Penina Roth
@peninaroth.bsky.social
Curator of Franklin Park Reading Series in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
Pinned
Next Monday, January 12, 8pm: Excited to launch the 2026 Franklin Park Reading Series season with stellar authors @justintaylor.bsky.social, @knguyen.bsky.social, @ellomelissa.bsky.social, Heather McCalden, and Ali Kriegsman! #Free shorturl.at/yTq9W
Reposted by Penina Roth
We grieve with our community.
January 8, 2026 at 7:12 PM
We grieve with our community.
Reposted by Penina Roth
The reason you shouldn‘t watch films of people being murdered is because it messes with your mind. Even if you think you’re fine, you’re not.
January 7, 2026 at 9:54 PM
The reason you shouldn‘t watch films of people being murdered is because it messes with your mind. Even if you think you’re fine, you’re not.
Reposted by Penina Roth
"Old ghosts, bigger risks, and a city turning glossy and ruthless, and you’ve got peak Whitehead." - Oprah Daily on @colsonwhitehead.com's upcoming book, COOL MACHINE: www.oprahdaily.com/entertainmen...
The Most Anticipated Books of 2026 Include the Triumphant Returns of Michael Pollan and Lindy West
Jesmyn Ward, George Saunders, and Elizabeth Strout return, and stars like Liza Minnelli, Octavia Spencer, and Laverne Cox spill all the tea.
www.oprahdaily.com
January 7, 2026 at 8:56 PM
"Old ghosts, bigger risks, and a city turning glossy and ruthless, and you’ve got peak Whitehead." - Oprah Daily on @colsonwhitehead.com's upcoming book, COOL MACHINE: www.oprahdaily.com/entertainmen...
Reposted by Penina Roth
Writing Co-Lab’s 100 Days of Creative Resistance provided a free email a day of inspiration from an incredible group of authors. We’re hoping to bring back a version of this series in a more sustainable fashion. Please help us reach our goal!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/130...
www.kickstarter.com/projects/130...
December 11, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Writing Co-Lab’s 100 Days of Creative Resistance provided a free email a day of inspiration from an incredible group of authors. We’re hoping to bring back a version of this series in a more sustainable fashion. Please help us reach our goal!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/130...
www.kickstarter.com/projects/130...
Great advice for authors on booking events from @petesreading.bsky.social cohost @briangresko.bsky.social—I wholeheatedly agree!
January 6, 2026 at 7:15 PM
Great advice for authors on booking events from @petesreading.bsky.social cohost @briangresko.bsky.social—I wholeheatedly agree!
Next Monday, January 12, 8pm: Excited to launch the 2026 Franklin Park Reading Series season with stellar authors @justintaylor.bsky.social, @knguyen.bsky.social, @ellomelissa.bsky.social, Heather McCalden, and Ali Kriegsman! #Free shorturl.at/yTq9W
January 6, 2026 at 5:33 PM
Next Monday, January 12, 8pm: Excited to launch the 2026 Franklin Park Reading Series season with stellar authors @justintaylor.bsky.social, @knguyen.bsky.social, @ellomelissa.bsky.social, Heather McCalden, and Ali Kriegsman! #Free shorturl.at/yTq9W
Reposted by Penina Roth
Not sure what to read this year? Maybe consider the 313 books we’re most looking forward to in 2026.
Lit Hub’s Most Anticipated Books of 2026
After the year we’ve had, there’s no predicting anything about the year that’s to come. But whatever else might be fated to happen (to us) in 2026, there will definitely be books,…
buff.ly
January 6, 2026 at 3:30 PM
Not sure what to read this year? Maybe consider the 313 books we’re most looking forward to in 2026.
Reposted by Penina Roth
A bunch of friends have new books out today! I read a book this past week about Neo-Nazism, but thankfully I also read a masterpiece about literary obsession. www.themarisreview.com/the-maris-re...
The Maris Review, vol 86
What I read this week
Possession by A.S. Byatt
I first tried to read A.S. Byatt's Booker Prize-winning novel about all kinds of intrigue in academia when I was in high school. What a bad idea. So mu...
www.themarisreview.com
January 6, 2026 at 3:50 PM
A bunch of friends have new books out today! I read a book this past week about Neo-Nazism, but thankfully I also read a masterpiece about literary obsession. www.themarisreview.com/the-maris-re...
Reposted by Penina Roth
Join us at the Coffee House for an evening celebrating The Relegation Reader, and new writing from the US, UK, and Europe. Admission is free, with RSVP required: www.eventbrite.com/e/relegation...
January 5, 2026 at 12:37 PM
Join us at the Coffee House for an evening celebrating The Relegation Reader, and new writing from the US, UK, and Europe. Admission is free, with RSVP required: www.eventbrite.com/e/relegation...
Reposted by Penina Roth
Author Spotlight: Kevin Nguyen, ‘Mỹ Documents’ https://ourculturemag.com/2025/04/29/author-spotlight-kevin-nguyen-my-documents/
April 29, 2025 at 6:59 AM
Author Spotlight: Kevin Nguyen, ‘Mỹ Documents’ https://ourculturemag.com/2025/04/29/author-spotlight-kevin-nguyen-my-documents/
Reposted by Penina Roth
We're thrilled to share the story "Heads" from @ellomelissa.bsky.social's collection Beyond All Reasonable Doubt, Jesus Is Alive! It's weird, it's unsettling, it's a little gross...and it's one of our most anticipated reads of the year 🪓
reactormag.com/excerpts-bey...
reactormag.com/excerpts-bey...
Read an Excerpt From Beyond All Reasonable Doubt, Jesus Is Alive! by Melissa Lozada-Oliva - Reactor
An ethereal and revelatory short story collection about faith, delusion, and the demons that can’t get enough of us.
reactormag.com
October 22, 2025 at 7:17 PM
We're thrilled to share the story "Heads" from @ellomelissa.bsky.social's collection Beyond All Reasonable Doubt, Jesus Is Alive! It's weird, it's unsettling, it's a little gross...and it's one of our most anticipated reads of the year 🪓
reactormag.com/excerpts-bey...
reactormag.com/excerpts-bey...
Reposted by Penina Roth
new newsletter: January event dates, vacation photos, music recs, 2025 publishing recap
gilded lapse-time
when left-side driving feels so right
open.substack.com
January 2, 2026 at 5:09 PM
new newsletter: January event dates, vacation photos, music recs, 2025 publishing recap
MONDAY, JANUARY 12, 8PM: Can't wait for the first Franklin Park Reading Series event of 2026, a paperback celebration for @justintaylor.bsky.social's novel Reboot, w/special guests @knguyen.bsky.social @ellomelissa.bsky.social Heather McCalden & Ali Kriegsman! #Free shorturl.at/yTq9W
January 2, 2026 at 6:19 PM
MONDAY, JANUARY 12, 8PM: Can't wait for the first Franklin Park Reading Series event of 2026, a paperback celebration for @justintaylor.bsky.social's novel Reboot, w/special guests @knguyen.bsky.social @ellomelissa.bsky.social Heather McCalden & Ali Kriegsman! #Free shorturl.at/yTq9W
Big thanks to Zona Motel & Khaholi Bailey for this fab recap of the Franklin Park Reading Series Season Finale featuring @angelaflournoy.bsky.social, Tim Blake Nelson, @drovarela.bsky.social, @megancummins.bsky.social, @jennifersears.bsky.social, and Wah-Ming Chang! open.substack.com/pub/zonamote...
DISPATCH: Franklin Park Reading Series
A few year-end reminders
open.substack.com
December 30, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Big thanks to Zona Motel & Khaholi Bailey for this fab recap of the Franklin Park Reading Series Season Finale featuring @angelaflournoy.bsky.social, Tim Blake Nelson, @drovarela.bsky.social, @megancummins.bsky.social, @jennifersears.bsky.social, and Wah-Ming Chang! open.substack.com/pub/zonamote...
Reposted by Penina Roth
Help us pay our writers, editors, fact-checkers, designers, developers, and social media posters *cough cough* in 2026. Donate to The Baffler today!
thebaffler.com/donate
thebaffler.com/donate
Donate
Now here’s a tale to buoy you through our time of sinking expectations. The Baffler Foundation Inc. is a tax-exempt organization incorporated “to promote art, science, and education by publishing a…
thebaffler.com
December 30, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Help us pay our writers, editors, fact-checkers, designers, developers, and social media posters *cough cough* in 2026. Donate to The Baffler today!
thebaffler.com/donate
thebaffler.com/donate
Reposted by Penina Roth
Courage. Integrity.
@pw.org Poets & Writers mag turns down $70k NEA grant because federal funding now “conditioned on exclusion, erasure, and scapegoating.” First time in 25 years the NEA logo won’t be on masthead.
(Now soliciting private donations to cover shortfall.)
@pw.org Poets & Writers mag turns down $70k NEA grant because federal funding now “conditioned on exclusion, erasure, and scapegoating.” First time in 25 years the NEA logo won’t be on masthead.
(Now soliciting private donations to cover shortfall.)
From Poets & Writers, Inc.
A Message From the Executive DirectorThe mission of Poets & Writers is to serve creative writers, and it is a privilege for me and my colleagues to carry out that mission. Our core values—integrity, s...
www.pw.org
December 28, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Courage. Integrity.
@pw.org Poets & Writers mag turns down $70k NEA grant because federal funding now “conditioned on exclusion, erasure, and scapegoating.” First time in 25 years the NEA logo won’t be on masthead.
(Now soliciting private donations to cover shortfall.)
@pw.org Poets & Writers mag turns down $70k NEA grant because federal funding now “conditioned on exclusion, erasure, and scapegoating.” First time in 25 years the NEA logo won’t be on masthead.
(Now soliciting private donations to cover shortfall.)
Reposted by Penina Roth
#ClipOfTheDay: Lena Moses-Schmitt reads from her debut collection, True Mistakes (University of Arkansas Press), and talks about how a constant sense of awe continuously inspires her life and poetics in this Green Apple Books event with Leigh Lucas. at.pw.org/MosesSchmitt
December 30, 2025 at 1:34 AM
#ClipOfTheDay: Lena Moses-Schmitt reads from her debut collection, True Mistakes (University of Arkansas Press), and talks about how a constant sense of awe continuously inspires her life and poetics in this Green Apple Books event with Leigh Lucas. at.pw.org/MosesSchmitt
Reposted by Penina Roth
ICYMI: I wrote about an unsettling Barry N. Malzberg novel from the 1970s about a troubled ex-president for Zona Motel. zonamotel.substack.com/p/review-by-...
REVIEW: By Night In America?
Barry N. Malzberg’s "The Last Transaction" is terrifying reading in 2025
zonamotel.substack.com
November 12, 2025 at 5:05 PM
ICYMI: I wrote about an unsettling Barry N. Malzberg novel from the 1970s about a troubled ex-president for Zona Motel. zonamotel.substack.com/p/review-by-...
Was excited to take part in this eye-opening publishing industry survey at @vulture.com—big thanks to @emmaalpern.bsky.social and @jvojdani.bsky.social for including me!
Here are 28 agents, scouts, writers, publicists, and magazine and book editors’ unfiltered thoughts on the current state of the industry.
28 Book Industry Professionals Get Candid About The Year in Books
Here are 28 agents, scouts, writers, publicists, and magazine and book editors’ unfiltered thoughts on the current state of the industry.
www.vulture.com
December 25, 2025 at 2:09 AM
Was excited to take part in this eye-opening publishing industry survey at @vulture.com—big thanks to @emmaalpern.bsky.social and @jvojdani.bsky.social for including me!
Reposted by Penina Roth
Before we all float away on a tide of eggnog, here's @time.com's preview of 36 anticipated books coming in 2026. Many thanks to Lucy Feldman for the opportunity. time.com/7341767/most...
The 36 Most Anticipated Books of 2026
The year ahead promises new books from George Saunders, Colson Whitehead, Ann Patchett, Ruth Ozeki, Jesmyn Ward and more
time.com
December 22, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Before we all float away on a tide of eggnog, here's @time.com's preview of 36 anticipated books coming in 2026. Many thanks to Lucy Feldman for the opportunity. time.com/7341767/most...
⭐Monday, January 12, 8pm⭐: We're launching the Franklin Park Reading Series 2026 season with a star-studded lineup-- @justintaylor.bsky.social, @knguyen.bsky.social, @ellomelissa.bsky.social, Heather McCalden, and Ali Kriegsman! Book raffle, drink specials, #free admission! shorturl.at/yTq9W
December 22, 2025 at 5:45 PM
⭐Monday, January 12, 8pm⭐: We're launching the Franklin Park Reading Series 2026 season with a star-studded lineup-- @justintaylor.bsky.social, @knguyen.bsky.social, @ellomelissa.bsky.social, Heather McCalden, and Ali Kriegsman! Book raffle, drink specials, #free admission! shorturl.at/yTq9W
Reposted by Penina Roth
So my first novel, The Survivalists (black woman lawyer falls in with a pack of Black Brooklyn doomsday preppers) is the San Francisco Public Library’s On The Same Page Pick for January/February 2026, and i’ll be doing an event there on 2/22 sfpl.org/books-and-me...
On the Same Page: The Survivalists | San Francisco Public Library
sfpl.org
December 22, 2025 at 5:00 PM
So my first novel, The Survivalists (black woman lawyer falls in with a pack of Black Brooklyn doomsday preppers) is the San Francisco Public Library’s On The Same Page Pick for January/February 2026, and i’ll be doing an event there on 2/22 sfpl.org/books-and-me...
Reposted by Penina Roth
Rereading Hemingway’s The Garden of Eden, posthumously published in 1986, and was struck by this passage this morning—his novelist character is doing the math on his sales, earning out his advance after selling 5000 copies. A simpler time (likely setting for this is circa 1926).
December 11, 2025 at 9:23 PM
Rereading Hemingway’s The Garden of Eden, posthumously published in 1986, and was struck by this passage this morning—his novelist character is doing the math on his sales, earning out his advance after selling 5000 copies. A simpler time (likely setting for this is circa 1926).
Reposted by Penina Roth
I wish there was a magazine for this series.
The Franklin Park Reading Series Season Finale was a smash—huge thanks to mesmerizing readers @angelaflournoy.bsky.social, Tim Blake Nelson, @drovarela.bsky.social, @megancummins.bsky.social, @jennifersears.bsky.social & Wah-Ming Chang, and lots of ❤️ to our awesome audience! 🗓️We’ll be back Jan. 12!
December 11, 2025 at 1:35 AM
I wish there was a magazine for this series.
The Franklin Park Reading Series Season Finale was a smash—huge thanks to mesmerizing readers @angelaflournoy.bsky.social, Tim Blake Nelson, @drovarela.bsky.social, @megancummins.bsky.social, @jennifersears.bsky.social & Wah-Ming Chang, and lots of ❤️ to our awesome audience! 🗓️We’ll be back Jan. 12!
December 11, 2025 at 1:12 AM
The Franklin Park Reading Series Season Finale was a smash—huge thanks to mesmerizing readers @angelaflournoy.bsky.social, Tim Blake Nelson, @drovarela.bsky.social, @megancummins.bsky.social, @jennifersears.bsky.social & Wah-Ming Chang, and lots of ❤️ to our awesome audience! 🗓️We’ll be back Jan. 12!