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Clear as Martian mud, right? To clarify, Sterling was talking about what he saw as “the ongoing brain-death of science fiction.” For writers like Sterling, Asimov, Le Guin, and their ilk, science fiction was a high-brow art form using SFF genre tropes to speak to the human condition. They were seeing an influx of stories using these tropes simply to tell fun, if vapid stories. However, Sterling was also seeing some novels that weren’t strictly science fiction or fantasy using these tropes to tell compelling literary stories....

So mystery novel fans, you know what to do. It’s time to get your sleuthing hats out, polish off your magnifying glasses, and get ready to flex your clue-detecting skills. Your TBR pile is about to be stacked with a bunch of great new mystery books to delight you, get you thinking, and, yes, some of these might creep you out a little bit as well. And some of these are out already, so what are you waiting for?...

The other issue I took into consideration was how many Goodreads users had ranked the books. I found some very highly ranked 2021 books, but under 10,000 people had read and ranked them. This to me felt like it was easier statistically for these books to be highly rated. Also, if a relatively small number of people are reading a certain book, is it really a top book of 2021?...

Editor’s Note: This post was written prior to our decision to stop promoting the works of J.K. Rowling in light of her transphobic statements. Witch Please I would tell you I don’t have a favorite Harry Potter podcast, but that would be a lie, because Witch Please is definitely my favorite. Hosted by Marcelle Kosman and Hannah MacGregor, two self-described “lady scholars,” Witch Please is like getting to eavesdrop on your super cool Women’s Studies / English professors, who you secretly wish were your friends, talk about the books, movies, fandom, and their own stories as Harry Potter fans....

At this point, though, only one truth has emerged: the future importance of digital publishing is obvious. The remaining question is exactly how important will it be. Will it be the dominant mode of publishing? Or will it have to play nice with print? I think the reasonable position is “it’s too early to tell,” though many are trying to guess where the ship is headed. And this is perfectly reasonable; the livelihood of a great many people is at stake here, and some sense of direction can allow those people time to maneuver....

But any good fan of the X-Men will tell you that breaking into the comics is no joke. Between crossover events, team books, non-canon titles…it’s hard to find out what Nightcrawler is up to if he’s in five different titles at the same time. (How does this work? Hey, this is X-Men comics: confusing is their modus operandi.) Our guide features 41 X-Men characters, their powers, fun trivia, and recent appearances....

Booksellers nominated the “books they have felt the most pride in recommending to readers of all interests through the year.” B&N booksellers will now vote on their favorite, and the top book of the year will be announced November 14th. Here are the finalists: Surprisingly, only three of these titles overlap with B&N’s earlier Best Books of 2022 list: Lessons in Chemistry, Babel, and Skandar and the Unicorn Thief. Notably missing are come of the years’ biggest titles, like I‘m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy — though the booksellers featured Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, one of the year’s buzziest books, which was missing from that earlier list....

The Best Books You’ve Never Heard of is the feature where we highlight books that don’t get the attention they deserve. These are the little-known gems that maybe didn’t have a giant publicity budget behind them, but are still worth your time. Whether they’re hyper specific subjects, published by a micropress, or are quiet, thoughtful novels, they are well worth seeking out. As much fun as it is to hop on the bandwagon of the latest book club favorite, here at Book Riot, we also relish the chance to discover a brilliant story that is not as well known....

Since being adapted by Netflix, Hilda has reached a wider audience and a dedicated group of fans have set themselves to make-and-do, crafting some brilliant merchandise to brighten your walls, fancy-up your jacket and make friends with your very own Twig. Such is the life of an adventurer! Perfect for saving your page in all of the Hilda stories, these magnetic bookmarks are a steal at less than $8 for the entire set....

While many of the offerings in this collection do tend to skew towards Christmas, we’ve rounded up a great bunch of literary cards and postcards that are the perfect greetings for your bookish pals and loved ones this season! Buy them as a single card for that one bookish friend, or buy them in sets so that you can send them to everyone in your address book! Whatever your plans, we recommend ordering ASAP so you’ll have them on hand when the holiday season gets in full swing, and you’ll have plenty of time to send them out!...

Sure, as a tween I got pamphlets about the changes forthcoming in my female body, but beyond that and the mandatory month or so of sex-ed in high school — which was more about abstinence and STIs and unwanted pregnancy than consent and love and pleasure — I learned everything else on the internet. Sorry, Mom and Dad! Strange message boards and teen-focused advice websites — shout out to Scarleteen and I think one from a tampon brand?...

Most of you probably already know from the Harry Potter books that British high school is seven years long because we start at age eleven. So, for the sake of fair comparison, I’m only counting books I had to read in the last four years of my secondary education (the years when we had to do exams). Are you ready? Here goes. 1) Anita and Me by Meera Syal This semi-autobiographical novel is inspired by Syal’s experience as the child of Punjabi immigrants in 1970s England....

Get Booked has added a weekly bonus episode called The Handsell! Jenn and Amanda, former booksellers, take 5 minutes every episode to pitch you a book they think you’ll love, with notes about what readers the book is perfect for. The hosts will be focusing on books they haven’t talked about much or at all on the show before, so come hear about a new-to-you read! Regular episodes of Get Booked will continue to come out every Thursday, with bonus episodes of The Handsell coming out every Monday....

DegreeQuery, an organization dedicated to answering common questions about college degrees and options, as well as developing data-based rankings and reviews of U.S. colleges, dug into the question of most commonly assigned books in U.S. colleges in October 2020. Using OpenSyllabus, the researchers aggregated the books assigned among the eight U.S. Ivy League schools and the top eight public schools as ranked by U.S. News and World Report. Researchers looked at the most popular books assigned in each of the U....

With millions of titles, ThriftBooks has an endless selection of children’s books at the best prices to fill your child’s imagination…. and their library. From childhood classics to new undiscovered worlds of adventures, there is something for everyone and every budget. And with the ThriftBooks ReadingRewards program, every purchase gets you a step closer to your next free book. Shop ThriftBooks.com today to unleash the pure imagination a world of children’s books has to offer....

For what it’s worth, she’s not wrong. The book piles have taken over too much space in our tiny apartment, and are causing undue anxiety. We even expanded our bookshelf space from two to four, but even then, there’s just too many books to fit. It doesn’t help that I’m constantly finding new ones to read, whether at the library, on my Kindle, at book sales, on audio, or just left out on the steps of my neighborhood....

A provocative and original investigation of our cultural fascination with crime, linking four archetypes—Detective, Victim, Defender, Killer—to four true stories about women driven by obsession. Each woman represents and identifies with a particular archetype that provides an entryway into true crime. Through these four cases, Rachel Monroe traces the history of American crime. In a combination of personal narrative, reportage, and a sociological examination of violence and media in the twentieth and twenty-first century, SavageAppetites scrupulously explores empathy, justice, and the persistent appeal of violence....

Hey YA Readers! Are you into book covers and book cover design? If you’ve been here a minute, you know it’s one of my personal passions. This week, as I was perusing social media, I was reminded of how many different ways the same book can be packaged, and not just whether or not it gets a cover in paperback that differs from its hardcover. There’s also a literal world of different covers for those books which see international editions....

The announcements were streamed live with host SFWA President and SAG-AFTRA performer Mary Robinette Kowal, and featured live excerpt readings of many of the nominated works by several talented voice actors. This year’s winners will be announced at the 56th Annual Nebula Awards ceremony during the 2021 Nebula Conference Online, which is June 4–6, 2021. It is open to Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America members and nonmembers and will be taking place entirely online for the second year in a row....

This year’s B&N Book of the Year goes to a small press book: World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments by Aimee Nezhukumatathil. Published by the nonprofit Milkweed Press, the book has yet to hit any bestseller list, but chances are that’s going to change. Like Mackey’s book last year, World of Wonders is a book prime for gift-giving. Nezhukumatahil is a poet and World of Wonders is a biographical journey through the natural world she remembers of her childhood....