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In this week’s edition, the ALA issues its annual list of the books most often requested to be banned; the Supreme Court ruling in Google v. Oracle is more than about “fair use”; the 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award winner and the 2021 Guggenheim Fellows are announced; the challenge of writing unlikeable characters, and more.

Here are the Literary Fellows of 2021
Literary Hub
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation announced the recipients of its 2021 fellowships. Of the 184 recipients, 26 were awarded to fiction writers, nonfiction writers, and poets, including Authors Guild Council Member Alexander Chee and Advisory Board Member Tayari Jones.

The Emotional Cost of the Book Deal
Publishers Weekly
Novelist and essayist Anjali Enjeti on the ongoing struggle to find a literary agent and secure a mainstream publisher, particularly when you are an under-represented voice.

Deesha Philyaw Wins 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award
Publishers Weekly
“The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
by Deesha Philyaw (West Virginia University Press), a debut short story collection, has won the 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.”

ALA Releases its 2020 Most Challenged Books List
Publishers Weekly
The American Library Association released its annual list of the books most often requested be banned from libraries or school curriculums by American citizens. Two hundred and seventy-three books made the 2020 list, with Alex Gino’s George being the most challenged book for the third year in a row followed by Kendi and Reynolds’ Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You.

Supreme Court Backs Google in Copyright Fight with Oracle
The New York Times
Said to be the “copyright case of the decade,”  reporter Adam Liptak talks about why the majority of the court found in favor of Google citing the “fair use” doctrine, a decision with which the Authors Guild disagrees as it ignores the fact that copyright law gives copyright owners the right to authorize the creation of new works based on their original works under the derivate work right.

Janice P. Nimura: The Case for Admiring “Unlikable” Women
Literary Hub
In this podcast, children’s book author Janice P. Nimura talks about the challenge of writing books about influential people like Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell who do not always seem that likeable once you start researching them.