Books (Books)

June at 1book140: Whodunnits vs International Novels

June at 1book140: Whodunnits vs International Novels

Nominate titles in one of two categories for our Twitter book club to read.

Even Khaled Hosseini Can't Tell Stories as Effectively as He Wants To

Even Khaled Hosseini Can't Tell Stories as Effectively as He Wants To

The author of The Kite Runner and And the Mountains Echoed touts the introduction of Stephen King's "The Body" as a poignant encapsulation of an author's limitations.

The Time Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays Did a Dual Interview for <i>Esquire</i>

The Time Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays Did a Dual Interview for Esquire

In 1968, in the twilights of both greats' careers, the magazine asked the pair to evaluate each other's achievements—and the resulting story was affectionate, funny, and poignant.

Cormac McCarthy's <i>The Road</i> May Have the Scariest Passage in All of Literature

Cormac McCarthy's The Road May Have the Scariest Passage in All of Literature

Benjamin Percy, author of Red Moon, makes the case.

When a Sentence Changes Your Life&mdash;Then Changes Its Own Meaning

When a Sentence Changes Your Life—Then Changes Its Own Meaning

Author Anthony Marra read new meaning into a line from Denis Johnson's Jesus' Son, years after that line had altered the way Marra thought about writing.

1book140's <i>Great Gatsby</i> Month: Read the Book and Watch All Four Films

1book140's Great Gatsby Month: Read the Book and Watch All Four Films

The May discussion schedule for our Twitter book club

Doodles by Lewis Carroll: Handwritten Manuscript Pages From Classic Books

Doodles by Lewis Carroll: Handwritten Manuscript Pages From Classic Books

These paper-and-ink drafts offer glimpses into the creative habits of 25 authors who wrote their timeless works the old-fashioned way.

The Language of Junk-Food Addiction: How to 'Read' a Potato Chip

The Language of Junk-Food Addiction: How to 'Read' a Potato Chip

Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us author Michael Moss discusses just how apt the Lay's slogan "Betcha can't eat just one" is.

Chekhov's Mongoose: The Literary Figures With the Weirdest Obsessions

Chekhov's Mongoose: The Literary Figures With the Weirdest Obsessions

Creative thinkers often have some unconventional impulses: Immanuel Kant liked being wrapped up like a mummy, and Charles Dickens lived with a bunch of animals.

How to Tell Charles Dickens's Prose From Every Other Dead White Guy's

How to Tell Charles Dickens's Prose From Every Other Dead White Guy's

A statistician's claims that readers can't distinguish Dickens from Edward Bulwer-Lytton is likely overblown—and reflects a wider misunderstanding of literature.

David Sedaris's Sorta-Secret Side Career as a Speech Writer for High Schoolers

David Sedaris's Sorta-Secret Side Career as a Speech Writer for High Schoolers

Why does the best-selling humorist's new book include six monologues for teen speakers? Because Sedaris moonlights as a hero in the world of competitive high-school forensics.

The Wendell Berry Sentence That Inspired Michael Pollan's Food Obsession

The Wendell Berry Sentence That Inspired Michael Pollan's Food Obsession

For Pollan, "eating is an agricultural act" offers more insight into how food relates to the world than Thoreau or Emerson's words ever could.

<i>Granta</i>'s Best Young British Novelists on Their Favorite Young British Writers

Granta's Best Young British Novelists on Their Favorite Young British Writers

Honorees from the publication's once-in-a-decade list praise their contemporaries.

Hemingway's 'Sex Novel'? Outlandish Claims Used to Challenge Classic Novels

Hemingway's 'Sex Novel'? Outlandish Claims Used to Challenge Classic Novels

The many parental and professorial objections to the teaching of literature like To Kill a Mockingbird, Animal Farm, and more

The Storytelling Lesson Contained in a Sentence About the Hindenburg

The Storytelling Lesson Contained in a Sentence About the Hindenburg

Fiona Maazel, the author of Woke Up Lonely and Last Last Chance, shares her favorite passage from her former teacher Jim Shepard.

'Self-Harmers Are Not Just Depressives': Writing a Book About Cutters Who Cook

'Self-Harmers Are Not Just Depressives': Writing a Book About Cutters Who Cook

Jessica Soffer talks about her beautiful debut novel, Tomorrow There Will Be Apricots.

In Defense of <i>Romeo and Juliet</i>: It's Not Childish, It's *About* Childishness

In Defense of Romeo and Juliet: It's Not Childish, It's *About* Childishness

Criticism that the classic doomed love story glorifies immaturity misses the point: Shakespeare was riffing on how people use the young/old binary to manipulate others.

Live First, Write Later: The Case for Less Creative-Writing Schooling

Live First, Write Later: The Case for Less Creative-Writing Schooling

An unexpected brush with professional jealousy reminds a writing teacher that it's what you have to say, not how well you've learned to say it, that's the basis for great stories.

Tiny Verses on Envelopes: The Handwritten Poems of Famous Authors

Tiny Verses on Envelopes: The Handwritten Poems of Famous Authors

F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote in jaunty cursive loops; Emily and Charlotte Brontë, meanwhile, wrote on scraps of paper so tiny their penmanship requires a magnifying glass.

'Too Much Champagne Is Just Right': Famous Writers on How to Drink

'Too Much Champagne Is Just Right': Famous Writers on How to Drink

Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Mencken, and other scribes had deep thoughts on boozing.

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