For those who need it, here is Daniil Kharms’ incantatory charm against melancholia which he named Ignavia.

I chose Layla Martínez’s “Woodworm” (Two Lines Press/Amor de Madre Editoras) as my Public Books Public Pick for this year. It is equal parts surgical and mesmerizing, unsettling and unforgettable. Also, check out these other wonderful picks from my colleagues! publicbooks.org/public-picks-2…

Ha!

Coming soon!

Schoenberg's archives are gone too. 💔

Not a single elected official in the state of Alabama has the courage of the high school student who, in trembling voice, recited her Dreamer/DACA poem at Poetry Out Loud yesterday. Not a single one.

Hmm. “High literary” vs.—“commercial”? Maybe. But as someone who oversees a press that exclusively publishes lit in translation—w/ an emphasis on women & writers of color—I feel like there’s a different conversation to be had. Isn’t the most interesting work from the margins?

True! And yet the “translation bro” is absolutely a type.

Right?

Etel Adnan: Mount Tamalpais, 2000. (Callicoon Fine Arts, New York) "I write what I see, paint what I am."

A Booker dozen // a baker’s dozen — a literary feast for your senses. A long list that – we hope – leans into discovery, defies expectations, delights and challenges as it details the world we live in. The Booker Prizes

Back in 2011, Pierre Joris wrote us these "Seven Minutes on Translation." So grateful for all of his work. arablit.org/2025/02/28/pie…

Hey, it's my birthday!🪩🌍 I'd love it if you'd share a link to a particularly memorable conversation on the show &/or who you would most like to see in the future. The conversation with Nikky Finney is forever etched in my heart. & I dream of Anne Carson tinhouse.com/podcast/nikky-…

Michael Holtmann wrote “this administration is actively trying to silence those of us who believe the world is large and our shared humanity is more wild and beautiful than one narrow-minded agenda.” The funding crisis for the arts is making it harder. .. 1/2

I could write a (probably not very good) book about Paul Celan's letters. Instead, I am grateful to have an essay in air/light magazine that is dedicated to the memory of Pierre Joris, whose love for Paul Celan is an eternity in language. 🖤 airlightmagazine.org/airlight/sprin…

Honored to have had the chance to spend time and share words with this literary genius and revolutionary before his passing. theparisreview.org/interviews/788…

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, giant of African literature, dies aged 87 such a shame the Nobel Committee over looked him for the prize. theguardian.com/books/2025/may…

RIP 🪦 Ngugi wa thiongo

Don't miss this tribute to Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o from publisher of Seagull Books سیگل Naveen Kishore. A wonderful glimpse into their friendship and correspondence. "A friendship built on words can’t help but endure." frontline.thehindu.com/other/obituary…