Top Stories
Stories in BookClub that you’ll love, handpicked by our team.
Why do people buy books they don’t read?
We have all likely been guilty of buying or keeping books we know we will probably never read, and maybe never intended to read. I know I have certainly been guilty of this! And you certainly are not alone, it seems much of society prefers buying and having books over actually reading them. Indeed, one survey found that an average of half of the over one hundred books in an average home go unread.
Austin Blessing-Nelson (Blessing)Published 9 months ago in BookClubMy To Be Read List
I have been taking some time away from writing. I haven't forgotten about Vocal, the truth is I just have been too busy pursuing other things to write online and honestly, my little family and I just had a really hard month between the flu and a weird eye infection/cold circulating our house. I'm currently sipping some warm peppermint tea because my throat is sore.
Chloe Rose Violet 🌹Published 19 days ago in BookClub"If I Did It"
When I teach Ethics of Communication, I always give my students the debate situation below to discuss ethics of public relations:
Lana V LynxPublished 30 days ago in BookClubAn Education in Alienation
It might seem odd to conjure the ghost of an ancient Greek philosopher the better to try to understand and appreciate a 19th Century tale of thrilling horror with his help. I was moved to do so because I am the sort of silly idealist who believes that anything encoded by a human mind can be decoded by one, to echo David Lodge’s irascible Morris Zapp, provided sufficient energy and attention are devoted to the cause. After all, I have had the privilege and pleasure of teaching this novel to hundreds of students. When I have done so, I have repudiated charming customer service and power point karaoke in favor of close reading of the text and texts about it. The latter have both preserved and provoked a scholarly and critical conversation about tragedy in general and this novel in particular. Aristotle was the first to contribute a systematic theory of tragedy to this conversation, in the 4th Century BCE. Walking anachronism that I am, I understand it to be my duty to prepare my students to understand the text and said conversation in order, in however modest and provisional a way, to contribute to it themselves. If the aims of a university are not to preserve, create and disseminate knowledge, by these and other means, what could they possibly be?
D. J. ReddallPublished about a month ago in BookClubWhy Eloise Isn't A Feminist
I meant to have this out in time for Women's History Month, but life got in the way... Feminism has existed for as long as there was a Patriarchy to oppose.
Natasja RosePublished 2 months ago in BookClubThe History of Marginalia
Marginalia has not always been the taboo subject it is today. At times in history, it was considered to show great intelligence and be a valuable part of any thinker's life.
Sam H ArnoldPublished 2 months ago in BookClub- Content Warning
"Prima Facie" by Suzie Miller - Review
Based on the award-winning play starring Jodie Comer ‘This is not life. This is law.’ Tessa Ensler is a brilliant barrister who's forged her career in criminal defence through sheer determination. Since her days at Cambridge, she’s carefully disguised her working class roots in a male-dominated world where who you know is just as important as what you know. Driven by her belief in the right to a fair trial and a taste for victory, there’s nothing Tessa loves more than the thrill of getting her clients acquitted. It seems like Tessa has it made when she is approached for a new job and nominated for the most prestigious award in her field. But when a date with a charismatic colleague goes horribly wrong, Tessa finds that the rules she’s always played by might not protect her, forcing her to question everything she's ever believed in . . .
Love in the Time of Serial Killers or How to Negatively Portray Your Plus-Sized Characters Without Trying to
For about a year, I’ve wanted to read Love in the Time of Serial Killers. The cover was adorable, and the premise seemed to be Disturbia meets How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. I wanted to love the book, but I stopped reading by the time I reached page 76. There were various reasons I added the book to my DNF pile, but the main one was Phoebe, the plus-sized main character.
Little Ghost Laban
I like to dig into other cultures and languages, particularly when it comes to horror, folklore, and storytelling. There's so much out there that isn't readily available in English. It's the same with your native language, whatever that might be. The world is connected now in a way it never has been, and newer technology allows me to explore it using translation tools. We take these tools for granted today, but they are recent inventions.
J.A. HernandezPublished 3 months ago in BookClubVocal Book Club: Trust by Hernan Diaz
In Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens (published in English in 2014) we are reminded of how much fiction underpins our lives. Fiction, Harari argues, is one of the great engines of culture. Religion is a story many choose, collectively, to believe: it is the story that creates culture and cohesion. He uses the example of a brand — Peugeot — to enquire how we imbue fictions with significance. What connection can anyone now make between a company founded in the early 19th century with the car manufacturer of today? What does the “Peugeot” symbol on the front of an automobile signify? There’s one answer: a story. Perhaps you buy the car because, at some level, you believe the story.
Erica WagnerPublished 4 months ago in BookClubBest Books of 2023?
How can someone possibly compare the relative merits of Toasty (a picture book about a piece of toast that wants to be a dog) vs. Death on Gokumon Island (a mystery of grisly multiple murder)? Well, I've made an attempt!
Maureen Y. PalmerPublished 4 months ago in BookClubThey're Challenging Reading Challenges?
In 1961 the town of Tarzana, California pulled a book off of the city library shelves as it was deemed unsuitable for children. The offense was clear: the story, one of a group of adventures, featured a couple clearly living in sin: Tarzan and Jane.
Judey KalchikPublished 4 months ago in BookClub