#lib’s book!

[beatriceportinari]

Brook trout - Origami, one sheet of paper

[ren-is-real]

THE DISCIPLE

This may have taken 9 hours who are you why are you asking.

I have so many feelings about this guy. If we never find out what happened to him in the black and white to twist him this bad I’m gonna lose it I’m actually gnawing at the bars of my enclosure give me more Wilbur content Nick lang please please please please please

Also yes the dating sim is still being worked on whoopeee

[jangillman]

[backgroundagent3]

Z-library alternatives

So z-library is down, which is an absolute tragedy, but for those looking here's a list of alternatives under the cut.

Books

Open Library: this works like an actual library, where there's a waiting list and you can borrow books for x time.

Library Genesis: my personal favourite of the ones in this list, both for entertainment or academic books. Here you can download epubs or other formats, and there's a great ISBN search function.

Sci-Hub: this is for research papers, but you have to type the exact title of what you're looking for.

IT eBooks: books on IT and programming.

Ubooquity: has to be installed to use.

Simon & Schuster: I haven't actually tried this one, but it has a mailing list which you have to sign up to in order to get the books.

eBooks 3000: this doesn't have that many options and there are some pop up ads.

PDF Drive: there's no limits or ads, but it only has PDF formats.

Read Any Book: here you can read books online or download them.

The Eye: sort of an archive with pretty much everything, but you can't search things here, and it's tough to navigate. I think they have audiobooks too.

Audiobooks

Audiobook Bay: here you can download audiobooks.

Booksonic: this is for audiobook streaming, and you have to download the app or install the software on your computer.

Tokybook: this one has many options, and it's easy to navigate.

I know none of these are as good as z-library was, but hopefully they'll do the trick. This could really help people, so pass it on and add if you have more!

[c4tto626]

— Martha Wells, Artificial Condition: The Murderbot Diaries

[sher-ee]

Is this the America you want?

[drdemonprince]

no one who is rich enough to live in new york really has all that much interesting to write.

[cleopatragirlie]

My favourite part of this totally 100% real documentary is when the people who get sent to pick Pete up are acting like he's missing and he's just frolicking in the field behind his house taunting the poor camera crew

[dkettchen]

A summary of my excursion to the local (publicly accessible) uni library to look at some books to learn proper pattern drafting for my highly customisable sewing needs/goals

I'd assumed the problem would be a nonbinary one of binary gendering above base theory, but ALAS, THE MATRIARCHY IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE

[waterloo-to-anywhere]

someone really needs to get their shit together & chronicle the rest of the libertines story like especially 2010 and beyond bc it's truly one of the most remarkable band stories ever & i need the more well-rounded tale as some kind of shiny volume on my shelf à la Bound Together

[jangillman]

[smute]

honestly the problem with booktok (and bookstagram) is not YA lit. it's not about people enjoying books that some might consider "low-brow" or whatever.

imo booktok is the culmination of several problems:

firstly, there's the homogeneity of algorithmic recommendations and the enormous influence those recommendations have on the publishing market. booktok recs tend to be of a very similar style and subject matter. they're easily digestible, easily bingeable titles that arent overly complex. booktok favors stories written by white women, often featuring characters with traumatic backstories and focusing on themes like overcoming adversity and the pursuit of romantic love. they are also usually very anglo-/americentric. none of this is necessarily bad, and none of it is by design, but it's not a coincidence either. it's the result of the constraints of short-form content on the one hand, and on the other, of an algorithm that amplifies, in broad strokes, the preferences of the core demographic of any given group of users.

secondly, it's about the commodification, not of reading, but of being Someone Who Reads Books (TM), which i think is just a particularly obvious symptom of online peer pressure and social-media-driven self-presentation. booktok doesn't encourage you to read, for example, sally rooney. it encourages the cultivation of one's own identity as someone who reads sally rooney. the problem here is not that sally rooney is a shit writer whose work has nothing of note to say. quite the opposite. sally rooney's work is relevant and interesting. in fact, it's being studied by scholars, and even if it wasn't, people can and should be allowed to enjoy some light reading, and yes, even Problematic (TM) fictional characters.

the real problem is the fact that the very nature of how booktok works actively discourages the critical discussion of the stories that it circulates. the problem is not millions of teenagers reading colleen hoover's slop (i love me some slop) – it's millions of teenagers encouraging each other to read and internalize – UNCRITICALLY – hoover's particularly romanticized depiction of abuse. tiktok's algorithm does not foster diversity of opinion. it doesn't foster diversity PERIOD. it doesn't foster slow, in-depth discussion. its only function is *make line go up* – line go up = clicks, views, engagement, money.

due to tiktok's popularity, booktok also has an enormous influence on marketing-related and (apparently, to some extent) editorial decision-making in the publishing industry. this is not just the fault of booktok, goodreads is part of the same problem. i mean, booktok has managed to turn colleen hoover's 'it ends with us' into a bestseller FIVE YEARS after it was originally published. it has also led to publishers dropping authors or DELAYING THE RELEASE of new titles after booktokers flooded the goodreads pages of unpublished books with one star reviews.

as i said, the underlying issue here is not unique to booktok. it's the same homogenization that plagues the movie industry, the tv industry, streaming services, etc. the publishing industry is just particularly vulnerable to such manipulations of public opinion. in the end, tiktok is not a social media app. it's an entertainment app and its content is focused on brevity. the biggest booktokers aren't simply avid readers. they don't post actual reviews of books they enjoyed. they're influencers who receive boxes of books from publishing houses to show off in haul videos like "have you guys heard of squarespace?" and that's it. the level of engagement with the texts themselves is like reading a blurb on the dustjacket, and unfortunately that is reflected in the selection of titles that become popular. if it can't be sold to you in 3 sentences, the algorithm will bury it.

[tea-tuesday]

travel tales: stockholm, sweden

[c4tto626]

Martha Wells — Exit Strategy: The Murderbot Diaries

still thinking about this whole moment tbh

[volleypearlfan]

there's a right-wing knockoff of Bluey called Chip Chilla. nothing is sacred in this world. Conservatives always complain about cartoons "not being for kids" (read: having LGBTQ+ representation), but Chip Chilla isn't for kids either - it's only for pearl-clutching moral guardians who want to feel good about the shows their children watch.

It's like how that doll line, Lammily, wasn't actually targeted towards kids or doll collectors -- it was only for parents and Buzzfeed bloggers who wanted a "wholesome" alternative to Barbie. Lammily faded into obscurity while Barbie is still going strong, so I don't think we have to worry about Chip Chilla replacing Bluey. Also, Rob Schneider is in it...gross

[thickenmyblood]

Maca, your writing has enriched my life so much. In my thoughts I revisit HIUH just as much as CaPri, perhaps even more. I read ~70 books in 2023 and the only reason I didn't name HIUH my book of the year (and I usually wouldn't even include fanfiction) is that it wasn't finished at that point. While I am overwhelmed with joy at the thought of seeing this opus concluded soon, I am already filled with melancholy at the thought of "losing" your voice. So..... Will you tell us about the book you'll be working on? Drop us some key words? Maybe even post a snippet? Must we truly cope without your writing? ._.

😭this is the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the book will def have some capri vibes because pacat (capri) has greatly influenced me as a writer. and yeah, yeah, we all know tropes and tags can be extremely reductive and a symptom of extreme consumerism but girl . . . think enemies to lovers, dark fantasy (don't think fucking dragons and elves bc NO), disability (i'm so fucking excited about this bit!!!!!!! chronic pain people rise up!!!! endometriosis girlies!!!! mobility impairment pals or whatever the fuck that's called in English!!!!), slow fucking burn, political intrigue (listen i'm not that smart so it's more like "politics are mentioned" lol), oh and RELIGION, a lot of religion(s)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and fucked upness!!!!!!!!!!!! you know me, can't have enough of that.

if i ever decide to publish it (probably not lol) maybe you'll see it on the self pub section on kindle unlimited and go 'wait a damn minute, is this--'