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4Feb By Maya HuangNo Comments

The Earth Used to Be Green

A Jurassic-era story about a Dinosaur Picture yourself as a paleontologist investigating the Jurassic-era rocks in Utah. You stumble upon the remains of a massive herbivorous dinosaur measuring 20 meters in length and weighing 20 tons. Now, ponder this: How could such a creature reach such enormous size? According to science writer and paleontologist Riley Black, the key to this lies in the availability of plants.Centering on plants, Black skillfully employs scientific insights to bring to life ancient environments inhabited by some of our beloved prehistoric creatures. Each chapter is structured as a vignette, accompanied by an appendix that clarifies the scientific concepts underpinning Black’s narrative decisions, showcasing a distinct time and setting. When the Earth was Complete...

Gratitude Journal: Wellness & Self-Care Edition

24Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Gratitude Journal: Wellness & Self-Care Edition

"Gratitude Journal: Wellness & Self-Care Edition" is a guided journal designed to help women cultivate gratitude for their health and wellness journey. It emphasizes the importance of self-care rituals, body positivity, fitness, and mental well-being.This journal is a supportive space for women to reflect on their daily self-care routines, fitness goals, mindfulness practices, and the gratitude they feel toward their bodies.✓ Daily supportive prompts and affirmations along with soothing yet empowering reflections to encourage meditation.✓ The Perfect 6’ x 9’ size with plenty of writing space, while still being small enough to be conveniently carried around.✓ Every other day inspirational image to help you focus on yourself.Start today—set aside a few moments each day to ref...

20Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Foreigners in Japan Write Nonfiction

Factors Influencing Foreigners to Write Nonfiction in JapanThe motivations driving foreigners to pen nonfiction in Japan are as varied as their backgrounds. Some essential factors include:Cultural Exploration: Many writers seek to understand and express their experiences in this unique setting.Story of Integration: Personal stories of adaptation and challenges resonate with readers both in and out of Japan.Diverse Perspectives: Writers provide fresh insights into quintessentially Japanese themes, enriching the literary tapestry.Take Sarah, an American author, who discovered a passion for Japanese tea ceremonies. Her nonfiction work not only documented her journey but also bridged cultural gaps, offering Japanese and Western readers a new view of tradition.Experiences and Perspectives of Fo...

10Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Greek mythology books

Books About Greek Mythology That Fans of "Percy Jackson" Will Love In "The Lightning Thief," which kicks off the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Percy's school books on mythology come to life when he realizes he’s actually the son of Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. Pretty cool, right?We’ve rounded up eight books that have the same vibes and adventures across middle grade, young adult, and adult fiction. These stories are great for young readers and also for those who grew up loving “Percy Jackson” and want something a bit more grown-up. "Threads That Bind" This story dives into the lives of the descendants of the Fates in a world where kids of the gods inherit their powers. Io, the youngest sister in the Ora clan, uses her skills to work as a private investigator. She sets ou...

7Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Books to Read in January

4 Books of January "Playworld" It’s been a whole fifteen years since Ross’s debut novel Mr. Peanut, if you can believe it. He’s back with an equally ambitious, if somewhat less deadly, anti-bildungsroman about a child actor in 1980s New York City being continually let down by the adults in his orbit—an epic family-cum-social novel bursting with detail so specific you might, at times, find that you believe in it just a little bit more than what you see out your window. "The Life of Herod the Great" When Zora Neale Hurston died, she was working on a sequel to her book about Moses and now, some 65 years later, we get to see what that might have been. It wasn’t lost, per se—the manuscript has been available to scholars at the University of Florida since Hurston’s papers went there after her de...

6Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

4 New Books

New Books Coming Out "The Naming of the Birds" "The Naming of the Birds" is truly exceptional: it is rich, intense, and vibrant, featuring complex characters facing challenging situations while silently reaching out for love. I suggest it to anyone who appreciates Victorian Gothic, as well as to those who tend to shy away from such descriptions but are open to having their expectations challenged. "The Stolen Queen" The fast-paced novel is a thorough research and offers perspectives on the discussions surrounding whether artifacts should stay in their original countries. This thrilling adventure has a lot of depth. "The Note" The writer crafts a detailed framework of hidden truths nested within each other, unveiled to create heightened suspense. The complicated bond between three imperfect...

4Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Stressed out? Korean Books can Help

Korean healing fiction This year has seen a surge of "healing" Korean literature, with an increasing number of titles capturing readers' affection and many more on the way. At the heart of the phenomenon is Shanna Tan, the Singaporean translator who made her debut with a massive bestseller."Greetings from the Hyunam-dong Bookstore!"by Hwang Bo-reum, swiftly followed by a series of bestsellers, including"Smiley Laundromat in Yeonnam-dong"by Kim Ji-yun and the most recent work, "Marigold Mind Laundry," by Yun Jung-eun, delivering these soothing tales to readers around the world. Slow Down your Pace Tan's translations resonate with readers in her home country, regularly placing her on bestseller lists. She attributes this success to shared cultural elements and universal themes that tackl...

1Jan By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Ways news media fuel polarization

Research on Public Discourse A Pew Research Center poll last year found that a majority of American adults say public discourse has become increasingly disrespectful in recent years.University of Pennsylvania political science and communications professor Diana Mutz has been studying this topic for years. Her 2015 book “In-Your-Face Politics: The Consequences of Uncivil Media” explores the rapid rise of news programming that encourages verbal sparring.Dubbing them “shout shows,” Mutz says the format primes people with opposing viewpoints “to really get riled up and to go after one another in a way that we seldom do in our face-to-face exchanges with others.” 1) Conflict is a ratings magnet Viewers who participated in Mutz’s research said that even though they found such uncivil program...

Baldwin’s Book Barn is bursting with books

29Dec By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Baldwin’s Book Barn is bursting with books

Life Dedicated to Books: Carol Rauch Seven days a week, except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day, Carol Rauch works among the books and ghosts in a cavernous, centuries-old barn in West Chester. Rauch, 91, is the longtime manager of Baldwin’s Book Barn. Nestled in the Brandywine Valley, the former dairy barn and milking house may be the largest used book shop in America.Rauch, a cancer survivor, said working in the Book Barn keeps her young. Built in 1822 by Quakers Brinton and Sarah Darlington, the barn was converted to a bookshop in 1946 by William Baldwin and his wife Lilla. They sold used books and collectibles. With its country-shop feel, they called it, simply, the Barn.Soon, they converted the old milking house into a residence and, for many years, a country-store museu...

28Dec By Maya HuangNo Comments

Books & Media

Books to look forward to in 2025

Nonfiction The Bright Side: Why Optimists Have the Power to Change the World by Sumit Paul-Choudhury (Canongate) The science journalist, who lost his wife to ovarian cancer, investigates the potent emotional forces that drive us on in the face of great hardship. Why do we have this capacity for optimism, and what distinguishes it from wishful thinking? Open Socrates: The Case for a Philosophical Life by Agnes Callard (Allen Lane) Professor of philosophy and a public intellectual for the internet age, Callard shows how Socrates can inform the way we live our lives – from romance to politics – nearly two and a half thousand years after his death. Hope: The Autobiography by Pope Francis (Viking) Pope Francis planned to release this memoir only after his death, but apparently “the needs of our...