“All the rage and mourning and angst works to exhaust you; it eats you alive with its relentlessness.” The New York Times‘ Jenna Wortham on self-care during a summer rife with violence against people of color.
Black Bodies Matter
A Look at J.K. Rowling
The Casual Vacancy, the first novel for adults by J.K. Rowling, is already breaking records for the highest number of preorders this year. To whet your appetite for the book’s release on Thursday, check out Ian Parker's new profile in The New Yorker.
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Like This Passage?
Ad-driven e-books may be something we'll all have to deal with in the future. At the Melville House blog, Dustin Kurtz explains why ads that pop up while a person is reading might well be an inevitable development. (If you’re like me, your reaction to this is simple: ugh.)
Even More DFW
In honor of this weekend's U.S. Open, Grantland's Michael MacCambridge is revisiting David Foster Wallace's epic essay on Roger Federer.
An NBA Highlights Reel
The WaPo's Ron Charles delivers a rapid-fire video review of the National Book Award nominees.
The Squirrels Are Coming!
Whether they’re “coordinat[ing] kamikaze attacks on the power grid,” “damaging [a nuclear missile] base’s physical infrastructure,” or even just water-skiing, I feel that it must be said unequivocally: I for one welcome our new squirrel overlords.
Capote Quiz
The OUP's blog has created a Truman Capote quiz. The idea is to match the author's quotation with its literary victim.
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Lewis on the Economy
While on the publicity tour for his latest book, Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World, Michael Lewis stops by NPR's "Fresh Air" to talk Greece, the Euro, California's "third world problems," and the Occupy Wall Street protests. The author also gets a nice write-up in the latest New York Magazine, and his interview on last night's "The Daily Show" ran so long, they had to put the full version online. (Start "The Daily Show"'s clip at ~21:50 for the interview.)
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2017’s Independent Bookstore Day
Next Saturday (April 29) is Independent Bookstore Day! If you’re looking for a place to celebrate, check out our staff recommendations of tried and true mainstays. You can also map out the stores Janet Potter’s “bookstore resume,” which she freely admits has taken “the shape of a relationship history.”
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