"Nigerian author Chinua Achebe, acclaimed in part for his groundbreaking 1958 novel "Things Fall Apart," has died, his British publisher, Penguin Books, said Friday." Set in precolonial Nigeria,
Things Fall Apart portrays the story of a farmer, Okonkwo, who struggles to preserve his customs despite pressure from British colonizers. The story resonated in post-independent Africa, and the character became a household name in the continent.
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posted by jquinby
on Mar 22, 2013 -
45 comments
Perched high up above the Thames in downtown London every month this past year a different writer has spent four days living in a replica of the Roi des Belges, the boat Marlow travels up the Congo in Joseph Conrad's
The Heart of Darkness. Each author would write a short text during their stay "which explores London, rivers, the work of Joseph Conrad, or even all three." They would be visited on the last day by a journalist from The Guardian who recorded them reading their essay, poem or short story. Among the poets, historians and novelists were Adonis, Jeanette Winterson, Teju Cole, Michael Ondaatje and Kamila Shamsie. These recordings, each prefaced by a short interview, are all available on the Guardian website, to stream or download. Below the cut there is a link to each recording, with a short description.
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posted by Kattullus
on Dec 31, 2012 -
7 comments
Conrad Black has been granted
bail. Some are saying that he might be free as early as this week, and that he might not end up back in jail again -- instead, being sentenced to time served. He
gave up his Canadian citizenship in 2001 so that he could serve in the British House of Lords: where, oh where, will the poor guy live?
Here he is either packing, or removing boxes that helped get him into trouble in the first place.
posted by anothermug
on Jul 19, 2010 -
16 comments
