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Kinokuniya’s Book World in Dubai Mall When I first arrived, I found that my print-loving partner was buying books in the U.S. and lugging them over in his suitcase, and also purchasing lovely volumes at Kinokuniya Book World in Dubai Mall. This Kinokuniya used to be in an enormous space. It has since moved to a smaller spot in the same mall and the selection is still very good. It now sits across from the Dubai Metro sky bridge, a long but air-conditioned way to reach it....

The headline (admittedly likely not written by the author) calls YA “power porn” for adults. The author claims to be in the minority in believing that adults shouldn’t read YA, despite this article being a carbon copy of every other article like it. Perhaps she should read more widely. Every two paragraphs there are links to so-called related articles, each more harmful and hysterical than the last (example: a headline referencing the “Teen transgender trend” unironically)....

This is the inspiring true story of a woman on a journey to find the lost. Accompanied by her rebellious black Lab Tasha, maverick Susan Purvis navigates her way through both deep snow and challenging relationships to find passion and purpose as she and Tasha learn to save lives in the Colorado mountains. New York Times bestselling author Sebastian Junger praises Purvis’s memoir as “A brave and profound book… No one can truly understand the wilderness without going deeply within themselves, and perhaps vice versa....

The Tiger at Midnight is first book in an epic heart-pounding fantasy trilogy inspired by ancient Indian history and Hindu mythology and is perfect for fans of Sabaa Tahir and Renée Ahdieh. Esha is a legendary rebel known as the Viper, who lost everything in the royal coup—and now wants to make the guilty pay. Kunal has been a soldier since childhood. His uncle, the general, has ensured that Kunal never strays from the path—even as a part of Kunal longs to join the outside world....

While I’ve always loved witches, I’ve only just began to realize that my early love of magical women is directly tied to my then-burgeoning feminism. I’ve also realized that a part from showing literally empowered women, witches in the media also represent the intrinsic power that marginalized people have, as both groups are often seen as some kind of other. Additionally, the story of the young witch just learning her powers is a great metaphor for coming of age....

It make sense, really, that a franchise with such deep literary roots would make inroads into book publishing. Lovecraft, Conrad, Frankenstein, and of course the Prometheus mythos from which Frankenstein derives its own inspiration, have all informed the development of the series, from the original 1979 film to the most recent of Ridley Scott’s prequels. Lovecraft is in the foundations of the original film, in its scope and its vast, apathetic universe that does not care if we live, or die screaming in the depths of space....

If I had a house of unlimited space, I’d build a set of incredible bookshelves, floor to ceiling, and then invest in a ton of fun, clever, and unique bookshelves to fill other rooms. I do not, unfortunately, have unlimited space, and the reality is that while I probably own more books than the average person, I also get rid of books regularly and don’t need to have a ton of shelf space....

My son is getting older and he’s at that point where, while he isn’t quite ready to read middle grade chapter books yet, he loves listening to me read them to him. (Right now, for independent reading, his level is more the Magic Tree House series — a different kind of SFF, if you will). So I’ve been on the lookout for middle grade fantasy that we can read together that won’t scare him or be too complex, but is still fun and empowering, with feel-good messages....

But it did inspire Kit’s post on why “best of” lists get us all so revved up. My own take on that question is this: “I love books, and I’m used to being an authority. And if I don’t know you very well, and therefore don’t deem you credible, your opinion is much wrong-er than mine. And that makes me Hulk-smash angry!” What makes for a good book list? When reasonable minds prevail, however, these lists are a TON of fun to think about....

I’m a huge audiobook listener, though the bulk of my listening is adult nonfiction. This doesn’t mean I don’t listen to YA on audio, but when I do, it’s not a surprise that I lean toward nonfiction. Something about nonfiction — be it the way it’s easier to dip in and out, be it the way it’s like listening to a podcast — makes it easy for me to enjoy aurally....

But Batman isn’t the only comic book character celebrating a major milestone this year. Here’s a few other folks who have a significant number of candles to blow out in 2019: 80 Years: Besides Batman, 1939 gave us Namor the Sub-Mariner and his tiny shorts, so all in all it was a great year for comics, if not for anyone else. We also met the original incarnations of Blue Beetle, the Human Torch, and Sandman, plus Archie Comics as an entity (then called MLJ)....

The walkout gained nationwide attention and inspired protests at other schools. It also garnered negative attention for him from his school, as he was suspended from Flagler Palm Coast High School on March 3rd. Although he was allowed to come back to school on March 7th, he has faced repeated disciplinary actions since. Some of these actions have even prevented him from running for senior class president. The award was presented to Petocz by actor Asia Kate Dillon....

At the Tuesday night Sumter County, Florida, school board meeting, the board approved use of a book for supplemental reading in a second-semester senior elective health class. The book, The Naked Roommate, has been a supplemental resource for six years in this class, as it addresses topics that students may experience post-high school, including sexuality, substance use, sexually-transmitted infections, and more. Thanks to Florida’s House Bill 545, passed in June 2021, materials related to sexual education must be made public for parents to review annually....

Born to a Sunni family in Al-Birwa, near Akka, in 1941, Darwish’s life trajectory comprises many overlapping strands like deracination, the trauma of being separated from the homeland, and more. When he was a child of 7 years, he was driven away from his village by a group of Zionists. Like many of his homeland’s other inhabitants, Darwish, too, was forced into a state of exile. Out of this sense of uprootedness, stemmed Darwish’s poems on the dispossessed....

But what about those average people? Not just what are average people reading, but how many books does the average person read? Reading habits also vary widely from country to country. Literacy is directly tied to poverty, so indigent countries have lower averages. Cultural differences also contribute to reading rates, causing differences between countries that are relatively equally affluent. So let’s look at the numbers, shall we? I know, that number struck me as fairly low, but not entirely unexpected....

Back then, when a student got bullied, it was very much in the classroom, since there was no social media at the time. For me, going to this prep school was magical and made me learn so much about myself. To escape the mean girls, I made friends with students from different grades and built a close group of best friends. I threw myself into writing for the school paper, scribbling poetry in a small notebook, and reading....

You walk into the post office with a stack of envelopes and order a book of stamps. Perhaps you scan the designs available and choose the one that’s most appealing, or the one that makes you smile. Maybe you just turn the package or letter over and they stamp it for you, and you never even see the designs applied. Maybe, every once in a while, you receive an envelope with a special stamp affixed, and it holds your attention for a moment....

Each party focuses on one author and his or her most well-known writings. When fall rolled around this year, we knew it was time to spotlight Shirley Jackson. The queen of gothic horror’s books and short stories were perfect leading up to Halloween (they’re perfect any time of year, in my opinion), and this dinner party was a blast. It centered three of Jackson’s works: The Lottery, The Haunting of Hill House, and We Have Always Lived in the Castle....

Though officials claim the move to hire Library Services & Systems (LS&S) will reduce library operational costs over the next ten years, it comes on the heels of the city removing a Pride book display and a Banned Books Week display in September. City Manager Aron Kulhavy called for the displays to be taken down, temporarily closing the library. Following the removal of both displays, the library was told they could not create any additional displays, pending the city’s review of policies and procedures about them....

When it comes to books, I have two settings: remembering every title and author, as a consequence of working daily with books for more than a decade, and forgetting every detail of the books I read. I don’t remember the main character’s name while I’m reading it, never mind after I close the covers. I couldn’t tell you the plot points of a book I finished days ago. I don’t read a lot of mysteries because I can’t keep track of the clues....