Looking up a book title on Google? The search results now include listings at your local library, reports The Digital Reader. See also our own Jacob Lambert’s entreaty, “An Open Letter to the Person Who Wiped Boogers on My Library Book.”
Querying the Card Catalog
We Do Not Know Her Real Name
Today in 1773, 20-year-old Phillis Wheatley became the first published African-American author of a book of poetry. Pair with our own Ed Simon‘s case for the candidacy of her work as national epic.
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From the Dept. of Whaaa?
Mystery author James Patterson has written a novel called The Murder of Steven King that apparently describes the eponymous author’s death at the hands of a deranged fan. While King declined to comment on the book, he has in the past said of Patterson that the latter is “a terrible writer but he’s very successful.” And now you must read our editor-in-chief Lydia Kiesling’s essay, “Everything I Know About America I Learned from Stephen King.”
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All Your Favorite Books
This week in book-related infographics that are also, as an added bonus, interactive: “A Google Map of All Your Favorite Books,” via Electric Literature.
On Hating Poetry
Ben Purkert reviews Year in Reading alum Ben Lerner’s The Hatred of Poetry. If you like the title, check out ten poems for people who hate poetry.
Raymond Chandler’s Hollywood Star
Next year, Raymond Chandler will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The award will be in recognition of The Big Sleep author’s work as a screenwriter. Other inductees in Chandler’s class will include Will Ferrell, Daniel Radcliffe, and Julianna Marguilies.