Nathaniel Philbrick answers the question Why Read Moby-Dick: “the level of the language is like no other,” but also “it’s as close to being our American Bible as we have.”
Why Read Moby Dick?
The New New Inquiry
The New Inquiry‘s updated site launched over the weekend, and it’s currently undergoing a live beta test. They’ve also just unveiled a bumper crop of new bloggers. One of the site’s interesting features is that all of its content is available for sharing and remixing under a creative commons license.
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They Could Make It After All
After word got out last week that J.K. Rowling regrets bringing Ron and Hermione together, many people responded with interesting takes on the news. The hubbub missed the full context of Rowling’s quotes, however, as they leaked from an interview in Wonderland magazine that hadn’t yet been released. Now the new issue of the the magazine is out, and the context changes things a bit: Rowling actually said the two “will be alright with a bit of counseling.”
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The Rights of Southern Writers
Recent estate sales, auctions, and rights deals concerning the legacy and works of William Faulkner are “raising complex questions about what happens to the works of great writers after they die,” writes Stefanie Cohen. “For their part, Faulkner’s heirs say they aim to both honor the writer’s work and raise funds.” (Bonus: the ongoing, public legal battle over rights to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird.)
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Will the Real Philip Roth Please Stand Up?
Breaking news: turns out Philip Roth doesn’t actually have a Twitter account.
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How to Throw the Best Book Events
A new “book event crowdfunding platform” currently launched in beta, and it goes by the name of Togather. To get the party started, they interviewed Tumblr guru, Year in Reading alumna and all-around publishing maven Rachel Fershleiser about what it takes to throw a good book event.
Excuse this dust.
Have you been reading Michelle Dean’s Saturday History Lessons over at The Rumpus? This weekend she wrote on Dorothy Parker’s ashes, which are, apparently, in Baltimore. Also, this one, on Flannery O’Connor and her best pen pal Betty Hester, is great.
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