Saturday Miscellany—2/7/26

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
From Pages to Community: Inside Caldwell’s Shared Stories—a nice story about my favorite local store
Bookshop.org kicks-off February charitable drive #ReadItForward to support young readers in the National Year of Reading—just about everything I’ve read about the National Year of Reading happening on the other side of the Atlantic has been encouraging. This is just another example. I imagine it’s going to involve a hurdle or two for those of us on this side to contribute, but I’m looking into it.
Indie Blog Off Remnants—I really should’ve promoted this sooner, but you’d do well to keep an eye on this competition (now underway). I love the spirit behind this one, and the entrants look very promising. (well, two of them I know deliver on the promise)
Fanfiction’s Total Cultural Victory—”Total” might be overstating it. But it might be on its way.
Grimdark Magazine Issue #45 looks like a great issue, there was that Butcher interview I linked to recently and then Before We Go blog posted these two pieces this week from it, too. What does it mean to be human in a sci-fi world? and INTERVIEW: The Machinery of Control with Yudhanjaya Wijeratne and T.R. Napper—well worth your time.
A.J. Calvin’s The Indie Author Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror New Release List: February 2026—hold on to your wallets (but not too tightly)
An interview with IBOR entrant JCM Berne—Berne talks about his (too often overlooked) Partial Function.
We’ve all been here

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week:
“Lekan was self-impressed, condescending, and the single best argument against making firstborns heir to anything.” ―The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Intern by Dale Wiley
Staked by Kevin Hearne
Missing Mona by Joe Klingler
And I mentioned the releases of: Keep Calm by Mark Binder; The Custodian of Marvels by Rod Duncan; Blood in her Veins by Faith Hunter; Graft by Matt Hill; The Alchemy of Chaos by Marshall Ryan Maresca; A Criminal Magic by Lee Kelly; Harmony Black by Craig Schaefer; and The Deavys by Alan Dean Foster

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Boy, with Accidental Dinosaur by Ian McDonald—if the cover isn’t enough, how about: “How to Train Your Dragon meets Mad Max in this story of an orphan in a fractured Southwest who just wants to ride a dinosaur under the lights.”