On her Substack, author and Pulitzer finalist Rebecca Makkai recently proposed an award honoring backlist titles: “With the Pulitzer Prize announcements for last year coming on Monday, prizes have been on my mind. And specifically, this pipe dream I’ve had for a while now of starting a new and unconventional prize: one that celebrates the

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a reader in possession of some free time must be in want of a Jane Austen reading challenge. July has long been an active month for Austen fans (sometimes called Janeites), with conferences, festivals, tours, and book clubs popping up around the world. Austen died in July 1817,

Teacher Appreciation Week is observed May 2–8 2023, but hardworking educators deserve our thanks year-round. Over the past few years in particular, teachers and other school workers have made it known that they feel overworked and underappreciated. In 2022, the National Education Association (NEA) created a video featuring the thoughts of several educators from across

The end of winter is in sight, and, as gardeners know, it’s time for planting once the ground thaws. In recent years, younger generations have taken up gardening, and Millennials are now the largest group of gardeners in the U.S. Many came to the hobby during lockdown in 2020, but the shift has been observed

Cli-Fi (short for climate fiction) is a genre that invites readers to consider the effects of climate change both in their own lives and for future generations. The foundation of the genre is an acknowledgement that climate change is an unignorable crisis. And while it is often speculative, cli-fi is usually grounded in real science.

More Americans than ever are adopting a plant-based diet—at least part-time. The number of people who identify as vegan, vegetarian, or flexitarian has been steadily rising over the past several years, and nonwhite Americans are three times as likely to be vegetarian as white Americans. Most people who adopt a more plant-based diet make the

Since 1976, Black History Month has been observed every February, but its origins date back half a century before its observance was formally established. In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson, founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), designated the second week of February—the week encompassing the birthdays of

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…that magical season when publications release their Best Books of the Year lists. And while these lists from The New York Times, B&N, Amazon, Goodreads, NPR, and so many more are populated pretty much exclusively by frontlist titles, this opportunity doesn’t end when the ball drops on December

It seems like hardly a week goes by without the introduction of a buzzy term to encapsulate our evolving relationship with working. Since 2020, we’ve been talking about essential workers, remote work, working parents, the great resignation, unionization, quiet quitting, the gig economy, and how, despite all this talk of work, supposedly no one wants

From the BuJo method to morning pages to gratitude lists, journaling continues to grow in popularity. Industrywide sales of journals increase dramatically during the Q4 gifting season and have risen year over year since 2017. The category’s growth doesn’t show signs of slowing, and folks are certainly still posting #BurnAfterWriting TikToks. Journals are also a

The rumors are true: we’re barely into September, and people are already getting a jump on their holiday shopping. With many feeling the impact of rising costs, shoppers seem to be spreading out their spending over a few months, rather than starting to shop for everyone on their list in late November. We’ve learned that

Salman Rushdie was brutally attacked before a scheduled appearance at a literary event at the Chautauqua Institution. The author was airlifted to a local hospital, and while his condition remains critical, he is reportedly recovering. The event at the Chautauqua Institution was meant to discuss “home when it is asylum, when people are seeking a