“Adams”

We’ve covered The New York Times Bookends column before. This week, Benjamin Moser and Year in Reading alumna Rivka Galchen discuss unforgivable sins in literature.

We take it for granted that our language will grow and change. But one thing we think less often about is that our alphabet is subject to the same forces. Herewith, Carlos Lozada reads Michael Rosen’s new book Alphabetical, which delves into the origins and future prospects of our writing system.

Recommended reading: Electric Literature talks to Neal Stephenson, a writer of “Big Ideas” and even bigger books, whose latest novel Seveneves was reviewed for the Millions by Chris Barsanti just a few weeks ago.