Tag: World Literature | CatalystPress

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 May 10

Our weekly round-up of literary news here at Catalyst and beyond, is brought to you by our intern Naomi Valenzuela. Naomi is from Phoenix, Arizona and El Paso, Texas, and is majoring in Creative Writing and minoring in English & American Literature at the University of Texas, El Paso, with plans of working in the publishing business after graduation

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, a good opportunity to diversify children’s reading (and parents’, too!). Brightly has a list of 10 Children’s & YA Books by Asian Authors.

Bring some fun into your quarantine reading with Brittle Paper‘s list of African Romance Fiction. All the books on the list come from Love Africa Press, an indie, digital-first publisher focusing on this genre

Over at The Guardian, read about the movement that’s taking place by Francophone African authors to make their books available in Africa.

The New York Times gives some book recommendations and how to do your summer reading even with summer limitations.

At Electric Lit, there’s an essay discussing Albert Camus’s The Plague and what we can learn about it beyond the epidemic.

If you’re a bookworm tired of all these different reading lists, don’t worry. The Washington Post has an article discussing why any type of book is helpful.

Also in The Washington Post, we have 12 of the novels that changed history. With different genres, from The Cat in the Hat to 1984, these books continue to impact society.

The BBC has an article about why we find comfort in the dystopian genre, whether it be in literature or even gaming, during a crisis.

Finally, in Catalyst Press news, check out the Q&A we did with Niki Daly. Daly is the author and illustrator of our May releases, Here Comes Lolo and Hooray for Lolo.

This Week in Literary News, Week of May 3

Great week for Catalyst Press news!:

The New York Times has recently added one of our books, Outside The Lines by Ameera Patel, to its Globetrotting list under the Africa category. Check out the other books from other continents too!

SarahBelle Selig, who manages our South African operations, has an essay on World Literature Today. Read about the rules about living in isolation she learned from reading A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles.

The Lion’s Binding Oath: and Other Stories by Ahmed Ismail Yusuf is on Brittle Paper‘s list of sixteen short story collections by African authors from indie presses (Us!)

Over at The Johannesburg Review of Books, Yewande Omotoso’s (author of Bom Boy) story titled “Boy” is highlighted as part of their “Best of the JRB” feature.

Last but not least, we have a new release! The Lolo Series by Niki Daly is out now, with Here Comes Lolo and Hooray for Lolo available in paperback or hardback!

In other literary news:

Brittle Paper has a feature about Botlhale, a YouTube channel that discusses African literature while also creating teaching tools for it.

Booksellers are finding creative ways to get books to their customers. Book Riot has a list of literary care packages from different bookstores, each with different focuses ranging from bilingual books to romance novels.

The BBC has an article about how the reading boom that has been happening during this pandemic, and the genres that the public could be picking up more and more.

Lastly, NPR informs us that Joy Harjo, the U.S.’s first Native American Poet Laureate, has received a second term by the Library of Congress.

Notes from the 2019 ALA Conference

I had a great time at ALA2019 in Washington D.C.

Catalyst Press shared booth space at the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative booth with several other publishers who focus on international and translated literature. GLLI was founded by Rachel Hildebrandt Reynolds, who is also the talented translator of our recent release The Wall by Max Annas. Business was booming at the GLLI booth, with a lot of interest in publications from Africa. I brought 60 Advance Review Copies, which were snatched up before noon on Saturday, the first full day. We trust that they got into the hands of librarians who care and who will promote African writers and books set in Africa. Continue reading “Notes from the 2019 ALA Conference”