Category: people

His own case – undiagnosed at the time – of the learning disability was so severe that he just barely managed to complete high school; he only discovered the reason when his son was diagnosed with the same condition. Since then, he has traveled the world as advocate – and co-written 28 children’s books (so far) about a boy struggling with dyslexia.

“[He] served for 35 years as a curator of European paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and was a renowned scholar on Vermeer and the Delft School.”

“Does she understand what’s going on? If you make her hear, she can understand what’s going on. Can she give informed consent? Absolutely, she can give informed consent. She knows what she likes, who she likes, what she doesn’t like. Mainly, she doesn’t like people to disturb her and interrupt her privacy and probe in her personal business.”

Throughout Mr. Ciccolini’s career, critics praised his playing for its technical virtuosity, airy lyricism and cool, assiduous elegance.

The extraordinary career – or perhaps non-career – of Harper Lee bears witness to a quite different way of conducting a writing life. She wrote one novel, an immediate classic and perhaps the best-selling novel of the 20th century, To Kill a Mockingbird. Since its publication in 1960, Lee has published no other book.

“The Huntington Library in California has acquired 52 unpublished letters, poems and other material from six generations of the Leigh family. Austen’s mother was Cassandra Leigh, and the novelist visited her Leigh family in Adlestrop several times, with some believing that the setting of Mansfield Park is partly drawn from the Gloucestershire village.”

He died Friday morning. “By the afternoon, newspapers in Latin America and Spain teemed with tributes. In his native Santiago, hundreds gathered for his funeral on Saturday, and celebrities and politicians competed to offer the most extravagant praise. … This is a surreal end for a writer who called himself a ‘queen’ (una loca) and ‘a poor old faggot’ (un marica pobre y viejo).”

“Patner’s sharp commentary and criticism, found in two weekly WFMT programs, ranged widely, from classical music and opera to theater, dance, visual art, books and films. He also contributed articles to numerous publications, including Art & Antiques, The New Yorker, Christian Science Monitor and New Art Examiner.”

“A passionate champion of French composers, he recorded more than 50 albums, mostly of French repertoire, and along the way championed many underrepresented French composers, especially Erik Satie.”

“The website is part advice column, part author Q & A. Murakami told readers they could ask about any subject — but he did note that he was particularly interested in cats and Japanese baseball.”