Susanna Clarke: “A narrative makes illness seem rational – and it gives the sufferer a measure of control – or at any rate the illusion of it. This is particularly true of the sort of chronic illness in the face of which poor doctors are often at a loss. - The Guardian (UK)
True, the person writing this was a history major, but still: "A rare surviving copy of the Declaration of Independence has been discovered at The National Archives in Kew, the only known example of its kind outside the US.” Discovered by a volunteer. - BBC
Supposed AI tells - “are also characteristic of human writing, which, after all, the large language models (LLMs) that produce them were trained on.” - The Guardian (UK)
“Fandom communities are still mostly relying on vibes. Most fanfics aren’t judged by a tool like the AO3 skin, but by tells' that could include anything from specific sentence structures — like the notorious ‘it’s not X, it’s Y' — to overuse of flowery metaphors.” - The Verge (Archive Today)
In a phone interview on Tuesday afternoon, Jamir Nazir told me that he feels vindicated—and relieved. “Look, I didn’t use it!” he said about AI. Now that he has won the prize, Nazir said, he is free at last to explain his process and clear his name. - The Atlantic
“Though it was much maligned during its initial years, The American Spelling Book had a profound pedagogical effect throughout the young nation. ... ‘There iz no alternativ,’ implored Webster in 1790, ... ‘Every possible reezon that could ever be offered for altering the spelling of wurds, stil exists in full force.’” - Literary Hub
In 2002, the Black feminist writer and scholar bell hooks published a book titled “Communion,” which argues that women have been conditioned to search for love outside of themselves, and should focus on cultivating self-love in all stages of their lives. - The New York Times
In every prize I’ve ever judged or heard firsthand reports of, everything else is up to the judges and their idiosyncrasies. There’s no input from anyone else. The heads of these organizations often learn the winner at the same moment the rest of the world does. - Rebecca Makkai
Theo of Golden is one of the bestselling books currently making all the lists right now, but its beginnings are a little unorthodox. It was written by a 70-year-old former judge who first went the self-publishing route before having his book distributed by a top-five publisher. - Book Riot
“Jamir Nazir’s story ‘The Serpent in the Grove’ went viral after being named as a regional winner in mid-May, with critics on X and Bluesky claiming it showed ‘obvious markers’ of AI use. … Nazir will receive an additional £2,500 on top of the £2,500 he won for being named the Caribbean winner last month.” - The Guardian
“The prize, which honors translated fiction and this year celebrates its 10th anniversary, will be renamed the Bukhman International Booker Prize,” with the top award raised from £50,000 to £100,000 (roughly $66,000 to $132,000), split equally between the winning author and translator. - Publishers Weekly
Sarah Wynn-Williams, who was director of global public policy at Facebook from 2011 until her firing in 2017, argues in her suit that the non-disparagement clause in her severance agreement and the arbitration order barring her from promoting her book, Careless People, are invalid. - AP
“Among the boys aged 11 to 14 who were surveyed, eight of the 10 most read books were from Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Girls’ reading was spread across a wider range of authors and genres including Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper ... and Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games.” - The Guardian
“Translators like to say, we discover our authors,” writes translator and novelist Anton Hur. “But maybe we’re wrong. Maybe the books choose us.” - American Scholar
