Not that Woodson hasn’t written for adults – she has. She’s written memoir, poetry, prose, essays, and just about everything else for every age, including a recent picture book that grew out of a book of young adult poetry that grew out of her great-grandfather’s experiences. She’s won just about every prize there is to win in children’s and youth literature, including a prize that’s allowing her to found an organization that will give fellowships to emerging writers of color. And now, in her novels, she’s turning to a reckoning with the present and the past. – The New York Times
Author: ArtsJournal2
Suzanne Whang, Actress, Comedian, And Enormously Popular Host Of ‘House Hunters,’ Has Died At 56
Whang dealt with breast cancer for more than a decade, and she incorporated the resultant health care experiences into her comedy – while also hosting House Hunters International and acting on Dexter, Las Vegas, and Arrested Development. HGTV, the network where she made House Hunters a household name stated in its press release, “Suzanne was warm, funny and kind with a distinctive voice that made everyone feel at home.” – The New York Times
You’ll Need A Lot Of Coffee To Get Through All 50 Books On The National Book Award Longlists
All five longlists rolled out this week. Are you ready to read 10 books in each of the categories? Get your poetry, nonfiction, fiction, translated fiction, and young people’s literature reading caps on (or just wait for the lists to be winnowed to five in October … or one apiece when the awards are announced). – NPR
The Ten Best Emmys Acceptance Speeches
Will anyone join the list this year? (And can anyone ever top Merrit Wever’s 2013 acceptance speech?) – Los Angeles Times
The Oldest Spinning Top Is About 5,500 Years Old [VIDEO]
Apparently, we can’t stop being fascinated with the momentary feel that perpetual motion could happen, if only we spun perfectly. – Aeon
Loving Los Angeles Enough To Tell Its Present, And History, In Books
Nina Revoyr’s books “juxtapose the jambalaya of Los Angeles’s people, neighborhoods, cultures, and social classes into complicated stories that surprise at every turn, entertain, and then illuminate the ever-present beauty of the city.” – Los Angeles Review of Books
Hollywood Is Glum, But The Emmys Show Must Go On
A lot of new shows are constantly churning through the pipeline, Netflix and Amazon are awash in television bucks, and old sitcoms are doing nine-figure streaming deals because for some reason, the kids these days love Friends and Seinfeld. But behind the scenes? Authors and agents are suing each other, some agents fled town for the weekend, and even the parties were cancelled, y’all. Can Hollywood recover? – The New York Times
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Reaches Tentative Agreement, Could Perform Next Week
The union ratification vote is Monday, and the public won’t hear details of the proposed contract until then. But late Friday night, “a brief, joint statement by the BSO and the Musicians’ Association of Metropolitan Baltimore Local 40-543 said that if both the players’ union and the BSO’s board of directors vote to sign the contract ‘it would enable the Baltimore Symphony to open its concert season’ next weekend.” – Baltimore Sun
High School Students Condense Marvel Movies Into One Seven-Minute Summary Dance
Yes, there are spoilers, but it’s beautiful (and think how much time you’ll save!). – The Verge
Phyllis Newman, Tony Award-Winning Broadway Star, Has Died At 86
Newman starting acting as a child and grew up to win a Tony in 1962, and to become the first woman to host The Tonight Show. After dealing with breast cancer, she also turned into a fierce fundraiser for the health of women in entertainment. – The New York Times