The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton‘s classic coming-of-age novel about Socs and Greasers in Tulsa, Okla., has been a staple of required reading in schools since its publication in 1967—even gaining new life as a 1983 film by Francis Ford Coppola (which starred much of the ’80s Brat Pack). Now the book returns in a new form: a musical. According to Deadline, a musical adaptation of The Outsiders is scheduled to debut in Chicago this summer, directed by Liesl Tommy and written by Adam Rapp. Time will tell whether or not audiences will be treated to a touching ballad called “Stay Gold,” or a choreographed rumble featuring the Socs versus the Greasers.
Ponyboy Breaks Into Song
The Literary Identity
“Being someone who’s an outsider, there are so many ways in which the world acts on you or assigns narratives to you.” Literary Hub interviews author Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi about literature, identity, and her new novel, Call Me Zebra. From our archives: Nur Nasreen Ibrahim‘s review of Call Me Zebra.
Como?
Here at The Millions, we tend to focus on translation as a literary form, which often leads to debates over how much a translator can change the meaning of a text. However, the majority of translation in the world is far more functional, as it is in the case of basic European bureaucracy. In The Nation, Benjamin Paloff takes a broader look at movements from one language to another. Pair with: Barclay Bram Shoemaker on translating Mo Yan’s Frog.
Also Need a 4-Wheel Drive
Must be willing to perform “light, household maintenance.” Harry Bliss, an illustrator and cartoonist at The New Yorker, has purchased the former home of J.D. Salinger and will turn it into a retreat for one lucky cartoonist during February 2017. Pair with our review of J.D. Salinger: A Life, a comprehensive biography of the famously reclusive writer’s work.
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Hop on the Raft
For the Poetry Foundation blog, David Winter interviews Night Sky With Exit Wounds author Ocean Vuong about poetry, how art is like public transportation, and turning your back on your own work. Pair with Andrew Kay’s Millions essay on the power of poetry.
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In Which F. Scott Fitzgerald Gets Compared to The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson
Kirk Curnutt takes readers on a tour of of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s oft-neglected commercial short fiction. Fitzgerald, after all, “produced 160 short stories [in his life],” writes Curnutt, “earning a total of $241,453 off the genre — more than $3 million in today’s dollars.” Yet the author didn’t think highly of the work, and even referred to himself as an “old whore” because he wouldn’t quit.
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Ken Jennings Debunks Space Myths
Because I Said So! author and Jeopardy all star Ken Jennings is debunking space myths all month over at Woot. In his first installment, he looks at just how much money was spent to develop NASA’s “space pen.”
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Little Beasties
Recommended Viewing: Over at The New Yorker, Comma Queen Mary Norris tackles the big question we didn’t know we needed answered — what pronouns do you use for your pets?
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“Best” and “Worst” Are Prominent
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