Returning for its third year, LibraryCon opened its virtual doors for one day on November 6, welcoming book nerds, librarians, educators, and fans of comics and speculative fiction. Offering live webcast talks and ample networking opportunities, LibraryCon is a “celebration of fandom-beloved stories and characters, featuring the creators behind mind-bending speculative fiction, innovative comics, and…
The Canadian Comics Open Library Is Shaping Our Shelves
Finding comic books at your local library can sometimes be an effort in frustration, or worse, futility. If they are available at all, they are often lumped under a single label, hidden away on a shelf in the corner. Part of the issue, explained librarian Rotem Diamant in a CBC interview, is that the current…
Our Queer Older Siblings Will Guide Us: An Interview with the Queer Zine Archive Project
I am sick of articles and think pieces that tell us zines are back. The more I visit zine festivals, talk to zinesters, buy zines, and check out zine libraries, the more I realize that zines never left. Zines, and the people who make them, have grown, found new avenues to reach people, and continued…
Book Beat: #CopyPasteCris Lawsuit, Ontario Library Service, and D.C. Store Protests
Hello lovely readers! Welcome to your weekly installment of Book Beat, brought to you by editor Paige. Spring is in the air, and with it comes feelings of lightness and rejuvenation. In the ever-busy publishing industry, that means we have several interesting updates on previously discussed scandals. This new season also, unfortunately, means we have…
Comics Academe: The Evolution of Comics in Education Educators
To quote Jill Gerber, “In an increasingly image-driven culture, it is important that we purposefully incorporate visual literacy into our curriculum and equip our students, not only to be better consumers of information, but also for them to effectively communicate to a global community.” Gerber is an award-winning, published author and longtime educator. In this…
Book Beat: New Kids Book Festival and Mary Oliver’s Passing
Happy Thursday Booklovers! Christa here, reporting on your weekly book news from the coldest capital in the world. Wherever you are, I hope you’re staying warm this week and spending some time curled up with a good book and your drink of choice. It was a busy news week this week so let’s jump right in!
Book Beat: Indie Bookstore Sales and Good Omens
Hello again, readers! Welcome to the first Book Beat of 2019. I hope your year is off to a good start and that your celebrations were successful, whether they included parties, going to bed early, or anything in between. The book world has been pretty quiet over the holidays, so aside from 2018 reflections and…
#LibraryConLive Was a Virtually Jam-Packed Event
When I first moved to my small town, I would have been shocked to find a comic book on the shelves of my local library. While the collection that exists now isn’t huge, or curated as efficiently as I’d like, the fact that there are graphic novels on those shelves is a big deal. There…
Book Beat: Publisher Merger, Passing of Little Free Libraries Creator, and An Incident at Vancouver Writers Fest
Hello all! It’s Emily here again. I hope you’ve all been having a wonderful week and are keeping warm amid the cooling temperatures. I’ve already spotted some flurries in the air this October, if you can believe it. But the cool weather just gives me an excuse to read some books and write from the…
Book Beat: TPL’s Public Book, William Blake, and YA Dick Soap
Hello everyone, it’s Emily here! I hope your August is going well. I’ve just come back from a book-filled, internet-free vacation, so now I’m ready to jump back into our online literary discussions and share the latest book news with you. Let’s get started!
Book Beat: BAME Writers, A Queer Eye Book, and Germany’s Oldest Public Library
Hello lovely readers — welcome to another installment of Book Beat, from your Bookmarked editor Paige. While my week has been wonderfully exhausting chaos, it seems the publishing world has avoided too much controversy as summer starts its slow crawl into fall. Not gonna lie… I appreciate the break. Still, there are a few key events to…
Book Beat: WorldCon 76, Man Booker, and Amazon vs. the Library
Good morning, everyone — it’s Bookmarked editor Christa, here with your weekly news from the literary world!