Best Of MetaFilter

cam university library by arcibald (cc by-nc)

SaharaRose's post about ways to support libraries in trying times offers suggestions for individuals and multiple resources to help support US libraries and the freedom to read.

Book Burning - Quema de Libros - Suns and Book Burning by derechoaleer (cc by)

Posted to the blue from Mefi Projects: Banned Book Book Club "displays information about a book that has been banned in American schools 2021-2022, alongside a readable preview of most books (on desktop only) and a link to buy it. Reload to see another one." Amazing, really.

Come for the "simple listicle designed to elicit clicks and furious argument" (– doctornemo), stay for the explanation of why Lovecraft is an incel (– mittens) in the Esquire 50 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time thread.

image via Book Riot

Metafilter members are discussing BookRiot.com's list of 20 genre-defying sci-fi books that broke the mold.

modified from an original image from Gareth Simpson on flickr

In Ask Metafilter, Not A Thing is looking for Skilful criminals criming skilfully: "Donald Westlake/Parker fans, what have you found that scratches a similar itch? I'm looking for something where a criminal is at the center of the story: no cops, wannabe cops or vigilantes. Like a police procedural, but for the other side."

Photo by Ed Robertson on Unsplash

There's a growing band of people digging through library stacks and second-hand bookshops in search of lost classics. I'm one of them. Wobbuffet posted Lucy Scholes' Meet the archive moles about surfacing worthy forgotten or overlooked books for reprint, with links to houses publishing recovered works.

Greetings from Sunny California. (pcard-print-pub-pc-59a) by Fæ (cc by)

In Ask Metafilter, tatiana wishbone says "as a reading challenge, I’d like to read the best novel set in each US state. What are your favorites?"

B o o k s by Kate Mereand (cc by)

There are ghosts in all those haunted basements who are worth knowing. And there's no shame in being one of those ghosts: MrVisible with a poignant reflection on underloved books and their authors in the literary rejection thread.

Summer reading by miyagisan (cc by-nc-nd)

In Ask Metafilter, I'm on staycation in a week and want to spend a good part of my time in my backyard, off the internet and social media, with my nose jammed into a book that I can't put down.

Two Years Ago by esotericsean (cc by-nc-nd)

Some fascinating advice from grumblebee on how to read a script

Mermaid Tree by merwing✿little dear (cc by-nc-nd)

In Ask Metafilter, unicorn chaser is looking for good books that are also fast and easy reads

Old books, two apples, glasses and empty cup on wooden table from above. by shixart1985 (cc by)

Interesting question from Winnie the Proust in Ask Metafilter: "Can you recommend two books that complement each other in striking ways when read at the same time, or one right after the other? I'm not so much thinking of books that refer or respond to each other explicitly, but rather books that have thematic or structural connections, such that your understanding of each is enriched by having read the other around the same time."

In Ask Metafilter, sir jective says, "I love second-hand drama of reading about terrible people or amazing situations or weird things or basically just good stories ... Essentially, I'm looking for the reading equivalent of junk food in unlimited bite-size quantities, like the written version of shelves of mini packs of Doritos."

postcard from the day you left, collage, 2020 by yumikrum (cc by-nc-nd)

In Ask Metafilter, azalea_chant is looking for "mysteries that deviate from the standard structure/genre tropes etc. Can be fantasy or science fiction, literary, whatever ... just stuff that’s slightly different"

Black Sheep Meets White Sheep by Ionics (cc by)

In Ask Metafilter, kristi is seeking likable characters, good writing, humor. Please recommend all your well-written, likeable characters. Humor appreciated. Plot optional, while kingdead commands, Bring me the unlikeable characters! I want to read books with unhappy endings, angst and drama, body horror, miserable relationships, etc. Absolutely no redemption! If the writing is experimental, all the better.