News of note for readers: May 29, 2025

Catch up quick with the bookish news of the past few days ... or take a deeper dive into each story. Your choice! 

• Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, a Kenyan writer who ran afoul of his country's dictator as he left an indelible mark on African literature, died May 28 at age eighty-seven (The Guardian).

• Author Taylor Jenkins Reid has come out as bisexual (TIME).

• The BOOK IT! program, which rewarded readers ages pre-K through sixth grade with pizza, now has an app (website).

• The founder of Edinburgh Street Historians has decided to permanently end the company's Harry Potter-themed tours, instead of simply doing it for June in honor of Pride Month (The Pink News).