The fight for gender equality in fiction lives on. For the past year, gendered book covers and the people fighting against them have highlighted the inner workings of sexism in the publishing biz. Who could forget the outcry over The Bell Jar’s 50th anniversary cover?     By the way, that cover is still featured on Google’s results page for the novel. Thanks for listening, publishers. And what about author Jim ... Read More

The reference to “six granddaughters” in the title of this dark, complex novel is deceiving: two are dead. One dies as an infant and pulls a shroud of everlasting grief over the family, and the other narrates the entire novel from beyond the grave while she floats in an afterlife. At the heart of the novel is Cecilia, a beautiful poet who is perceived as being the most talented and attractive among the granddaughters. ... Read More

Hey there fellow NYCers-- are you a community member, a community organizer, or an activist? Do you dislike all kinds of oppression, enjoy food, and appreciate art? If so, let me draw your attention to a place you should be visiting on the regular: Bluestockings, a radical bookstore, fair trade café, and activist center on the Lower East Side. Want an empowering book? You’ll find it here. Been meaning to brush up on ... Read More

In case you guys missed the MTV movie awards (I did, there was a Law & Order marathon and then Girls was on, so I was all booked up), one very significant thing happened outside of a bunch of celebrities taking home a bunch more awards: The Perks of Being a Wallflower trailer happened.   Starring Emma Watson, Nina Dobrev, Mae Whitman, and the relatively unknown Logan Lerman as everyone's favorite antisocial protagonist Charlie, the ... Read More