Caught in the Middle

In our latest spotlight on middle grade publishing, we talked to the children’s book agents who are navigating a tough climate for the category, and the reinforcements stepping in with their own campaign to support middle grade publishers. The rollout of the National Book Award longlists continues today with the nominees in poetry and translated literature. In the latest twist of the Diamond bankruptcy case, the comics distributor is filing adversary suits against the publishers whose inventory it holds on consignment, alleging that they did not establish their ownership of the goods, per Bleeding Cool. Book Riot reports from Josephine County, Ore., where politicians have staged a yearslong attempt to defund the local library system. With the succession drama in the Murdoch family empire finally put to bed, the New York Times looks at the vast array of media outlets Lachlan Murdoch will now oversee—including HarperCollins parent company News Corp. A professor of children’s literature at Texas A&M was fired after a video circulated showing them clashing with a student over “gender-identity content,” reports the Texas Tribune. Former Utah poet laureate Paisley Rekdal recounts for the New York Times how public criticism of President Trump has cost her professional opportunities. McSweeney’s offers up a cheeky list of library vocab. And Ann Saville, founder of Taylor Books in Charleston, W. Va., has died at 90.