Books

Portrait of a Civil War soldier group, circa 1861-65.

The Most 'Realistic' Civil War Novel Was Written Three Decades After It Ended

By an author who wasn't even alive when it occurred

Explore the Secret Lives of Animals With These Marvelous Maps

A new book considers how sophisticated tracking technology and the data it collects can improve conservation strategies

Kurt Vonnegut in a 1990 portrait

You Can Now Read Five Newly Discovered Kurt Vonnegut Short Stories

Written early in the author's careers, the works were recently unearthed in his archives

A record-breaking gathering of Waldo (known across the pond as 'Wally') impersonators in Dublin, Ireland, in 2011.

The Science Behind Our Search for Waldo

'Where's Waldo' was first published on this day in 1987

A fan art drawing of Smaug atop his horde.

J.R.R. Tolkien Gave the World His Childhood Fascination With Dragons in 'The Hobbit'

The dragon Smaug--who debuted in <I>The Hobbit</I> in 1937, was inspired by his early reading of mythology

Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers’ Animals Might Be “Ungrateful,” But They Go to a Good Cause

The author discusses a return to art and his forthcoming book <em>Ungrateful Mammals</em>

The three bears whom Goldilocks infamously meets

Celebrate 150 Years of the Illustrator Who Brought Children's Books to Life

Arthur Rackham's work defined the style of his era and beyond

Here's What You Need to Know About the Mysterious Voynich Manuscript

The book has been confounding scholars, cryptologists and sleuths for centuries

Jane Austen on the new £10 note.

The Jane Austen £10 Note Extends the "Ladylike" History of British Money

The beloved novelist is the latest icon in the Bank of England's long—and fraught—tradition of gendering finance

Inostrancevia, devouring a Pareiasaurus, Alexei Petrovich Bystrow, 1933

Two Centuries of Dinosaur Art Come Alive in This Gorgeous New Book

<i>Paleoart</i> traces historic depictions of T. rex, mastodons and other ancient creatures through an artistic lens

Now You Can Read the Earliest-Known Latin Commentary on the Gospels in English

The commentary of Italian bishop Fortunatianus of Aquileia was lost for 1,500 years before it was rediscovered in 2012

The original Pooh sketch

New Book Unearths the Earliest Sketch of Winnie-the-Pooh

The rotund little drawing, based on E.H. Shepard's son's teddy bear Growler, was found in a pile of the artist's 'rubbish'

Terry Pratchett's Unfinished Novels Got Steamrolled

Literally.

Artificial intelligence is trying to write the sixth Game of Thrones book

A Neural Network Attempted to Write the Next Game of Thrones Book

Impatient readers can quench their thirst with the awkward, yet fascinating, prose of a neural network trained on George R.R. Martin

People were just starting to gain an obsession with apocalypse fiction when Mary Shelley wrote "The Last Man."

The Author of ‘Frankenstein’ Also Wrote a Post-Apocalyptic Plague Novel

‘The Last Man’ was derided in its time for being too grim, but today it would fit in with a growing genre of dystopian fiction

George R. R. Martin at the 2013 San Diego Comic Con International.

Texas University Invites Fans to Scour George R.R. Martin’s Archives for Plot Clues

The author's vast collection is stored in Texas A&M’s Cushing Library

Visit the Real-Life Winterfell Castle for a 'Game of Thrones' Festival

As author Tim Harford writes in his new book, sometimes the most important inventions are not the flashy ones.

From Lightbulbs to Mutual Funds: Tim Harford on Inventions That Changed the Modern Economy

Paper, the gramophone, double-entry bookkeeping, and barbed wire all make the list

Thanks to Disney, this story is so ubiquitous that 'Bambi' is a common shorthand for 'baby deer.'

If You Think ‘Bambi’ Seems Too Mature For Kids, You’re Not Wrong

The popular novel was even a Book-of-the-Month Club selection

Jenks' mice, preserved at Harvard in alcohol in a 12-inch tall glass jar, are each tagged with critical information.

A Scholar Follows a Trail of Dead Mice and Discovers a Lesson in Why Museum Collections Matter

A former Smithsonian curator authors a new book, <i>Inside the Lost Museum</i>

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