A quiet few days in the literary world, though the Orange Prize judges did issue the long list for this year’s prize, with a plea from judge chair, Daisy Godwin, to authors to spare us your misery. I hear you, Daisy, I’m perpetually in mourning for humor in modern literature, we still, even now, seem to equate seriousness with serious intent. Margaret Atwood’s sense of humor is intact, and she shares on her blog her experience of singing a cameo for an upcoming musical about hockey.