a lick of night in the morning

[sebastianravkin]

Fuck book banning in 2026

Things are no better going into 2026.

So, this year - go find one of your favorites on the list of banned books, get angry, buy the book, and read it again (or gift it to someone else to read).

Here are some resources if you want other ways to fight book banning in the United States.

Banned Books Week offers an opportunity for readers to voice censorship concerns, celebrate free expression and show their communities the i

Unite Against Book Bans

We should trust individuals to make their own decisions. Raise your voice for everyone's freedom to read. #UniteAgainstBookBans

Join PEN America to #FreeTheBooks by making your voice heard.

The freedom to read is under assault. Join PEN America to #FreeTheBooks by taking action and making your voice heard.

Stop Book Bans Toolkit - The Authors Guild

The Authors Guild advocates for the rights of professional writers to create, publish, and earn a sustainable living as fiction and nonficti

[sebastianravkin]

Mesquite pod on flagstones. Tucson, 2026.

[thewindowofthesummerhouse]

Dave McKean

[nkp1981]

The picture is from when David Tennant promoted the first season of "Good Omens"

[sebastianravkin]

Credit where credit is due. . . ."Only a Ginger can call another Ginger, Ginger" is from a Tim Minchin song. . . .

[sebastianravkin]

It'd have been his 79th

David Bowie would have been 79 years old today and still probably dropping new albums on his birthday.  I don’t cry often - and definitely not at the death of a celebrity - but I remember my grief and tears when he died.  Realizing that there will never be a new album still leaves an ache in my heart, a stab in my gut.  It happens more and more that I run across a student who doesn’t know who David Bowie is, was.  This is unfathomable to me.  The world is a poorer place without him, and the lives of these students are less bright and they don’t even know it. 

Celebrate the Thin White Duke however suites you, but do celebrate him.  Here are some options. . .

Any of his albums.  Find your own favorite. 

David Bowie discography - Wikipedia

One of these movies.  Some are shit, but still worth it to see the man. I recommend Labyrinth. 

David Bowie filmography - Wikipedia

This book.  I never tire of looking through it. 

David Bowie: Icon: The Definitive Photographic Collection (Hardcover)

The most significant collection of David Bowie images ever assembledA luxurious opus published to coincide with the 5th anniversary of David

This story and art.  I read it every year on his birthday; if you read it, you’ll understand why.  

Neil Gaiman | Cool Stuff | Short Stories | The Return of the Thin White Duke

These music videos.  Or any others you can find. 

[sebastianravkin]

Remembering Bowie

[elextric-eye]

Happy Birthday, Starman

David Bowie, 08/01/1947

[elextric-eye]

David Bowie in 1976.

[sebastianravkin]

RIP David Bowie

January 8, 1947 - January 10, 2016

Today is the only day of the year I allow myself to listen to Bowie's album Blackstar. It is too damn wrenching. 

[sebastianravkin]

Fuck Book Banning 2026

Well fuck, this year isn't starting out great.

Utah Begins 2026 by Banning Three Books at All Public Schools Statewide, Leads U.S. In Bans

Utah has officially become the state with the most book bans in the nation, following the removal of three more books from schools statewide

"To begin the new year at public schools across the state, Utah officials banned three more books. Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky join 19 other titles on a state-sanctioned ban list and must now be removed from all schools.

These new removals officially put Utah at the top of states with the most banned books, beating out South Carolina’s 21 bans."

I literally just finished reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower two days ago and I simply do not see what the problem is. Occasionally, I do read a book that I think 'ooooo, my kids aren't ready for that' but I never think 'ooooo, that shouldn't be available for other kids to read'. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is simply not one of those books, it seems like a book that would be in every high school library and even assigned to be read in some high school English classes. This all makes me angry, but also sad and scared.

I am losing all optimism that 2026 is going to be better and we aren't even a week into the year.

“A timeless story for every young person who needs to understand that they are not alone.” —Judy Blume “Once in a while, a novel comes along

[theorganasolo]

Harrison Ford on the set of The Empire Strikes Back

[theorganasolo]

Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford on the set of The Empire Strikes Back

[theorganasolo]

Harrison Ford as Han Solo

[hellenicgoddess]

Ancient Greek Coins With Octopuses 🐙

[ancientcharm]

Colourful paint pigments preserved in their original pots.

Antiquarium of Pompeii 

[shotgunsue]

[sebastianravkin]

Happy ALL HALLOWS' READ

All Hallows’ Read is a modern Halloween tradition. During the week of Halloween, or on the night itself, you give someone a scary book.

I also like to read a scary story, often out loud to the kiddos and the spouse.

While there are many traditional scary books to choose from, I would recommend broadening the definition this year to include banned books (at least a certain portion of the population finds them scary for some reason or another). It is never, never a bad thing to gift a banned book.

Images courtesy of The Introverted Wife (https://intbride.blogspot.com)