Every 25 minute episode has a theme, and the first theme is “Kid Inventors,” featuring the book Be a Maker by Katey Howes, illustrated by Elizabet Vuković. The show is hosted by the Rainbows, a group of young performers made up of Isabella Wager, Rohit Gopal, Kendall Joseph, and Jade Walker. Tickets for the first show will become available in the next few weeks. More information is available on the Reading Rainbow Live website....

Founded in the UK in 2017 by novelist Neil Griffiths, the USA version of the prize will be spearheaded by Lori Feathers, book critic and co-owner of Interabang Books in Dallas, Texas. In a press release announcing the award’s launch, Feathers indicated that she’s been following the prize in the UK since its inception and feels it is “the ideal mechanism to promote and reward the work of small presses....

After last week’s Secret Wars #1, there seemed to be a bit of a collective head scratching going around – at least as far as people expecting the beginning of a story were concerned. I loved Secret Wars, but I understand most of the frustration. If something’s got a big, red #1 stamped on the cover you kind of expect it to be the start of something. Had it been called “Avengers: Finale” or something like that, I doubt many people would have been as perturbed by the enormous scope of the thing....

For centuries, witches have maintained the climate, but now their control is faltering as the atmosphere becomes more erratic. All hope lies with an Everwitch named Clara. In Autumn, Clara wants nothing to do with her power; the price―losing the ones she loves―is too high. In Winter, storms rage, and Clara accepts that she’s the only one who can make a difference. In Spring, Clara falls for Sang. As her magic grows, she’s terrified she’ll lose him....

A portrait of race, meaning, and the search for self across centuries and continents. From hip-hop artist Jason Diakité comes a stunning account of growing up between worlds, riding a delicate cultural and racial divide. A Drop of Midnight is Jason’s remarkable memoir and an unflinching look at not only his own history, but that of generations affected by the trauma of the African diaspora, then and now. Jason draws on conversations with his parents, research, and personal experiences to paint a vivid picture of race, discrimination, family, and ambition....

Meet Hilda: explorer, adventurer, avid sketchbook-keeper and friend to almost every creature in the valley! Join our beloved heroine as she encounters her very first troll, negotiates peace with some very persnickety elves, and reunites two lovelorn ancient giants. Fantastic creatures and daring adventures are all just part of another average day for Hilda, but what will she do if she is forced to move to Trolberg city, far away from her beloved valley home?...

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol Part Daria, part Coraline, this graphic novel perfectly captures the angst of being a teenager and the lengths to which one will go just to fit in, all within a charmingly dark and supernatural world. I had heard a lot of good things about this book (all true) but I wasn’t expecting how much heart it had. Vera Brosgol is an amazingly talented artist who, with a few simple lines, can portray exactly how her characters are feeling....

As I often do when terrible things are happening in the world and I’ve made all the phone calls I can and I still feel helpless, I turn to SFF as one way we can all at least connect together. So let’s talk about SFF by Palestinian authors. There isn’t a lot in (or translated to) English, but it’s still very worth reading. The speculative fiction magazine Strange Horizons published a Palestinian Special issue on March 29, 2021....

We got our first cast photo today and I cannot contain my excitement. In case you miraculously forgot, season 1 will have eight episodes, split evenly between the plots of Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows. Ready for this gloriousness?! Clockwise, starting with the hunk in the gray shirt: Ben Barnes, aka General Kirigan; Kit Young, aka Jesper Fahey; Freddy Carter, aka Kaz Brekker; Jessie Mei Li, aka Alina Starko; Archie Renaux, aka Mal Oretsev; and Amita Suman, aka Inej Ghafa....

“Back in 1816, Mary Shelley started writing Frankenstein and later published the story in 1818. Since then, it has become a tale that many of us know well … or at least think we do. It’s a widely held belief, for example, that the monster was created by the evil Dr. Frankenstein and his trusty hunchback lab assistant, Igor. Only, Frankenstein wasn’t a doctor at all, and nowhere in the book does it say that he is....

New York Times bestselling authors Barry Lyga and Morgan Baden have teamed up for the first time to create a novel that’s gripping, terrifying and more relevant every day. The Hive follows seventeen-year-old Cassie, who, after being “condemned” on social media, is on the run from a deadly state-sanctioned mob seeking to exact IRL punishment. Aided by a shadowy underground network, Cassie becomes an unlikely heroine, as her search for the truth makes her a threat to the entire unjust system....

This Wednesday Prophet: Earth War #1 will finally hit stands, originally solicited more than a year ago. But here it is, in the flesh at last. So what’s the deal? Anyone who follows my internet presence or my store’s sales trends knows I’m a huge Brandon Graham fan. His other two main current projects, the Island anthology magazine and 8house shared fantasy universe, are two of the most important comics being published right now....

Award-winning author Stephen Graham Jones and a committee of four librarians will select three recommended fiction titles in each reading level, totaling nine Summer Scares selections. The goal of the program is to encourage a national conversation about the horror genre, across all age levels, at libraries nationwide and ultimately attract more adults, teens, and children interested in reading. Official Summer Scares designated authors will also make themselves available at public and school libraries....

The title gives you the premise. We follow a group of mutant adolescents as they deal with the normal stuff: friends, high school politics, D&D game nights, special abilities, awkward relationships, and the occasional existential disintegration of your soul. It’s fun. And it’s honest. It’s real. My teen years were confusing and exploratory. I dealt with heartbreak, hormones, and GPA induced anxiety. I thought the world would end every day and that every teacher somehow was out to get me....

The board defines “Gender Fluidity” as” 1/ pic.twitter.com/xFQn1f8omp — steven monacelli (@stevanzetti) August 19, 2022 This section effectively forbids district employees from acknowledging the existence of trans people, including themselves and their students. It also will not “promote, require, or encourage” the use of pronouns that don’t match the sex listed on a person’s birth certificate, which would mean that trans or nonbinary teachers would be forced to misgender themselves....

A year ago, I would not have been able to write that paragraph on the internet for a bunch of strangers to read. I know — I have always known — that there is nothing wrong with how my dating life has been. There is no “right way” to navigate love and sex and relationships. But knowing something is not the same as feeling it. My head has always understood that I have nothing to be ashamed of....

These books span the entire year, and in cases where the book isn’t published yet, I’ve given you the publication date so you can preorder it or add it to your library list. I hope this list of the best essay collections of 2019 helps you find new books you love! About Us: Essays from the Disability Series of the New York Times, edited by Peter Catapano and Rosemarie Garland-Thomson This book emerged from a New York Times series of personal essays on living with a disability....

Little Red Riding Hood Cinderella Snow White Beauty and the Beast Miscellaneous Fairytales Don’t stop here now that you know some of the best graphic novel fairytale retellings. Check out 5 more comic fairytale retellings, under the radar fairytale retellings, and 100 must-read fairytale retellings. This gorgeous comic explores not just one fairytale, but several, as a mother and son try to bridge cultural and language divides to express their feelings and love for each other....

Back in July, I had the opportunity to attend the astonishing Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar, where we spent five jam-packed days talking about everything and anything book-related from how to sell a book to how to collate a book from the handmade paper era. As one of many book obsessed people, it was a lot of fun to hear about the anatomy of a book. So here’s a brief overview of the structure of a book....

I grew up with the Art Institute of Chicago in my backyard, but I didn’t get the chance to go in person until I was in college. At that time, I was there as a teaching assistant and had to keep my eyes on a group of middle schoolers, so I didn’t get to enjoy the art myself. I did get the chance to go a couple of years ago as an adult, by myself, and it was such a great experience....