Stories about Literature from August, 2006
Russian-Language Blogs: Miscellanea (3)
Israeli blogger pilka writes (RUS) about a surreal experience of eating next to three clowns at a hospital in the wartime Haifa: […] I had breakfast with clowns today. I work at the children's department, okay? So strange, a clown on the right, a clown on the left, a vegetable...
Venezuela, Bolivia: Books and Oil
Katy of Caracas Chronicles translates an article by Bolivian author, Juan Claudio Lechín about “Bolivarian double standards” at a Bolivian Book Fair.
African Women This Month
Literature, music and blog redesigns are three of the themes in the African women's blogosphere this month. Molara Wood and Mama's Junkyard have both redesigned their blogs. Molara has chosen to stick with blogger.com but takes on a new name, Wordsbody. Mama's Junkyard ungrades to WordPress with a new colour...
Nigeria: Pictures and Soyinka's interview
Nigeria in pictures and Wole Soyinka on the future of Nigeria inside Aderemi’s Notebook.
Kenya: Poem for Pluto
“Poor Old Pluto” has lost its planet status: a poem.
Argentina: Borges’ Bday
Yesterday was Jorge Luis Borges’ 107th birthday. With the help of YouTube, Julián Gallo pays homage. Don't forget about Jeff Barry's excellent “30 Days with Borges” series.
Jamaica, UK: Linton Kwesi Johnson
Geoffrey Philp extends birthday greetings to Britain-based Jamaican dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson: “He became only the second living poet to be published in the Penguin Classics series. His poetry involves the recitation of his own verse in Jamaican Creole over dub-reggae, usually written in collaboration with renowned British reggae...
China: Pluto conspiracy theory
In reaction to the possibility that Pluto has to be taken away from the solar system planet list, the mainland science fiction writer, Hansong wrote a story about the western conspiracy against China on such proposal(zh).
Venezuela: Literature: El Complot
Guillermo Parra reviews Israel Centeno's third novel, “El Complot” as “what might be the first work of fiction to evoke the chaotic political and social crisis that has engulfed Venezuela since 1998.”
Russian-Language Blogs: Miscellanea (1)
On August 19, LJ user sapojnik (39 years old, Moscow) wrote this (RUS) about the 15th anniversary of the 1991 August Putsch: The Day of Victory Over the CPSU It's necessary to have a clear understanding of what happened in August 1991. It wasn't the “collapse of the [Soviet] Union,”...
Japan: web diary turned novel
Lee from Tokyo Times introduces another web diary turned novel in Japan. This time the story is about lesbian longing from Harukarin Blog.
Kyrgyzstan: A Trip to Sheker
JJ recently took a short trip to the village of Sheker in Kyrgyzstan and writes about both the trip and the town's famous son, famed Kyrgyz author Chingiz Aitmatov.
Russia: Literary Chechens and Navajos
J. Otto Pohl posts a more detailed review of the book comparing depiction of Chechens and Navajos in Russian and American literature: “It is true that since 1868 the Navajos have kept their promise to maintain peace with the US government. They have also not asked for political independence. But,...
Russia: Remembering August 1991
Alex(ei) of The Russian Dilettante's Weblog writes about causes and consequences of the August 1991 failed coup.
Russia: Solzhenitsyn's Speech
Ivan Lenin of Rush-Mush critiques the speech Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's gave at Harvard in 1978.
Jamaica, Germany: Marlon James on Grass
Jamaican novelist Marlon James offers his two cents’ on German novelist Günter Grass's recent admission that he was once a member of the Waffen SS: “I would think that a man who was in the elite SS going on to become the very conscience of his nation, would speak to...
Poland: Lech Walesa vs Gunter Grass
The beatroot writes that Lech Walesa now “feels uncomfortable” in the company of Gunter Grass, following the recent revelation about the writer's past.
Czech Republic: Travelling Musicians
Bored in Brno writes about problems faced by musicians traveling by air and translates a somewhat relevant comic poem by a Czech poet, put to music by a Czech band.
Walk good, Miss Lou
On 26 July, Jamaicans were shocked by news of the death, at age 86, of Louise Bennett-Coverly, better known as Miss Lou, the beloved poet and actor who entertained three generations of Jamaicans and played a groundbreaking role in legitimising “Jamaica talk”, the distinctive dialect of most Jamaicans, which had...
Jamaica: Happy birthday, Roger Mais
On August 11, Geoffrey Philp sends birthday wishes to Jamaican writer Roger Mais, whose novel Brother Man, “opened the door for me to write about Rastafari and reggae.”
Posts from Peru
Some of the recent political news inspired new posts in Peruvian blogs; here are some of them: Jomra takes a look at Quechua in Congress: a small step for a language forgotten by the State (ES). The post discusses the consequences of an incident that took place during the initial...
