Books

Honoring the finest works of translated fiction from around the world, the International Booker Prize has announced its 2023 longlist. The prize is awarded every year to a single book translated into English and published in the UK and Ireland. It aims to encourage more publishing and reading of international fiction from all over the world

If you’ve been paying attention to the news lately, you know there’s been a flood of anti-trans legislation, bans of trans books, and a disturbing increase in anti-trans rhetoric recently. In response, Sim Kern, author of Depart, Depart! and Seeds for the Swarm, is hosting a Trans Rights Readathon next week!  This is a decentralized fundraiser, which means you can

“I am about as tall as a shotgun, and just as nasty,” once proclaimed literary legend Truman Capote, a statement that would sadly work against him in the second half of his career. Best remembered in the pop culture of today for penning the source materials for the largely successful Breakfast at Tiffany’s and In

The Nobel Prize-winning author Kenzaburō Ōe passed away March 3rd of old age. His work has repeatedly been compared to William Faulkner, and Kazuo Ishiguro described him as “genuinely decent, modest, surprisingly open and honest, and very unconcerned about fame.” Kenzaburō Ōe was a Japanese novelist known for his fiction addressing social and political issues,

Like the excitement surrounding a much-anticipated season finale, closing poems are an occasion, but that’s not to say that I don’t love all the other parts of a poetry collection. In fact, I read books from the title to blurbs, although not always in that order. Fascinated by the “Notes” and “Acknowledgements” sections, I pretty

The weather is getting nicer and the days are slowly stretching out a little more — some days are just begging for some outside reading at a coffee shop or park, right? If you’re looking for some new reads, have no fear! March brings the official start of spring, and lucky for us, it also

March 31 is International Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV). When I think of this holiday, the word “celebration” comes to mind. Often, life as a transgender person is reduced by media depictions to overcoming challenges and suffering. And while trans and non-binary people do face significant challenges and discrimination, TDOV is to me a reminder

In the high school library that I manage, I run a manga club that is very popular with the students. In the past eight years I’ve seen it grow and evolve with the students. Manga is by far the most popular kind of book we have in the library, especially with those who claim they

“Happiness is a Warm Gun” isn’t the only connection between The Beatles and Peanuts. Both groups exemplified the optimism of the 1960s era. Charles M. Schulz’s Charlie Brown was so assured of positive outcomes he repeatedly tried to kick a field-goal-placed football held by the town’s resident five-cents-a-session psychiatrist, Lucy, in spite of the knowledge

If you’re looking for an anti-censorship group to get involved with, you’re in luck. There are dozens across the country, with more popping up all of the time. While there is certainly a need for a national push against censorship — we need politicians at the federal level to do something — work at the

The 2023 Women’s Prize longlist has been announced! After the 1991 Booker Prize shortlist was announced, then called the Man Booker Prize, and no women authors appeared on it, a group of journalists met and wanted more. Together, they founded the Women’s Committee and began the quest for starting a literary prize of their own,

The 2023 PEN/Faulkner finalists were announced Tuesday. The award has been granted for over 40 years to American authors, and is judged by writers who see a peer’s work as being the “first among equals.” The author who wins first place will win $15,000, and each finalist $5,000. This year’s judges were R.O. Kwon, Tiphanie Yanique, and

In his State of the State address last month, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker addressed book bans head on. Now, thanks to Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, House Bill 2789–the Right to Read Bill–has passed through committee and will make its way to the full House for consideration. HB 2789 would tie state funding of

Dear Reese (can I call you Reese?), I recently saw your #ReesesBookClub announcement where you revealed Kristin Hannah’s book The Nightingale as your March book club pick. Normally, I wouldn’t have even given it a second thought. But I watched the video because a fellow Rioter mentioned that the book was ostensibly chosen in response

Illustrator, children’s author, and theatrical set designer Ian Falconer died Tuesday in Connecticut. The author is best known for his children’s book series Olivia, which is about a clever young pig. The award-winning series, with its stylish color scheme, debuted in 2000 and went on to include seven more books that altogether sold more than

A wave of change is coming and employees can learn to swim or not — Elmwood Public Library Board President Chris Pesko, December 2022* The December 2022 minutes** of the Elmwood Public Library Board meeting (IL) are unlike any public library meeting minutes you’ve likely seen. Though public comment was not long, the minutes indicate

Economist Joel Waldfogel looked at how women and men have influenced the publishing industry for the last 70 years and found that since 2020 at least, women have been publishing more books than men. Data Waldfogel analyzed from “Goodreads, Bookstat, Amazon, and the National Library of Congress” revealed that the percentage of books published by

Love is in the air this March. For romance readers, March brings a magical fake dating story featuring witches and demons. It brings an adventure down the Pacific Crest Trail that turns into a journey to love. March has got stories about people falling in love in airports. It’s even got adventures at a comic

It’s only 239 more days until Halloween — who’s ready??? Okay, maybe it’s a little early to start celebrating the biggest night of scares, but you can treat your brain to a happily horrifying time with books every day of the year! That’s why we present a monthly round-up of amazing upcoming horror books, including

For me, and I suspect for many of us, the best reading is the kind of reading that feels truly immersive. You’re not half-thinking about work, you’re not vaguely aware that a child needs your attention, you’re not bothered by some distant construction noise. You’re in the book, completely. And it might seem like a