#Our Reading Lives

Our Reading Lives features stories about how books and reading have shaped who we are and how we live.

Why All of My Book Clubs Have Imploded

From despotic book club leaders to mind-numbingly boring reads, here are all the reasons every book club I've enjoyed has failed.

How To Find Weirdly Specific Books Online

Ever thought back to that one book you read as a child? One writer explores her quest to find the edition of Les Misérable from her childhood.

Coming Back, Changed, to Reading SFF

In 2020, after a lifetime of loving speculative fiction, I lost all interest in it. I am slowly coming back to SFF, but in a new way.

Immigrant & Diaspora Writers in Speculative Fiction: A Profile of khōréō magazine

In an age of rising white supremacy, immigrant and diaspora stories like those in khōréō magazine are more important than ever.

Why Do We Tell Stories?

Humans are a storytelling animal. But what makes us return again and again to narrative in all its forms, from mythology to novels to gossip?

How I’m Re-Training My Shrinking Attention Span

How can you retrain a brain to grow your attention span? One Rioter shares the research and their own experiences.

Everything I Know About Hockey, I Learned From Romance Novels

One reader takes all of her knowledge of fictional hockey and applies it to an NHL playoff game.

Approaching Tough Novels Through Their Graphic Adaptations

Have you ever picked up a novel you were struggling with in its comic adaptation? Perhaps it is time to try.

Tales of a Fiction Reader Falling In Love With Nonfiction

If you'd told me a couple of years ago that I'd be devouring nonfiction titles now, I'd have asked, for what class?

Healing My Relationship With Self-Help Books

I had foolishly fallen for the capitalistic belief that all I needed to do to fix my life was find the perfect book, TV show, movie.