Time to step into history class, folks. Recently, I stumbled upon an article on Vice that featured an interview with Joel Whitney, author of Finks: How the C.I.A. Tricked the World’s Best Writers. In his novel, he reveals how great writers such as James Baldwin, Gabriel Garcia Márquez, Richard Wright, and Ernest Hemingway became soldiers in America’s cultural Cold War. The book sets out to debunk the myth of a once-moral intelligence agency and reveals an extensive list of writers who were involved in transforming the image of America in countries suffering destabilisation due to coups, dictatorships, assassinations and other all-American interventions. …
Chilean Poet Nicanor Parra died at his home in Santiago on January 23rd at the age of 103. Upon hearing the news of his death, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet tweeted that “Chile has lost one of the greatest authors in the history of literature and a singular voice in Western culture. I am touched by the death of Nicanor Parra! My deepest condolences to his family.” Chile pierde a uno de los más grandes autores de la historia de nuestra literatura y una voz singular en la cultura occidental. ¡Estoy conmovida por el fallecimiento de Nicanor Parra! Mi más …
Precise essayist, poignant novelist, mother, and notable badass, Joan Didion is one of the most celebrated authors of her generation. Her voice is so fresh that she’s become an essential American cultural figure, particularly since the release of Slouching Towards Bethlehem. The book is a personal account of the hippie movement in the San Franciscan neighbourhood of Haight Ashbury. Her cult following has since grown and intensified since. Hers is the voice of a generation, and an incredible Netflix documentary about her life was released back in October of 2017. Check out the trailer below. Just from the trailer, you can see the author speaking candidly about …
New York Times bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize winner Junot Díaz is releasing his first-ever children’s book in March which celebrates cultural diversity in the U.S. and poses questions about identity and belonging. The story is told through an imaginary journey back to a young girl’s birthplace, “The Island.” Here is everything you need to know about it: Image Via Amazon Islandborn is set to be on shelves March 13th, and it’s already generating excitement as Díaz’s readers await the chance to meet him in person on his book tour, which begins in March and ends in April. The tour will take …
American writer William Faulkner was born in New Albany, Mississippi in 1897. Much of his early work was poetry, but he became famous for his novels set in the American South, frequently in his fabricated Yoknapatawpha County with works that include The Sound and the Fury, As I Lay Dying, and Absalom, Absalom! He pioneered new techniques in form and style, helping revolutionise the notion of the “narrative.” His contemporaries have described him as a somewhat aloof character, fond of whiskey, infidelity, and blowing off work. Having dropped out of high school before its completion, he lived most of his life in obscurity. One could say the story of William Faulkner …
