It’s Leap Year! Happy Birthday, leap babies – you get to celebrate on your real birthday this year!
Book News
In case you missed it: my list of the Best Books of 2023
Banned Books Back!
Firestorm Books in Asheville, N.C., has devised a clever plan to help kids trapped in the censorial state of Florida. Last winter, Firestorm was offered more than 22,000 diverse books that had been pulled from Duval County Public Schools. Despite the logistical challenge, the bookseller jumped at the chance to rescue these Florida books from destruction. A statement on the store’s website says, “That’s 11,000 pounds of titles that right-wing politicians and small-minded school administrators conspired to keep out of the hands of young folks.”
Not for long. Firestorm has just launched “Banned Books Back!” It’s a bold project to ship those titles for free back to kids who want them. Children, parents, teachers and librarians in Florida can request picture books or chapter books (start here).
But fighting tax-engorged prigs isn’t cheap. The store is trying to raise $30,000 for postage, packaging supplies, labor and storage (make a donation).
Thanks to The Washington Post book critic, Ron Charles, for bringing this to my attention via the Book Club Newsletter.
When should you give up on a book? Readers weigh in.
Some bail after a couple of sentences. Others slog through to the bitter end.
Like a lot of great ideas, Nancy Pearl’s “Rule of 50” arrived in a flash. The librarian and best-selling author was fielding questions on a public radio show when a woman called in and explained she wasn’t enjoying the book she was reading but felt guilty about abandoning it.
“And then it just came to me,” Pearl says over the phone from her home in the Pacific Northwest. “I said, give the book 50 pages and if, at the bottom of page 50, all you care about is who the murderer is or who marries whom, turn to the last page, and then stop reading.”
Good advice or not??? Post a comment!
Librarians, who lost jobs for not banning books, are fighting back
Librarians in at least three states are asking the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to intervene after they were fired for refusing to ban books.
At least one has already won.
Book Tour: Celeste Ng shows us her personal library
The author of ‘Little Fires Everywhere’ and ‘Our Missing Hearts’ guides us through her personal library (with very cool pictures!)
Breaking up with Goodreads: The best book-logging apps for 2024
Fed up with the Amazon-owned book app? Check out these alternatives.
Book News & Good News!
TikTok Defends ‘Mychal the Librarian,’ Confronting Online Hate with Empathy
If you grew up a bookworm, or maybe even a social outcast, Mychal Threets, a Bay Area librarian who has become a social media star, knows what that’s like.
And his mission is to make the library — and the digital world — a better place for everyone.
Food News
If you’ve ever enjoyed a bowl of ramen, check out this video on how ramen noodles are made!
Other News
Bird populations are declining
Interesting article in The Washington Post! Includes a way to check your neighborhood, “Are birds disappearing in your city?“
My grandson got to have fun in the snow! It’s only snowed once since he was born, and he was too young to appreciate it. January’s snowfall was fun times for Jonah!
As always, thanks for reading, and stay safe.
Thanks to The New York Times and The Washington Post for allowing me to “gift” my readers with free access to these articles, a lovely perk for subscribers.
Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™ 