The Round-up

Here are five fun stories that came across my desk recently that I thought I’d share.

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1. Inferno: A guide through Dante’s literary vision of Hell – Far Out Magazine

Just cross your fingers you never end up there!

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2. ‘Ambition is a punishing sphere for women’: author Maggie Nelson on why Taylor Swift is the Sylvia Plath of her generation – The Guardian

Maggie Nelson (of The Argonauts fame) profiled on her new book pairing Taylor Swift with Sylvia Plath – and what their shared ambition, creativity, and public scrutiny reveal about how women are still punished for wanting power.

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3. Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o Did Not Write to Be Agreed With. He Wrote to Awaken – Electric Literature

A tribute to Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o that highlights how his uncompromising clarity, political courage, and commitment to African languages still push readers to confront truth.

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4. There Are Too Many DAMN Commas in Books These Days: Am I the Literary Asshole? – LitHub

A thoroughly enjoyable ‘Agony Aunt’ type situation – only, for literary quandaries exclusively.

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5. Is There an LGBTQ+ Canon? – JSTOR Daily

Is there value in trying to identify a ‘canon’ of queer literature, or is that too conservative an approach?