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7 Books to Transport You When You Can’t Afford a Vacation

If a plane ticket and hotel stay are out of your budget, a paperback book (or a loaner from the library) can help transport you to far-flung, sun soaked climes.

Mapped: Each State‘s Top-Searched Summer Book Genre

Where Does the Term ‘The Birds and The Bees’ Come From?

The Lost “Song of Wade”: A New Translation Decodes Fragment of Mysterious Medieval Tale

Hungary’s Oldest Library Races to Rescue Books From Hungry Beetles

Tiny bugs are causing huge problems in Hungary.
CaLea Johnson|

15 Places You Can Visit to Celebrate William Shakespeare

From the birthplace of the Bard to a seemingly ordinary stone on a London Street, Shakespeare’s influence on history and culture can be found in unexpected places.
Rebecca Pahle|

Ulysses S. Grant’s Great-Great-Grandson Is Alive—and Writing Erotic Vampire Novels

The 18th president’s descendant had a storied career in museum curation before turning his attention to an affable vampire.
Jake Rossen|

Books

8 Facts You Might Not Have Known About Evelyn Waugh’s ‘Brideshead Revisited’

From the accident that led to its creation to the real people who inspired key characters.
Jane Alexander|

Mapped: Every State’s Most-Searched Summer Reads

Want to know what your state is reading this summer? Check out this map of the top-searched books and discover your next page-turner.
CaLea Johnson|

8 Amazing Bookstores and Libraries You Can Spend the Night In

Paris’s Shakespeare and Company has hosted some 30,000 “Tumbleweeds” passing through town. Want to be the next one?
Ellen Gutoskey|

When Tampa, Florida, Banned ‘Jaws’ From Bookshelves

Tampa’s mayor wanted Peter Benchley’s bestseller off store shelves. The cover had been deemed obscene by authorities.
Jake Rossen|

Everything You Need to Know About Labubu

Labubu dolls are more than fashion charms—they‘re rare art collectibles with a cult following.
CaLea Johnson|

Pizza Hut’s BOOK IT! App Makes It Easy for Kids to Track Reading Goals and Win Pizza

Pizza Hut revamps its iconic BOOK IT! program with a new app that rewards kids’ reading progress with free pizza.
CaLea Johnson|

9 Facts You Probably Didn’t Know About Jules Verne’s ‘Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas’

From its initial title to its real life inspirations to its disastrous, misconception-causing English translations.
Lorna Wallace|

8 Fun Facts About ‘The Monster At the End of This Book’

Since it was published in 1971, ‘The Monster at the End of This Book’ has become an iconic entry in the kidlit canon. Here’s what you need to know about the book, which just made a cameo in HBO‘s ‘The Last of Us.’
April Snellings|

Authors

5 of the Best Jane Austen Adaptations

Celebrate the 250th anniversary of Austen’s birth by putting these classic adaptations on your watch (or rewatch) list.
Faye Keegan|

Did Mark Twain Really Say That?

Author and humorist Mark Twain said a lot of witty things, but he’s also frequently misquoted. Can you figure out which quotes are his, and which ones aren’t?
mentalfloss .com|

12 Distant Places in the Solar System (And What They’re Named After)

From famous musicians to literary landmarks to mythological figures—and beyond.
Paul Anthony Jones|

Libraries

Detroit Library Lets Man Keep Book That‘s Five Decades Overdue

The Warren Public Library waived late fees for a Chicago man who check out a baseball book 50 years ago.

6 Supposedly Haunted Libraries

The 10 Most Challenged Books of 2022

25 Amazing Facts About Libraries

Poetry

12 Things You Say Without Realizing You’re Quoting Poetry

If you’ve ever talked about “the birds and the bees” or referenced “the best laid plans of mice and men,” then you’ve inadvertently quoted some of the English language’s most famous poets.
Paul Anthony Jones|

The Most Popular Book Genre in Each State, Mapped

Discover which literary genres captivate each state and Washington D.C.
CaLea Johnson|

Why Do We Say “Right as Rain”?

Where did this curious expression come from, and what’s so right about rain, anyway?
Marla Mackoul|

A Brief History of “Auld Lang Syne”

On New Year’s Eve, after the ball has dropped, revelers queue up “Auld Lang Syne”—that song that makes you cry, even though you don’t understand it and know almost none of the words.
Caitlin Schneider|

5 Unofficial Rules Native English Speakers Don't Realize They Know

It can be shocking to realize that we are able to follow rules that no one ever taught us explicitly.
Arika Okrent|

5 Ways the English Language Breaks Its Own Rules

English, the language of Shakespeare and the internet, is often touted for its flexibility and adaptability. But with great flexibility comes great inconsistenc
Brett Reynolds|

77 Common Mispronunciations

You're going to be astonished how many of these you hopefully already know, but I'm sharing them because many millions of people don't. It's not Aw-ree, for instance, it's ah-wry (awry)
Alvin Ward|

6 Grammar Rules You Can Break

We’re taking Strunk and White and grammarians everywhere to task in the latest episode of The List Show.
mentalfloss .com|

Reading

The Reason Reading Makes You Sleepy

If you’re trying to teach yourself how to fall asleep faster, reading before bed is a good habit to pick up—here’s why.
Ellen Gutoskey|

12 Inspiring Quotes About Books and Reading

Profound quotes about books and reading from the likes of Toni Morrison, Jane Austen, George R.R. Martin, Salman Rushdie, and more of your favorite authors.
Erin McCarthy|

Sorry, Web Scholars: Reading Print Is Better for Comprehension

A meta-analysis found a greatly reduced level of information retention when people got their data from screens instead of physical books.
Jake Rossen|

Nursery Rhymes

The Dark Theories Behind the “London Bridge Is Falling Down” Nursery Rhyme

There are a handful of dark theories about the rhyme’s inspiration—ranging from a Viking invasion to human sacrifice—but we’ll cross that bridge when get to it. First up, let’s break down the known history of the tune.

The True Origins of “The Muffin Man” Nursery Rhyme

“Itsy Bitsy Spider”: The History of the Classic Nursery Rhyme

The Unexpected History of the ‘Little Jack Horner’ Nursery Rhyme

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