Posted on May 19, 2026 at 3:00 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

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

  • CEO James Daunt has no objection to stocking AI-written books at Barnes & Noble, as long as they don't hide their origin and as long as customers want to buy them (People). 

  • Nobel Prize-winning novelist Olga Tokarczuk revealed in an interview that she has used AI on her current novel, which she says will be her last (Literary Hub).

  • Jamir Nasir's short story “The Serpent in the Grove,” which was a regional finalist for the Commonwealth Foundation Short Story Prize, is under heavy suspicion of having been written entirely by AI (Literary Hub). 

  • Novelist Sally Rooney has found an Israeli publisher that meets standards set by the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, meaning her fourth novel, Intermezzo, will finally be available in Hebrew (The Guardian).

  • A Tennessee school district has banned the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Roots by Alex Haley; the state has banned the third-most books in the US (The Guardian).

  • Vanderbilt University alum — and bestselling author — James Patterson has pledged $10 million to create the Patterson Institute for Early Adolescent Literacy at his alma mater (WKRN).

Categories: Today in Books

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