Literary World at a Glance: 9/23/20
By Hannah Paige
News
The Independent Publishers of New England, together with Brilliant Light Publishing, L3C has concluded the jurying process for its Pandemic Grant. This grant is for writers who have at least one book published, and have financial needs / book services needs during these difficult times. We are happy to announce that the grant met with a very positive reception. Thank you to all across New England who contributed and got the word out to make this program a success.
The New Hampshire Writer’s Project has announced a new grant for struggling writers/independent bookstores affected by Covid. Apply through the link below. https://www.nhwritersproject.org/2020/07/28/a-potential-resource-for-writers-affected-by-covid-19/
The New England Independent Booksellers Association has announced their 2020 Book Award Finalists! Check out their website for the finalists in each category. Those interested can attend the Book Award Final event at the Fall Conference held this week. The annual Fall Conference will be held over Zoom September 21-25, where they will announced the winners.
https://newenglandbooks.org/page/book-awards
In sadder literary news…
I AM BOOKS, a bookstore in Boston’s North End is going out of business due to the pandemic. The toll of the Covid-19 pandemic has been too great for the North End’s Italian bookstore I AM BOOKS. While the bookstore’s website will remain open for ordering, the North End location will be closing its doors. On September 12, the store hosted a “goodbye event” for bibliophiles to pay their respects.
In these difficult times, independent bookstores need your help more than ever! This weekend, take a trip to a local New England bookstore and stock up on some books to enjoy in the fall weather! Support those booksellers so that we can keep reading and writing!
It’s Not Just Stephen King (Latest Releases You Might Not Know About)
Lands End, Gail Mazer
(August 5)
“In this comprehensive volume, Mazur (Forbidden City) demonstrates a remarkable mastery of poetic technique as she depicts human relationships in all of their ambiguities. These poems highlight both the arc of a career and the seamless unity within Mazur’s distinguished body of work.”
—Publishers Weekly
The Caretaker, Doon Arbus
(September 15, New Directions)
“Arbus’s sly debut novel (after Diane Arbus: A Chronology, a coauthored collection of her mother’s diary entries) explores the insular world of the late Dr. Charles Alexander Morgan—collector, chemist, philosopher, philanthropist, and all-around eccentric—whose legacy, consisting of hundreds of items ranging from seashells and coat hangers to a portrait by Albrecht Dürer and Morgan’s seminal masterpiece entitled simply Stuff, is overseen by a devoted and unnamed caretaker. . . Taking cues from tales by Kafka and Robert Walser, Arbus pulls off an unnerving feat of contemporary postmodernism.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Doon Arbus’s debut novel is a kind of mystery—about who we become, what the absent leave us with, and why. Dense, visual, and true, this short book speaks volumes about the theater of the mind, and how the ensuing comedic drama we call life unfolds inside and outside our control. A marvelous new voice.
—Hilton Als
Catch the author event this week! https://www.ndbooks.com/event/doon-arbus-in-conversation-with-hilton-als/#/
Also recently released from New Directions, a new essay collection Angels and Saints from Eliot Weinberger, who The New York Times calls “one of the world’s greatest essayists.”
Hit the Road (Literary Travel Spots)
In Haverhill, MA those interested in learning about the history of the books they have come to so cherish should seek out the Museum of Printing.
“The Museum of Printing is dedicated to preserving the rich history of the graphic arts, printing and typesetting technology, and printing craftsmanship.
In addition to many special collections and small exhibits, the Museum contains hundreds of antique printing, typesetting, and bindery machines, as well as a library of books and printing-related documents.”
(From the MoP website)
When reading, it’s easy to get lost in a good book’s story rather than think about what it took to get that book into your hands. The history of printing and book-making is one with a long lineage, stretching back to long before New England could boast of a rich reading community. Many might attribute the history of book-making to begin with Johansen Gutenberg and his invention of adjustable type mold that fit into the precursor to the modern printing press in the 15th century. But actually, people have been eager to find ways of documenting the world around them long before Gutenberg’s revolutionary change. People had been experimenting with paper making and printing techniques in China, Spain, and Ireland for centuries already. Slowly, word spread of this new technology and other countries began to utilize it. Most of what was printed in these early years of the printing press pertained to religious material, but eventually as the printing revolution progressed, more literature was widely produced.
When the Puritans landed in the New World, they brought with them the first printing press in the United States, introducing the Western idea of what we might consider a book to what would eventually become New England. It wasn’t until the 19th century that the mass paperback was born in England. Called “penny dreadfuls,” these short stories of the Gothic and Crime nature cost a penny and were immensely popular, coming over to the United States with time as what we would call “dime novels.” In comparison, these bear hardly any resemblance to the novels New England readers take pleasure in today, but that doesn’t discount their importance in the history of books and printing.
This is but an abbreviated history and has been condensed almost to sweet-milk status (baking season must be upon us soon.) If you’re interested in learning more about the lineage of printing, go check out the newly re-opened Museum of Printing in MA. More information about touring can be found on their website.
