Evaluating The Wit and Wisdom of H.L. Mencken
Column by Joshua Isard September 15, 2020
Parsing the style and substance of the cultural critic, H.L. Mencken. Does it hold up to modern scrutiny?
Most Mischievous Pranksters in Literature
Column by Emmanuel Nataf April 1, 2020
April Fool's is canceled this year (thank God!), but that doesn't mean we can't look to the past. So here are some of the most inventive and sly figures in literature.
The New Year's Resolutions of Your Favorite Literary Characters
Column by Emmanuel Nataf
To inspire you as you set about making your New Year's resolutions for 2020, this post asks how your favorite literary characters would approach their own resolutions.
Upon My Death: What Happens To An Author's Unfinished Work?
Column by Peter Derk November 8, 2018
If you don't make those decisions before you die, your loved ones will have to. And even then, who knows...
The Use of Derogatory Language in Period Pieces
Column by Bart Bishop August 23, 2016
Asking the question, is it okay for authors to use "authentic" language in period pieces?
A Rose By Any Other Name: 5 Episodes of Literary Mistaken Identity
Column by Leah Dearborn
Sometimes authors willingly direct readers away from their true identities. Occasionally, however, issues of authorship and identity are more complex or decidedly less purposeful.
When Critics Are Assholes: 8 Great Books That Got Slammed
Column by Ed Sikov October 2, 2015
In the literary justice system, critic-based offenses are considered particularly heinous. Idiots are to blame. These are their stories.
Mark Twain Stories Found by Berkley Scholars
News by Raine Winters
150 years later, lost stories from the infamous author come to light.
Gotcha! Six Epic Pranks Found in Literature
Column by Raine Winters
In celebration of April Fool's Day, here is a list of books containing famous scenes of tomfoolery.
10 Great Children's Books (The Insipid 'Goodnight, Moon' Isn't Among Them)
Column by Ed Sikov December 11, 2014
A collection of great children's literature chosen by a sentimental cynic.
What Makes A Southern Novel?
Column by Meredith Borders December 28, 2012
Quentin Tarantino's slave revenge epic 'Django Unchained' asks, what makes a southern film? We ask the same of books!
Passing Strange: 15 Of The Most Bizarre Author Deaths On Record
Column by Joshua Chaplinsky June 27, 2012
A list of authors whose passing couldn't have been stranger if they'd written it themselves.