From 18th century English bestsellers to medieval cookbooks, nearly 1,000 of Europe's most fascinating works - included 76 volumes digitised by the Swiss National Library - are featured in a new multilingual online exhibition created by The European Library and supported by Europeana.eu Read more »

Peruvian Mario Vargas Llosa, one of the most acclaimed writers in the Spanish-speaking world, has been awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize for literature.

The Swedish Academy hailed "his cartography of structures of power" and "trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt, and defeat."

The 74-year-old has written more than 30 novels, plays and essays.

He is the first South American winner of the prize since 1982 when it went to Colombian Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

In the previous six years, the academy awarded the 10 million kronor (£938,000) prize to five Europeans and one Turk, sparking criticism that it was too Euro-centric.

The Swedish Academy's Peter Englund said Vargas Llosa was "a divinely gifted story-teller," whose writing touched the reader. Read more »

While most of us are utterly chained to our wireless devices – oh, the irony – and consumed by the unrelenting deluge of email, text messages, facebook and twitter, there are those few who have become the philosophers of the digital age, to enlighten us on where we’ve been and where we’re going. Their analysis, that computers will exponentially become so smart and powerful that the human brain will pale in comparison, is becoming widely accepted. Read more »

When looking for a role model among celebrities, Queen Latifah is your choice. This exceptional woman is an exemplar of strength and determination, success achieved through hard work and perseverance, dignity and a truly royal sense of worth. Her musical career is as diverse as her filmography. The first hip-hop artist to be honoured with a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, CoverGirl spokesperson, co-founder of production company Flavor Unit Entertainment. And the author. In a little book Put on Your Crown, Queen Latifah shares her \"life-changing moments on the path to queendom”.

The main purpose of this simply written yet very inspirational life guide is to let your inner queen come out. You won’t find a detailed instruction on how to become a queen. Inside every woman, there is a queen. You are the Queen, the Lioness.

Confidence is critical to being Queen. You can do anything, keeps repeating Latifah’s mother Rita Owens. Knowing that everything is within your powers is a queenly quality. Crown yourself. Be the Queen, and people will hail you. Read more »

If we can learn anything from authors such as Dan Brown and Danielle Steele (besides the obvious and imminent demise of literacy), it is that cookie cutter plot lines are in. It seems the world has regressed to adolescence, and gravitating toward the mushy middle has become key. Authors who stick with what they know become commercial successes, and it appears that real depth and insight have fallen by the wayside. The mediocrity bandwagon is leaving the station, and in recent years it has acquired a new member, Khaled Hosseini, of “Kite Runner” fame. Hosseini guides one-dimensional stereotypical figures dangerously close to the black hole of hokey sentimentality against the backdrop of a war-torn Afghanistan. However, in Hosseini’s case- it works.

Apparently lightening can strike the same place twice, as despite its contrived plot line, Hosseini’s second novel “A Thousand Splendid Suns” is sure to move the reader. As in his first novel, the vivid illustration of a country on the brink of ruin and the constant stream of emotional appeals are efficient in creating a temporary connection between his repeatedly downtrodden and victimized characters. His focus is resolutely on women: on mothers, daughters, wives and the relationships between them. It is clear early on that Hosseini’s view of the life of women in Afghanistan is bleak, and the reader learns quickly that “like a compass needle that points north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman. Always.” Read more »