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Zimbabwean author Simbarashe Kundizeza denies using AI to write prize-winning story

Article in Atlantic claims The Blue Fighter was artificially generated, days after it won Caine prize for African writers

The Zimbabwean writer Simbarashe Kundizeza has denied using AI to write a prize-winning short story after an article in the Atlantic said software had flagged it as almost completely AI-generated.

Kundizeza’s story The Blue Fighter was announced as the winner of the prestigious Caine prize for African writers on 6 October. Five days later, The Atlantic published an article by the author and journalist Vauhini Vara titled: “Yet Another Literary prize winner Seems to Be AI.”

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© Photograph: pr image

© Photograph: pr image

© Photograph: pr image

A 1571 Letter Undercuts the Hoax Theory Around the “Other Voynich Manuscript” and Reveals a Terrified Scribe

Some medieval books can’t be read by anyone, and one of them has become almost a trademark of the genre: the Voynich manuscript, kept at Yale University and dated to the 15th century. It has inspired novels and theories of every kind. Specialists often place another volume right behind it on the list of enigmas, […]

Winter of the Crow review – Lesley Manville magnificently on edge in intriguing cold war thriller

14 October 2026 at 13:00

Manville’s academic psychologist finds herself trapped in a tower block wasteland in 1980s Warsaw. Bizarre and surreal details add to the sinister vibe

Part cold war thriller, part Kafkaesque reverie, this movie takes us back to the sinister drear of Poland in 1981, when General Jaruzelski has just introduced martial law in reaction to the dangerous new mood of freedom occasioned by the Solidarity trade unions. The director is Kasia Adamik, daughter of The Green Border’s Agnieszka Holland; the film is adapted from a story by Olga Tokarczuk, called Professor Andrews Goes to Warsaw.

Lesley Manville plays Professor Andrews, an academic clinical psychologist (like Tokarczuk) from Britain with testy, peremptory mannerisms; her indulgence is a fondness for taking Polaroid photos. She has attained a certain level of celebrity for a book on dreams, despite claiming that she never dreams herself. Andrews has been invited to give a lecture in Warsaw, during which she begins to outline views on mental illness not unlike those of Laing or Foucault; but her speech is chaotically disrupted by students shouting that Poland itself is an oppressive asylum.

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© Photograph: Danny James/Courtesy of Signature Entertainment

© Photograph: Danny James/Courtesy of Signature Entertainment

© Photograph: Danny James/Courtesy of Signature Entertainment

'Grandma Joy and Me' follows a grandmother and grandson's journey to every national park

Eleven years ago, Brad Ryan took his grandmother, Joy, camping in the Smoky Mountains after hearing that she had never seen a mountain. That one trip to a national park turned into dozens, and "Grandma Joy's Road Trip" took them to every one. Brad and Joy joined Geoff Bennett to discuss their book and their travels with Road Scholar, a nonprofit that organizes educational trips around the world.

How to Sleep Like Jesus

13 October 2026 at 05:01
How to sleep like Jesus is not a prescription for how many hours you need to sleep each night. It is about progressively transforming into someone who can entrust both their sleeping and their waking to God. If sleep doesn’t come, this perspective of trust allows you to pray openly and honestly to the Lord.... Continue Reading

How Should We Think About Meditation and Mindfulness?

13 October 2026 at 05:01
A lot of the practices that go under the heading of meditation are things that essentially try to manipulate physiology, like postures and breathing techniques, to try to push away all the distractions, clear the mind, and get to a quiet headspace. Whereas the meditation commended in Scripture—in Psalm 1 and picked up by the... Continue Reading

In 'Blockers,' Michael Lewis highlights government workers who resisted DOGE

Elon Musk has donated more than $365 million to support Republicans in the midterm elections. Musk's influence on the federal government is the focus of "Blockers," a new book by Michael Lewis. Lisa Desjardins sat down with Lewis to discuss Musk's time leading DOGE and the federal workers who found themselves in its crosshairs.

Frankfurt Book Fair 2026 Draws 236,000

12 October 2026 at 10:09
Czech literature, artificial intelligence, audiobooks, long standing participation and freedom of expression shaped five days of international publishing business and public debate The Frankfurt Book Fair welcomed 236,000 visitors from 137 countries in 2026, sustaining its position as the international publishing industry’s principal meeting place. Across five days, the fair combined rights negotiations and professional […]

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