For this week’s book news, I found a report on Cambodia’s first writing festival, and the difficulties Cambodian authors face. There’s also a lovely excerpt from an upcoming book about Charles M Schultz, the Peanuts and Franklin. I also found news about a wonderful project bringing diverse books to kids in the US. On the other end of the spectrum, I found an interview with two crime authors: one a beloved French author, and another an Australian author who writes historical crime novels.
Charles M. Schultz, Peanuts and Civil Rights: This is a snapshot Charles Schultz from a book being put together by graphic designer Chip Kidd. This article also gives a lengthy explanation of how Franklin came to be in the strip, including the letters between Schultz and the woman that inspired him to create Franklin. It’s riveting, and such a different perspective on a beloved comic.
Scholastic is partnering with We Need Diverse Books: LOVE this! Scholastic and We Need Diverse Books have got together to offer school kids in the US in grades 4-8 75 books with diverse characters and storylines. So all in all about 2.5 million school kids will be part of this and it’s AWESOME. Wonder if that’ll happen in Australia?
Pierre Lemaitre: Is France’s premier crime author — it’s kind of like a case of: if there’s an award, he’s got it — he’s just that good. I did an interview with him about his crime novels, including Alex, his most recent release at that time, but this article talks about his newest novel, The Great Swindle, set post-World War I.
Sulari Gentill, Australian crime author: I recced Sulari Gentill’s most recent work, Give The Devil His Due, yesterday, but I also wanted to add this lovely interview and profile of her.
Kampot Writers and Readers Festival: This is a writer’s festival held in Cambodia, and the very first one just finished up on 8 November. The four-day festival allowed Cambodian authors to connect with a broader audience. The country’s past, the lack of freedom for Cambodians to celebrate and write the literature they want was a theme of the festival. As the article progresses, it also discusses the difficulties Cambodian authors face, including the lack of support from their families and the difficulties they face being able to afford to come to the festival.
What do you think of this week’s articles?
That is fantastic about Scholastic and We Need Diverse Books. I love to hear that. The Peanuts book sounds really interesting – I love those comics, so hearing about “behind the scenes” types of stories is great!
I KNOW!! It’s so fabulous Scholastic is working with WNDB!! I hope them working together gets bigger and comes to AU! (I know, I’m getting carried away but still!)
I adored the Peanuts too! I remember reading it when I was kid in South Africa, and they’ve been such a constant in my life. And reading that, i finally realised just how big they were.