“That has always been the unsettling irony of the carefree aesthetic. Rhetorically, it denies the full unpredictability of black experiences in America. It is a stereotype, albeit one intended for benevolence and created, perhaps lovingly, by black people.” Doreen St. Félix writes about the roots and ramifications of the “Carefree Black Boy” phenomenon.
Snapchats of a Native Son
RIP Elie Wiesel
Elie Wiesel — Auschwitz survivor, Nobel Laureate, political activist, and author of Night — passed away yesterday at the age of 87. Here’s a quote that perfectly captures Wiesel’s essence, from his Nobel Prize acceptance speech: “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men or women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.”
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Maya Angelou in the Kitchen
Maya Angelou's underrated cookbooks are as vibrant as her more prominent work.
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Tuesday New Release Day: Moore; Li; Wilson; Stace; Harbach
Lorrie Moore, who we profiled yesterday, has a new story collection on shelves this week. Also out: Kinder Than Solitude by Yiyun Li; What’s Important is Feeling by Adam Wilson; Wonderkid by Wesley Stace; and MFA vs. NYC, a new essay collection (spun off from an n+1 piece) edited by Chad Harbach.
A New Collection on Its Way from Junot Díaz
Here’s a book that will be on our July “Most Anticipated” list: a new collection of stories from Junot Díaz called This Is How You Lose Her. The Times has more.
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Football Book Club: ‘The Sixth Extinction’
Football Book Club is back from its relaxing bye week — and in preparation of the impending Environmental End Times, these truly decent, patriotic human beings are reading The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert. So pick up your copy today, read along, and learn how we’re fucking up the planet in ways you never even imagined possible. Also: if this week’s book is making you feel slightly depressed and/or down in the dumps and/or bummed, check back with FBC all week for essays on Speak by Louisa Hall.
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Allan Seager’s Place in the Canon
John Warner‘s great uncle Allan Seager wrote a short story “etched permanently into the American consciousness in a way even Hemingway can’t match.” In this marvelous essay, Warner investigates the writer’s inspiration and legacy.
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Digital Publications Unite
Medium announced that several online magazines will be migrating over to the Medium publishing platform. The list includes Electric Literature, The Awl, Pacific Standard, The Hairpin, Time Inc.’s Money and Fortune, and others.
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