Happy August - here are some book links for you!

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

Happy August my fellow bookworms!

The 1st of August marks the end of summer reading for the year in my neighborhood, is it the same for yours, too? The summer has sure flown by. While I cannot wait for my favorite season to come, I still want to have some more summer fun! I have not yet visited the beach yet, or read by the pool. May everyone have some more warm days ahead to finish their summer bucket list plans!

That said, I have some book news and links for you: 

• Need something good to listen to to help finish up your summer on a thrill? Amazon released a set of original stories you can read and listen to for free if you have an Amazon Prime subscription. Authors include: Nita Prose; B.A. Paris; Minka Kent; Chris Bohjalian; Alyssa Cole; and Julie Clark.
  

• A mystery story come true, a group of tourists were trapped while visiting author Agatha Christie's holiday home due to a fallen tree blocking the only exit, prompting the visitors to compare the incident to the book And Then There Were None. No one was actually hurt during the incident, but they did play croquet and drink tea!
  

• Ever want to visit the White House, but have not been able to secure a tour? Well, now you can visit from the comfort of your home! Check out this link from The White House Association, where you can find a virtual tour.
  

• With school coming, it may be helpful for you to have the link to access JSTOR, a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources, for free, to use for your research papers and so forth.

• If JSTOR does not have what you are looking for, you should try the DOAB, or the Directory of Open Access Books.
  

• One more free resource for you to check out is the Open Library, where you can check out electronic books to read (quite similar to your local library, but this may have more older books for you to reference!).
  

• Many celebrities, politicians, and lawmakers have come forth to defend the freedom to read. Recently:
• Barack and Michelle Obama recently released a thank you letter to librarians
  

• Jay-z and the Chief Executive Officer of the New England Patriots, Robert Kraft, stated they are launching a campaign against book bans along with scholarships for minority students producing artistic works
  

• U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks issued an injunction this past Friday that blocks a law set to go into effect tomorrow, August 1st. This law would allow librarians and booksellers to be prosecuted for providing "harmful" material to minors. This past year has had the highest number of attempts at book bans and restriction to books than it has been in the last 20 years, according to the American Library Association.
  

• As mentioned previously on this blog, if you would like to be a part of the fight against book banning, please visit the American Library Association's website Unite Against Book Bans, where you can join the campaign, find out information on how you can help, see current statistics, and more. 

Until next time! I hope to catch up on my reading, and I hope to hear from you on what you are currently reading! 

I will leave you with this quote from Barack Obama's letter to librarians:

"Finally, to every citizen reading this, I hope you’ll join me in reminding anyone who will listen — and even some people you think might not — that the free, robust exchange of ideas has always been at the heart of American democracy. Together, we can make that true for generations to come."

The first days of summer

Hello my fellow bookworms!

As of June 21st, summer is finally here! Although, if you live in certain parts of Canada or the United States, you could be subject to wildfire smoke. Stay safe, and be sure to wear those KN95 masks we all stocked up on during 2020 and 2021 while you are outside!

(c) 2023 Little Brown Ink

I recently read the cheesiest graphic novel to date, and I mean that literally, but that helped make it so endearing! The characters all have names that are also the names of different cheeses, which may make this a tough read if you are hungry! The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz is a young adult LGBTQ romance graphic novel that touches upon themes of friendship, acceptance, and being true to yourself.  A quick read, be sure to add this to your to-read list this summer!

I do have some book news for you:

• Tomorrow, June 30th, is "Stuff Your Kindle Day" for you romance lovers. You can choose up to 20 different books on Kindle for free. The event will also happen twice more this year, on September 20th and December 27th. Please visit Romance Bookworms' blog post here for more information! They also have information on a mystery-themed kindle giveaway, so check out the post for more details.
  

• Illinois became the first state in the United States to ban book bans! A historic win for the fight against censorship and librarians everywhere. We can only hope more states will follow in Governor J.B. Pritzker's footsteps!
  

• Penguin Random House is hosting an online summer reading challenge for kids. Download the form and book ideas here!
  

• With the rise in popularity of BookTok (those popular clips on TikTok that showcase the new and popular books everyone is reading today), TikTok is now hosting its own book awards! Check out the article on TikTok here, which lists the categories and information for this year's award ceremony, which was hosted from May 25th - June 4th. 

There are so many new movies and shows that are coming out that are based on books. Holly Jackson's A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, Lye Hye's Webtoon See You in My 19th Life, David Grann's Killers of the Flower Moon, and so much more. What have you been reading / watching so far this summer?

Until next time - happy reading! :)