The Smart Set is a weekly feature, compiled by Lauren Cerand, that usually appears Mondays at 12:30pm and highlights the best of the week to come. Special favor is given to New York’s independent booksellers and venues, and low-cost and free events. Please send details to lauren [at] maudnewton.com by the Thursday prior to publication, with the event’s date in . . .
Although the Bush administration praises (and funds) Morocco as a moderate Arab state, Laila Lalami observes that freedoms of the press are under threat there.
Orhan Pamuk has cancelled a trip to Germany due to safety fears.
Niall Griffiths admires the quiet despair of Rosamond Lehmann’s stories. (Hermione Lee has called Lehmann’s early 20th century novels “Doomed Chick Lit.” Excerpts here.)
God, it hurts to write this: RIP, Molly Ivins, one of Texas’ finest. (The Observer offers a tribute, and The Nation suggests a participatory one.)