#Our Reading Lives

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

Why You Owe It to Yourself to Abandon Books You’re Not Enjoying

Go ahead. Abandon the book you aren't into.

What I Learned From Tracking My Toddler’s Reading

What an Unlikeable Character Taught Me About Ethics and Writing

Celebrate The Muggles: Seeking Fantasy That Celebrates the Nonmagical

Frustrated with books that attribute our world's wonders to outside sources of magic, I've found myself seeking books that celebrate the nonmagical.

How Sylvia Plath Helped Me Overcome Depression and Embrace Uncertainty

One reader on finding comfort in Sylvia Plath through depression.

Conflicting Comics, or, Should I Add Nutella to My Coffee?

Comics that conflict on whether or not to add nutella to coffee led one Rioter to try it themselves. What's the verdict?

Why Can’t I Just Choose a Book Already?

A Love Letter to Books for Horse Girls

Books for horse girls are important. They may not be considered quality literature but they open a world that is largely inaccessible for many people

Why Read Fiction in This Age of Atrocity?

In light of a great deal of atrocity in the news, both in the United States and globally, one reader wrestles with the question, "Why read fiction?"

Audiobooks Transcend Format—and Help Me Transcend My Habits

How one listener's experience with a graphic novel on audio changed her perspective on audiobooks -- and her own reading life.