Riot Headline The Best Books of 2024

Elizabeth Bastos

Elizabeth Bastos has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Boston Globe, and writes at her blog 19th-Century Lady Naturalist. Follow her on Twitter: @elizabethbastos

What Is The Best Pen For Your Marginalia?

The best pen for writing marginalia in the margins of your books is, You tell me. I’m out to crowd ...

That Secondhand Bookstore Smell

On that old books smell, and the chemistry behind what makes us love the scent of rotting paper and glue.

Animals: The Truth About Them

The Truth About Animals by British zoologist Lucy Cooke is more fun than a barrel of monkeys. It is a ...

WHEN: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing

On Daniel H Pink's new book WHEN, which explains the chronobiology of mid-day, mid-life, and mid-task slumps (with tips for overcoming them).

Books About Finding Your Personal Style

Personal style books are seductive. We all want to express ourselves down to the signature socks. But, who decides what self ...

Birdwatching With British Nature Writer Simon Barnes

Let's birdwatch instead of mammal watch, because that involves too much poop.

Women Are Writing More Scientific Memoirs, and We’re Into It

Women science and nature writers are writing nature and science memoir mashups that are personal and fun and science-rich.

Mushrooming and Mushroom Books You’ll Love

Seems like books about mushrooming, mushrooms, and the people who love fungus like to expose the strange, subterranean aspects of mushrooms and mushrooming culture.

Victorian Era Science: On Geology, George Eliot, and More

Of course, the Victorian era science was about more than steampunk or Maggie Smith in mauve! The Victorian era saw ...

Lynne Rae Perkins’ CRISS CROSS is YA Lit at Level 11

"Nothing happens except that a necklace is lost. A necklace is found. And there is imperceptible, powerful growing up." On CRISS CROSS by Lynne Rae Perkins.