The Lit Review |34| A Bad Apple
A Bad Apple
A federal appeals court has ruled that Apple Inc. fixed prices with five publishers to increase e-book prices. The ruling has forced the corporation to pay out $450 million, most of which will go to e-book consumers.
Apple has released a statement denying the charges and may appeal again: ‘We know we did nothing wrong back in 2010 and are assessing next steps.’ Second Circuit Judge Debra Ann Livingston commented, saying: ‘Apple orchestrated a conspiracy among the publishers to raise e-book prices’. Bold Apple. We should boycott them. Who’s with me? *Clutches iPhone*.
Young Adult Fiction and Mental Illness
In recent years, there has been a growing trend of Young Adult fiction focusing on mental illness, and it is welcome. Allowing young people to relate to and understand the hardships and difficulties of everyday, normal life, through the stories they read and love, is hugely significant. This discussion will continue as part of the programme for the Young Adult Literature Convention (YALC) which takes place in London from 17th-19th of July.
Alice visits Morgan
The original manuscript of Lewis Carroll’s classic story Alice in Wonderland will take a holiday for the first time in 30 years to visit the Morgan Library in New York. The handwritten, hand-drawn manuscript that Lewis Carroll presented to his inspiration, a young Alice Liddell, in 1864 will travel from its lovely home in London’s British Library to the US, where it will stay until October.
This will add to the exhibition Alice: 150 Years in Wonderland and be joined by other memorabilia relating to Carroll’s muse, including a diary entry written by Carroll on the day he met the young Alice on a boat on the river Thames.
A Musical Birthday
In 2018, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s famous musical, Oklahoma! will turn 75. To mark the occasion, a biography covering the lives of the musical duo will be written by Todd S. Purdum, National Editor of Vanity Fair.
Irish Woman for Edge Hill Short Story Prize
Cork woman Madeline D’Arcy is the only Irish writer to have made the shortlist for the Edge Hill Short Story Prize for her collection Waiting for the Bullet. D’Arcy, who worked as a lawyer in London before returning to Ireland to undertake the MA in Creative Writing in UCC, commented on the prestige of winning prizes, saying: ‘The best thing about winning awards or being shortlisted or long-listed is that it gives you encouragement to do better work’.
Number 10 is Up to You
Selections for the Guardian First Book Award are afoot. Nine slots out of the longlist of ten titles will be filled by a jury, but it is up to you to pick the final title. It just needs to be a (great) first book in any form. You can share your pick by posting in the thread here before midnight on July 12th. You might be lending a hand in introducing us all to a wonderful newcomer.
Destroying Extremist Literature
The Egyptian Government has made the decision to destroy any books that reference Islamic fundamentalism. Emerging from the last few years of great political and social upheaval, Egypt has reached a point of relative stability under the rule of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. This is paired with a fairly low-tolerance attitude towards anything fundamental or extreme and has now gone as far as to destroy all literature that challenges or contradicts the ‘leniency of Islam’.
According to this article, the Ministry of Religious Endowments plans to ‘purge and confiscate’ any literature that broaches such extreme beliefs. The News Hub has written about similar behaviour which facilitated the rise of Ayatollah Khomeini in the early 1960s after a ban of books in Iran. It comments on the current crackdown, saying: ‘Instead of waiting and letting the Brotherhood discredit itself while in power the military authorities have instead chosen to crush it, and along with it, alas, the potential that Egypt could become at least a “flawed” democracy.’ I understand the concern, folks, but if you’re really striving for democracy then you may have to consider freedom of speech.
Cork Literary Festival
The West Cork Literary Festival is scheduled for the 15th-18th July and has a great choice of events and programmes to offer. Graham Norton will entertain audiences along with Michel Faber, David Nicholls and Nick Davies. There are workshops, Open Mic nights and, for the kids, illustrator Yasmeen Ismail will read from her illustrated stories Specs for Rex and Time for Bed Fred! and will work on some arts and crafts with the audience. All the details can be found here.
#readeverywhere
The #readeverywhere photo contest was launched last year inviting social media users to post a photo reading a copy of the London Review of Books or The Paris Review. The campaign is back again this year, and entrants stand to win a Freewrite smart typewriter, which looks pretty amazing. I’m secretly hoping that writing this article will outdo my poor photography skills and Astrohaus will just send me one.
Summer Shot
Double Shot runs twice a year in association with Books Upstairs, hosting well known and emerging voices in the Irish poetry scene. On July 11th it will host Summer Shot in the Workman’s Club in Dublin and will showcase 13 brave new voices. Tickets are €10, you can book your spot here.
Night Time Stories
The Leprechaun Museum is currently running Dark Land (for grown-ups only). These night tours will guide you around the city, divulging the dark and twisted stories and folklore of Ireland’s past. These are the stories that can only be told at night. They really are THAT terrifying. Expect banshees.
