Whether you’re a Swords and Sorcery type of fantasy reader, a fan of battles and betrayal, or you just want a few more goddamn elves in your life, there’s something for you here. These are the truly great fantasy series written in the last 50 years. READ: The 51 Best Fantasy Series Ever Written | BuzzFeed Books.
Last week, The New Statesman ran an essay by Liz Lutgendorff, wherein she describes reading every book on NPR’s reader-selected list of the top 100 science fiction and fantasy books, and finding them to be “shockingly offensive” in their “continued and pervasive sexism.” In the course of proposing “a Bechdel test for books,” Lutgendorff launches broadsides at a variety of authors, some of whose work is indeed genuinely awful (step forward, Piers Anthony), and questions why these works remain so respected.
It’s an interesting essay, and makes some valid points about the weight of nostalgia on this particular corner of genre fiction. But it also falls into a pattern that’s worryingly prevalent these days in the world of criticism, particularly when it gets to the topic of rape and sexual assault in fantasy. It’s at this point that Lutgendorff’s argument falls into the trap of confusing a depiction of something in a work of fiction for an endorsement of that thing (at least, in any instance where there’s an absence of explicit, unequivocal condemnation of it). READ MORE: In Defense of Uncomfortable Subject Matter in Genre Fiction | Flavorwire.
Since 1989, leisure reading groups have become a full-fledged phenomenon and are now found everywhere from offices to religious communities to, increasingly, virtual platforms. Although exact numbers are hard to come by, the New York Times reports an estimated 5 million Americans belong to a book club. Even more belong to online reading groups like those housed on the popular site goodreads.com, which has 40 million members. Large-scale book clubs even have the power to influence the publishing market. When Mark Zuckerberg announced in January he was starting an online reading group humbly titled A Year of Books, his first pick shot up amazon.com’s sales list, surging overnight from 45,140 to the top 10. The public, it seems, has fully embraced book club culture.
Or, at least, a certain demographic has. The population of in-person book clubs skews heavily toward college-educated women, and a large proportion of these groups are single-sex, either by default or design. READ MORE: Women’s Groups and the Rise of the Book Club | JSTOR Daily.
Danika’s post that asked how well we would do on the bookseller’s quiz show got me thinking about some of the best questions I was asked when I worked as a reference librarian. Anyone who knows anything about libraries knows that all patron interactions are private and that librarians never, ever share information about those who ask questions or seek advice. Anonymity is of the utmost importance.
That said, I’ve been out of libraries now for a while and feel confident enough that all of these questions are generic and rendered anonymously enough as to not be pinpointed to any individual. I thought it would be fun to compile a handful of the best, most unique, and most head-scratching questions I was asked as a reference librarian. READ MORE: Five Great Questions I Was Asked As A Reference Librarian |
BOOK RIOT.
Children’s books about being raised by same-sex parents, including one about a pair of “gay” penguins bringing up a chick, are to be banned in Venice’s schools, as a new mayor stamps a more conservative mark on the World Heritage city. READ MORE: Gay parenting books to be banned from Venice schools | Telegraph.
Canada is known as a cultural mosaic because it’s home to many people of different ethnicities, cultures and languages. This diversity presents a great opportunity to teach our kids about other nations and their customs, as well as to celebrate our similarities and differences from them. Reading is one the best ways to learn, so we’ve rounded up 13 of the best children’s books that celebrate diversity. READ: Best Children’s Books To Celebrate Diversity | Huffington Post.
You May Also Like
A British health website, DrEd.com, delved into the entire corpus of literature, both fiction and nonfiction, to explore the way certain words having to do with “venereal” matters have appeared, faded, or been associated with new companion words over the last two centuries. READ MORE: Sex Talk in Literature: How It’s Changed Over 200 Years | Flavorwire.
Rather than watching brain-numbing reality television this summer, I am determined to watch all 13 series of Agatha Christie’s Poroit TV series starring David Suchet. Just finished Series 6 and will be picking up Series 7 & 8 from my local library today. I correctly guess the culprit only half the time. It’s been awesome. Yes, I am a bit of a mystery genre geek.
For almost 100 years, Agatha Christie has beguiled readers with her much-loved mysteries. But now a panel of experts claims to have worked out how to answer the perennial question: whodunnit?
To celebrate the 125th anniversary of the birth of the world’s best-selling novelist, academics have created a formula that they claim will enable the reader to identify the killer before the likes of Hercule Poirot or Miss Jane Marple have managed the feat.
The research, commissioned by the TV channel Drama, analysed 27 of the prolific writer’s books – 83 were published during her lifetime – including classics such as Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile. The experts concluded that where the novel was set, the main mode of transport used and how the victim dies were among the key clues. READ MORE: How to spot whodunnit: academics crack Agatha Christie’s code | Books | The Guardian.
It annoys me when the media and the close-minded do not respect or acknowledge the romance genre as quality fiction. Some of my favourite, most memorable, most thought-provoking and most heart-wrenching reads (and Kleypas re-reads) have been from this genre. Romance = HEA. Romance does not equal just sex or “purple prose.” In my opinion, reading romance contributes to developing social skills (connection, relationship-building) and emotional maturity (empathy, empowerment) – we can all benefit from improving these qualities in ourselves.
What I like about this list from NPR is that the whole series is mentioned – not just specific title(s) considered the best in a series. The list is comprehensive and unranked, sorted into the following categories: Historical, Classics, YA, Suspense, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Paranormal, LGBTQ, Erotic Romance, Inspirational, Contemporary, Category Romance. What I would have liked to see is a fan fiction romance category, as fan fiction is becoming big business with all the Austen and Twilight continuations. The suggestions would be very interesting I’m sure (i.e. the Sharon Lathan P&P series or E.L. James’ 50 Shades of Grey/Grey). The suspense category could have included another Linda Howard title. There were no titles mentioned from Elizabeth Lowell or Jayne Ann Krentz nor was Catherine Anderson’s Annie’s Song mentioned. I would vote for Johanna Lindsey’s Malory series over Warrior’s Woman (SciFi/Fantasy).
A single title only Top 100 Romance list I recommend is from LikesBooks: The Top 100 Romance Books as Voted in 2013. (Note: At the bottom of this webpage are links to historical Top 100 Romances lists from 1998, 2000, 2004, 2007 and 2010).
You May Also Like:
*************
As we get into the hottest, most languorous months of the year, it’s the perfect moment for a hot read — and just in time, our big summer book list is here. It’s the NPR Books Summer of Love, and we have 100 great romances for you, from historical to paranormal to LGBTQ to the subgenre that started it all, category romance (the slim-spined Harlequins of your childhood).
Back in June we asked you to tell us about your favorite romantic reads, and you responded in droves. (We had to shut the poll down early after more than 18,000 nominations flooded in!) Once the votes were tallied, we turned to our expert panel, reviewers Bobbi Dumas and Sarah Wendell, and authors Sherry Thomas and Michelle Monkou, to help us break down the categories and shape the final list into a love story for the ages. READ MORE: Happy Ever After: 100 Swoon-Worthy Romances | NPR.
Reading doesn’t just improve your knowledge, it can help fight depression, make you more confident, empathetic, and a better decision maker. READ MORE: How Changing Your Reading Habits Can Transform Your Health | Fast Company | Business + Innovation.
infophile 