- Ceci Browning tries out “read-dating.” No lie, this would totally work for me. (The Times)
- Colin Marshall gives us a taste of some of the hundreds of newly digitized medieval medical manuscripts. Brace yourselves for weirdness! (Open Culture)
- Jessie Kindig dives deeply into the literature of abortion. (Lux)
- BookTokers have discovered the trick of freezing books that might have bugs. Charlotte Colombo provides a quick overview (The Mary Sue), but I recommend that you read these instructions (PDF) from the Smithsonian Institute Archives before you try this out. NB: You need to make sure that your freezer is set to at least 5° Fahrenheit and then leave your vacuum-sealed items for at least two full weeks to kill anything that might be living in your books.
- Kelsey Cox muses on locked room mysteries. (Crime Reads)
- Hannah Goeke asks what will happen if US-based Braille libraries and printers lose funding. (Christian Science Monitor)
- Garrett Owen reports on Trump et al.’s latest salvo against history: removing books from gift stores in national parks. (Salon)
- Daniel Kalla wonders what generative AI and deepfakes could do for mystery and thriller plots. (Crime Reads)
- I dearly love to read and regularly spend hours in a book, but W.H. Auden’s syllabus for one of his literature courses would kill me. Colin Marshall has the link to the entire list. (Open Culture)
- Juliet Blackwell shares some excellent tips for writers who want to add a little of the supernatural to their mysteries. (Crime Reads)
- Richard Brody is annoyed by the continued loss of venues for critics. (The New Yorker)
- …and censorship news, via the lovely people of Book Riot.
