So you want to start reading Haruki Murakami? You’ve seen his overwhelming popularity both in Japan and the West; you’ve heard the whispers, over and over, that he might finally win the Nobel Prize for Literature; you want to know what all the fuss is about. Murakami can be accessible and inaccessible in equal parts, …
Book Lists
Books and video games. Two artistic mediums that are not historically compared, not in the same way that books are to movies, or indeed games are to movies. And yet, for countless people, these are two hobbies that overlap beautifully. That goes double for those of us who prefer single-player narrative video games and hate …
We’re living through a turbulent and unknowable time where all aspects of life are shifting. What was once clear is now murky, and nothing is certain anymore. For many of us, the first thing to go was our enjoyment of simple pleasures like reading (myself included). Where did all that happy reading go? Many of …
The world of Japanese manga, just like any big form of entertainment, can be a dizzying place to dive into. The same is true for anime and western comics: where to start. So, let’s talk about where to start reading manga. Browse a bookstore in the US and the UK and the sheer number of …
I write about dark tourism for a living and I read a lot of books about the atrocities that happen in our world. Although I had previously read a few of the non-fiction books of this list, in 2019, I went down a bit of a rabbit hole and began reading everything I could find connected to …
In so many ways, the women of East Asian literature are the prominent voices of their cultures today. The best East Asian writers are women. In Japan and Korea especially, those writers who have the greatest clarity of mind and creative spirits are insightful, fascinating, and imaginative women. Women who speak for the sidelined and …
It’s that time of year again: the time when everyone obsesses over lists and gets deeply frustrated if someone else’s list is different from their own. And in keeping with that delightful spirit, prepare to get frustrated by our list of best translated novels of 2019! In all seriousness, though, I love a good list. …
When I was a child playing video games, I always wanted some t-shirts, collectibles, and jewelry themed around games. Now, as a voracious book lover I have a wealth of inspirational jewelry and literary jewelry at my fingertips to wear and proudly show off my adoration for books and literature. These top Etsy sellers have …
We all love to wear our loves, our hobbies, and our passions on our sleeves. We book lovers are proud of the way that reading has captured our imaginations, shaped our lives, and made us who we are today. Some of us have bookish tattoos, others wear literary t-shirts and scarves, and some wear book …
It’s difficult to know where to start with talking about trans rights, gender dysphoria, and the politics behind transgender stories, other than to simply say that trans people need all the help and support that they can get. That’s where transgender books and trans authors come in. Understanding your own dysphoria and deciding on the …