13+ hour, 56+ min ago  (537+ words) In her acknowledgments, she credits her mother, Rita Thurman, for "the initial inspiration to set a novel on a fictionalized Dix Hill (with a'very'different family from our own.)" What was the seed that evolved into this novel? I asked her....

13+ hour, 55+ min ago  (533+ words) Isaac Fitzgerald, American Rambler: Walking the Trail of Johnny Appleseed (Knopf) "I loved this book. It felt like hanging out with a friend." "Ethan Hawke "A tremendous, mesmerizing gift from this one-of-a-kind storyteller." "R. O. Kwon Barry Walters, Mighty Real: A History…...

1+ day, 13+ hour ago  (1949+ words) Yes, it was a writing class, Darcy said, because of the W in the course listing. But the writing of poetry relied on a knowledge and an appreciation for" "Do you write your own poetry?" Martina asked. Darcy privately referred…...

4+ day, 6+ hour ago  (281+ words) John Lanchester's Look What You Made Me Do, Elizabeth Strout's The Things We Never Say, and Siri Hustvedt's Ghost Stories all feature among the best reviewed books of the week. Brought to you by'Book Marks, Lit Hub's home for book…...

5+ day, 6+ hour ago  (265+ words) Our favorite criticism of the week includes James Wood on Harriet Clark's The Hill, Laura Miller on James Lasdun's The Family Man, Sam Worley on Douglas Stuart's John of John, Colin Grant on Kimberl" Williams Crenshaw's Backtalker, and Adam Begley…...

5+ day, 6+ hour ago  (357+ words) A few years ago, my longtime children's book editor rejected my idea for a new middle grade novel. The rejection hit me hard'the story, of the daughter of a celebrity chef who moves to a small town after being adopted…...

6+ day, 6+ hour ago  (358+ words) Miriam Aiki prayed for the fruit of the womb for thirteen years. Thirteen years of chafed knees: blood and shredded skin staining church altars, shrine altars, her bedside rug, her mother-in-law's living room tiles. Thirteen years begging for a miracle,…...

1+ week, 6+ hour ago  (762+ words) JC: After setting so many of your novels, including your first, Amy and Isabelle, the Pulitzer Prize winning Olive Kittredge (2008), Olive, Again (2019) and The Burgess Boys in Maine, why this shift to coastal Massachusetts? JC: How did you arrive at…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago  (465+ words) Maria Semple's novel, Go Gentle, is available now from G. P. Putnam's Sons, so we asked her a few questions about writer's block, first literary loves, and more. This conversation has been condensed and edited. How do you tackle writer's block? I…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago  (233+ words) Balzer + Bray, May 12 Recommended for ages 3-6 Stephen Barr, Sixteen Games of Hide and Seek Illustrated by Steve Teare Neal Porter Books, May 12 Recommended for ages 4-8 Lauren Wolk, The Outermost Mouse Illustrated by Kristen Adam Dutton, May 19 Recommended for ages 4-8 Catharina…...