Featured stories about Literature
Stories about Literature
Ukrainian library reinvents itself for a New Age
A youth library in Kherson shows the way to thriving in uncertain times as an educational and literary hub for the local community and wider region.
The first woman dub poet, Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze, dies at her rural Jamaican home
Reflective of Jamaica’s storytelling tradition, her work involved repeated chanting in a narrative style.
Tintin in Bangladesh…. only in the artist's imagination!
A Bangladeshi cartoonist is drawing nostalgic memories of the European comic book "The Adventures of Tintin" through his fan art "Tintin in Bangladesh" — with a local twist.
Balloons, graffiti, sports and economic power are the latest tools of Palestinian resistance
These latest acts of resistance reflect the energy brought to the movement by young people seeking their right to self-determination and to claim the spaces in which they live.
Roland Watson-Grant, Caribbean regional winner of the 2021 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, tells a tale of rural Jamaica
"I think the collective Jamaican experience can be summed up in the words of Paulo Coelho: ‘We all have one foot in a fairytale, and the other in the abyss.’"
Netflix’s new series on Yasuke, the African samurai, is a new dawn for Black characters in animation
Rather than a biography of the African Samurai, the a six-part series takes the void of knowledge post-1582 as a starting point to a re-imagined alternate reality and fantastical story.
Alternative Indian movies: Is Netflix at last embracing cultural diversity?
Netflix, which has become the entertainment go-to for millions during the pandemic's prolonged lockdowns, is exploring new Indian productions that stray away from the typical plotlines and visuals.
The Caribbean's foremost literary festival has released its 2021 longlist; Trinidad & Tobago writers dominate
“Where else would you find Trinidadian street food in the same volume as an appraisal of Thom Gunn's poetry, or Dylan Thomas rubbing shoulders with soca?”
Trinidadian activist and writer Colin Robinson, who did the ‘work of social history,’ has died
"Imagination is as critical to social justice as power. Unless we imagine more just futures and how we get there, change won’t come."
Palestinian poet Mourid Barghouthi's death mourned by many
Mourid wrote: "It’s fine to die, once, our hands crossed on our chests, empty and pale, with no scratches, no chains, no banners, and no petitions."
Nearly six centuries after his birth, who owns Alisher Navoiy, the ‘father of Uzbek literature?’
February 9 marks the birth anniversary of a 15th-century Afghanistan-born poet who championed Turkic heritage, and became a national literary symbol in Soviet and later independent Uzbekistan.
Guyanese-American author celebrates Caribbean identity in new alphabet book
'I noticed how scarce and inaccessible Black children's literature was, compared to other fictional children's books.'
Will poetry be enough to get Czechs to embrace anti COVID-19 vaccination?
The Czech government has launched a new communication campaign aimed at overcoming the population's fear or suspicion of vaccination.
From COVID-19 to Caribbean literature, this is what the region looked like in 2020
COVID-19 was at the top of the news cycle this year. In the Caribbean, the pandemic exacerbated already existing issues, but also allowed regional netizens to reimagine their collective future.
‘Godmother’ of Caribbean literature, Marina Salandy-Brown, made honorary fellow of Royal Society of Literature
“We've always been writing in the Caribbean, but no one had really created a space (at home) with the power to [connect] regional writers to the international publishing industry."
Pakistan to introduce tougher punishment for rape—including chemical castration
The laws address several aspects of the criminal process and include an expansion of the definition of rape, which was welcomed by activists. Other points, however, received mixed reactions.
In the Middle East, words escape prison walls to inspire freedom and hope
"Why is our homeland so small and tight, and why am I considered a criminal or an enemy that threatens it!”
The greatness of Caribbean writer Jean Rhys
Best known for “Wide Sargasso Sea,” her daring riposte to “Jane Eyre”, Rhys is an integral part of the literary canon. A panel of writers dissects what makes her great.
During the Cold War, Latin American intellectuals found solace in communist Prague
After World War II, Latin America had authoritarian, US-backed anti-communist governments. Facing repression at home, writers found refuge in communist Prague, in a story little-known in today's Czech Republic.
Proposed tax on books in Brazil may disadvantage readers in poorer neighbourhoods
The Brazilian government is considering a 12 percent tax on literary works. Cultural initiatives warn that the proposal risks widening existing inequalities in access to reading.
