Book News & Features

A scene from Matthew Cordell's Caldecott-winning Wolf in the Snow.

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'Hello, Universe' Wins Newbery Medal, While Caldecott Goes To 'Wolf In The Snow'

1:12pm February 12, 2018

by Colin Dwyer

The annual honors in children's literature have been awarded: Erin Entrada Kelly won the Newbery for her contribution to children's literature, and Matthew Cordell won the Caldecott for illustration.

A vendor adjusts heart-shaped pillows hanging from a tree in Jalandhar, India, on Feb. 9.

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Poem For Your Thoughts: Your Memories Of Love, Captured In Poetry

5:12am February 12, 2018

You shared stories of being smitten, stories of betrayal and even a love letter to a dog. Here, author Kwame Alexander selects poems that get to the heart of those experiences.

The World Only Spins Forward, by Isaac Butler and Dan Kois

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New Oral History Captures The Magic Of 'Angels In America'

5:19pm February 09, 2018

by Bob Mondello

Authors Isaac Butler and Dan Kois celebrate Angels in a new book, The World Only Spins Forward, that collects the memories of everyone from playwright Tony Kushner to Congressman Barney Frank.

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A Debut Author Imagines Herself Into Other Lives In 'Asymmetry'

4:34pm February 08, 2018

by Lynn Neary

Lisa Halliday's new novel is made of stories that seem to have little to do with each other — partly autobiographical, and partly about lives and cultures that are far from her own.

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Denis Johnson's Final Collection Of Short Stories Is Published

8:49pm February 07, 2018

by Tom Vitale

Denis Johnson died of liver cancer last year. Now a final collection of short stories by the National Book Award-winning author has been published posthumously. Johnson's first collection of stories, Jesus' Son attracted a devoted following that includes Philip Roth and Zadie Smith.

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National Book Awards Add Category Honoring Works In Translation

5:09pm January 31, 2018

by Colin Dwyer

The new prize will consider both fiction and nonfiction translated into English and published in the U.S. It's the first addition to the National Book Foundation's annual slate in over two decades.

Ursula K. Le Guin speaks at the 2014 National Book Awards, where she was presented with lifetime achievement honors.

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Ursula K. Le Guin, Whose Novels Plucked Truth From High Fantasy, Dies At 88

7:44pm January 23, 2018

by Colin Dwyer

The author, best known for works such as the Earthsea series and The Left Hand of Darkness, used her fantastic realms to grapple with difficult themes. She leaves a legacy as a literary trailblazer.

A placard showing Gui Minhai is seen outside the China liaison office in Hong Kong in January 2016. At the time, the publisher had disappeared, only to surface later in Chinese detention. Authorities there released him last fall. He was arrested again las

China Seizes Publisher Of Banned Books Again — Just Months After Releasing Him

1:55pm January 23, 2018

by Colin Dwyer

Gui Minhai, a Hong Kong-based bookseller with Swedish citizenship, was on a train to Beijing for medical treatment when police detained him. Now, Swedish authorities are demanding answers.

Kaveh Akbar — himself a poet — posts in-depth interview with his favorite poets every week on DiveDapper.

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Kaveh Akbar Is Poetry's Biggest Cheerleader

10:00am January 14, 2018

by Jeevika Verma

Akbar, a poet himself, waves his pom poms for the form at DiveDapper, a site dedicated to in-depth interviews with his favorite poets. He says he wants to live his life "in joyful service" to poetry.

Where Author Jacqueline Woodson Would Like To Take Young People's Literature In 2018

4:52pm January 09, 2018

by Lynn Neary

The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Gene Luen Yang passed the baton to his successor Jacqueline Woodson on Tuesday. NPR takes a look at where young people's literature is now and where the new ambassador would like to take it in the coming year.