book Award, “for her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal.” Glück is the first American woman to win the award since Toni Morrison 27 years ago, and only the 16th woman of the 117 winners, overall. New to Glück and want to know where to start with her work? Poet Fiona Sampson writes about Gluck’s work and chooses some of her favorite poems for The Guardian.

In other award news, the MacArthur Foundation announced the 21 recipients of its fellowship, also known as the “Genius Grant.” In addition to an evolutionary geneticist, a property law scholar, and a documentary filmmaker, this year’s grantees also included quite a few names from the literary world: authors, Jacqueline Woodson, Cristina Rivera Garza, Fred Moten, N. K. Jemisin, Tressie McMillan Cottom, and playwright Larissa FastHorse. Learn more about all of the fellows here.

Not an award, but a really big deal nonetheless: Kevin Young, currently cultural director of the New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center and poetry editor of the New Yorker, has been named the director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Per the Washington Post, during his time at the Schomburg, “Young created a Black Liberation Reading List with 95 books and coordinated programs. He also brought the Harlem-based archives of Harry Belafonte, James Baldwin, Sonny Rollins, Fred “Fab 5 Freddy” Brathwaite, and Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee to the center as part of “Home to Harlem,” a program that focuses on how artists shaped, and were shaped by, the neighborhood.” Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of October 4”

This Week in Literary News, Week of September 27

There’s lot to celebrate this week!

Dark Traces
Dark Traces by Martin Steyn

Wednesday was International Translation Day, the perfect excuse to celebrate Catalyst Press’ amazing translators: Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds (translator of The Farm and The Wall by Max Annas), Elsa Silke (translator of Sacrificed by Chanette Paul), Martin Steyn (author and translator of Dark Traces), and Ivanka Hahnenberger (translator of our upcoming graphic novel Madame Livingstone). Thank you for your commitment to bringing new voices to global readers!

It’s also Banned Book Week! According to the American Library Association’s Office of Intellectual Freedom, 8 of the 10 most banned and challenged books in 2019 included LGBTQIA+ content. (And because that sucks and we could all use some queer lit, here’s Fall’s most anticipated LGBTQIA+ Young Adult books and Emily Hashimoto on writing queer romance.) Washington Post critic Ron Charles read all ten and gives a rundown. Channeling your inner Ray Bradbury? Check out the full list of the top 100 most banned and challenged books of the decade. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News, Week of September 27”

Celebrating International Translation Day

It’s International Translation Day, a global day of celebrating the work of language professionals.” We’ve been excited to celebrate National Translation Month this month, and this is a perfect way to close out September. International Translation Month is a time to shine a light on the wonderful translators who have helped us and our authors bring global literature to even more readers. Continue reading “Celebrating International Translation Day”

New Release this Month

This month we’re now the publisher for not one, but two thrillers by award-winning author Max Annas. The Farm, which released earlier this month, is a taut thriller set in a rural South African farmhouse. When unknown and unseen shooters attack in the dark of night, a diverse group of people barricade themselves inside the house. No one knows who the target is, no one knows what the motive is, and no one knows who will survive the night.

The Farm, translated by Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds, was the winner of the 2015 German Crime Prize. The Farm joins The Wall, another award-winning novel from Max, as part of our African Crime Reads Series. These place-based novels offer mysteries and thrills— from police procedurals, to techo-thrillers, to family dramas— all set in locations around the continent.

Both The Farm and The Wall are out now. You can purchase them here at our site, or at your favorite local bookstore.

 

This Week in Literary News

The impact from the devastating fires across the Western United States has extended to bookstores and publishers, Publishers Weekly reports. “This is a very scary time to be a bookseller and a small business owner,” says Kit Steinaway, the programs manager at the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (BINC). The article notes some ways that you can help, including by donating to BINC, an organization that provides aids to booksellers during fire season. If you’d like information about other organizations that can use your help, this article at The Cut offers some suggestions.

The Farm by Max Annas

This month is National Translation Month, and we’re proud to publish the English-language translations of several fantastic books. National Translation Month falls right after Women in Translation Month, so if you’re looking to read globally, there have been so many great suggestions over the past two months. Over at CLMP, there’s been two round-ups of books from indie publishers, and we’re in both! Sacrificed by Chanette Paul (translated by Elsa Silke) has a spot on the Women in Translation list, while The Wall by Max Annas, translated by Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds is on the National Translation Month list. And speaking of Max, his latest thriller, The Farm, also translated by Rachel, released earlier this week! Congratulations, Max!

The Theory of Flight by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu

Max gets double congratulations this week, as his German-language thriller, Morduntersuchungskommission was named the winner of the 2020 Cologne Crime Award. And in other award news, the Booker Prize has released its shortlist. Of the six nominated shortlisted books for the prestigious award, four are from debut authors, four are women-authored, and two are by African authors, including Tsitsi Dangarembga’s This Mournable Body. Aside from being fans of her work, Tsitsi is special here at Catalyst since she graciously provided a blurb for our forthcoming release The Theory of Flight by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu. Tsitsi called Siphiwe’s debut “A dazzling novel of delicate and astonishing magic.” The Theory of Flight is out in January. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News”

This Week in Literary News: Week of July 19

We lost civil rights hero and U.S. Representative John Lewis this week, who died on July 17 at the age of 80. You should go and read everything he’s ever written, but in the meantime, read this Brain Pickings feature and ten of his best quotes on getting into “good trouble.”

THE FARM

Here at Catalyst, we celebrated the South African release of Max Annas’ thriller The Farm (translated by Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds) with a virtual book launch with Boekemakranka featuring Izak DeVries of LAPA Uitgewers, our South African distributor. The Farm is out now in South Africa, and comes to North American readers in September (you can pre-order it here).

Calling all His Dark Materials fans: Phillip Pullman just announced a new novella based on the bestselling series, to be released in October. And in comic news: the original 2003 Walking Dead comic book is being re-released in full color, and A-list action star Keanu Reeves is writing a comic book (and casually slipped that he’d like to play the lead character in a movie rendition – so that’s probably happening).

ICYMI: in early June, a bunch of big-name authors (including Atwood, Gladwell, Rowling, Rushdie, and Steinem) penned an open letter about the dangers of cancel culture in Harper’s Magazine. But then a counter letter was released in The Objective, calling out the authors of the Harper’s letter for writing from a place a privilege (among other grievances). Catch up on the drama here. NPR responded with typical Swiss neutrality vibes by getting authors from both letters on a podcast together.

African Arguments released a three-part interview with the 2020 AKO Caine Prize Nominees. Check out Part 1 on joy and writing, Part 2 on reading and the politics of prizes, and Part 3 on what it means to be mainstream.

COVID-19 has hit the book world hard: according to a survey from nonprofit Americans for the Arts, 253 literary organizations reported over $7.2 million total losses to date. But it’s not all bad: with bookstores and festivals shut down, big box retailers like Walmart and Costco have been helping readers get their fix, and three literary nonprofits teamed up with the Mellon Foundation this week to create a Literary Arts Emergency Fund, distributing $5,000 to $50,000 grants to literary organizations across the United States. And one book festival in the United Kingdom came up with an innovative way to bring joy to book lovers at a distance: a drive-in book fair. If Britain is a bit too far for a road trip, Book Riot has a handy list of some upcoming virtual book events. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of July 19”

This Week in Literary News, Week of July 12

Literary news, world news, and life news was all a lot last week, which is why you didn’t see one of these posts last week. But we’re back, refreshed (sort of) and ready to bring you all of the bookish news you can handle!

“We all want wellness. I believe racism is a disease, and that healing can begin by reading to the kids in our lives, starting with children of the youngest ages.” Author Andrea Davis Pinkney writes about the power Black stories for NPR Books. Pinkey is also one of the judges for NPR’s Summer Reader’s Poll, which will create a list of 100 kids’ books based on readers’ suggestions. While the poll is closed now, be sure to check back to see the final list.

Language is always evolving, so it shouldn’t be too much of a surprise when new words are added to the lexicon. However, Merriam-Webster‘s recent addition of irregardless, has been the subject of a lot of debate. However, as Merriam-Webster pointed out on their blog, The Words of the Week, the word has been “in widespread and near-constant use since 1795. […] We do not make the English language, we merely record it.”

Last week’s issue of the New York Times‘ magazine was a fiction issue featuring short stories from 29 authors, each speaking to our current moment. Called “The Decameron Project,” the issue was “inspired by Giovanni Boccaccio’s “The Decameron,” written as the plague ravaged Florence in the 14th century.” The issue features stories by Uzodinma Iweala (Beasts of No Nation), Leila Slimani (The Perfect Nanny), and Dinaw Mengestu (All Our Names), among others. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News, Week of July 12”

This Week in Literary News, Week of June 14

In support of Black Lives Matter and Juneteenth, the hashtags #BlackPublishingPower and #BlackoutBestsellerList have been trending, encouraging people to buy books by Black authors and from Black-owned bookstores from June 14-June 20.

If you’re unsure which books to buy for your children or teens on the topic of anti-racism, Publishers Weekly released a list. The lengthy list encompasses both non-fiction and fiction titles, and spans picture books to novels. At Catalyst, we also published a smaller list, including adult books and organizations to support, should you wish.

The National Book Critics Circle’s board fell apart this past week over charges of internal racism. Almost 2/3 of the board members resigned, and the remaining board has committed itself to doing the hard work of changing its structure and approach to be specifically anti-racist.

In censorship news: This week, the highest-ranked leader in the land, our President, attempted to ban a book by John Bolton, the former national security adviser. The book purportedly offers an insider’s view on the President’s egregious behavior. Mr. Trump claims that the book reveals classified secrets and should not be released. Advocates for its release argue that if he successfully bans the book, it will undo decades of free speech precedent. Court hearings began June 19th.

In Catalyst Press news, we released Bitter Pill by Peter Church this week. Bitter Pill is the third installment in his Dark Web Trilogy, and continues our African Crime Reads series. Publishers Weekly has praised Bitter Pill, writing, “Church expertly juggles the multiple story lines all the way to the sordid, frantic maelstrom of the denouement.” You can read an excerpt from the novel at CrimeReads.

Last but not least, sales of audiobooks have been moving upward for the last several years and continue to rise. We have several of our books available as audiobooks, including Small Mercies by Bridget Krone, Crackerjack by Peter Church, The Wall by Max Annas and translated by Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds, and in a couple of months, Unmaking Grace by Barbara Boswell.