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My Life as a Background Slytherin A post shared by Emily McGovern (@emilyscartoons) on Jul 29, 2018 at 4:00am PDT I first discovered Emily’s Cartoons on tumblr, but I love following My Life as a Background Slytherin (and its various offshoots, including My Life as a Background Ravenclaw) on Instagram because these hilarious Harry Potter inspired adventures always brighten my day. Who doesn’t want to see a squat little Slytherin girl getting up to shenanigans at Hogwarts?...

This tender and poignant book reinforces the power of human connection and serves as a reminder that hope can be found, even in the unlikeliest of places. Like her debut, People We Meet on Vacation is a true delight to read, full of wit, warmth, and laugh-out-loud funny banter.

For a hot second, I considered just spending way too much to buy them full price. But then I remembered how often an audiobook can flop (is the narrator just right? Does this title WORK for us when read aloud? ) and figured out a few tips for making the most of the Unlimited audiobook supply. First, I learned I need to use this link: Books with Narration in Kindle Unlimited to make sure I was only browsing books with FREE narration included....

As I got older, I gained a better understanding of the event, especially around the 2011 coverage of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster. My interest in Soviet history and nuclear energy was never particularly strong, so I left the issue on the back burner. In this past year, however, I started to notice my local bookstores prominently displaying books on the topics. Recently, an HBO miniseries about Chernobyl premiered to great acclaim....

“I want to do a musical so badly, man. Someone told me they’re [remaking] Little Shop of Horrors and I was like, ‘Oh, can I be down? Please? Can I be the dentist?’ When I first came out here, early 2000s, there were rumblings about Spielberg maybe doing West Side Story. That’s one of my favorite musicals. I did it when I was in high school. And obviously he’s doing it now, and I called my team and they were like, Chris — maybe Krupke....

An irresistible story about an ordinary Japanese-American girl who discovers that her father is the Crown Prince of Japan! Which means outspoken, irreverent Izumi Tanaka is literally a princess! In a whirlwind, Izzy travels to Japan and finds herself caught between worlds—back home, she was never “American” enough, and in Japan, she must prove she’s “Japanese” enough. Will she crumble under the weight of the crown, or will she live out her fairytale, happily ever after?...

If you like your sports romance books the way I do (that is, incredibly queer), you’re in the right place. With a mix of YA and adult romances included in this list, you’re sure to find a sports romance that will hit all of the right tropes for you. Will he be able to keep up with his teammates—and avoid falling for the team captain? But things take a challenging turn when Emir Shah, Sebastian’s childhood best friend, attends the same summer training camp....

Wicked Fox by Kat Cho Eighteen-year-old Gu Miyoung isn’t the average Seoul teenager—she’s also a Gumiho, a nine-tailed fox who lives by consuming the energy of men. After an encounter in the woods leaves her classmate near death, Miyoung sacrifices part of herself to save him, but saving his life turns out more than she bargained for. This Korean tale is part mythic fantasy, part contemporary teen drama, captivating and fast paced....

I’m actually surprised that there aren’t more New Year’s children’s books. But the ones I found for this list are real gems. A few are out of print though, so you might have to hunt them down in the library or at a used bookstore. And I certainly hope that more books about New Year’s are published soon, because it’s such an amazing holiday. It’s time to break out the confetti and sparkling cider, read some New Year’s children’s books, and get ready for the amazing year ahead!...

Whether you want to get a taste of what’s to come, to feel reassured you’re not alone, or to relive memories, these novels about college life celebrate the entire journey—from the application process to freshman year and all the way into graduate school. In honor of all the dorm rooms, lecture halls, and student centers that are buzzing back to life this month, here are eight novels about college life....

Best of all, we’ve seen more space operas centering queer characters published in recent years than before. I’ve rounded up eight of the best space opera novels written by and about LGBTQ people. These epic reads are packed with adventure and, best of all, incredibly queer. To help you find books that fit what you’re looking for, I’ve organized this list into two sections for adult and YA books. Looking for more queer speculative fiction?...

Perhaps it varies from reader to reader, but pirates and pirate-inspired adventures do seem to remain popular among children’s book fans. I assume it is the heady freedom and the playfulness that naturally seems to accompany the topic. Or maybe it’s just the clothes and the gear, who knows, but pirates do seem to be a time-tested topic for kids to read about. So then, which titles could you and your little pirates-in-training enjoy most?...

Original sci-fi content in YA comics and graphic novels isn’t quite as plentiful as superhero stories, but we still have some really great and interesting stuff, and much of it showcases queer and marginalized identities, which is one of the reasons why I love YA comics so much. I didn’t include any of the Marvel or DC Comics original YA graphic novels because there are just so many, but if you want to explore those books, then start by checking out titles like Nubia: Real One by L....

Some of my favourite essay collections of recent years have come from women, and the more I read them, the farther I fall down the well of options. So below are some of the more recent, as well as some older work that’s worth a second look in 2019. We are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby You probably don’t want to read this on public transport, because I just about passed out laughing at some points....

Join our book-obsessed community for instant access to free reads. Whether you’re into all-the-feels romance, bone-chilling horror, or epic alien adventures — Swoon Reads has it all. Register now to get: instant access to brand new, original manuscripts; a community to discuss, rate and share your favorites; the chance to influence which stories are turned into for-real books. Sign up to start reading. How exciting is it to find great new writers?...

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev Dr. Trisha Raje is a highly acclaimed neurosurgeon in San Francisco, but her highly competitive and strict immigrant family seem to only care about her brother’s political career. DJ Caine is a rising chef, and when he is offered a job from the Raje family, he needs the money and accepts. The two cannot be more different, and they drive each other up a wall, yet, they can’t seem to stay away....

If you’re not familiar with it, Mad Love is a one-shot comic from 1994 by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm, set in the continuity of the then-running Batman: The Animated Series. It tells the origin story of Harley Quinn, the Joker’s bubbly Girl Friday, who had been introduced two years prior in the cartoon and quickly became a fan favorite. Harleen Quinzel, psychiatrist, gets a job at Arkham Asylum and finds herself falling for the Joker thanks to the sob stories he tells her....

What are Bill Gates’s book recommendations? It is an impressive list, consisting largely of nonfiction. Science and technology, medicine, business, economics, education, international development, sociology, history, biography, memoir—name it, and chances are there is at least one book in the genre. If you like nonfiction (ahem, like me), this list is plain dangerous for your TBR pile. This shouldn’t come as a surprise—it is Bill Gates’s book recommendations, after all....

But what is the story behind this legendary cookbook, still publishing 85 years after its first edition? Why does it endure and why has it become a staple of American cooking history? Let’s get to know a bit more about the history of Irma Rombauer’s (The) Joy of Cooking, which has sold over 18 million copies. The Birth of The Joy of Cooking Born to German immigrants of wealth in 1877, Irma Rombauer found herself shuttling between Saint Louis, Missouri, and Bremen, Germany, throughout her teenage years....