Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. Here are the biggest headlines from last week.
Marjane Satrapi, Author of PERSEPOLIS, Has Died at 56
Iranian French author Marjane Satrapi has passed away at 56. The cause and location of her death have not been shared, but one thing is certain: the world of graphic memoir has lost a giant. Satrapi’s best-known work, Persepolis, was published in the early 2000s and showed millions of readers the lives of everyday Iranians during the Islamic Revolution. As our Senior Editor Kelly Jensen stated, its blend of memoir, history, and stunning artwork has helped bring about our current, brilliant era of graphic memoir.
President Emmanuel Macron’s office released a statement on the author’s influence: “Her passing marks the loss of a leading figure in French culture and a freedom-loving artist whose work carried a universal message and earned her immense international acclaim.”
Five Publishers and Scott Turow Sue Meta and Mark Zuckerberg
It’s likely that as soon as you read the headline, you can guess what the lawsuit is about. Publishers Hachette, Macmillan, McGraw Hill, Elsevier and Cengage, alongside bestselling author Scott Turow, are suing Meta and Mark Zuckerberg for copyright infringement, claiming that the company and its founder illegally used works to train its artificial intelligence program, Llama. As an author, I welcome this kind of action and hope we see a resolution akin to what happened with Anthropic. We teach children in school that you can’t copy and paste someone else’s work without attribution because that’s called plagiarism, but AI companies don’t seem to heed that very simple standard.
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Barnes & Noble’s Picks for the Best Books of 2026 So Far
The “Best Books of the Year So Far” lists continue! This time, it’s Barnes & Noble’s picks. Some of the titles are common to most other lists we’ve seen so far, like Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke, Kin by Tayari Jones, and Strangers by Belle Burden. But there are also some unique choices, like Seek Immediate Shelter by Vincent Yu and The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan. You’ll find a greater variety of genres here than something like The New York Times‘ best of list, including sci-fi, romantasy, cookbooks, self-help, and horror. Also check out their lists of the best audiobooks, YA books, and kids’ books of the year so far.
Ticket Prices for The Odyssey Soar to $1,000 on eBay
Yesterday afternoon, ticket sales began for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey—and they quickly became chaotic. Wait times on AMC’s website were over an hour at one point, and tickets for the IMAX showings in New York, Texas, Florida, and Arizona quickly sold out. Scalpers are now listing these tickets on eBay for hundreds of dollars, with some reaching $1,000. The Odyssey is the “first feature film to be entirely shot on IMAX camera,” and Nolan has encouraged audiences to see it in this format… but it’s hard for me to imagine the difference in quality is worth shelling out $1,000 for.
What are You Reading in June?
It’s time for our monthly check-in: what did you read in May, and what’s on your June TBR? If you’re participating in the Read Harder Challenge, which tasks have you completed recently? Sign up for All Access to get an up-close and personal look at my reading life, including the book series that has taken over my life lately.
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