PROSE: Salman Rushdie brings heavy guns against George Orwell and Hollywood in Outside the Whale. Chris Abani’s book is pulled off Florida’s summer reading list because of racy content. Read excerpts from Mark Twain’s autobiography, as well as Abdul Adan’s review of African Roar. Then Binyavanga Wainnaina writes a sequel to his famous viral piece, “How To Write About Africa.” Ngozi Achebe is Chinua Achebe’s niece, and she has written a book. Here’s an interview. Finally, let’s go on A Bolivian Trail of Che Guevara, the rebel who was also an earnest reader.
AREA: Fact: Half of all humans that’ve ever walked the earth were killed by mosquitos. (via @bradplummer). Nigerian court finds Shell liable, and Ex Governor Donald Duke explains in detail how sitting governors rig election (and census too). Naomi Campbell lied, says Mia Farrow.
CODES: A Poem by Temite, and a blogger discusses translating Ghana’s constitution into local languages, and South Korea’s translation problems.
QUOTABLE: “In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and is widely regarded as a bad move.” – Douglas Adams