Books

We know that LGBTQ+ books are under fire across the country and they have been specifically targeted by right-wing conspiracy theorists in a very organized fashion now for several years. In addition, we have seen public education and teachers come under fire by these same conspiracists who believe that by having LGBTQ+ books in the

This first official week of summer is bringing the heat, book-wise. Pun intended. There are a couple of darkly imaginative horror books, a queer and feminist western, and an illuminating nonfiction about immigration. Award-winning horror darling Agustina Bazterrica graces us with more disturbing tales in a collection of stories, characters reconsider the relationship with their

We recently covered how bookstore employees often aren’t paid a living wage, but it might surprise you to know that a lot of authors face the same issue. One queer indie bookstore is working to change that, especially where LGBTQ authors are concerned. This marginalized community has been hit particularly hard by increasing anti-LGBTQ laws

As soon as I finished reading Sabrina Imbler’s gorgeous essay collection How Far the Light Reaches, I knew I’d found a new favorite genre. There’s something especially wonderful to me about queer nature writing. It asserts that queerness is natural, and that it is deeply and intrinsically linked to nature and always has been. As

The place where the lost things go isn’t one of the most frequently-occurring story tropes, but it’s certainly one of the more compelling. In the Wizard of Oz universe, L. Frank Baum created the Valley of Lost Things, a location in Merryland where anything lost in the real world will eventually turn up. Danielle Page

Summer is on the way, bringing with it longer days, warmer weather, and the chance to join in with a whole host of summer activities! Summer can be an especially fun time for very small children, who will love seeing how the change of seasons affects plants and animals, and who will look forward to

It’s summer, with longer days, more sunshine, and warmer weather. It’s a great time to be outside — but as someone who hasn’t always loved being outside, I get that it’s not always easy as saying “get outside!” Being outdoors and in nature does not come naturally to me. I’d rather be inside in the

In popular culture today, Judy Garland is best remembered as an actress, singer, and entertainer extraordinaire whose personal struggles often overshadowed her professional accomplishments. While she was under contract for 15 years with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) during which she starred in career-defining musical roles in The Wizard of Oz, Meet Me in St. Louis, Easter Parade,

It’s been a little over a week since the publication of Elliot Page’s memoir, Pageboy, and the haters have settled in on Goodreads. This isn’t surprising. Page is perhaps the most publicly visible trans celebrity to publish a memoir in recent memory. What’s more, though he does write about his career in Hollywood, the making

It’s about the middle of the year — and the middle of Pride Month — and Esquire has blessed us with a roundup of 20 of the best queer books out this year so far. In this list, you’ll find trans memoirs, illuminating nonfiction, poetry, and a variety of genres written by well-known authors as

No lengthy introduction this week. Instead, this week is dedicated to a survey to authors: are you seeing an impact on the number and types of school and library visit invitations in this era of censorship? Click this link to fill out the survey. All responses are due July 1, for an anticipated July 14

It’s time to pause, take a step back, and review the books we’ve read and enjoyed this year so far. Other booksellers — Amazon and Barnes & Noble — have already shared what they think are the first half of the year’s best books, but the advantage of this list is that it’s the most

The same day Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed a ban on book bans in public libraries and schools into effect this week, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that bans “sexually explicit” books from schools. House Bill 900, the “parent empowerment” bill, has spent the legislative season picking up ground in Texas’s

To paraphrase the good sis Lizzo: It’s about that time! Time to take stock of books that have come out so far this year that have left an impression. Amazon has joined Barnes & Noble as the latest bookseller to share their list of books that we should all give more attention to. The list

You’ve probably heard by now that The Flash, DC’s latest big-budget superhero flick, will hit U.S. theaters on June 16. You should also know that the film’s star, Ezra Miller, has been accused of multiple crimes, including felony burglary, harassment and disorderly conduct, and, worst of all, abusing and grooming minors, to include isolating an

Cormac McCarthy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Road, No Country for Old Men, Blood Meridian, and more, has died at the age of 89. He passed away from natural causes in his Sante Fe home, according to his publisher, Knopf. McCarthy won the Pulitzer Prize in 2007 for his bleak dystopian novel, The Road.

Pageboy, Elliot Page’s long-awaited memoir, gives a fragmented but close-up perspective of Page’s life and experiences growing up as someone who has always known that he was a boy even when everything in society told him otherwise. We follow him from childhood through close to the present day and he is unflinching in the detail

Illinois became the first state in the United States to pass legislation to end book bans. Signed by Governor JB Pritzker June 12, House Bill 2789 takes effect January 1, 2024. Introduced by Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who serves at the State Librarian, the bill received significant support both in the House and

This week, news broke that the workers at Barnes & Noble’s flagship shop in Union Square, New York City, voted to join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) — and not by a small amount. Ninety-seven percent of staff voted in favor of taking part in the union. In the past few months,

That’s right, dedicated reader. There’s a new collection and reading tracking app on the literary block: Bookworm Reads. Need to make sure you’re not purchasing the same book for a second or third time? Love reading challenges and seeing what your friends are reading? Then you’re probably already using an app like Bookworm Reads. After

Swimming books have been on my mind a lot lately. This is genuinely odd. Until fairly recently, I had a major fear of deep water and generally avoided water-based activities like the plague. After months of well-tailored swim lessons and DIY exposure therapy in a pool without a deep end, I can now enter a

Have you always wanted try a real Belgian waffle? What about borscht? Perhaps you’re missing a favorite dish that your neighbor’s grandma made when you were growing up? Cooking is always an adventure, especially without a good recipe. A quick google search might pull up an okay recipe but you might have to weed through

Spoiler Warning: This article contains spoilers for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and speculation about the possible ending of The Flash, based on the comic Flashpoint. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was, like its 2018 predecessor, a masterpiece. A breathtaking visual feast, it is a love letter to comics, animation, New York City, Spider-Man, superheroes in general,

If you’ve been on social media over the last week, chances are you’ve seen the Shiny Happy People documentary series trending. Whether you have seen that, ignored that, or did not know about it at all until this moment, this Amazon Prime limited docuseries is a must-view in order to understand the roots of today’s

I blame Book Riot for my obsession with fanfiction and the natural progression I have made into doujinshi (also known as dōjinshi). It’s often mistaken for a genre of manga when really it is a sub-category of the publishing world. Do you like manga? Do you like fanfiction? Then smoosh them together and fall in

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a list of actions it will take to better protect LGBTQ+ Americans. Among them was a plan to address the rise in books bans, which disproportionately target queer and BIPOC- centered books. An anti-book ban coordinator will be appointed by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights on the

There are plenty of things to dislike about the intranet and “being online” in general. In a world where we have access to more information than ever before, we also have access to more unsettling information. We have the ability to happen upon more lies, more falsehoods, and more manipulation than we previously did. We

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has labeled Moms for Liberty a hate group. In their latest Year in Hate & Extremism report, the nonprofit civil rights advocacy group described Moms for Liberty as “one of the most recognized names in the anti-student inclusion movement.” The report also mentions the group’s willingness to “fight tooth and

Davis School District in Utah–a 70,000+ district north of Salt Lake City–has officially removed the Bible from elementary and middle schools. This may be the first official removal of the religious text from schools in the country following a district’s review process. The decision comes after a parent complained about its vulgarity and violence. That

Last year, I wrote about the conservative group CatholicVote organizing what they called “Hide the Pride,” which encourages people to check out all children’s and teen LGBTQ books in the library, especially on Pride displays, in order to make sure no one else can access them. They’ve now announced the second annual “Hide the Pride”