Names and faces

■ A Spanish judge Tuesday approved a trial for Colombian pop singer Shakira on tax-fraud charges. Prosecutors accused the entertainer in 2018 of failing to pay $13.9 million in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014, and they’re seeking an eight-year prison sentence and a hefty fine if she’s found guilty of tax evasion. Shakira, 45, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and rejected a deal to avoid going to trial. Her public relations firm has said she has already paid all that she owed as well as $2.8 million in interest. The court based in the town of Esplugues de Llobregat near Barcelona said Shakira will face six counts of tax fraud, with the trial date yet to be set. The case hinges on where she lived during 2012-14. Prosecutors in Barcelona have alleged the Grammy winner spent more than half of that period in Spain and should have paid taxes in the country, even though her official residence was in the Bahamas. Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, has been linked to Spain since she started dating soccer player Gerard Pique. The couple, who have two children, used to live together in Barcelona but recently ended their 11-year relationship. Spain has cracked down on soccer stars over the past decade for not paying their full due in taxes.

■ Howard University, PEN America and Scholastic Book Clubs are among the latest recipients of donations from James Patterson, the bestselling author who has given more than $100 million to literary and literacy programs. On Tuesday, Patterson announced $5.3 million in cash awards. They include $2 million to PEN to support its fight for free expression worldwide; $2 million to Scholastic for the classroom project “The United States of Readers”; and $1.3 million to Howard University for 12 James Patterson Writer Education Scholarships, worth $10,000 each for the current academic year, and to the Iowa Writers’ Workshop for 14 fellowships, given to 11 fiction writers and three poets. Over the years, Patterson has also given millions of dollars to teachers, school libraries and independent bookstores. “I was brought up to give back — so my mother and grandmother should get the praise here,” Patterson said. “I’ve dedicated my career to getting as many people to love books as possible. I advocate for literacy and schools, fund teacher scholarships, and support other writers, booksellers, and librarians in any way that I can.”