The Myth of the Consistently Great Writer
Usually it’s a confession made over a two-person dinner. Occasionally it’s a hedged statement to a larger group, the words tethered to my mouth like a...
There Were Women on Noah’s Ark
Sarah Blake and I met last year at the AWP Writing Conference in Tampa, where we bonded not over writing, but rewriting. The Bible, to be...
10 Manga To Read After Catching Up With ONE PIECE
Ninety-two volumes, 938 chapters, 22 years. One Piece, written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda, is an emblematic and popular Japanese manga series. The best-selling manga series...
Fantasy Book Covers Intimidate Me—Here’s Why
I consider myself a casual fan of speculative fiction. Twilight came out when I was 13 and, by then, I had already been reading Harry Potter...
4 Historical Fiction Books About the Romanovs
“Grandma, it’s me, Anastasia.” via GIPHY Like so many, I grew up watching Don Bluth’s animated classic, Anastasia. The film, while charming and fun, also took a considerable...
6 Romance Novels That Should Come With Snacks Included
I have seen one constant refrain in the weeks since Adriana Herrera’s novel American Dreamer was released: this book will make you hungry. Which makes sense. One...
Announcing the 2019 Man Booker International Prize Shortlist
The Man Booker International Prize honoring the finest works of translated fiction from around the world released its shortlist yesterday, narrowing down the list from 13...
7 Haunted Civil War Books
When I was in high school my government class went on a trip to Washington D.C. We made the requisite tourist stops at Jefferson’s Monticello and...
Meet the People Who “Drank the Kool-Aid” (And Why We Should Stop Saying That)
With a toddler around, it takes me longer these days to finish books than it used to. But I blew through Julia Scheeres’s 2011 nonfiction book, A...
What’s ONCE UPON A TIME in Tamil? Story Starters Around the World
Anyone who grew up reading in English is probably familiar with the story starting formula that opens most folktales: “Once upon a time.” Often, story starters...
