Understanding Earthquakes Through Literature, DFW's The Pale King, and More

by Staff
3.15.11

Every day Poets & Writers Magazine scans the headlines—from publishing reports to academic announcements to literary dispatches for all the news that creative writers need to know. Here are today's stories:

Author Marie Mutsuki Mockett wrote in the New York Times about her family living near Sendai, Japan, the biggest city near the epicenter of the earthquake and one of the hardest hit by the tsunamis.

Jacket Copy's David Ulin turned to literature as a way of understanding our collective terror and awe of earthquakes in the wake of the ongoing disaster in Japan.

Last year's London Book Fair was stymied by a giant Icelandic volcanic ash cloud that hindered the travel plans of many would-be participants, publishers, and authors. According to Publishers Weekly, this year's fair is back on track and set to rock the Earl's Court Exhibition Center on April 11.

The New York Times reported on the recent announcement that HarperCollins set a limit on the number of times libraries can lend its e-books, while the American Library Association weighed in on the adverse effect of such limits. "The announcement, at a time when libraries are struggling to remain open and staffed, is of grave concern," said ALA President Roberta Stevens. "This new limitation means that fewer people will have access to an increasingly important format for delivering information.”

The Millions offers a peek at the opening lines of David Foster Wallace's The Pale King, set to be released next month.

The judges for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, which was awarded to two books this year in a split decision, have once again stirred up controversy by selecting the first ever female winner of the prize as well as the first ever winner from the Maghreb region. (Guardian)

A magazine once led by author Graham Greene, called Night and Day, is set to revive as an online publication on March 24, according to Jacket Copy.

With a whole bunch of films adapted from books in theaters these days, Slate asked the question: Who is Hollywood's favorite author? (Hint: It's Shakespeare.)