Books & Authors

Expert Book Reviews, Recommendations, Author Biographies

Daily Lit Links for 8/29

BNA_Daily | August 29, 2010

From Guantanamo libraries to a writing camp in South Carolina, today’s news proves that reading is far from a thing of the past.  Just ask people attending the New Yorker Festival…

Literature probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you hear “Guantanamo Bay,” but recently Time magazine took a look at the detention [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/25

BNA_Daily | August 29, 2010

Young adults (and let’s face it, regular adults) will be thrilled with today’s teen lit news, and voyeurs everywhere will be happy to find out what the Obamas are reading in Martha’s Vineyard.  Enjoy!

Suzanne Collins’ Mockingjay (the third book in the “Hunger Games” trilogy) hit stores yesterday, and it’s creating quite a buzz in the [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/20

BNA_Daily | August 20, 2010

Today’s news will help you transition out of summer mode and teach you words you never needed to know.  Keep reading…

It’s a sad fact that summer’s coming to an end, but NPR’s Cord Jefferson is here to help us transition.  In “Back to Reality: Nonfiction for the Summer’s End,” Jefferson recommends five nonfiction books to [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/18

BNA_Daily | August 20, 2010

In today’s news, discover original (and free!) short stories from prominent authors, catch up on your Stieg Larsson gossip, and join a Jonathan Franzen book club.  Enjoy!

It’s time for the Guardian’s “Summer short story special,” an online fiction treat that features short stories from Hilary Mantel, David Mitchell, Barbara Trapido, Roddy Doyle, Tea Obreht, and [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/13

BNA_Daily | August 20, 2010

It’s Friday the 13th, but today’s news is all good. Check out a hilarious essay about first-time publication anxiety, an interview with Suzanne Collins, and a Time cover that supports literature in America.

On The Millions blog, first-time novelist Rosecrans Baldwin shares his pre-publication fears via a hilarious diary dating back to March. His novel You [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/11

BNA_Daily | August 12, 2010

Today’s news honors historian and author Tony Judt, taps into a debate about today’s most overrated writers, and glimpses the budget crises affecting libraries around the country.

Tony Judt, scholar, history professor, and author of Postwar, died Friday at the age of 62 from Lou Gehrig’s disease. Judt was regarded as one of today’s great political [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/9

BNA_Daily | August 9, 2010

Gay rights, chick lit, and space travel–in today’s news, any topic goes.  Enjoy!

In honor of last week’s breakthrough gay rights ruling in California, Jacket Copy celebrates twenty works of literature “that have provided a richer understanding of the joys and challenges particular to gay life.”  From Annie Proulx to William S. Burroughs, the list includes [...]

Critical Consensus for 8/5: Gary Shteyngart’s Super Sad True Love Story

BNA_Daily | August 9, 2010

Gary Shteyngart, hilarious and critically acclaimed author of Absurdistan, is back with a new, equally biting satire.  Super Sad True Love Story takes place in a not-so-distant dystopian future, where the 39-year-old protagonist, Lenny, is hopelessly over the hill, and his 20-something love interest, Eunice, doesn’t have a meaningful thought in her tech-crazed head.  Ron [...]

Daily Lit Links for 8/3

BNA_Daily | August 3, 2010

In today’s news, read about the literary legacy of Sex and the City, check out the Southern California Independent Booksellers Association award finalists, and learn which classic picture book is becoming a movie.

Candace Bushnell’s Sex in the City may have deteriorated into a horrible movie sequel, but it inspired a huge shift in women’s literature [...]

Daily Lit Links for 7/23

BNA_Daily | July 23, 2010

In today’s news, add some laugh-out-loud books to your beach bag, find out why Random House is in a tizzy, and check out Comic-Con 2010.  Enjoy!

Literary or otherwise, your summer reading books should be fun (assuming they weren’t assigned by a canon-worshipping English teacher).  In “Fun in the Sun: Laugh-Out-Loud Summer Reads,” NPR’s Heller McAlpin [...]