Bookish Links I Love: 2024 Edition
I have been saving up interesting bookish links that I found in 2024 so that I can share them with you here in one go.
One of the things that I have been greatly enjoying in other bookish Substackers’ and bloggers’ posts is when they share interesting bookish links that they have found. Usually, they share such links weekly or monthly. However, as my posts tend to focus on specific microgenres or specific bookish topics, rather than on what I have been reading and finding recently, I decided to do things a little differently.
The links that I share below do not necessarily go to posts/articles/Substack notes/etc. that were published in 2024. Rather, they are simply interesting links that I ran across this past year. And while most of the links relate to books or reading, I also include Substack notes from some of the artists whose work I have been enjoying on Substack.
I hope that through these links you find some reading ideas, resources, and content that you enjoy or find helpful!
Genre and microgenre book recommendation lists
Children’s books
Unfortunately, I cannot recall (in order to thank that Substacker) on which Substack I found the 2 summer reading booklist links that I include below.
“1000 Best Middle Grade Books,” Imagination Soup
“2023 Blue Ribbons,” The Bulletin of The Center for Children’s Books (high quality children’s books that were published in 2023)
“2024 Summer Reading Lists of Best Books For Kids,” Imagination Soup
“2024 Edition: The Best Children’s Books of the Year,” Bank Street College of Education (standout children’s and YA books published in 2023)
“Eight 20th-Century Picture Books that Have Aged Beautifully,” Book Riot
“Summer Reading Booklists” for kids, Reading Rockets
Graphic novels
“2023 Best Graphic Novels for Adults Reading List,” American Library Association
“2023 Best Graphic Novels for Children Reading List,” American Library Association
Historical fiction
“A Look Back at Five Years of Historical Fiction Hits,” Goodreads Blog
Microgenres
“8 of the Best Books About Intergenerational Friendships,” Book Riot
“100 Short New Books to Supercharge Your 2024 Reading Challenge,” Goodreads Blog
“The 2024 Goodreads Pride Reading List,” Goodreads Blog
“The Cats of Book Riot Recommend Books to Read on International Cat Day,” Book Riot
Mysteries and thrillers
“Mystery's New Megahits: Readers' 48 Favorite Whodunits of the Past 3 Years,” Goodreads Blog
“The Past Year's Biggest Mystery & Thriller Hits,” Goodreads Blog
Nonfiction
“152 Nonfiction Books to Discover This Women's History Month,” Goodreads Blog
“Fly away with these 9 books about birds,” Modern Mrs Darcy
Science fiction and fantasy
“Science-Fiction Books Scientific American’s Staff Love,” Scientific American
“The 60 Most Popular Fantasy Novels of the Past 3 Years,” Goodreads Blog
“The 60 Most Popular Science Fiction Books of the Past 3 Years,” Goodreads Blog
Substack posts
None of the specific Substack posts listed below have paywalls (although some of the Substack newsletters listed below have paywalls on some of their other posts).
“10 Favourite Super Slim Reads” via
on“20 Bookish Books for your TBR” via
on“Actually, I Love Goodreads,” via
on“Books about….cows” via
on“Listed: The Best Online Places to Find Books” via
on .“Millions of Cats” via
and on“Narrative Nonfiction that Reads Like a Novel” via
on“National Book Award for Fiction 2024” via
on“NetGalley for Newbies” via
on“No. 45: Some of My Favorite Books for Creative Inspiration” via
on“Notes on Romance Novels as ‘Camp’” via
on“Perfect Poolside Reads” via
and on“Reading in Public No. 36: Three Reasons to Read Poetry” via
on“The 3 Books That Actually Taught Me to Read Poetry” via
on Deedi Reads“The Curator: when you don’t enjoy a popular novel” via
on“The Nominee You Didn’t See” via
on (about an absolutely lovely French animation)“These people need therapy!” via
on (about Emily Henry’s book Funny Story)
If you are seeking a bookish community; the
Substack has a lovely, paywall-free, bookish group chat every Tuesday. Here is an example: “Tuesday Tea: Do you DNF books? How do you know it’s time to quit?”Reading-related science, health, and statistics links
Although I have long been aware that my love of reading has been enormously beneficial for me in a variety of ways, it was not until
shared the link “Why 'getting lost in a book' is so good for you, according to science” from NBC News, that I felt inspired to do a little research about some of the impacts of reading. The following links are what I found.“A healthy diet, reading, and doing sports promote reasoning skills in children,” ScienceDaily
“Books in home as important as parents' education in determining children's education level,” ScienceDaily
“Does being a bookworm boost your brainpower in old age?” ScienceDaily
“Does Reading Matter,” Psychology Today
“Fiction reading as medicine,” ScienceDaily
“Five ways reading can improve health and well-being,” Medical News Today
“Literature inspired my medical career: Why the humanities are needed in health care,” The Conversation
“Picking up a book for fun positively affects verbal abilities,” ScienceDaily
“Reading builds resilience among at-risk kids,” ScienceDaily
“Reading for pleasure early in childhood linked to better cognitive performance and mental wellbeing in adolescence,” ScienceDaily
“Reading may make us kinder, student's research into fiction habits and personality types reveals,” ScienceDaily
“Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report,” Scholastic
“The relationship between reading and empathy: An integrative literature review,” Psicologia: Teoria e Prática
“Why Book Bans Are Bad for Mental Health,” Psychology Today
“What Helps Stress, Your Mood and Brain Health? Books,” Right as Rain by UW Medicine
“Why older people struggle to read fine print: It's not what you think,” ScienceDaily
Podcast episodes
“Let’s Talk About Percival Everett’s ‘James,’” 5/31/2024, The Book Review
“Celebrating Queer History with the Queer Liberation Library,” 10/17/2024, Professional Book Nerds
You can learn more about the (donation-funded, free, digital library full of queer books that anyone with a US postal address can apply to join) Queer Liberation Library here.
“Uncanny Magazine Podcast #55A,” 11/7/2023, Uncanny Magazine Podcast
You can listen for free to the lovely, cozy, 2024 Hugo and Nebula Award winning novelette “The Year Without Sunshine” by Naomi Kritzer. It is my favorite speculative work that I have found so far this year.
A little bookish education
“Short Fiction Forms: Novella, Novelette, Short Story, and Flash Fiction Defined,” Author Learning Center (I found this link thanks to
)
The big, bookish, potential news … for Jane Austen lovers
If you have not already heard, you may be interested to learn that Netflix is considering making a new Pride and Prejudice adaptation. The following video from Claudia on the Spinster’s Library BookTube channel provides some enjoyably snarky commentary in reaction. I agree with Claudia that another Pride and Prejudice adaptation is not needed by Austen lovers.
Claudia does not mention in her video, however, the strong financial incentives that Netflix may have to make its own Pride and Prejudice adaptation so that it can provide its customers with the Austen-related content they crave while avoiding having to pay hefty licensing fees for others’ adaptations of a book that is in the public domain.
Wow, so many great links! Thank you so much for including my post :)
this is massive I am saving this for when I need some distraction at work and something good to read 😊👌thanks for including me !!