With no deal (so far) to end the strikes that have shut down Hollywood, many of your favorite shows, not to mention must-see events like the Emmys, are on hold. Which means you may be looking elsewhere for diversion. Read more
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New Jersey is a typical entry in the FWP’s American Guides series, published during the late 1930s and early ’40s. The series comprises shaggy biographies of all the then 48 states; pick one at random and you’ll find a smorgasbord of history, legends, jokes, industrial data, social analysis, epitaphs, old letters, old newspaper clippings, old diaries, ghost stories, dubious tales, and half-forgotten anecdotes. You’ll find handsome line illustrations alongside photographs of houses and monuments and people at work. You’ll find scattered, subtle reports on how people were sustaining themselves through the Depression and how New Deal policies were reshaping the country. You’ll find a little practical advice for travelers and a lot of information whose purpose is more obscure. You’ll find a guidebook that seems, itself, to have wandered off and gotten lost. Read more
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The American Library Association is facing a partisan firefight unlike anything in its almost 150-year history. The once-uncontroversial organization, which says it is the world’s largest and oldest library association and which provides funding, training and tools to most of the country’s 123,000 libraries, has become entangled in the education culture wars — the raging debates over what and how to teach about race, sex and gender… Read more
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A federal judge on Friday upheld a finding from the U.S. Copyright Office that a piece of art created by AI is not open to protection. Read more
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Take the books off the shelves. Dust them, thumb through them, find yourself surprised about what you do and don’t remember. Line them up however you like—by size, by color, by author, by vibes—and then, when everything you’ve read is sorted, tackle the real challenge. The unread books… Read more
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Across the country, a few former homes of writers are opening their doors to private guests — some even letting fans stay the night. Here’s where you can check in, and maybe by the morning, feel a little closer to literary genius. Read more
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More than 70 years after doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital took Henrietta Lacks’ cervical cells without her knowledge, a lawyer for her descendants said they have reached a settlement with a biotechnology company that they accused of reaping billions of dollars from a racist medical system. Tissue taken from the Black woman’s tumor before she died of cervical cancer became the first human cells to continuously grow and reproduce in lab dishes. HeLa cells went on to become a cornerstone of modern medicine, enabling countless scientific and medical innovations, including the development of the polio vaccine, genetic mapping and even COVID-19 vaccines. Read more
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Literary icon Joyce Carol Oates is the author of more than 100 books, including Them, We Were the Mulvaneys, and Blonde. In this acclaimed documentary, she provides insight into her life, creative process, and the events that have shaped her writings, including the 1967 Detroit Riot, the Chappaquiddick incident, and the tragic life of Marilyn Monroe. Watch trailer
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The deals have become highly lucrative for the justices, including for those who used court staff members to help research and promote their books. Read more
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More than 70 festival partners and participants signed an open letter on Monday condemning the Smithsonian APAC’s decision to cancel the event, calling it unprofessional and “unacceptable.” Read more
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