As my colleague James Folta reported last week, the Adelaide Literary Festival descended into chaos after Dr. Randa Abdel-Fattah, a Palestinian-Australian author, was abruptly removed from the festival over “sensitivity concerns.” In the wake of this call from the board, Read more >
Tis a truth universally acknowledged that in the second week of January, resolutions made in earnest over champagne toasts fizzle out like fireworks. This is the rubber meet road week, when we (or, I) start to crave structure around pledges Read more >
Readers seeking a deeper immersion in their books are turning to the multisensory experience of “ambiance videos.” Popular on BookTok, these are mood enhancing videos you can put on in the background while reading, to get into a story, curate Read more >
In romance novels, I just love the friends to lovers trope—the tension! The magic of their friendship! In the new movie People We Meet on Vacation , based on the Emily Henry novel of the same name, actors Emily Bader Read more >
Hope everyone is staying warm, and staying hopeful and optimistic with those new year’s resolutions—so much possibility exists in the fresh month of January. Time to dive into the stacks by your bedsides, as well as the new books flying Read more >
Earlier this week, ten months after the body of murdered Palestinian poet and professor Refaat Alareer was recovered and laid to rest in the Ibn Marwan Cemetery in Gaza, his loved ones were finally able to place a headstone on Read more >
Used to be that if you saw steam coming off a hockey rink, it meant a Zamboni had just cruised by. But lately it’s more likely because a sports romance book is getting someone hot and bothered rinkside. Unrivaled, the Read more >
As The Daily Sabah reported this morning, Prague may be the new hot spot for a certain sort of literary tourism. Officials have noted an uptick in visitors thanks to a statue built of 8,000 books. “The Idiom,” created by Read more >
As Surina Venkat reported at The Hill this morning, both authors and publishing executives have detected “a notable chill in the market for queer stories.” Children’s books in particular are feeling the squeeze. Several agents have received rejections citing the Read more >
Today, Texas A&M resumes classes for the spring semester—but a number of canonized texts will not be welcomed back to school. The public research university has lately been caught in the crossfire between state and stupid. As The Texas Tribune Read more >
Nearly 50 authors, commentators, and academics have dropped out of this year’s Adelaide Festival in Australia after the Festival announced that they were canceling an appearance by Dr. Randa Abdel-Fattah over “cultural sensitivity” concerns. The Palestinian-Australian academic was involved in Read more >
As we slouch into awards season, this Letterboxer is reflecting on the best flicks of 2025. And every good list deserves another. For the next few Fridays, you can watch this space for a tailored recommendation based on your favorite Read more >
Elon Musk promised that his social media company X would be “the everything app,” but these days “everything” seems to only include slop, fascist propaganda, and abuse. Increasingly, the social media site has been awash in vulgar and non-consensual sexual Read more >
At a recent meeting, French president Emmanuel Macron and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum conducted a highly symbolic book swap. To commemorate years of diplomatic relation—and sure, with an eye to continued trade—France and Mexico exchanged two ancient manuscripts: the Codex Read more >
Every year, the Periplus collective awards mentorships to writers of color living and working in the United States, pairing each one with a member of the collective: an established writer who will meet monthly with their mentee to foster community, Read more >
Renee Nicole Good, 37, mother to a six-year-old boy, was murdered earlier today by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, a few blocks from her home. According to the Minnesota Star Tribune: [An ICE agent] shot and killed a woman in Read more >
As reported by AP, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private agency created in 1967 to manage the federal funds for PBS, NPR, and other public media, voted itself out of existence on Monday. CPR’s CEO Patricia Harrison said the Read more >
On December 31st, 2025, Writers Against the War on Gaza ended their boycott of PEN America, declaring a win in the collective effort of pressure and condemnation that they helped to organize: …as PEN America has responded to our demands Read more >
Welcome back, and happy new year to all! I hope everyone’s holiday break was filled with slowness, rich food, and delectable winter reads. I know many people who plan their holiday reading months in advance: that rare time of year Read more >
Harlequin France, which is owned by HarperCollins, has just confirmed that they’re shifting away from human translators with an eye to robot replacements. As The Bookseller reported this morning, this change has been in the works for several weeks. According Read more >
