The Man Booker Prize, the use of poetry, and more speculation on the Nobel Prize

Another exciting week in the world of literature, once again for literary prizes. The Man Booker Prize was announced this week, the Giller Prize revealed its shortlist, and the German Book Prize was announced. We’re also excited for the 2013 Neustadt Festival, which kicks off on October 29th. Happy reading!

News, Reviews, and Interviews

This year’s Man Booker Prize went to Eleanor Catton for, The Luminaries, which, at a whopping 832 pages, is the longest book to win thus far. Catton is also the youngest prize winner to date.

The Giller Prize shortlist was revealed a few weeks ago, with several prominent authors on the list.

The German Book Prize was also awarded recently, going to Terézia Mora for her novel, Das Ungeheuer.

A new eBook lending service called Scribd has set its sights on becoming the “Netflix of books.”

A battle over the use of poetry has broken out over the web. Writing for the Atlantic, Noah Berlatsky responds to both culture at large and Meena Alexander’s essay in this month’s issue, ”What Use is Poetry?”

This week was a week for words. First, Mark Forsyth revealed his top 10 forgotten words at the Guardian. Then, at the New Yorker, a list of unusable words by Brad Leithauser surfaced.

There has been a lot of news coverage of the Syrian civil war of late, but not many people are talking about its effects. Here are two newly translated poems from people living through the crisis.

We are saddened to report that Oscar Hijuelos, the first Hispanic author to win a Pulitzer Prize for fiction, passed away at the age of 62 this week.

Does the Nobel Prize leave out certain books and authors from its ranks on purpose?

A very good question: what will it take for a Korean author to win the Nobel Prize in Literature?

For Your Calendar

Anne Carson is coming to Chicago! She will be appearing at the Harold Washington Library on November 2 in conjunction with the Poetry Foundation and the Chicago Humanities Festival.

Fun Finds and Inspiration

Looking for a good, long read this weekend (or, better yet, for the rest of the year)? Here’s a list of the top 10 long reads.

Have you heard of the Not the Booker Prize? It just released this year’s winner, and you might be surprised about how judging took place.

Which states are known for which books? This literary map lists the books most known for the state in which they are set.