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Books Archive

Archives for December 2019

Culture
Diversity in children’s books has increased exponentially over the past 10 yearsDiversity in children’s books has increased exponentially over the past 10 years
Culture

And the rest of the week’s best writing on books and related subjects.

By Constance Grady
Culture
The power of Greta Gerwig’s Little Women is that it doesn’t pretend its marriages are romanticThe power of Greta Gerwig’s Little Women is that it doesn’t pretend its marriages are romantic
Culture

Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women has an intentionally unsatisfying ending. Greta Gerwig weaponizes it.

By Constance Grady
Looking back at the tumultuous 2010s
The 2010s were supposed to bring the ebook revolution. It never quite came.The 2010s were supposed to bring the ebook revolution. It never quite came.
Looking back at the tumultuous 2010s

Publishing spent the 2010s fighting tooth and nail against ebooks. There were unintended consequences.

By Constance Grady
Culture
Why so many people who need the government hate itWhy so many people who need the government hate it
Culture

Everyone benefits from welfare. Here’s why most people don’t know that.

By Sean Illing
Culture
The tricky etiquette of giving a book as a giftThe tricky etiquette of giving a book as a gift
Culture

And the rest of the week’s best writing on books and related subjects.

By Constance Grady
Culture
J.K. Rowling’s latest tweet seems like transphobic BS. Her fans are heartbroken.J.K. Rowling’s latest tweet seems like transphobic BS. Her fans are heartbroken.
Culture

JKR just ruined Harry Potter, Merry Christmas.

By Aja Romano
Looking back at the tumultuous 2010s
How a Twitter war in 2010 helped change the way we talk about women’s writingHow a Twitter war in 2010 helped change the way we talk about women’s writing
Looking back at the tumultuous 2010s

The surprisingly long ripple effect of the Jennifer Weiner-Jonathan Franzen feud.

By Constance Grady
Culture
Why schools refuse to treat Little Women as a great American novelWhy schools refuse to treat Little Women as a great American novel
Culture

And the rest of the week’s best writing on books and related subjects.

By Constance Grady
Culture
19 books from the 2010s we can’t stop thinking about19 books from the 2010s we can’t stop thinking about
Culture

The most important books of the decade, according to Vox staff.

By Haleema Shah, Ezra Klein and 17 more
Culture
This year’s Bad Sex in Fiction Award recognizes a passage comparing a penis to a small monkeyThis year’s Bad Sex in Fiction Award recognizes a passage comparing a penis to a small monkey
Culture

And the rest of the week’s best writing on books and related subjects.

By Constance Grady
Culture
The best books I read in 2019The best books I read in 2019
Culture

Our book critic’s 15 favorite books of 2019 include Irish schoolkids in love and lesbian necromancers in space.

By Constance Grady
Looking back at the tumultuous 2010s
This comedy of manners from 2012 perfectly anticipated the 2010s’ reckoning with misogynyThis comedy of manners from 2012 perfectly anticipated the 2010s’ reckoning with misogyny
Looking back at the tumultuous 2010s

The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. explores everyday misogyny with vicious precision.

By Constance Grady