At the very top of the list is James by Percival Everett, the Pulitzer Prize–winning retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from Jim’s perspective. Close behind is Liz Moore’s The God of the Woods, a moody literary thriller that also landed on NYPL’s Best Books list last year. - Time Out New York
The limited expectations for 21st-century rock may just have turned out to be freeing. For songwriters, musicians and — with luck — enough fans to support them, rock is far from played out. - The New York Times
“People think of AI as something that speeds up tasks or improves efficiency, but our findings suggest something far more interesting. When people were shown AI-generated design suggestions, they spent more time on the task, produced better designs, and felt more involved. It was not just about efficiency. It was about creativity and collaboration.” - SciTech Daily
Together, these AI slop channels have amassed more than 63bn views and 221 million subscribers, generating about $117m (£90m) in revenue each year, according to estimates. - The Guardian
Experienced musicians tend to possess an advantage in short-term memory for musical patterns and a small advantage for visual information, according to a large-scale international study. - PsyPost
“We are rolling out 200 of our Ultra Lux seats, which have a built-in champagne or wine cooler, each day across Europe,” says Tim Richards, chief executive and founder of the Vue cinema chain. - The Guardian
There are more than 1,200 works by 125 artists and collectives in the exhibit, titled “Not All Travelers Walk Roads,” with many of them proposing ways of creating new, kinder, more just forms of existence. - The New York Times
The Women was among the most checked-out books in U.S. public libraries this year, making top 10 lists in library systems as far-flung as those in Clawson, Mich., Lawrence, Kan., Flathead County, Mont., and the entire state public library system of Hawaii. It was also the year's most-borrowed ebook on the public library app, Libby. - NPR
Listening to a podcast is usually a solo experience. “Going to a theater to see these podcast performers live can feel like the exact opposite: Strangers with the same niche interest crowding into one place in not just rapt, but maybe even a bit rabid, attention." - Los Angeles Times (MSN)
“You could be anybody of any kind of background. And for basically the equivalent of a dollar or two, you could be educated. You didn't have to be in a structure. You didn't have to be an elitist.” And now? That era is over. - NPR
“My books are teachers but also companions who know more than I do, and who in the long run wish me well. I would no sooner get rid of them than I would an old friend.” - NPR
That’s because … drumroll, please, Animal … "Gonzo’s initial work on The Muppet Show was as a highly abstract performance artist who created acts the audience did not understand. Gonzo’s not really an actor in the traditional sense, unlike the rest of his friends.” - Reactor
“The most remarkable records bear the hallmarks of the prison itself: a Bob Dylan album that was censored to remove the song ‘Desolation Row,’ and a Johnny Cash record that’s been defaced to read ‘I hate it here.’” - The New York Times (Seattle Times)
