Your support is critical to our existence.
Former librarian Michelle Anne Schingler is tired of people questioning her credentials. At Book Riot, she argues that an MLS isn’t required for the most important parts of a librarian’s job: Library theory isn’t at the fore when you’re helping someone navigate the computer for an online application, or when you’re putting together a display […]
...moreOver at Book Riot, Hannah Engler discusses memoir, when the absolute truth is necessary, and why it is okay—even unavoidable—to fabricate facts: Fabrication is inherent in memoir writing. Number one, it’s impossible to have an unbiased view of your own life, period; number two, it’s impossible to write about something in the past tense and not […]
...moreTired of being met with condescension when she says she likes science fiction, Justina Ireland argues for science fiction’s importance in understanding very real contemporary issues faced by marginalized groups: By refusing to absorb those ideas, by considering them unrealistic, readers are refusing to even contemplate the reality of others. Instead, they are focusing on […]
...moreDanika Ellis, a bookseller who works at a used bookstore, has learned through her work to see books differently—not as objects that belong to her, but objects that she possesses for the moment: I don’t consider myself the final owner of my books. Even my most loved books will probably go to someone else eventually, […]
...moreIn response to a recent scuffle between a Goodreads reviewer and an author, BookRiot offers this advice to authors: But it’s not just the one-or-two-star reviews. I also don’t think authors should respond to positive reviews, even to say thanks — the dynamic is too weird. Perhaps not all reviewers feel as I do, but […]
...moreTaking inspiration from Butterball’s Turkey Talk-Line, the emergency hotline that amateur cooks can call on Thanksgiving to get advice on not burning their bird, Penguin Publishing launched its own holiday helpline, offering book-buying recommendations for readers looking for the perfect book to gift. Kristina Pino puts the hotline to the test for BookRiot, asking for suggestions […]
...moreFuture generations may never understand the simply joy of searching a used bookstore for a long-coveted title. While online megastores allow readers access to virtually any book, typing a title into a search box is much less satisfying than sleuthing through shelves of pre-owned books. Amanda Diehl over at BookRiot explains the resulting sense of […]
...moreSeveral recent high profile books, like Eleanor Catton’s The Luminaries or Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch, are hefty tomes. As it turns out, these outliers are part of a larger trend toward longer books. Jeremy Anderberg, writing at BookRiot, researched popular books over the last 110 years and found that page lengths are increasing—prize-winning books over […]
...moreLibraries are not “Netflix for books,” Kelly Jensen argues over at BookRiot, but serve as centers of their communities. Corporations like Netflix are driven by profits, while libraries, at least in North America, are free for their users. The real danger is in training people to think of libraries not as essential public services, but […]
...moreThe rise of digital self publishing has rekindled old arguments about the value of publishers. Authors often criticize publishers as merely providing packaging for their hard work. At BookRiot, Susie Rodarme explains the value of a good publisher: Publishers know books. They know the industry upside down and inside out. They don’t just provide a printing and […]
...moreFormer child star Wil Wheaton read twenty-one books last year, meeting his annual goal on GoodReads of twenty books. Then the Internet flogged him for having a goal of only twenty books, and because three of those books were graphic novels. But as Jill Guccini points out over at BookRiot, readers can aspire to any […]
...moreCrown Publishing Group has been rolling out a marketing program hoping to leverage the power of social media. The program, Blogging for Books, offers free books to bloggers in exchange for book reviews. Ideal participants generate buzz by posting comments to social media and online bookstores, and including marketing materials like book trailers alongside their […]
...moreGood literary citizens shop at local independent bookstores, and Amazon’s ongoing trade war with Hachette underscores the fragility of a marketplace dominated by a single online retailer. But are local bookstores just another form of privilege? Kelly Jensen writing at BookRiot explains what its like to live in a book desert: Not all readers have […]
...moreWhy is offering book recommendations so hard? People solicit book recommendations from their well-read friends all the time, but too often we’re left seemingly stumped to provide them with the best book possible. Swapna Krishna over at BookRiot points out its not because we don’t know about good books, but the opposite: The fact is […]
...moreThis year’s BookCon is facing a lot of heat for the lack of diversity in their speakers. BookRiot feels that popular YA author (and one of BookCon’s speakers this year) John Green needs to speak up about the controversy flying around him. If you’re going to be called a prophet, eventually someone’s going to expect […]
...moreWriting at BookRiot, Josh Corman draws attention to yet another potential crisis facing low-income neighborhoods: book deserts. Anti-government and knowledge-fearing Congressman Paul Ryan has proposed funding cuts to the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services, an agency that provides critical money to libraries, many located in otherwise underserved communities. Without access to public libraries, many of […]
...moreThink books couldn’t possibly have a place on YouTube? Think again. A prominent scene of vloggers (video bloggers) has developed on YouTube. BookRiot provides us with a helpful beginners guide to BookTube.
...moreBookRiot recently selected Girls Write Now (which we’ve blogged about before) as their charity partner for 2013. The organization, which helps underserved teenage girls in New York develop their writing and prepare for college, will receive 2% of BookRiot’s revenue and work with them throughout the year. If you’d like to see Girls Write Now […]
...more