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Science Fiction Short Stories: Discussing Ted Chiang
Ted Chiang is one of the most respected science fiction writers out there right now. But he is not prolific and has only written short stories and novellas. The Economist recently published an article...
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The Hugo Awards, Sad Puppies, and When Politics Gets in the Way
The Hugo Award nominees were announced earlier this month, and when the ballot was revealed it became clear to many that the Sad Puppies voting bloc had prevailed. The Sad Puppies, one of the worst...
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Read to Play: Seattle’s Summer Book Bingo!
This summer, The Seattle Public Library partnered with Seattle Arts and Lectures to create a very fun reading program for teens age 16 and over, and adults throughout the city. It’s called Summer Book...
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You’ll Enjoy It When You Get There: Rediscovering Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor the writer has often been overlooked, an unfair side effect of having the same name as a very famous actress. But “The Other Elizabeth Taylor” (which just so happens to be the title...
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Summer Reading: Historical Fiction
The internet is awash in lengthy lists of summer reading. Overwhelmed? Here are my quick takes on two historical novels that make good choices for book groups or solo reading. In Wendy Jones’ The...
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Katniss Everdeen, Meet Kelsea, the Queen of the Tearling
I will admit, I am stealing that comparison from Entertainment Weekly, which has already made the connection between Katniss Everdeen of The Hunger Games (2008) and Kelsea Glynn of The Queen of the...
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Required Reading: Between the World and Me
Not long ago, I wrote about James Baldwin’s seminal book about race in America, The Fire Next Time. In every era there are books that are popular and others that are important and some that are both....
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Awesome Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy at Geek Girl Con
Recently, I was on a panel with five other librarians—Summer Hayes and Claire Scott from the Seattle Public Library; Jackie Parker from Sno-Isle Libraries; and Emily Calkins and Whitney Winn from King...
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Awesome Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy: A Reading List, Part 1
In my previous post, I wrote about presenting on a panel called “Awesome Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy” with fellow librarians at Geek Girl Con in Seattle. For those of you who want to learn...
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Awesome Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy: A Reading List, Part 2
Last week, I wrote about presenting on a panel called “Awesome Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy” with fellow librarians at Geek Girl Con in Seattle. And on Tuesday, I wrote in detail about three of...
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For Black History Month, or Any Month: The Warmth of Other Suns
Chances are, many book groups have already read and discussed Isabel Wilkerson’s marvelous The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration (2010). But, if you’re anything like me,...
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History Was Insane: The Empress Wu Duology by Weina Dai Randel
Good historical fiction will remind book groups that there is more in history to amaze, shock, and stun than in George R. R. Martin’s historically-inspired fantasy. When it comes to court intrigue,...
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A Timely Feminist Memoir: Shrill by Lindy West
Lindy West’s debut memoir, Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman, is getting a lot of attention for addressing topics like fat-phobia and tweeting about your abortion. In addition to being a deeply feminist...
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Brooklyn Binge: Buzz Books set in the Booming Borough
If your book group enjoys reading fiction set in New York, two recent literary novels centered in and around Brooklyn bring the borough vividly to life.Emma Straub’s Modern Lovers supplies some of the...
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