Books

Cool Finds

Roald Dahl’s Iconic Illustrator Inspired This New Font

Quentin Blake’s handwriting has elements of spontaneity and joy

March 21, 2016

Cool Finds

Muggles Are Selling the Chair in Which ‘Harry Potter’ Was Created

The decorated dining room chair J.K. Rowling used to write her iconic novels is going on sale

March 14, 2016

Cool Finds

These Mountains Are Made of Books

An interdisciplinary artist creates landscapes out of encyclopedias

March 14, 2016

Cool Finds

A Rare Walt Whitman Letter Was Found in the National Archives

The poet wrote the letter on behalf of a dying soldier

March 11, 2016

Cool Finds

Mr. Darcy’s Wet Shirt is Coming to the United States

It’s the costume that launched an entire generation of Jane Austen lovers

March 10, 2016

The Secret History of the Girl Detective

Long before Nancy Drew, avid readers picked up tales of young women solving mysteries

March 8, 2016

Europe

How Brussels Became a Real-Life Comic Strip

The city’s colorful murals put it in the running for comic book capital of the world

February 29, 2016

Innovators May Be Non-Conformists, But They Are Not Risk-Takers

In his new book, Wharton School professor Adam Grant looks at what really drives creativity and progress

February 26, 2016

Cool Finds

Historians Finally Figured Out What Was on Shackleton’s Bookshelf

The brave explorer likely found solace in his library

February 25, 2016

Cool Finds

Listen to a Rare Interview With Harper Lee

“[A]ll I want to be is the Jane Austen of South Alabama,” she told radio host Roy Newquist in 1964

February 23, 2016

Five Things to Know About Harper Lee

The spunky and eloquent author is dead—but her legacy lives on

February 19, 2016

How the Gold Rush Led to Real Riches in Bird Poop

The ships carrying gold miners to California found a way to strike it rich on the way back with their holds full of guano

February 17, 2016

Dennis the Menace Has an Evil British Twin

Meet the lovable American cartoon character’s sinister counterpart

March 2016

New Graphic Novel Writes the Wright Brothers’ Sister Back Into History

Four students journey back to the birth of aviation in ‘The Wrong Wrights’

February 17, 2016

What’s America’s Most Romantic City?

A new Amazon.com list finds true love in Alexandria, Virginia

February 12, 2016

Cool Finds

Read About Drama, Politics, Breakfast in These Newly Digitized Colonial Documents

An ambitious Harvard University project brings history to life, archiving nearly half a million documents online

February 3, 2016

Cool Finds

This Library System Is Willing to Forgive Your Fine…Just This Once

Library scofflaws take note: Amnesty programs are gaining steam throughout the U.S.

February 1, 2016

New Research

Fairy Tales Could Be Older Than You Ever Imagined

Jack may have been climbing that beanstalk for more than 5,000 years

January 20, 2016

Cool Finds

Check Out a Medical Pop-Up Book From the 17th Century

Early movable books were geared towards informing adults not entertaining children

January 13, 2016

Cool Finds

The French Castle That May Have Inspired “Sleeping Beauty” Is Filled With Creepy Mannequins

In honor of Charles Perrault’s birthday, explore the Chateau d’Usse

January 2016