In the June Atlantic, William Deresiewicz revisits that old favorite subject, the past and future of the Great American novel, in a review of two new books about the history of novels: The Dream of the Great American Novel by Laurence Buell and The Novel: A Biography by Michael Schmidt. (Dizzy yet? If not, consider nine other experts’ opinions on the Great American Novel here at The Millions, for a round dozen.)
How the Novel Made the World
Nikki Giovanni on Daydreams and Owning Yourself
The 77-year-old poet discusses politics, evening rituals, Cleopatra the dog, and her new writing collection.
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Orange to withdraw sponsorship of woman’s fiction prize
Kate Mosse announced that Orange will no longer be sponsoring the prestigious Orange Prize for Fiction, given annually to the best work of English-language fiction written by a woman.
Boss Fight Books
Boss Fight Books is a new series in the mold of the classic 33 1/3 model. In lieu of covering music albums, however, each Boss Fight book “will take a critical, creative, historical, and personal look at a single classic video game.” The first titles in the series will investigate Earthbound and Galaga, and they should be out by next December and January, respectively.
Back to School
The Guardian has a list of its five favorite on-campus novels, including Jeffrey Eugenides‘ The Marriage Plot, which we ran an excerpt of back when it came out, and Donna Tartt‘s The Secret History, whose connections to the academy we’ve also explored on the site.
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The Glenn Beck book club?
Move over, Oprah. Glenn Beck‘s got something he wants you to read…
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Rigoberto González on Teaching the M.F.A.
“I was enrolled in a writing program to imagine a cultured life, not just to dream about the rewards of being a writer.” Rigoberto González for Publisher’s Weekly on why he attended and later returned to teach at a M.F.A. program.