ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

WORDS

On The Influence Of Small Magazines And Big Ideas

Another meaning of the word “magazine” is a store of munitions. My own addition to the arsenal of the free press, Standpoint, was founded in 2008. I was editor for just over a decade, during which we made the magazine essential reading across the political and cultural spectrum. - The Critic

Publishers Have Found An Interesting Way To Fight Children’s Book Bans

Publishers, writers, and progressive organizations across the children’s book industry aren’t letting the book bans hold them back. Instead, they’re turning the bans into a rallying cry to publish even more diverse characters and points of view. - Fast Company

PEN America Gives Up, Cancels Its 2024 Literary Awards

"Facing widespread unhappiness over its response to the Israel-Hamas war, the writers’ group PEN America has called off its annual awards ceremony. Dozens of nominees had dropped out of the event, which was to have taken place next week." - AP

Amazon Is Clogged With Fake Books. How Does This Happen?

Many of them gleefully share misinformation or repackage basic facts from WikiHow behind a title that’s been search-engine-optimized to hell and back again. Some of them even steal the names of well-established existing authors and masquerade as new releases from those writers. - Vox

The Critical Book Stanley Kubrick Blocked With Legal Threats Is Now, At Last, Going To Be Published

“His reaction to The Magic Eye showed Kubrick’s image-control obsessions taken to extremes. He didn’t just make edits – he erased the entire project.” But now, after the director's death, Neil Hornick's 55-year-old manuscript has been prepared for publication. - The Observer (UK)

The Tips And Tricks Of A 23-Year-Old Crossword-Solving Champion

The young speedster says, Ttraining your eye to move back and forth from clues to grid without losing your place, remembering clues when you can, really helps." - The Atlantic

The Very Dark Side Of The Rare Book World

That is, the side where some books are bound in human skin. - The New York Times

As ‘Ecofiction’ Hits Its First Official Decade, Here Are Some Of Its Best Examples

"Many readers are seeking fiction that addresses environmental issues but explores a successful paradigm shift: fiction that accurately addresses our current issues with intelligence and hope. The power of envisioning a certain future is that the vision enables one to see it as possible." - Reactor Mag

This May Seem Obvious, But Libraries Are Great Places To Write

Libraries, actually, are not just great places, but the absolute best places to write. - LitHub

Viola Davis Adds Publisher To Her Packed Resume

Davis and her husband Julius Tennon are opening JVL Media, adding to their TV and movie production business - their company that has brought out hits like TV's How I Got Away with Murder and the 2022 action movie The Woman King. - The Hollywood Reporter

The Trans Author Who Toured Red State Libraries With Her Book

"It occurred to me that in Iowa you don’t need a permit to carry a gun — open or concealed. A current of people was funneling into the library, and I joined them. I sensed, eerily, that some who were entering alongside me were protesters." - Los Angeles Times (MSN)

Is It Okay To Throw Away Books?

A book is different from a pair of shoes or a scented candle—but is it that different? The kinds of excess we permit—even exalt—for books is unheard of for other categories of possessions. - The Walrus

Conserving Rare Books At (Yes) The Metropolitan Museum Of Art

"Not every workplace features a guillotine. … Fearsome machines are part of daily life at the lab, which serves as a hospital where ailing books from every department of the museum are restored to health." - The New York Times

PEN America’s Major Events For This Spring Are Falling Apart Over Gaza

"Amid growing criticism over its response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, freedom of expression nonprofit PEN America is facing questions over whether its Literary Awards ceremony, World Voices Festival, and Literary Gala, all scheduled to be held within the next month, can proceed as planned." - Publishers Weekly

Librarians Under Attack (And It’s Taking A Toll)

Instead of standing up for the robust exchange of ideas, lawmakers in state after state are pushing bills that would criminalize librarians for putting certain books on the shelves. Nuisance lawsuits and fights over book bans are draining librarians' time, energy, and resources. - Newsweek

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