Captivating Novels about Astrology In her introduction to this list, Laura Maylene Walter, author of the novel Body of Stars, calls herself “a skeptic who doesn’t read horoscopes in my daily life.” But, she continues, “hand me a work of fiction about astrology or psychics, and I’m captivated.” Many of the books on this list […]
How Reading Ebooks Changes Our Perception (and Reviews) Addison Rizer, a self-declared “avid Kindle reader,” writes, “I am curious about the ways reading ebooks changes the way we interact, and review, the novels we consume.” The article contains lots of references, with links, to both scientific studies and popular sources. However, the discussion is unfocused;
The question of whether people read more than one book at a time comes up often on book-related media. I’ve noticed that the people who post the question and then go on to answer it most often write about why they read multiple books simultaneously. Many people just ask the question without including any discussion,
Do You Read More Than One Book at a Time? Read More »
The time is right to cancel Dr. Seuss’s racist books One of the biggest literary stories recently is the decision by the company that controls the works of Dr. Seuss to pull six titles from future republication because they “portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong.” Here Ron Charles, book critic for the
“One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.” “There’s no accounting for taste.” “Different strokes for different folks.” I occasionally see the novel Geek Love by Katherine Dunn listed on someone’s list of best novels ever read. I understand that the novel’s themes of family, love, and normality make it appeal to a lot of people,
Your Favorite Book Might Be My DNF . . . and Vice Versa Read More »
New Report Explores ‘Engagement’ with Books, Digital Media A new report released this week is being billed as the first study to capture critical data about how consumers “engage” with books within a “connected media ecosystem” that includes video games, TV, and movies. According to Publishers Weekly, “The study’s focus on consumer ‘engagement’ with books—vs.
How to Read a Book, According to Virginia Woolf Ellen Gutoskey discusses Virginia Woolf’s essay “How Should One Read a Book?” Gutoskey begins by noting that the title is a question, not a prescriptive statement: “The only advice, indeed, that one person can give another about reading is to take no advice, to follow your
Writers’ Inner Voices Many writers report vivid experiences of ‘hearing’ the voices of the characters they create and having characters who talk back to them, rebel, and ‘do their own thing’. It’s an experience described by a wide range of authors from Enid Blyton, Alice Walker, Quentin Tarantino and Charles Dickens through to Samuel Beckett,
Using Neuroscience to Understand Reading Slumps Joshua C. Craig, who spent an undergraduate year studying neuroscience, read up on the scientific literature to see what the current thinking is on the subject of reading slumps. He does a good job of making the subject accessible for those of us without a hefty science background. A
TIMES NEW ROMAN, ARIAL, AND HELVETICA: THE FONT FAVORITES, BUT WHY? Melissa Baron looks into why, with hundreds of thousands of fonts in existence, Times New Roman, Arial, and Helvetica have become :the most widely used fonts ever.” Old Novels as Therapy “In these incredibly dark days, I’ve found solace talking to people I’ve known
