Things Fall Apart author Chinua Achebe wins Booker Prize for fiction, beating out Philip Roth and Ian McEwan. The new face of Nigerian literature? Growing up in a house once occupied by famous Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe was "a lovely coincidence", Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie says, but it may have been where she first caught the literary bug. One Hundred Years of Solitude has had 40 years of admiring company. Yet still it stands alone, writes Ilan Stavans.
From The New Yorker, a special issue on Summer Fiction. Philip K. Dick goes legit with Library of America canon. From Dissent, four new novels revisit a particularly tumultuous era of American history: A review of Eat the Document by Dana Spiotta; American Woman by Susan Choi; The Darling by Russell Banks; and The Company You Keep by Neil Gordon. Four thrillers to keep you pleasantly frightened: A review of The Unknown Terrorist by Richard Flanagan; Restitution by Lee Vance; Requiem for an Assassin by Barry Eisler; and Stalin's Ghost by Martin Cruz Smith.
From New York, an interview with Bob Stein. director of the Institute for the Future of the Book. From Britannica, Gregory McNamee on 10 things you (maybe) didn’t know about books. A publishing quandary: Do excerpts help sales? This Book Club is one tight literary circle of African-American women. The Scorn of the Literary Blog: Despite what the bloggers themselves believe, the future of literary culture does not lie with blogs — or at least, it shouldn't. How to hook the reluctant boy reader: Gags, gadgets and adventure — sure fire recipes to make boys (and girls) read.
From Der Spiegel, the German Pavilion in Venice, designed by Isa Genzken, is a surreal world of mysterious cases, hovering spacesuits and rubber reptiles. In the British Pavilion Tracey Emin explores sex, desire and gender, while France's Sophie Calle examines the female reaction to rejection. Just some of the many enticing exhibitions at this year's Biennale. The Minister of Information: If this messy world is becoming easier to understand, thank Edward Tufte. From Seven Oaks, accepting art as your personal saviour: A review of The Colorful Apocalypse: Journeys in Outsider Art by Greg Bottoms.
From The Medieval Review, a review of A History of the English Language Richard Hogg and David Denison. A review of Inventing English: A Portable History of the Language by Seth Lerer (and more). One of the week's best invented words: "Mantagonist".
From Newsweek, a review of The Diana Chronicles, an interview with Tina Brown, and an excerpt. Former queen of buzz Tina Brown conjures a golden heyday. The Princess and The Profiler: Will Tina Brown's new book about Princess Di persuade the public to join her once again at the convergence of highbrow and low? (and more and an interview)
