LibraryThing: State of the Thing - October

LibraryThing: State of the Thing Dear {NAME}, Welcome to the October State of the Thing! In this issue we invite you to join our annual Halloween Treasure Hunt, highlight our October List of the Month, dish out lots of book world news, present all of our regular columns, and offer 3,765 free Early Reviewer books! You can like LibraryThing on [Facebook]( and follow [@LibraryThing]( on Twitter and [librarythingofficial]( on Instagram for news and updates. Halloween Hunt [HuntBirds]It’s October, and LibraryThing’s [Halloween Treasure Hunt]( has returned! Come trick-or-treat through our website, reading and solving the fifteen clues, and finding the pages on LibraryThing that match your solutions. When you find each right page, you’ll see a banner at the top of your screen announcing that you’ve found a ghost. Everyone who finds at least two ghosts receives a [profile badge](, while those who find all fifteen will be entered into a drawing for a LibraryThing coaster set and sticker. You have until Monday October 31st at 11.59 pm Eastern Time to find all the ghosts hidden around the site and gather them all together into one hauntourage. Come brag about your hauntourage of ghosts (and get hints) on [Talk](. The Talk of LibraryThing What conversations are going on in our groups? - A discussion of [Where Readers Are in Fantasyland]( this month is ongoing, over in the [FantasyFans]( group. - An exploration of [Book Collecting on a Budget]( is being undertaken by members of the [Fine Press Forum](. - Members are detailing [How They Are Preparing for Winter](, over in the [Readers Over Sixty]( group. - The weekly [Deep Ones]( book club discussion—devoted to [H.G. Wells’’]( short story, [The Crystal Egg](, this time—is underway amongst members of [The Weird Tradition](. Speaking of Groups, if you’re new to LibraryThing, there’s a group for that: [Welcome to LibraryThing](21)! List of the Month October List of the Month. From the Loch Ness Monster to the Jersey Devil, the Japanese demon Oni to the Inuit ogress Amautalik—the world is full of mythical monsters. Our List of the Month this October is devoted to their stories. Head on over to our [Mythical Monsters of the World]( list, and add your top ten picks. Check out other recent Lists of the Month: - September. [Best Spy Fiction]( - August. [Pleasant Surprises: Books That Exceeded Our Expectations]( - July. [Favorite Animal Fiction]( - June. [Pre-1969 LGBTQ Literature]( - May. [EU Fiction: 1950-2022]( See our [wiki page]( for a complete List of the Month list, and join us over in our [Talk group]( for further discussion of the project. Hot on LibraryThing Here are some titles that have been particularly hot on LibraryThing in the last month: - [The Golden Enclaves]( by [Naomi Novik]( - [Fairy Tale]( by [Stephen King]( - [Our Missing Hearts]( by [Celeste Ng]( - [The Bullet that Missed]( by [Richard Osman]( - [Lucy by the Sea]( by [Elizabeth Strout]( - [Confidence Man]( by [Maggie Haberman]( - [Shrines of Gaiety]( by [Kate Atkinson]( - [Treasure State]( by [C. J. Box]( - [Dreamland]( by [Nicholas Sparks]( - [Righteous Prey]( by [John Sandford]( - [The Winners]( by [Fredrik Backman]( - [Mad Honey]( by [Jodi Picoult]( - [Spells for Forgetting]( by [Adrienne Young]( - [Hester]( by [Laurie Lico Albanese]( - [Long Shadows]( by [David Baldacci]( - [The Marriage Portrait]( by [Maggie O'Farrell]( - [I'm Glad My Mom Died]( by [Jennette McCurdy]( - [Suspect]( by [Scott Turow]( - [Blowback]( by [James Patterson]( - [Less Is Lost]( by [Andrew Sean Greer]( Free Books from Early Reviewers! Our Early Reviewers program pairs publishers and authors looking for reviews and book buzz with readers looking for their next great read. This month we’re pleased to feature [Dust Child](, a moving story of family secrets and hidden trauma from [Que Mai Phan Nguyen](, offered by [Algonquin Books](; four new poetry collections from [BOA Editions](; and our very first title from [Amherst College Press](—[Studies into Darkness: The Perils and Promise of Freedom of Speech](, edited by [Carin Kuoni]( and [Laura Raicovich](. Explore the full list and [sign up to request books](. [Dust Child]( [Little Mr. Prose Poem: Selected Poems of Russell Edson]( [A Fade of Light]( [I Am Still with You: A Reckoning with Silence, Inheritance, and History]( [The Mediterranean Migraine Diet: A Science-Based Roadmap to Control Symptoms and Transform Brain Health]( [A Noble Cunning: The Countess and the Tower]( [Tricked in October]( [Studies into Darkness: The Perils and Promise of Freedom of Speech]( [The Dead Man in the Garden]( [A Shiver in the Leaves]( [Cracked: My Life after a Skull Fracture]( [Can You Spot the Leopard?: An African Safari]( [The Blackout Book Club]( [Beyond Welcome: Centering Immigrants in Our Christian Response to Immigration]( [Melpomene's Garden]( [Ground Control]( [Your Emergency Contact Has Experienced an Emergency]( [Man in a Cage]( [Endpapers]( [Rising From Down Under]( Our October batch of Early Reviewers has 3,765 copies of 172 books. The deadline to request a book is October 25th, 6pm Eastern time. Did you win a book recently? When you receive your book, make sure you head over to your [Books You've Won]( page to mark it received. After you've read your book, add your review to LibraryThing. First, add the book to your LibraryThing catalog. Then click the pencil-shaped "edit" icon next to the book, or click "edit book" from the work page. Type your review into the Review box, and click "submit" to save it. Reviewing your books gives you a greater chance of winning books in the future, while neglecting to review lowers your odds. For more information, visit the [Early Reviewers Help Page](. Book World News: In Memoriam Celebrated British writer [Hilary Mantel](, who is particularly known for her [Wolf Hall Trilogy]( about the life of [Thomas Cromwell](, which achieved both critical acclaim and bestsellerdom, [has died at 70](. The author of seventeen books, Mantel twice won the [Booker Prize](Prize)—in 2009 for [Wolf Hall]( and in 2012 for [Bring Up the Bodies](—and has been described as one of the greatest English-language novelists of the century. She was made a Fellow of the [Royal Society of Literature]( in 1990, and was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in 2006 and a DBE (Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in 2014. Bestselling British-Canadian crime writer [Peter Robinson](, whose popular [Inspector Banks]( books were adapted in the [DCI Banks]( television series, [has died at 72](. Born in Leeds, Robinson set his popular thrillers in the fictional Yorkshire town of Eastvale. He emigrated to Canada to continue his education, studying under [Joyce Carol Oates]( while taking a masters in English and creative writing at the University Windsor, before going on to complete a PhD in English at York University. Robinson wrote poetry and short stories, in addition to his thrillers. Noted English literary scholar [Peter Davison](, considered the world’s foremost expert on [George Orwell](, and particularly celebrated for having edited and annotated the twenty-volume complete works of that author, [has died at 95](. An indefatigable researcher, Davison began his investigation into Orwell’s work later in life, after spending twenty-five years as a university lecturer specializing in Elizabethan textual scholarship. The project took seventeen years to complete, and is considered the cornerstone and foundation of Orwell studies. In recognition of his service to English literature, Davison was awarded an OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in1999, and won the [Gold Medal of the Bibliographical Society]( in 2003. Groundbreaking Australian publisher and author [Carmen Callil](, who spent most of her career in the UK, founding the feminist [Virago Press]( in 1973 in order to highlight women’s writing, [has died at 84](. Publishing both contemporary authors like [Margaret Atwood]( and [Maya Angelou](, and undeservedly forgotten or underappreciated ones like [Antonia White]( and [Rebecca West](, Callil is credited by some with transforming the English literary canon. Her own books included the 2006 [Bad Faith: A Forgotten History of Family and Fatherland](—an exploration of her own therapist’s father, and his role as a Nazi collaborator and “Commissioner for Jewish Affairs” in Vichy France—and her 2020 family memoir, [Oh Happy Day: Those Times and These Times](. Other losses in the book world this past month: - [Davis Coakley](, Irish doctor, writer and pioneer of geriatric medicine, [has died at 76](. - [Dave Foreman](, American environmental activist and author, [has died at 74](. - [Charles Fuller](, African American playwright and screenwriter, [has died at 83](. - [Kelsang Gyatso](, exiled Tibetan Buddhist monk and scholar, [has died at 91](. - [Hrafn Jökulsson](, Icelandic writer and chess player, [has died at 56](. - [Saul A. Kripke](, American philosopher and logician, [has died at 81](. - [Bruno Latour](, French Swiss philosopher and author, [has died at 75](. - [Kevin Locke](, Native American musician, storyteller and author, [has died at 68](. - [John Nieuwenhuizen](, Australian translator of Dutch literature, [has died at 87](. - [Diane Noomin](, American feminist and underground cartoonist, [has died at 75](. - [John W. O’Malley](, American Catholic historian and Jesuit priest, [has died at 95](. - [Lily Renée Phillips](, Austrian-born American comic book artist, [has died at 101](. - [Jill Pinkwater](, American children’s author and illustrator, [has died at 81](. - [Meredith Tax](, American feminist author and historian, [has died at 80](. Book World News: Freedom of Expression The [IPA]( (International Publishers Association) has named Thai publisher [Same Sky Books]( (Fah Deaw Kan), an academic press known for its political and cultural criticism, as [the winner of the 2022 Prix Voltaire](, which recognizes “publishers – individuals, groups or organizations – who stand firm on freedom to publish.” As we reported in the [July edition]( of State of the Thing, Thanapol Eawsakul, the editor-in-chief of Same Sky Books, who has been in and out of trouble with Thai authorities since 2006, [was arrested at the end of June]( for violating Thailand’s Computer Crimes Act by allegedly sharing information that could undermine national security. The Chair of the IPA’s Freedom to Publish Committee, Kristenn Einarsson, described Same Sky Books as “a perfect example of a publisher demonstrating their bravery by standing up to intimidation and continuing to publish works they believe in.” Bahraini activist and academic Abduljalil al-Singace, currently serving a life sentence in prison for his role in his country’s anti-government protests in 2011, [has been named 2022 International Writer of Courage]( by [Malorie Blackman](. The award is given annually to a writer who has been persecuted for expressing their beliefs, with the winner chosen by that year’s [PEN Pinter Prize]( winner. Dr. al-Singace has been on hunger strike since July of 2021, in order to protest his treatment in prison, and the confiscation of a manuscript he had been working on for many years. In the [August 2021 edition]( of State of the Thing we reported on [the arrest of five members of the General Union of Hong Kong Speech Therapists]( for their role in creating a series of picture books featuring sheep and wolf characters that were said to be critical of the Chinese government. Last month we followed up on that story, in order to report that those arrestees had been found guilty of “conspiracy to print, publish, distribute, display and/or reproduce seditious publications,” and [had been sentenced to 19 months in prison](. In [a recent letter to the Wall Street Journal](, the Hong Kong administration has disputed the characterization of the case in the western media, while two of the speech therapists—Lorie Lai and Samuel Chen—have announced [their intention to appeal their conviction](. The New York Times has [reported on the recent September publication]( by Columbia University Press of [The Backstreets](, the first Uyghur-language novel to be translated into English. The book’s author, [Perhat Tursun](, a writer and poet who has been described as “China’s Salman Rushdie” because of the persecution he faced after the publication of an earlier novel, disappeared into one of China’s Xinjiang concentration camps for ethnic Uyghurs in 2018. Tursun is believed to be serving a sixteen-year sentence. Although the charges against him are unknown, it is believed that his imprisonment may be related to his signature on a petition asking the Chinese government to respect the Uyghur language. An anonymous Uyghur scholar, who worked together with American academic [Darren Byler]( to translate the [The Backstreets](, and whose identity has been kept secret by the publisher, reportedly disappeared into the camps at the same time as Tursun. [PEN Sweden]( has named [Perhat Tursun]( as the winner of this year’s [Tucholsky Prize](, named for German author [Kurt Tucholsky](, who fled Nazi Germany for Sweden in the 1930s, and awarded in recognition of authors or publishers who have faced persecution, or been forced into exile. The committee praised Tursin for “his strong voice for free literature, regardless of cultural taboos or ethno-political oppression, that in a natural and deeply moving way portrays human experience from a minority perspective.” In Zimbabwe, award-winning novelist, playwright and filmmaker [Tsitsi Dangarembga]( has been [convicted of “inciting violence”]( for carrying a placard calling for political reform around the capital city of Harare, as part of a peaceful two-woman protest march. As we reported in the [April edition]( of State of the Thing, Dangarembga won this year’s [Windham-Campbell Prize for Fiction](. Last year she was awarded both the [PEN Pinter Prize]( and the [Friedenspreis des Deutschen Buchhandels]( (“Peace Prize of the German Book Trade”). Condemnation of Dangarembga’s suspended six-month sentence came from a number of international advocacy groups, including [PEN America](, which described itself as “appalled” by the verdict, and the [IPA]( (International Publishers Association), which called the sentence a “twisted joke.” Dangarembga herself has said, in [a recent interview in The Guardian](, that the stress of the two-year case has led her to consider emigrating from her homeland. [National Banned Books Week](, an annual period of events meant to celebrate the freedom to read, and sponsored by an [alliance of different organizations](—the [ALA]( (American Library Association), [Amnesty International USA](, the [National Book Foundation](, and many more—occurred this year from September 18th-24th. In its fortieth year, the week saw [a host of events]( across a range of different venues, from libraries to bookstores. The Brooklyn Public Library hosted a virtual panel discussion on September 21st, dedicated to the topic of [Open Eyes: Banned Books, Kids, and the War on Reading](, while indie bookstores across the country engaged with the [ABA]( (American Booksellers Association) Banned Books Week theme of “Reading Dangerously” [in a variety of creative ways](. The ALA, which adopted the theme of [Books Unite Us, Censorship Divides Us]( this year, noted that attempts to ban or restrict library materials [is on the rise](, with 689 documented cases across the country in the first eight months of 2022. Despite this increase, a new poll conducted by the nonprofit [EveryLibrary Institute]( found that [book challenges and bans are widely unpopular with voters](, across party lines. The [August attack]( on author [Salman Rushdie]( at an event at the [Chautauqua Institution]( in western New York state was our lead story in the “Freedom of Expression” column in [last month’s issue]( of State of the Thing, and we covered both the news itself and the book world’s response, including the [Stand with Salman: Defend the Freedom to Write]( event held at the New York Public Library on August 19th. A similar event, “[An Evening With Salman Rushdie](,” was [recently held at the British Library](, with numerous authors—[Monica Ali](, [Julian Barnes](, [Hanif Kureishi](, and others—sharing readings from Rushdie’s work, as well as their own reflections. Book World News: Awards Awards and Prizes. The [2022 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded]( to French writer and professor [Annie Ernaux](, who was praised by the Swedish Academy for "the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers the roots, estrangements and collective restraints of personal memory." Ernaux’s work is often autobiographical in nature, exploring her working class roots, and the history of her family. She has won many awards, including the 2008 [Prix Marguerite-Duras](Marguerite+Duras) for her [Les années]( (“The Years”), and the [Prix de la langue française](, also in 2008, for her body of work as a whole. The winner of this year’s [Deutscher Buchpreis](20Buchpreis) (“German Book Prize”), which recognizes the best German-language novel of the year, [has been announced]( as [Kim de l’Horizon](, for their debut, [Blutbuch]( (“Blood Book”). de l’Horizon is the first non-binary author to win the prize, which is given out as part of the [Frankfurt Book Fair](, and their exploration of issues of gender identity and family secrets has won praise for its "sense of urgency and literary innovation." The [Academy of American Poets]( has [announced the recipients]( of their 2022 American Poets Prizes. [Marilyn Nelson]( has won the [Wallace Stevens Award](, recognizing “outstanding and proven mastery in the art of poetry,” while [Jericho Brown]( has received the [Academy of American Poets Fellowship](. The [Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize](20Marshall%20Poetry%20Prize), which “recognizes the most outstanding book of poetry published in the United States in the previous year,” has gone to [Mai Der Vang]( for her [Yellow Rain: Poems](, while the [James Laughlin Award](, set up to support a second poetry collection forthcoming in the following year, has gone to [Annelyse Gelman]( for her [Vexations](. [Elizabeth Torres]( has won the [Ambroggio Prize](, given to a book-length poetry manuscript originally written in Spanish with an English translation, for her forthcoming [La Lotería: Sorteo Nocturno / The Lottery: Nocturnal Sweepstakes](, while [Adriana X. Jacobs]( has won the [Harold Morton Landon Translation Award]( for her work on [The Truffle Eye]( by [Vaan Nguyen](. Please see [this announcement]( for the complete list of winners. Sri Lankan author [Shehan Karunatilaka]( has [been announced as the winner]( of the 2022 [Booker Prize](Prize) for his novel, [The Seven Moons of Molly Almeida](, which follows the story of a photographer who, finding himself dead, has seven months to communicate important information to his loved ones. The award committee praised Karunatilaka’s book for the “ambition of its scope, and the hilarious audacity of its narrative techniques,” describing it as a “rollercoaster journey through life and death right to what the author describes as the dark heart of the world.” Romanian author [Mircea Cărtărescu]( has been [named as the winner]( of this year’s [FIL Literary Award in Romance Languages](, given out at the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL) to an author in any genre of literature who writes in one of the Romance languages. Cărtărescu was chosen from among 80 entrants in seven languages, and was praised by the jury for his “imaginative and brimming prose that combines fantastic and realistic elements, the thoughtful fictions that inquire into the construction of an identity from a liminal and peripheral space in the European landscape.” The 2022 [Barbara Jefferis Award](20Jefferis%20Award), given out by the [Australian Society of Authors]( every other year to the “best novel written by an Australian author that depicts women and girls in a positive way or otherwise empowers the status of women and girls in society,” [has been awarded]( to [S.L. Lim]( for her [Revenge: Murder in Three Parts](. The judges praised Lim’s book for the “freshness of its setting and the relevance of its message.” [Menachem Kaiser]( has been [named the 2022 winner]( of the [Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature](20Rohr%20Prize%20for%20Jewish%20Literature) for his [Plunder: A Memoir of Family Property and Nazi Treasure](, in which he recounts his efforts to reclaim a building in Poland that once belonged to his grandfather, before the events of the Holocaust. The finalists for the prize were [Ayala Fader]( for her [Hidden Heretics: Jewish Doubt in the Digital Age](, [Danny Adeno Abebe]( for his [From Africa to Zion](, and [Eylon Levy]( for his translation of Abebe’s book. This year’s [National Book Award Finalists](Book+Award+finalist) have [been announced]( by the [National Book Foundation](. In the Fiction category, the finalists include: [The Rabbit Hutch]( by [Tess Gunty](, [The Birdcatcher]( by [Gayl Jones](, [The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories]( by [Jamil Jan Kochai](, [All This Could Be Different]( by [Sarah Thankam Mathews](, and [The Town of Babylon]( by [Alejandro Varela](. The Nonfiction category finalists are: [The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness]( by [Meghan O’Rourke](, [South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation]( by [Imani Perry](, [Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus]( by [David Quammen](, [The Man Who Could Move Clouds: A Memoir]( by [Ingrid Rojas Contreras](, and [His Name Is George Floyd: One Man's Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice]( by [Robert Samuels]( & [Toluse Olorunnipa](. The list of finalists for the other three categories recognized by the foundation—Poetry, Translated Literature, and Young People’s Literature—[are available as well](. [Bloody Scotland](—”Scotland’s International Crime Writing Festival”—has announced the 2022 winners of their [McIlvanney Prize](20Prize%20for%20Scottish%20Crime%20Novel%20of%20the%20Year) and [Bloody Scotland Debut Prize](20Scotland%20Debut%20Prize). The McIlvanney Prize, awarded to the best Scottish crime book of the year, has gone to [Alan Parks]( for his [May God Forgive](, the fifth entry in the [Harry McCoy]( series. The Bloody Scotland Debut Prize has gone to [Tariq Ashkanani]( for his [Welcome to Cooper](. In other mystery and suspense news, the winner of this year’s [Ngaio Marsh Awards](Marsh+Award), named for famed New Zealand mystery writer [Ngaio Marsh](, and given out in recognition of “excellence in New Zealand crime, mystery, and thriller writing,” [has been announced](. In a historic first for the awards, [Jacqueline Bublitz]( has won in both the Best Novel and Best First Novel categories for [Before You Knew My Name](. The judges praised the book as “beautifully heart-breaking, stylishly written, and boldly pushing the envelope of crime fiction.” The winners of the 2022 [British Fantasy Awards](Fantasy+Award), given out annually by the [British Fantasy Society]( at FantasyCon, have been announced. [Shelley Parker-Chan]( has won both the Sydney J. Bounds Award for Best Newcomer and the Robert Holdstock Award for Best Fantasy Novel for [She Who Became the Sun](. The August Derleth Award for Best Horror Novel has gone to [Catriona Ward]( for [The Last House on Needless Street](, while [Nino Cipri]( has won in the Best Novella category for [Defekt](. Best Collection has gone to [Isabel Yap]( for [Never Have I Ever: Stories](, while Best Anthology has gone to [Xueting Christine Ni](, editor and translator of [Sinopticon 2021: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction](. [Lorraine Wilson]( has won in the Best Short Fiction category for her story [Bathymetry](, published in the March 8th, 2021 edition of [Strange Horizons](, while [Molly Knox Ostertag]( has won in the Best Comic/Graphic Novel category for [The Girl from the Sea](. The Best Nonfiction category has gone to [Dan Coxon]( and [Richard V. Hirst]( for their [Writing the Uncanny: Essays on Crafting Strange Fiction](, while the Karl Edward Wagner Special Award for "important contribution to the genre or the Society," has gone to [Maureen Kinkaid Speller](. For a complete list of winners, see [this list](. [The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art]( recently celebrated their [sixteenth annual Carle Honors]( event and award ceremony, recognizing individuals and organizations that have made lasting contributions to the field of picture books. The Benefit Gala and Art Auction on September 29th—the first in-person Carle Honors event since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic—raised over $250,000 for the museum and its programs. The honorees this year were: [Faith Ringgold]( in the Artist category, [Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library]( in the Angel category, Chinese translator [Ajia (阿甲)](in the Bridge category, and [Wade]( and [Cheryl Hudson]( in the Mentor category. Additional Award News This Month: [The ACT Book of the Year]( | [The Albert Ullin Award]( | [The Alice Award]( | [The ALTA Awards]( | [The Ampersand Prize]( | [The Banjo Prize]( | [The Barnes & Noble Best Books of 2022]( | [The Barnes & Noble Discover Prize]( | [The BBC Short Story Award]( | [The CLNZ Writers’ Award]( | [The Columbia University Press Distinguished Book Award]( | [The Creative Future Writers’ Awards]( | [The Dayton Literary Peace Prize]( | [The Dorothy Hewett Award]( | [The Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction]( | [The Environment Award for Children’s Literature]( | [The Fingerprint Awards]( | [The Gordon Burn Prize]( | [The Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize]( | [The Harvill Secker Young Translators’ Prize]( | [The Heartland Booksellers Award]( | [The Klaus Flugge Prize]( | [The Lancashire Book of the Year]( | [The MacArthur Fellows]( | [The Mo Siewcharran Prize]( | [The New England Book Awards]( | [The NT Literary Awards]( | [The PANZ Book Design Awards]( | [The Paul Engle Prize]( | [The Ruth Lilly & Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellows]( | [The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour]( | [The Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize]( Other Book World News Bookselling and Publishing New York Comic Con, which was on a pandemic-related hiatus in 2020, before resuming at partial strength last year, [returned to the Big Apple in early October](, once again at full strength, with an estimated 200,000 attendees. The massive growth of sales, in the book (as opposed to periodical) area of comic production, a trend largely fueled by burgeoning manga sales, [was a major topic of discussion]( at this year’s ICV2’s Insider Talks, a related comic and graphic-novel-centered business conference held on the first day of Comic Con. Juergen Boos, the President and CEO of the [Frankfurter Buchmesse]( (Frankfurt Book Fair), now in its 74th year, [has been announced as the winner]( of this year’s [Vigdís Prize](, given annually by the University of Iceland, the Icelandic government and the [Vigdís International Centre]( to “an individual, organisation, institute or those who have broken new ground in their work in the name of language, culture, and translations.” Boos was selected for the honor based in part on his ongoing support for and promotion of translation, through his work as chief of the world’s largest trade book fair. Ukrainian President [Volodymyr Zelenskyy]( recently [opened the Lviv BookForum](, one of Ukraine's most prestigious book festivals, which moved online this year, and which was presented under [the aegis of the UK’s Hay Festival](. Zelenskyy also [recently spoke at the Frankfurt Book Fair](, emphasizing the importance of information and knowledge in his video address, and calling on authors to document the terrors unleashed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the ongoing war. In our [last issue]( of State of the Thing we discussed the ongoing copyright case brought by four major publishers (Hachette, HarperCollins, Wiley, and Penguin Random House) against the [Internet Archive]( in response to that organization’s program to scan and lend print library books. Subsequently, a group of authors, together with the advocacy group [Fight for the Future](, [published an open letter]( in support of libraries, calling on publishers to stop “undermining” them. The 300 signatories included such figures as [Neil Gaiman](, [Naomi Klein](, [Cory Doctorow](, and many others. The [Association of American Publishers]( has described the campaign as “disinformation,” while the [Authors Guild]( has labeled the letter “highly misleading.” Labor troubles continue at the New York headquarters of HarperCollins, whose workers went out on a brief strike in late July—see our coverage of that event in [July’s issue]( of State of the Thing—and who, through their union, in late September [filed an unfair labor practice charge]( against the company with the National Labor Relations Board. In mid October it was announced that HarperCollins would be [laying off a small number of employees](, a move that the union president characterized as “suspicious,” given its timing, and the fact that six of those laid off were bargaining unit employees. The HarperCollins union has recently [voted to authorize a second strike](, which is planned for Monday, November 7th. Library and Literary News A collection of short stories, novel outlines, letters, photographs and other personal artifacts, described as “the most significant cache of Hemingway materials uncovered in 60 years,” [have recently been made available to the public]( as part of Penn State University’s [Toby and Betty Bruce Collection of Ernest Hemingway](. The items in the collection are those that Hemingway left behind in the storeroom of his favorite Key West watering hole, Sloppy Joe’s, and have long intrigued scholars. Fans of [Agatha Christie’s]( famous sleuth, [Miss Marple](, will be interested to learn that [the character has recently returned]( in twelve newly commissioned short stories from contemporary authors. The new collection, simply entitled [Marple: Twelve New Mysteries](, includes contributions from authors such as [Val McDermid](, [Dreda Say Mitchell](, [Kate Mosse](, [Natalie Haynes]( and [Lucy Foley](. The UK’s poet laureate, [Simon Armitage](, has [paid homage to Queen Elizabeth II](, whose recent death plunged his country into a period of deep mourning. His new poem, [Floral Tribute](, references lilies—in particular, the Queen’s favorite flower, the lily of the valley—and was conceived as a token of thanks to the monarch for her long and faithful service. It is the second poem Armitage has penned this year for the Queen, after [Queenhood](E2%80%99s-platinum-jubilee-2022), which was composed for her platinum jubilee. TinyCat [TinyCat]( is the online catalog for small libraries, created by LibraryThing. It turns your existing LibraryThing account into a simple, professional, web-based catalog. Follow [@TinyCat_Lib]( on Twitter for the latest TinyCat news, and be sure to check out [LibraryThing’s Youtube channel]( for a range of TinyCat tutorials. Live Demo. To learn more about TinyCat, join Kristi for a live demo Wednesdays at 1pm Eastern. Webinars are now on Zoom, so make sure to use our new [link to attend](. You can also check out our playlists of Tiny Tutorials on [LibraryThing's YouTube channel](, where Kristi walks you through various features of TinyCat in 30 seconds or less. If you'd like to schedule a webinar at another time or if you have other questions about TinyCat, you can reach Kristi at tinycat@librarything.com. Wait, That's It? That's all I have for the Thing this month! If you have any suggestions, or ideas for improving State of the Thing, please reach out to me at abigailadams@librarything.com. Happy reading, Abigail PS: If you'd rather receive a plain-text version, [edit your email preferences](. You can also read it [online](. This message was sent to {NAME}. Click to [edit your email preferences or unsubscribe from future emails](.