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No matter where you fall on the holiday romcom fandom scale, there’s no denying that infusing these winter months with a little bit of romance is a great way to amp up the holiday spirit. What’s more heart-warming than a meet cute at a Christmas tree farm? Or an enemies-to-lovers story told against the backdrop of a winter wonderland? Holiday romcoms are so popular that unless you’re the most die-hard of fans, it’s nearly impossible to keep up with every single release coming out every year....

According to Susan Herman, Director of the Office of ThriveNYC, the goal is to fill critical gaps in our mental health system. One way for ThriveNYC to do this is to set up partnerships that “create effective and culturally competent solutions.” Since, as Herman notes, there may be library branches in a neighborhood where services may still be too hard to come by, “we’re here, putting books and programs in neighborhoods where they’ll make a real difference....

Of course, there are benefits to not being alone when you read, especially if reading is your favourite hobby. It’s nice to get your social itch scratched. It’s nicer to be able to share your passions with people you care about. That said, should we feel compelled to seek a literary community? Do We Need BookTok? My argument is that you shouldn’t feel necessarily compelled to seek out a reading community simply for the sake of doing so....

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Surely there can’t be that many clown-themed villains in comics, right? Just the Joker, Harley Quinn, and maybe some knockoffs? Alas, I am sorry to tell you that I was able to come up with a list of over two dozen evil clowns or clown-adjacent villains, and I suspect I haven’t gotten them all, given the obscurity of some of these bozos. (Get it?...

I’ve been a long-time fan of their scratch off book poster — linked below in the roundup — and beyond that, there’s a wealth of great gift ideas including candles, glasses, and fun bookish accessories. Consider some of these perfect for stuffing a stocking or including with a larger gift or go all in and splurge on something more spendy (and let’s be clear: I find spendy to be $30 or more, so your mileage may vary!...

Jade, Jenny, Mads, and Summer rule their glittering LA circle. Untouchable, they have the kind of power other girls only dream of—until the night of Jade’s sweet sixteen, when they crash a St. Andrew’s Prep party. The night the golden boys choose Jade as their next target. They picked the wrong girl. Sworn to vengeance, Jade transfers to St. Andrew’s Prep. She plots to destroy each boy, one by one....

We all know by now that the release of this book isn’t without taint. Questions surround Lee’s ability to consent to its publication (questions we’ll address today), the discovery of the book, and its contents. The beloved figure of Atticus Finch, America’s patron saint of legal justice, is a racist in GSAW. Today, our idol slips on his altar just a little bit. With all this in mind, we’re going to spend today talkin’ all things Harper Lee....

In that original crisis by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, the Anti-Monitor (powerful cosmic being) is going around and destroying universes. The Monitor (yep, another powerful cosmic being) is recruiting heroes to fight Anti-Monitor. Lots of heroes and villains banded together to fight off an enormous, existential threat from a character rarely seen before. Some heroes died. Continuity was simplified. This has mostly been the theme upon which other crises in DC have been variations....

Readers Weigh In On What Makes a Good Sex Scene Mara from Books Like Whoa was of two minds about what makes a good sex scene. When in the mood for something smutty and over the top, she reaches for authors like Jessa Kane that know how to keep it campy. When she’s reading something more serious, the sex should be more about character and relationship development than the act itself....

Speaking of romanticization, books are often conferred a certain status that almost no other object is. Reading isn’t just a hobby; it’s a lofty pursuit. Books aren’t just widgets; they’re sacred objects. Reading and books aren’t just associated with status and education. They’re also often associated with a kind of moral weight. It’s not unusual for everyone from BookTokers to booksellers to say they promote literacy, which certainly sounds like a noble pursuit....

This famous description is catchy, but it barely scratches the surface of who Butler was. Her legacy as the first Black woman science fiction writer precedes her, but she was never too fond of labels. As her many interviews and novels show, there was a lot more to her than a simple by-line. Octavia Butler’s Early Life Octavia Estelle Butler was born to Laurice and Octavia M. Butler (née Guy) in Pasadena, California, on June 22, 1947....

Nothing could tear Detective Michael Bennett away from his new bride—except the murder of his best friend. NYPD master homicide investigator Michael Bennett and FBI abduction specialist Emily Parker have a history. When she fails to show at FBI headquarters in Washington, DC, Bennett ventures outside his jurisdiction. The investigation he undertakes is the most brilliant detective work of his career…and the most intensely personal. A portrait begins to emerge of a woman as adept at keeping secrets as forging powerful connections....

Launched in 2019, Nightfire, the new horror imprint from Tor, encompasses the breadth of horror, from short story collections to novellas and novels, from standalone works to series, from dark fantasy to the supernatural, from originals to reprints of lost modern classics. Nightfire’s novels are now appearing on shelves in bookstores and libraries near you. Do you dare stretch the spines on these terrifying titles this autumn? So what’s this song about?...

Anxious People features suicide and mental illness as central themes, so please read with caution. Reading Anxious People felt like some kind of experiment. “Ah yes, here are the 2020 humans, in their natural habitat.” Anxious People is 2020. It’s messy, convoluted, funny, heartbreaking, and full of people. That was one of the criticisms I saw over and over again, on social media and in traditional reviews: that Anxious People has too many characters....

Justice League #75 by Joshua Williamson and Rafa Sandoval, which came out this April, ended fairly predictably. After all, the story was called “Death of the Justice League,” and DC’s marketing had made it clear for months that this issue kicked off their 2022 summer event, Dark Crisis, by killing off the current Justice League lineup and leaving the protection of the universe in the hands of the League’s children and successors....

It was a Nick Hornby book. As a teen, I was obsessed with House and the dry sarcasm that came along with the show. It followed that I appreciated a lot of British humor (even with House as an American television show, Hugh Laurie’s British influence is pretty evident)—or at least pretended to, because I wasn’t like other girls—and so knowing only a little about what was out there for adult fiction and seeing the edgy cover supported by an edgy and flippant description, I picked it up....

Although she only came into prominence in Europe and North America between the 17th and 19th centuries, Mother Goose’s origins date back to as early as the 8th century CE. Betrada II of Laon, mother of Charlemagne (AKA Charles the Great, the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire), spent frequent time in children’s company telling them folk and fairytales. Her most common nicknames were “Queen Goosefoot” or “Goose-foot Bertha,” as she suffered from a malformation of one of her feet....

— Wizarding World (@wizardingworld) April 1, 2020 In addition to Rowling and her agents The Blair Partnership’s blanket permission regarding the original text, Wizarding World will also offer free access to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone on audiobook narrated by Stephen Fry via Audible; related tools including activities, videos, articles, puzzles, and more; and free access (with a library card) to the ebook of Sorcerer’s Stone via users’ OverDrive accounts....

Ten years after graduation, Jessica Miller has planned her triumphant return to her southern, elite Duquette University. Everyone is going to see the girl she wants them to see—confident, beautiful, indifferent. Not the girl she was when she left campus, back when Heather Shelby’s murder fractured everything, including the tight bond linking the six friends she’d been closest to since freshman year.But not everyone is ready to move on. Not everyone left Duquette ten years ago, and not everyone can let Heather’s murder go unsolved....

I love the open and non-presumptuous way YA books talk about difficult matters. How they guide us through the story, offering us an almost certainty that the main characters will find a safe shore, even if there are storms on the way. When there is no happy ending, they give us time to mourn, and to pick up the pieces of ourselves scattered around. YA books are friends. There are many YA books coming out this year that I am really looking forward to read, and they would be a great addition to any school library....