If you’re a reader, writer, or any kind of self-described book nerd, you’ve probably heard this term being thrown around. But what does this ecosystem encompass? And why is it important for all of us to understand how it works? Am I considering a diversity of authors (e.g. experienced, local, debut, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, etc.) that I’d like to support? Am I including the kinds of stories that I’d like to see more of, especially if those stories are underrepresented?...

So what really separates a great audiobook from something that is so-so? What makes you pick up something, get overjoyed by it, and then recommend it to your friends or colleagues? Is there a standard formula that goes into the production of audiobooks? Is it all subjective? Is it true that audiobook narrators can make or break the story? I asked professionals who are directly related to the art of audiobook production what they think makes a great audiobook....

Some titles reveal the ending of the book. When I first read My Brother Sam is Dead, a Newbery honored YA historical novel from the 1970s about the American Revolution, I was surprised that Sam didn’t die until close to the end of the book. From the title, I expected him to die near the beginning or even before the events of the book. With today’s concerns about spoilers, it’s hard for me to imagine it being published with the same title today....

When YA is defined as a genre, rather than a category, we make our first misstep. When we assume we as adults know what’s best for teens, we make a bigger one. Nicole Brinkley’s recent viral article about Twitter breaking YA considers the second, though it fails to articulate a couple of key factors in how social media impacts YA books and their teen readership. Brinkley was among the few teens actively blogging and highlighting YA books in those Twilight and immediately post-Twilight years, which she connects to Twitter....

The titular character has already appeared in multiple MCU movies. Unfortunately, her cinematic arcs have been woefully short and shallow. Fortunately, the comics provide ample territory for her solo movie to explore. When Did Black Widow First Appear? Natasha Romanoff/Romanova was first introduced in 1964 as a Soviet spy. In her original backstory, a man name Ivan Petrovich raised Natasha after her mother’s death, and trained her as an agent....

I had eye surgery at the very end of third grade. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to swim for six weeks of summer vacation, I had to wear this really fetching sunglasses-visor combo whenever I went outside, and, worst of all, my reading time would be severely limited. Luckily, a friend of my grandmother’s thought to bring me the four-tape audiobook version of A Wrinkle in Time. L’Engle herself read the audiobook, and to this day, part of me actually does feel like she really it read to me when I wasn’t supposed to be reading to myself....

For some background, I moved to a new city two years ago on my own. Faced with the daunting task of making new friends, I brainstormed what kinds of social groups I could join. Because I’m a voracious reader, I searched MeetUp.com for local reading groups. My hope was that it would be a natural fit to do what I love (read books!) with the added bonus of meeting new people....

Mushrooms have long cast a strange shadow on our imaginations. Cultures all over the world have their own explanations for how mushrooms can just appear after rain, seemingly out of nowhere. They are things that appear in darkness, around dead things, around damp. For much of our history, they seemed inexplicable. So much about gothic novels is rooted in the pervasive violence of old families, the darkness that lurks in the corners of a once-nice house....

The judges broke the rules. Launched in 1969, the Booker Prize has been the leading literary award for books written in the English language for over 50 years. In that time there have been only two other occasions in which the award has been shared. The first time, Nadine Gordimer and Stanley Middleton shared the prize in 1974. The second time, Michael Ondaatje and Barry Unsworth were joint winners in 1992....

Look, I get it. Christmas is flashy. It’s got all the decorations and pretty lights and cute songs. Romance novel protagonists can kiss under the mistletoe or flirt while gift shopping or argue over which Christmas tree to bring home from the farm. This year, we’re even getting a good number of queer holiday romances, including Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun and You’re a Mean One, Matthew Prince by Timothy Janovsky, among others....

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Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful by Arwen Elys Dayton (December 4, 2018, from Delacorte Press) Genetic manipulation and life extension—how do we create the perfect human specimen? These six interconnected short stories explore the lengths humans might go to remake ourselves and push the very definition of humanity to the brink. In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire (January 8, 2019, from Tor) The fourth book in the Wayward Children series is all about Lundy, the eternally young therapist at Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children....

But with all of the chaos of the pandemic and work spinning around me, I’ve never really had the time to get to know my new home. Now that I’m taking a break to focus on my health, I love walking my corgis around my neighborhood, readjusting my brain to the slow Southern pace around me. Naturally, I include audiobooks into my new routine, pouring over my ridiculously long audio TBR for way too long before deciding on what to listen to next....

And these SFF webcomics are too. Witches, Sorcerers, Magicians MUTED by Miranda Mundt Camille Severin is expected to summon a demon on the full moon of her 21st year like all the witches in her family before her. But the creature she brings forth threatens to expose all the secrets she and her family have kept so carefully hidden. Cunning Fire by Kaz Rowe Witches and spirits collide in this urban fantasy comic set in modern-day Chicago where Akiva Stein is recruited to become a coven’s Death Witch and help them create the Elixir of Life....

If you missed the earlier guide to YA movie adaptations, many of the titles below were yet to be included. The titles below are confirmed releases, along with pictures that are in post-production with tentative 2019 releases, according to IMDb. Post-production (generally) means that the filming has wrapped up and the waiting game begins for a distributor, so chances those titles will see their time on big or small screens is quite possible....

Most often developed in childhood, your attachment style dictates how you form relationships with family, friends, and significant others. Are you prone to fleeing at the first sign of intimacy? Do you love the chase of a relationship, but worry about rejection the minute your affection is returned? Do partners often say you’re hot and cold depending on the day? You probably have one of the three insecure attachment styles: anxious/preoccupied, avoidant/dismissive, or disorganized/fearful....

Through the training and other conversations with our foster care agency as well as current foster parents, we learned so much about the system. Mainly we learned that foster care is much more complicated, flawed, and messy than we ever thought. Don’t get me wrong—that doesn’t mean that it’s not an important and good thing to become a foster home. But doing so requires a LOT of research. Thankfully, there are plenty of great books about foster care that can help you make the best decision for your family and the children that may come into your life....

Let’s start with some well-known classics. These are books you’ve most likely heard of, but that maybe you didn’t know you could read (and listen) for free because they’re in the public domain! Well-Known Audiobooks in the Public Domain Less-known books can be just as good (or even better!) than the mainstream. While it’s hard to find books that most don’t know about, there are some true gems in the public domain!...

Ancient Near East Ancient Egypt and Africa Ancient China Ancient India Ancient Greece Ancient Americas For more folktale recommendations for kids and to see an important discussion of how to approach folktales in their proper context, see 13 Folktales from Around the World for Young Readers.

There are three important laws in Ezomo’s village: Don’t go to The Valley, don’t go out at night, and never, ever, ever open the magical door that protects them all. But when Ezomo encounters the leopard believed to have killed his father, he and his best friends embark on a journey that leads them past the boundaries set by their elders.With his friends by his side, Ezomo chases after the leopard, certain that it has the power to cure all....