Luc Sante (on John Gall’s blog) shares some of the earliest examples of photography on French novel covers. . . . Go here to find out who said this: “Fiction is so autoerotic! That’s why we all want to keep on doing it.” . . . The Reading Ape boldly lists The 100 Great American Novels, 1891-1991. (“I did my best to put my own reading taste to the side: there are many works here that I actively dislike, but the goal isn’t pleasure here but knowledge of the major voices, concerns, movements, innovations, and ideas of the era.”) . . . The Caustic Cover Critic shares a rather underwhelming cover for a Spanish edition of Crime and Punishment: “I’ve never scene a less dynamic representation of the act of murder.” . . . The Believer has announced the five finalists for its annual book award. . . . C.S. Lewis’ translation of the Aeneid, thought lost to a bonfire, has been discovered and appears scheduled for a May release in the U.S. . . . A quite belated link to a year-ender: Chris Flynn lists his 20 favorite short stories of 2010. (Via) . . . Ted Ross writes about being fired from Harper’s, the importance of having liquor in an editorial office, and having lunch with the young upstart who replaced him: “We ate noodles, traded ideas about his new responsibilities and split the check. This could have proven awkward, I imagine, except that I like and respect the guy and feel strongly that he’s worse off than me.”