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Posted by: Neely Tucker
The latest Library of Congress Crime Classic, “Average Jones,” is by Samuel Hopkins Adams, a popular and prolific journalist and novelist in the early 20th century whose works were often turned into popular films. These included "It Happened One Night."
Posted in: Library of Congress Crime Classics, Library Work and Employees, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced today that the 2022 Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction will be awarded to Jesmyn Ward. The 45-year-old Mississippian is the two-time winner of the National Book Award for the novels "Salvage the Bones" and "Sing, Unburied, Sing" among other major literary awards.
Posted in: African American History, Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction, National Book Festival, Women's History, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
The Library holds the papers of Frederick Law Olmsted, one of the nation's most influential landscape architects, who also was an influential writer and civic planner. The Library is marking the 200th anniversary of his birth with an exhibit and an online transcription campaign.
Posted in: By the People, Exhibitions, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Ulysses S. Grant was born 200 years ago today, April 27, 2022. The Library has a huge collection of the former president's personal, military and political papers, including letters to his wife, Julia, and the manuscript of his bestselling memoir.
Posted in: Civil War, Manuscripts, U.S. Presidents, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
You know what I’ve been thinking about lately? Awards. Maybe that’s because we’re in the midst of awards season in the entertainment industry, the Oscars and Grammys having just recently taken place. And every year, during this time, I’m glued to the television, watching people get nominated for their talent. And every year, I watch …
Posted in: National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
The Library’s acclaimed Crime Classic series is launching a new edition of “The Conjure-Man Dies” this month, a staple of the Harlem Renaissance and the most important work of long-overlooked novelist Rudolph Fisher. First published in 1932, the book was the first full-length mystery novel to feature an all-Black cast of characters, including detectives, suspects and victims.
Posted in: African American History, Books, Library Work and Employees, Theater, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
“Double Indemnity” is one of Hollywood’s classic films, the standard-bearer for noir cinema and a career highlight for stars Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray. The Library has a fascinating exchange of letters between the “Double” stars and novelist James M. Cain, whose book was the basis for the film. The letters give us a glimpse into Hollywood history, how scandalous the movie was at the time and at the manners of a bygone era. It’s almost impossible to imagine this exchange taking place today.
Posted in: Film, Manuscripts, National Audio-Visual Conservation Center, National Film Registry, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Madeleine Albright, the first female U.S. Secretary of State, died today in Washington at the age of 84. The cause was cancer, her family said.. Albright, who donated her papers to the Library in 2014, was a key figure in the administration of Bill Clinton, serving both as ambassador to the United Nations and then as Secretary of State during his second term. Outspoken to the end, she wrote an essay for the New York Times in late February warning about the effects of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. She included her notes from her first meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, more than two decades ago: "Putin is small and pale...so cold as to be almost reptilian."
Posted in: Manuscripts, National Book Festival, News, Women's History, World War II, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Dante Alighieri’s “The Divine Comedy” had been an epic religious and literary work for 150 years when a publisher in Florence attempted to do something that had never been done — illustrate it in a printed book. The year was 1481. Gutenberg’s revolutionary printing press was just 26 years old. Nicolaus Laurentii took on the …
Posted in: Library Work and Employees, Poetry, Rare Book and Special Collections, Writers