The Vanderbeeker family has lived in their brownstone on 141st street for years, but their landlord recently informed the family they have to go. Determined to change the mind of the curmudgeonly landlord, AKA the Beiderman, the five Vanderbeeker siblings band together in a plan that involves plenty of hijinks, laughs, and family love. In addition to a fun plot, The Vanderbeekers’s tone made it such a delightful book for me....
1. Get Caught Reading Getting students to read in fun, unique places can entice them to take part in different summer reading programs. Having prizes for the coolest places can also be effective. In the past I’ve had a lot of success with this one, with students having their pictures taken on trampolines, up trees, even in dryers (definitely don’t encourage that one). I usually put an asterisk on these ones as I hope students can provide a review of the book they’ve chosen with the picture, considering the whole idea is for them to choose a book they love!...
Why is Little Fires Everywhere a great book club book? To those out on their own paths, setting little fires This is the book dedication in Celeste Ng’s second novel, Little Fires Everywhere—a New York Times bestseller and the source material that inspired Reese Witherspoon to produce a TV series of the same name (slated to be released in 2020). When you read a dedication like that, you know you’re about to dig into a story, simmering with provocative themes and big questions that will keep your book club thinking and talking for hours....
I have a soft spot for September as well, mainly because I was born during this month. September for me is like a warm hug; it feels like I’m returning home. So, because of this, September book releases are special to me. As a reader — especially a romance reader — the changing of seasons, or more specifically the changing of months (because every month there are new books coming out!...
I was pleased to find a plethora of novels we can look forward to reading in 2021, from historical adventures to modern stories to sci-fi worlds and vivid fantasies. If you’re ready to jump in, take a look at these YA books by AAPI authors. YA Books by AAPI Authors: Historical Fiction YA Books by AAPI Authors: Contemporary Fiction YA Books by AAPI Authors: Sci-Fi YA Books by AAPI Authors: Fantasy With so many YA books by AAPI authors with so many unique perspectives, this year will have no shortage of opportunities to dive into stories, from Texas to India to Korea to worlds unknown....
When I can’t go anywhere, I like to remember where I’ve been and find new places to go later. Wherever you are, I hope you enjoy these bookish places that you can add to your travel goals in 2022 (fingers crossed!). South Korea is known for a variety of things, from their karaoke rooms and barbecue to their impressive music industry and beauty products. While I taught English there for a year, I had a chance to enjoy many of these things....
When the ups and downs of life (or the even more erratic ups and downs of current events) weigh heavily, you’re well within your rights to look for escape. Maybe in the welcoming arms of fantasy. But sometimes orcs, goblins, and the sinister plotting of wizards can’t give you the escapist endorphin release you need. You may need something a little lighter or with a happy ending—and maybe a little romance, too....
Short story collections with fantastical elements have also been expanding readers’ minds on what literary fiction can look like. Carmen Maria Machado, Ramona Ausubel, and Anjali Sachdeva use a blend of genres to create their incredible stories. Great stories are great stories, however they are told. Literary fiction that contains zombies, killer robots, or ghosts hunters can be just as good as a classically styled novel. Part of what makes literature great is that authors push themselves to write new and interesting stories that make readers think about life in different ways....
Superhero Board Books DC SUPERHEROES: My First Book of Girl Power by Julie Merberg For young DC fans, this board book introducing little ones to iconic DC superheroines is a must-read. Using classic, colorful artwork, this is packed with heroes to admire including Wonder Woman (and her ability to discover the truth) and Black Canary and her powerful voice. Even Superheroes Use the Potty by Sara Crow, Illustrated by Adam Record In this companion to Even Superheroes Have to Sleep, children can learn good bathroom habits from their favorite heroes....
Chair of the judges, Maya Jasanoff, writes of this year’s longlist, “One thing that unites these books is their power to absorb the reader in an unusual story, and to do so in an artful, distinctive voice. Many of them consider how people grapple with the past—whether personal experiences of grief or dislocation or the historical legacies of enslavement, apartheid, and civil war. Many examine intimate relationships placed under stress, and through them meditate on ideas of freedom and obligation, or on what makes us human....
Chair of the judges and award-winning novelist of Girl, Woman, Other, Bernardine Evaristo commented on the list, writing: “We read so many brilliant novels for this year’s prize and had an energetic judging session where we discussed our passions, opinions and preferences. Sadly, we had to let some very deserving books go but we’re confident that we have chosen sixteen standout novels that represent a truly wide and varied range of fiction by women that reflects multiple perspectives, narrative styles and preoccupations....
“Pale Blue Dot” Print by PrintableAndAwesome on Etsy Carl Sagan Quotes on Knowledge and Learning “Exploration is in our nature. We began as wanderers, and we are wanderers still. We have lingered long enough on the shores of the cosmic ocean. We are ready at last to set sail for the stars.” —Cosmos “One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle....
Recently, the debate about American Dirt has inspired readers to look up books by #OwnVoices authors. I thought I’d take it a step further and suggest some the most popular books written by women from around the world. While these books are not the “top” books, which is subjective anyway, they are “popular” books as measured via Goodreads. Most books (with a few exceptions) have a minimum of 3.5 stars from 9,000 ratings or more (as of February 9, 2020)....
Blackbird #1 by Sam Humphries, Jen Bartel, Paul Reinwand, Nayoung WIlson, Jodi Wynn, and Dylan Todd (10/3) Described by Humphries as Riverdale meet Harry Potter, Blackbird is full of ethereal monsters and goddesses with a rich, impossibly gorgeous color palette, Spanish, and bizarrely perfect nods to the hair metal aesthetic of the ’80s. Nina is all of us witches and wizards condemned to life with the muggles. Worse yet, she’s seen the other world, touched and been touched by magic, and has since been banished to tending bar and shoveling garbage into dumpsters....
I’ll admit that used to be me. But after years of reading comics, it got boring. These days, the STEM heroes I read about are women who star in their own series. Marvel’s The Unstoppable Wasp is one of my top favorites so far, but it reminded me that women of color, especially black women, are still underrepresented in comics. Even fewer star in their own series. It made me ask: Can’t black women be geniuses and save the world too?...
Book Riot is teaming up with Macmillan’s Nightfire newsletter for a chance to win a Horror Lover’s prize pack containing a $200 Visa gift card and copies of the following: The Living Dead by George Romero and Daniel Kraus, Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Slewfoot by Brom, Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt, and The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward. Simply sign up for the Nightfire newsletter and fill out the form here to be entered to win....
Poetry is a natural way into Buddhism. The texts speak to each other in a way that prose may not be able to. If you want to explore more, you can read the books listed here. Much gratitude for reading.
Quichotte by Salman Rushdie (Random House, 3 September) A Salman Rushdie is always a major literary event in the UK, and Quichotte is no exception, as its place on the Man Booker Prize longlist confirms. Its Kirkus starred review called this story about a mediocre thriller writer who falls in love with a TV star “a fine piece of literary satire”. To War with the Walkers by Annabel Venning (Hodder & Stoughton, 5 September) This year marks 80 years since the beginning of World War II, so chances are we’re going to be getting myriad books around the theme....
I’m paying tribute here to the comics that in recent years have left me adrift, given me strange dreams, inspired me, given me things to think about, and left me wondering at the creative genius of minds that can craft such genius stories. I’m specifically looking at graphic novels where the writer and the artist were one person, crafting the story in one mind. Boundless by Jillian Tamaki This graphic novel is gorgeous: the styles shift from story to story, from all thin blue pen strokes in one to lush, red-orange plant life and broad strokes in another, the art style shifting the tone and mood....
This book discusses the Americas before Columbus, and the developments of Indigenous communities. According to the book description, the author explores their feats of engineering, science, and landscaping, among others. It helps to show that the harmful narrative isn’t true. The story centers the lives and work of African American women who worked for NASA during the space race and beyond – all while dealing with so much discrimination. Known as “human computers,” their calculations were crucial for different space missions....
