Jay Rubin, who spent a year and a half translating the first two books of Haruki Murakami’s 1Q84, has some interesting things to say about the prolific author.
Murakami’s Translator
Rare Manuscripts on Trial
A few rare stolen manuscripts from the New York Public Library have been the subject of a court case. Melville House covers the progression of the case so far. Travis McDade writes about rare book crime capers in the recent past for The Millions.
Comic Macbeth
Two New Marilynne Robinson Books In the Works
Marilynne Robinson is at work on a book about the Old Testament, says Casey N. Cep on Twitter. Word on the street is that it won’t come out until after she finishes Lila, her third book set in the Gilead universe.
Molecular Language
Recommended Reading: Justin Taylor on Sam Lipsyte’s The Fun Parts and how “attention to language at the molecular level” creates a better experience reading and writing. Pair with our review of Taylor’s Everything Here Is the Best Thing Ever.
Adaptation Progress Report
This week in book-to-film adaptations: Meredith Goldstein rounds up some possible and upcoming projects for The Boston Globe, including adaptations of The Goldfinch (which we cast here) and our own Emily St. John Mandel‘s Station Eleven.
What’s That Physics Book Doing in Tiger’s Car?
Now this would be a strange way for an obscure book to become an overnight bestseller. Among The Smoking Gun’s photos of the Tiger Woods crash scene is a shot of a book called Get a Grip on Physics by John Gribbin lying amid the broken glass. Maybe brushing up on physics can help your golf game.