Book News & Features

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Colson Whitehead, John Lewis, Rita Dove Among National Book Award Nominees

10:15am September 15, 2016

by Colin Dwyer

And then there were 40: This week, the National Book Foundation revealed the writers who are still in contention for its literary prize. It capped the rollout Thursday with the fiction nominees.

Oxford English Dictionary Updates With 6 Dahl Words

6:47am September 14, 2016

Children's author Roald Dahl would have turned 100 this week. To celebrate, the OED added 6 words and expressions from Dahl's writing. For example: golden ticket, Oompa Loompa and Scrumdiddlyumptious.

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Six novelists have made it to the short list, the last step in the Man Booker Prize competition. The 2016 finalists are from Britain, the U.S. and Canada.

Man Booker Spotlights Novelists New To The Award's Short List

8:14pm September 13, 2016

by Lynn Neary

Organizers have revealed the six authors still in the British literary competition. It's the first time five of them have been in the last round. The prize is 50,000 pounds and often better sales.

Dictionary Fans Might Squee: OED Adds New Words, Because YOLO

4:29pm September 12, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

A fusty old tome? Fuhgeddaboudit. The Oxford English Dictionary regularly updates to reflect English's evolution. The latest additions include "gender-fluid," "biatch" and a batch of Dahlesque words.

In Raina Telgemeier's new Ghosts, Cat and her little sister Maya move to a new town — and Maya, who suffers from cystic fibrosis, sets her heart on meeting one of the ghosts who supposedly haunt the place.

Books
Arts

'Ghosts' Takes On A Tough Topic For Children

10:10am September 11, 2016

by NPR Staff

Raina Telgemeier's new graphic novel follows teenager Cat and her irrepressible little sister Maya who has cystic fibrosis. The author says she hopes the story opens up conversations about loss.

Missy Piggle-Wiggle and the Whatever Cure, by Ann M. Martin and Annie Parnell

Books
Arts

'Missy Piggle-Wiggle' Brings Magical Cures To The Modern World

8:29am September 10, 2016

by Petra Mayer

60 years ago, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle cured your parenting problems with Leadership Pills, well-mannered pigs and Ignorance Tonic. Now, her niece Missy takes up the mantle in a new series of books.

Pura Belpré became the first Puerto Rican librarian at the New York Public Library in 1921. She's shown above leading a story hour in the 1930s.

How NYC's First Puerto Rican Librarian Brought Spanish To The Shelves

6:51pm September 08, 2016

by Neda Ulaby

When Pura Belpré became a librarian in 1921, she couldn't find Spanish language books for kids — so she wrote them herself. Belpré would go on to become a champion of bilingual library programs.

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Books
Arts

Former Journalist Sabaa Tahir Writes Dystopian Fantasies Inspired By The News

3:38pm September 03, 2016

by Neda Ulaby

Tahir got the idea for her series An Ember in the Ashes in 2007, after she was asked to edit a haunting news story at The Washington Post.

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Arts

Literary 'It Couple,' Both Best-Selling Authors, Work Side By Side

2:07pm September 01, 2016

by Neda Ulaby

Tahereh Mafi and Ransom Riggs married in 2013. The next few weeks will see the release of Tim Burton's adaptation of his book Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children and her book Furthermore.

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Ed Sanders, Author Of Manson Family Biography, To Sell Massive Archive

9:44am August 28, 2016

by Jon Kalish

Sanders wrote the definitive book on the Manson Family ("The Family.") He's currently working on a book about Robert Kennedy. He's decided to sell the assembled work on which he's based his research.