Mount Holyoke hosts its 95th Glascock Poetry Competition
Writers of color make groundbreaking wins at PEN Literary Awards
BY ISABEL RODRIGUEZ ’21
Poets, Essayists, and Novelists (PEN) held its annual Literary Awards commemoration at New York University on Feb. 20. Since it formed in 1963, the PEN American Literary Awards has honored authors of various genres, including but not limited to fiction, essays, biography, poetry, science writing, sports writing and drama and offers grants and fellowships.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library donates its 100 millionth book
Author Luvvie Ajayi emphasizes the importance of truth in activism at book talk
Ami Campbell discusses radical generosity at Odyssey Bookshop
BY DEANNA KALIAN ’20
Ami Campbell greeted each guest as they ambled into the Odyssey Bookshop to hear her talk about her book, “Love Let Go: Radical Generosity for the Real World.” She graduated as an economics and English double major in 1992. Her time at Mount Holyoke, Campbell said, prepared her for the unique task that lay ahead of her.
Dystopian “Red Clocks” fails to connect with readers
BY BEATA GARRETT ’20
Hailed as the new “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Leni Zumas’ third dystopian novel “Red Clocks” takes place in a society where abortion is newly criminalized and adoption is restricted to married couples. The novel explores the intersecting lives of four women and the ways in which they navigate society: Ro, the high school teacher and biographer who desperately wants a child; Mattie, her student who finds herself in an unwanted pregnancy; Susan, a housewife trapped in a loveless marriage and Gin, a “mender” who helps those abandoned by the health care system and finds herself on a modern-day witch trial for doing so.
Milo Yiannopoulos battles Simon & Schuster in response to release of “Dangerous” book edits
BY RENN ELKINS ’20
For an over a year now, controversial internet personality and former Breitbart writer Milo Yiannopoulos has been engaged in an ongoing legal dispute with publishing company Simon & Schuster. The trouble began when other writers who had contracts with Simon & Schuster spoke out in defiance of the company’s decision to publish Yiannopoulos. Among these protesters was feminist author Roxane Gay, who visited Mount Holyoke to deliver a talk last February, and mentioned that she did not believe she could publish her book in good conscience via Simon & Schuster.
George R.R. Martin’s “The Winds of Winter” expected in 2018
BY DEANNA KALIAN ’21
Fans of George R. R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series have been waiting impatiently for the release of the sixth and penultimate installment, “The Winds of Winter.” Martin published his most recent book in the series, “A Dance with Dragons,” in the summer of 2011, and fans have been waiting for “The Winds of Winter” ever since.
Acclaimed author Ursula K. Le Guin passes away at 88
BY KATE TURNER ’21
Ursula K. Le Guin died at on Jan. 22 with 88 years of life and a full career behind her. Throughout her life, she wrote more than 20 novels, 13 books for children, over 100 short stories and seven lengthy books of critical essays, according to The New York Times. She is remembered for many accomplishments: her multiple Hugo and Nebula awards, her astonishing body of work and her immense talent for creating entire complicated and alien worlds in the span of a single novel.
Young Adult authors debut novels at the Odyssey Bookshop
Toni Morrison’s continued legacy at 87 years old
BY DURE-MAKNOON AHMED ’20
Feb. 18 marks the 87th birthday of celebrated author Toni Morrison. Throughout her writing career, which spans half a century, Toni Morrison has been dedicated to the cause of racial justice. Her raw clarity and courage, coupled with her great writing skills, have earned her many accolades, including the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993.
Remembering George Orwell several decades later as the man whose novels redefined dystopian fiction
BY RENN ELKINS ’20
Most people today are familiar with the iconic quote “Big Brother is watching.” Jan. 21st marked the 68th anniversary of literary legend George Orwell’s death. Orwell, best known for his chilling dystopian depiction of the future in “Nineteen Eighty-Four,” and his allegorical retelling of Russian communism’s rise in “Animal Farm,” is both admired and disdained by academics and activists alike.
New books of 2018 take on the the world
BY SIDNEY BOKER ’21
With the new year comes new books! To help navigate the slew of new stories out this year, here is a small tasting menu of the most anticipated books, with genres including thriller, fantasy, YA, contemporary and nonfiction. These books here have been compiled from Bustle’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2018”and Barnes and Noble’s “Best of 2018” lists.
Rupi Kaur’s poetry brings identity and collectivism to the table
BY DUR-E MAKNOON AHMED
Rupi Kaur is not a traditional poet. She started her career in the same realm that makeup artists, rich teenagers seeking fame and celebrities promoting smoothie brands reside in — Instagram. Her poetry opts for the type of simplicity often found in inspirational quotes. In a world that has traditionally been dominated by elite white men, Kaur’s identity as a woman of Punjabi descent makes her stand out. Following her great success and amidst the widespread criticism of her poetry, her identity is frequently brought up. This criticism leads to important questions about the intersection of poetic criticism and racial justice. Does a poet’s ethnicity matter in interpretations of their craft? Does a poet’s ethnicity make them exempt from literary critique?
REVIEW: “Hillbilly Elegy” fails Appalachia, and America, by perpetuating lazy stereotypes
BY ANDY REITER
J.D. Vance’s “Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis” is noble in its intent. The author aims to tell a story of his own life as a window into the white, working-class America found in Appalachia, an America that few people truly understand. In the aftermath of the 2016 elections, there is increased interest and even urgency in trying to gain insight into why a large portion of the American people voted for Donald Trump, and the book has thus found a wide audience. Readers will encounter a compelling personal story; however, the social commentary is wanting, full of unhelpful stereotypes, contradictory arguments and flawed conclusions about a way forward.
“Animal’s People” and the reality of environmental violence
BY RILEY GUERRERO ’20
It would be difficult not to note the recent trend towards the apocalyptic — and post-apocalyptic — in American fiction. From the popularity of television shows like “The Walking Dead” to the recent “Blade Runner” reboot to the renowned “Hunger Games” trilogy and its kin in the “Divergent” series, the end-times seem to loom large even in the urban centers around the world. However, for many located just miles outside these steel and concrete cores, that apocalypse has already arrived, either domestically or abroad.
MHC Professor reads first novel at Odyssey Bookshop
BY SARAH CAVAR ’20
On Tuesday, Nov. 14 at about 10 minutes to 7 p.m., Mount Holyoke English Professor Andrea Lawlor arrived at the Odyssey Bookshop to a buzzing crowd. Packed tightly into metal chairs, audience members waited impatiently for Lawlor to read from their debut novel, “Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl,” which was published on Nov. 1. Odyssey Bookshop’s owner, Joan Grenier, thanked the audience for coming and fellow Mount Holyoke English professor Valerie Martin made beginning remarks. Martin extended them generous praise for their work as a writer and as a professor. “Lawlor’s goal,” she said, “is to get students beyond ‘received ideas’” and toward the ability to put those ideas into practice.
Just in time for the holiday season, enjoy 2017’s most giftable books
BY RENN ELKINS ’20
With the holidays just around the corner, it’s a great time to think about giftable books. After all, they are some of the best and easiest gifts to give: they’re inexpensive, easy to wrap and the variety of selection is just about infinite. Here’s a handful of the most popular books being purchased this season, assembled from the bestseller lists of Barnes & Noble, Amazon and the New York Times.
Eurocentrism in English literature classes has global consequences
BY DUR-E-MAKNOON AHMED ’20
At its core, the study of English literature as an academic discipline is meant to be centered around the appreciation of artistic merit. Various frameworks are used to explore literary works, but the human fascination with art is ultimately at the heart of the study of literary works. While this value is universal enough, the worldwide culture in which the English discipline emerged is biased, and English education still struggles to transcend Eurocentrism.