If you read this column at, you have caught me referencing the incredible literary podcast Between the Covers. It’s a delight to have its host, the inimitable David Naimon, as a guest to celebrate the reissue of Ursula K. Le

“Kids five and up get in free the first Sunday of the month,” Matt said. We were at Barcade in downtown New Haven, across from Elm City Games, for a date night in late February. Matt was my neighbor in

Anyone who reads the news or has logged onto social media is aware of the cult of personality around North Korea’s Kim dynasty. From afar, it’s almost cartoonish, with the bronze statues and the funny haircuts and the penchant for

There are epiphanies. Posts of stern nonfictions. There arise in us strong love affairs with feedback. The id a remarkable botulism. And what about shuttered domestic spirits. A proclivity for baskets of stone- colored kittens. Rooms ticking with taxidermy. That

Bogs are big right now. Fashion designers are dipping couture in peat; memes on Instagram offer help choosing your bog witch name. Internationally bestselling authors are (figuratively) mining wetlands for inspiration. The bog and its cousins the swamp and marsh

Last weekend I had a little stagefright before I was set to appear on a panel about authorship and AI for an event called Whose Truth? Writers and Readers Forum presented by the Authors Guild. I had a feeling I’d

For years Phillip Tennent lived at the edge of the sea, where artefacts were washed up every day. Scavengers, professional and otherwise, came and went. Turnover was higher than you’d expect given the relaxed lifestyle, the constant good weather, the

In the summer of 2021, as the Covid-19 pandemic was finally slowing down, my teenage son and I took a trip to Italy. Travel restrictions had been lifted only a few days before, and Rome was almost entirely empty of

Each day, I write the poem of my body. The more I’m able to befriend movement as a means to learn what knowledge lives within, the more interesting my experience becomes. What poem might my body write today? Poems are

Whoa there, weary traveler! Sit awhile and hear my news. Tell me, have you heard of the Emperors of Narsil? The Mandoran Invasion of Brethony? No? What of The Skalbard Coast? Cranholt on the Mersana River? Pharazel Maheris’s “Lives of

The Irish novelist known for nailing Millennial relationship psychosis and speaking up about Palestine told The Guardian this morning that she can no longer sell her novels in the United Kingdom. This news follows Rooney’s much-publicized support for Palestine Action,

How newspapers helped democratize knowledge (because reading isn’t just for the rich). | Lit Hub Politics Is it or isn’t it? James Folta considers how generative AI is poisoning the literary well for everyone. | Lit Hub Technology Oksana Lutsyshyna

Among the gifts bestowed by my long relationship with a wild deer, chronicled in Penelope: A Love Story, (Crown) being published October 13, was an opening of the spirit, a freedom from human/animal boundaries. This seems to be recognized by

Vauhini Vara, who has for years been investigating the impact of AI on writing, published a piece in The Atlantic over the weekend claiming that the winner of The Caine Prize used AI to write his story. Zimbabwean writer Simbarashe

The Author is facing the sea, his cheeks orange from the lowering sun. There’s Maja, walking towards him, from behind, tentative, yet her right arm is reaching for him, reaching around him. No sound except the waves, they break against

Since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, nonfiction and autofiction have become, alongside poetry, the leading genres of contemporary Ukrainian literature. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, autobiographical approaches and autofiction help emphasize the immediacy of events,

New Circana BookScan data for 2026 shows readers reaching for emotional certainty, escapism, and stories with a clear payoff — with backlist titles holding their own against new releases.

Part crime novel, part logic puzzle, part sudoku — Murdoku has sold 160,000 copies in Italy alone and spawned a new publishing genre that turns reading into a collective game.

The Empyrean author's short-story collection became an instant New York Times bestseller and now holds Goodreads' 'Most Read Books this Week' crown, with over a quarter-million reader rankings.

Lawhon's novel about the legendary Irish pirate Grace O'Malley takes the retailer's top honor, with booksellers praising it as a favorite across company book clubs.

New industry data shows the US audiobook market hit $2.43 billion in 2025 with 26% annual growth projected, while indie bookstores stage an unlikely comeback and BookTok drives 59 million print sales.

Bringing the New York School to middle school: Why Frank O’Hara is the perfect way to introduce poetry to tweens. | Lit Hub Criticism Adam Johnson talks to Amitav Ghosh about The Wayfinder, the many ways to tell a single

I have covered many wars in the past but nothing—absolutely nothing—prepared me for the brutality, cruelty, and the sheer savagery of Israel’s war in Gaza. I wasn’t alone. Veteran colleagues at Al Jazeera—battle-hardened reporters who had walked the ruins of