Tag Archives: literature

​Washington Post Dismisses 500-Page Civil War Nonfiction Book As Girly | Jezebel

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Last month, New York Times bestselling author Karen Abbott published a non-fiction book called Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy, with its subject four fascinating women who became spies during the Civil War—Belle Boyd, teenage rebel and “Secesh Cleopatra”; Emma Edmonds, dressed as a soldier, her nom de guerre “Frank”; Rose O’Neal Greenhow, seducer with an espionage ring; Elizabeth Van Lew, wealthy and quietly radical abolitionist.

Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy was reviewed at the Washington Post by Jonathan Yardley, a Pulitzer-winning critic known for utter decisiveness…

READ MORE: ​Washington Post Dismisses 500-Page Civil War Nonfiction Book As Girly | Jezebel

12 Banned Books Every Woman Should Read | HuffPo

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While it would be great if we were past the whole “banning books” thing, the fact remains that hundreds of books have their places in libraries or on school reading lists challenged each year.

According to the American Library Association, books are most commonly challenged for being “sexually explicit” or containing “offensive language.” But some of the books that are most often challenged are also literary classics, containing storylines that almost everyone can learn from.

In honor of Banned Books Week 2014, we’ve pulled together a list of controversial books that every woman should read. They cover sexual freedom and women pushing back against prescribed roles, oppression against women and people of color, and what it means to be a woman in different places and times. Above all, they are stories well told.

READ MORE: 12 Banned Books Every Woman Should Read | HuffPo

Romantic Books for People Who Hate Romance Novels | Flavorwire

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Here’s the thing: sometimes, you just want to read a good love story. Or at least, something with a little sex, a little passion, a few dramatic swoons. But a romance novel, per se? Nothing so gaudy or slapdash for you! You need real literature. Well, person who I’ve just made up though I know you’re out there, here’s the answer: a selection of romantic books that will rev your motor emotional or otherwise but don’t fall into that taboo category of cheap paper and cheaper storylines. After the jump, 50 romantic novels for people who hate romance novels.

READ MORE: Romantic Books for People Who Hate Romance Novels | Flavorwire

This is a pretty good list. It could be better…Pride & Prejudice is missing. Also suggest Simon the Coldheart or An Infamous Army by Georgette Heyer; North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell; Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon; The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy; Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews; The Winer Sea by Susanna Kearsley. I guess the author does not consider YA literature, as I don’t think the genre is represented. I don’t read much YA myself, so I don’t have any suggestions. 

[Top 100] Books that have stayed with us | Facebook

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Favorite books are something friends like to share and discuss. A Facebook meme facilitates this very interaction. You may have seen one of your friends post something like “List 10 books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take more than a few minutes, and don’t think too hard. They do not have to be the ‘right’ books or great works of literature, just ones that have affected you in some way.” If not great works of literature, what are the books that have stayed with us?

List of the Top 100: Books that have stayed with us | Facebook

British Library gives teachers tools to inspire | Books | The Observer

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Discovering Literature: Romantics and Victorians from British Library Learning on Vimeo.

While Discovering Literature is an important cultural resource that can be enjoyed by all ages, it has been carefully tailored to appeal to GCSE and A-level students. The British Library’s research among teachers showed that original manuscripts, with their edits and revisions, dodgy grammar and messy handwriting, can be a powerful way of engaging pupils. Contextual material can also be a source of inspiration, and the site is packed with items such as letters, diaries, dictionaries, newspapers and illustrations that illuminate the historical, social and political contexts of classic works.

READ MORE: British Library gives teachers tools to inspire | Books | The Observer.

See Also: The British Library Launches New Online Collection of 1,200 Romantic and Victorian Literary Treasures | InfoDocket

Bibliotheca Bible Project Blows Up On Kickstarter With Chapterless Bible | HuffPo

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Graphic artist and book designer Adam Lewis Greene has envisioned a Bible without chapters and his idea has found incredible success on the crowd-funding site Kickstarter. He hopes his design will emphasize the role of the Bible as a great literary text by taking away conventions which have been added to increase its usability as a tool for study.

The website describes Bibliotheca as “The entire biblical library in four elegant volumes, designed purely for reading. The text is reverently treated in classic typographic style, free of all added conventions such as chapter numbers, verse numbers, section headers, cross references and notes.”

READ: Bibliotheca Bible Project Blows Up On Kickstarter With Chapterless Bible | HuffPo

Readworthy: Books & Publishing, Music & Film

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Books & Publishing

Harry Potter: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone voted UK’s favourite children’s book | theguardian.co.uk and The Best YA Novel of All Time bracket game: And the winner is… | EW. From mid-November Harry Potter Stamps Coming to USPS | BookRiot

Music & Film

This Video Game Could Revolutionize Publishing—and Reading | The Atlantic

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When the Best Books of 2013 are listed, the most important may not make the cut. Thats because the most exciting literary innovation of the year is not a book at all, but a video game for iPad and iPhone. Device 6 is a metaphysical thriller in which the world is made almost entirely from words. Playing it is like reading a book—except, in this book, the words veer off in unexpected directions, rather than progressing in orderly fashion down the page. When Anna, the game’s protagonist, turns a corner in the narrative, the text does too, swerving off to one side at a right angle, forcing the player to rotate the screen.

More in this story about other innovative gaming apps that have a literary angle. Read: This Video Game Could Revolutionize Publishing—and Reading | Rowland Manthorpe | The Atlantic.

Can Book Clubs Thrive in the Digital Age? | Mashable

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When most people think of book clubs, they picture intimate gatherings in living rooms or libraries. People rarely imagine a book club as a collection of GIFs, memes, fan fiction and cosplay, all of which are staples of how readers respond to media in the Internet era. But a new Tumblr blog, Reblog Book Club, wants to give the traditional book club a digital update.

While bloggers have previously hosted book clubs on Tumblr, Reblog Book Club is the first book club that’s founded and moderated by Tumblr itself. Rachel Fershleiser, the microblogging platform’s director of literary outreach, launched the club in September as a way to engage a passionate and diverse online community, but faced challenges in organizing a discussion group.

Read more:  Can Book Clubs Thrive in the Digital Age? | Mashable

What is the best YA novel of all time? Round one | PopWatch | EW.com

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Check out EW’s bracket game to vote on the best young adult novel of all time.

We’re pitting 64 young adult books against each other in a March-Madness style game to determine which you think is the best of all time. Check out the full bracket and vote!

Vote: What is the best YA novel of all time? Round one | PopWatch | EW.com.

Also see: EW asks: What’s the best YA novel of all time?

EW YA Bracket