News Report / Two Bangladeshi writers make 2026 Commonwealth Short Story Prize shortlist
14 April 2026, 16:54 PM
Two Bangladeshi writers—26-year-old Anmana Manishita, a lecturer at BRAC University, and 33-year-old Shazed Ul Hoq Abir, a lecturer at East West University—have been shortlisted for the 2026 Commonwealth Short Story Prize.
14 April 2026, 16:54 PM
News Report / From the ashes: Gaza’s first grassroots library rises amid genocide
12 April 2026, 21:43 PM
Two Palestinian writers, Omar Hamad and Ibrahim Massri, have been working since late 2025 to build a library in Gaza during the ongoing genocide. The Phoenix Library is located in the heart of Gaza City and, per a post from the library’s Twitter/X account, is fast approaching its official opening date despite the Gaza Strip and all of occupied Palestine still being subject to Israeli apartheid violence.
12 April 2026, 21:43 PM
NEWS REPORT / Arundhati Roy’s Mother Mary Comes to Me secures 2026 NBCC Award, continues global recognition
28 March 2026, 17:07 PM
Celebrated author and activist Arundhati Roy’s 2025 memoir Mother Mary Comes to Me (Penguin, 2025) continues to solidify its place in the zeitgeist and its cultural impact well into 2026, with its recent win at this year’s US National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) Award in the Autobiography category.
28 March 2026, 17:07 PM
NEWS REPORT / Rishad Choudhury wins Association for Asian Studies’ 2026 Bernard S. Cohn Prize
13 March 2026, 19:30 PM
Rishad Choudhury, a historian and Assistant Professor of History at Oberlin College, has been awarded the 2026 Bernard S. Cohn Prize by the Association for Asian Studies for his book Hajj Across Empires: Pilgrimage and Political Cultures After the Mughals, 1739-1857 (Cambridge, University Press, 2004).
13 March 2026, 19:30 PM
NEWS REPORT / Arundhati Roy skips Berlinale over Gaza comments and festival response
17 February 2026, 19:09 PM
Arundhati Roy, celebrated Indian writer, essayist, and activist, has recently been at the centre of a controversy surrounding the Berlin International Film Festival regarding comments on the ongoing genocide in Palestine.
17 February 2026, 19:09 PM
EVENT REPORT / Md Ashanur Rahman receives the International Creative Arts Award 2025
19 January 2026, 17:38 PM
On January 18, 2026 novelist and essayist Md Ashanur Rahman was awarded The International Creative Arts Award 2025 by the International Creative Arts, Language & Development Research Centre of the University of Dhaka for his outstanding contribution to literature and its role in Enriching Minds and Inspiring Lives.
19 January 2026, 17:38 PM
NEWS REPORT / NSU DEML launches inaugural certificate course in creative writing
17 January 2026, 16:00 PM
The six-week intensive program offers beginners and budding writers mentor-led guidance in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, focusing on Bangladeshi cultural narratives
17 January 2026, 16:00 PM
EVENT REPORT / Bangladesh’s first interactive mental health book launched
15 January 2026, 13:43 PM
The book features 15 chapters covering essential topics such as attachment styles, love languages, and shadow work.
15 January 2026, 13:43 PM
“Curious love letter”: Wole Soyinka responds after US cancels visa
He responded to the situation with grace, mentioning “I like people who have a sense of humour".
30 October 2025, 10:45 AM
Gibran, illustrated: Zeina Abirached’s take on ‘The Prophet’
Particularly striking is her choice of working only in black and white, letting both the poetry and her art speak for themselves in their rawest forms.
28 September 2025, 13:45 PM
Mother, memory, and defiance: Inside Arundhati Roy’s new memoir
The memoir situates Roy’s personal story alongside her public life as an outspoken critic of state power, globalisation, and inequality.
31 August 2025, 12:30 PM
EWU hosts ‘7th Nahreen Khan Memorial Lecture’ with Dr Niaz Zaman
She discussed the increasing recognition of translated literature, as evidenced by prestigious awards such as the International Booker Prize and the Commonwealth Short Story Prize
17 July 2025, 12:33 PM
Embracing the bizarre and ‘An Eye and a Leg’
The Asia regional winner of the 2025 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, Faria Basher, in an interview with The Daily Star, opens up about her journey from lifelong reader to emerging writer.
4 June 2025, 18:00 PM
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, renowned Kenyan author and literary icon, dies at 87
The revolutionary novelist, playwright, and fierce advocate, passed away on May 28 in Bedford, Georgia
29 May 2025, 16:36 PM
Faria Basher named Asia Regional Winner of Commonwealth Short Story Prize
She is the first writer of Bangladeshi origin to win the regional prize
14 May 2025, 10:46 AM
‘Let it be a tale’: Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha wins Pulitzer Prize
Other Pulitzer Prize winners in the arts included Percival Everett in the Fiction category for his novel 'James', Branden Jacobs-Jenkins in the Drama category for his play 'Purpose', and Marie Howe in the Poetry category for her collection, 'New and Selected Poems'
6 May 2025, 16:00 PM
Bangladeshi writer Faria Basher shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2025
“An Eye and a Leg” has been described as "a darkly humorous and surreal take on the trope of the ‘expiring’ South Asian woman"
15 April 2025, 15:00 PM
Whose language matters: On inclusion, identity, and silence
The panel supplied a critical as well as emotional commentary on the issues of linguistic hegemonisation, power imbalances, the marginalisation of non-Bangali languages and identities, and the aftermath of the revolutionary spirit of July 2024
26 March 2025, 15:30 PM
Books about female rage
With International Women’s Day being celebrated across the world tomorrow, we here at Star Books and Literature decided to take a moment to read and reflect on the many expressions of female rage in both ancient and contemporary literature
7 March 2025, 15:00 PM
'Bhasha Andoloner Itihash' by Bashir Al Helal
Tracing back the events before the Language Movement of 1952, Al Helal presents a detailed account of the events that unfolded during February 1952.
21 February 2025, 18:00 PM
Silent verses on a bed of arrows
“‘Shoroshojya’ is more than just a book. It’s the war we’ve fought, the emotions we’ve felt, and it is the story of a person who fought for his life”
17 February 2025, 05:30 AM
Anwar Ehtesham unveils his first photo book, ‘Hopes and Dreams’
This collection of 121 compelling photographs captures the hopes, dreams, resilience, and daily lives of Dhaka’s working-class individuals
6 February 2025, 15:30 PM
‘A tested language of time’: Mozid Mahmud’s Memorial Club sees virtual launch
On January 11, 2025, the online book launch of writer and poet Mozid Mahmud’s first novel, 'Memorial Club', was held
16 January 2025, 12:00 PM
For the Curious Writer: Writing tips for the New Year
As 2025 rolls around, spelling yet another year of reading about writing and writing about reading, we asked the Star Books and Literature family to share their top writing tips for our readers.
1 January 2025, 18:00 PM
In memory of Ghulam Murshid: Researcher, author, journalist
Murshid’s passing marks the end of an era in literature
22 August 2024, 15:24 PM
‘I don’t want to go to Dhaka University anymore’
“There is only one life to live— In this lifetime, why should Rajakars have to be seen again?”
16 July 2024, 16:35 PM
‘Untranquil Recollections’: Revisiting the past with Professor Rehman Sobhan
On March 9, 2024, University Press Limited (UPL) hosted a discussion with Professor Rehman Sobhan, moderated by Dr Akhter Mahmood, on the two volumes of 'Untranquil Recollections'
12 March 2024, 15:00 PM
Court rules: Elif Shafak found guilty of plagiarism
The court also ruled that the Türkiye-based Dogan Kitap Publishing House was liable for material compensation as well as moral damages.
28 January 2024, 12:45 PM