Mental Floss

BOOKS

joy grabiec

If you’ve ever been on the Internet, chances are you’ve stumbled across a thought-provoking essay by hyperprolific writer and English professor Roxane Gay. We wanted to find out how she finds time to watch Law & Order.

Jen Doll
Cimmerian // iStock via Getty Images Plus

“It was not my first published story, nor my last,” the writer recounted in a 1960 lecture, “but I have been assured over and over that if it had been the only story I ever wrote and published, there would still be people who would not forget my name.”

Erin McCarthy








PECK: AF ARCHIVE/ALAMY ; WHALE: STEPHEN FRINK COLLECTION/ALAMY

Herman Melville had everything a young author could dream of. Then he wrote Moby-Dick and ruined everything.

Lucas Reilly




Amazon.com

When a book’s sole purpose is to help the reader change their life, it is only a matter of time before someone finds problems or inaccuracies within the text. And where there are problems, there is comedy. Here are 11 parodies of self-help books that (sho

Shanna Yehlen




Focus Features

While the current box office is positively glutted with remakes, reboots, re-imaginings, and a healthy dose of adapted material, not every book is rushed to the silver screen.

Kate Erbland
Getty Images

Bibliophiles know there's no wrong time to fete your favorite book or author. But if you want company—at least among a certain subset of the population—in your celebration, plan a party for one of these delightful literary holidays.

Hannah Keyser








Reading Rainbow

For the past few years, LeVar Burton has been hard at work developing and promoting a Reading Rainbow app. But don't take our word for it: Read our interview with the host!

Erin McCarthy