Books

The 2023 PEN American Literary Award Winners have been announced! This year’s awards conferred $350,000 to writers and translators in eleven different categories that include fiction, nonfiction, poetry, biography, essay, science writing, literature in translation, and more. The winners were announced live at the PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony on March 2, at The Town

I think most of us are vaguely familiar with the bestselling fantasy books of all time. After all, to be bestsellers they have to be pretty popular. But I’ve also found that the most well-known fantasy bestsellers tend to be middle grade or YA. That means books like Twilight, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Little

At a heated school board meeting this week in Volusia County, Florida, two books under fire were retained. Both Ellen Hopkins’s Glass and Erika L. Sanchez’s I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter will stay on shelves. This is a sign of the process working, as books like these (and nearly every other book being

Welcome to Book Riot’s March 2023 Horoscopes and Book Recommendations! As we tiptoe into the spring season, new books are blossoming onto shelves. Which one is destined to be your favorite? Ask the stars! Check out your horoscope for the month ahead, along with a book recommendation perfect for your sign. Get ready for the

Barnes & Noble (B&N), who has been working to rebrand themselves as more of an independent bookstore over the last couple of years under new leadership, is making changes to its membership programs. The former program, which cost $25 a year, gave members 40% off hardcover bestsellers, 10% off all in-store purchases, free shipping online,

When it comes to following true crime, you either like it or you really, really don’t. For many people, true crime books, podcasts, and news stories are a huge part of their lives. But if you’re not one of those people, the consumption of true crime might seem a little weird. Or worse than weird:

Green Hill School in Chehalis, Washington is, as described on its website, a “medium/maximum security fenced facility that provides older males sentenced to Juvenile Rehabilitation treatment with education and vocational training.” Graduate students in University of Washington’s Information School are holding a book drive to upgrade the books available in the Green Hill School library. Grad

65 years after How the Grinch Stole Christmas was published, and 31 years after Theodor Geisel aka Dr. Seuss’s death, it’s getting a sequel: How the Grinch Lost Christmas. It’s set a year after the original book, and the Grinch is determined to prove he now knows the true meaning of Christmas. When he doesn’t

It’s 2023, and while fat representation has come a long way since Shallow Hal, it’s still a media minefield. If you’re looking for fat-positive or body-neutral reads, check out the YA books with fat protagonists I’ve picked out for you below. Millennials remember the serious dearth of fat representation in children’s media back in the

Within the broader mystery category are so many sub-genres that, in my opinion, there’s something for nearly every reader. Some, like the locked room mystery or whodunit, focus on a puzzle that the reader must untangle alongside the sleuth. Others, like hardboiled or courtroom mysteries, explore social issues and human nature in thought-provoking ways. And

With 2023 moving full steam ahead now, it’s hit me that the early 2000s occurred a solid 20 years ago. The fact that there now exists a That ’90s Show in place of That ’70s Show feels like a surreal, out-of-body experience. How has the time sped by this fast? It’s like I’ve pressed the

There’s something fascinating about monster tales — something that keeps us humans coming back for more. And, let’s be honest: we’re the ones creating the monsters here. So what is it about monsters that’s so fascinating? In the late 1990s, Jeffrey Jerome Cohen wrote an essay called “Monster Culture (Seven Theses)” in the book Monster

One Piece is one of the most popular anime series out now. It got its start as a serialized manga getting published in Weekly Shōnen Jump in 1997 and by 1999 it was made into an anime, and has since aired over 1,000 episodes. While it’s not quite the longest-running anime, there’s something to say about

One very easy way to learn about and discover new books and authors is through the cover reveal. This was not a possible avenue of discovery before the age of book talk on the internet, and in an era where visuals are becoming more and more important — and indeed, book cover designers are taking

Last week, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker delivered his State of the State address. It is the first time a governor in the country has directly spoken about the wave of censorship, book banning, and harassment being seen by schools and libraries. While some legislators in other arenas have addressed the topic — Jamie Raskin, a

The Audie Awards, presented annually by the Audio Publishers Association, described itself as the “premier awards program in the United States recognizing distinction in audiobooks and spoken-word entertainment.” Each year, they recognize audiobooks in several categories, and they’ve just released their list of finalists. Here are the finalists in just a few of the Audie

Scribd vs. Audible: What’s the best audiobook service? These two are, undoubtedly, the best ones out there. They have the largest catalogs of audiobooks in the English-speaking market, and each has irresistible perks. With Audible, you get a huge library of audiobooks, from the obscure and the best-selling to classics and contemporary titles. You name

Clarkesworld Magazine is one of the largest and most well-known sci-fi/fantasy magazines, publishing respected SFF authors like Catherynne Valente, Jeff VanderMeer, and Caitlin R. Kiernan. They have recently had to close submissions after being flooded with story submissions created with chatbots like ChatGPT. The irony is not lost on them. But while Clarkesworld has received

Even if you’re not a manga reader, it’s likely that the manga you have heard of are shōnen manga. The category is aimed at a young male demographic, often containing coming-of-age themes and adventure, and is home to the vast majority of the biggest manga bestsellers out there. That being said, it can definitely be