Literature

Something that makes the "Harry Potter" books fun to read for adults — not just kids — is author J. K. Rowling's use of wordplay. Names are often literary references or jokes, and many of the "Harry Potter" spells provide a clear hint at their function for anyone familiar with Latin or Greek.

By Sascha Bos

When discussing the longest book in the world, various criteria can determine the titleholder: the word count, the number of pages or even the character count (characters meaning letters, not personalities).

By Katherine Millar

When a book lands on The New York Times Best Sellers list, it's a boon for the author and publisher. But does that really mean it's a best seller?

By Carrie Whitney, Ph.D.

Both William Shakespeare and Geoffrey Chaucer are known for using iambic pentameter in their famed works of literature. But what is iambic pentameter and how can you spot it?

By Carrie Whitney, Ph.D.

The author of many beloved children's classics, Roald Dahl was also a World War II flying ace and a spy. And his books are being altered to remove potentially offensive words and phrases. Learn more about this controversial figure.

By Kate Morgan

In 1926, famed crime novelist Agatha Christie went missing for 11 days under very strange circumstances. Even today, questions linger about why she did it and a recent biography has a new explanation.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus

The stories these memoirs told were gripping, shocking – and ultimately untrue. Were you taken in by any of these literary hoaxes?

By Dave Roos

It's not an easy question to answer but we've made an educated guess.

By Talon Homer

The most recent U.S. poet laureate, Joy Harjo, was the first Native American to fill the role and she passed the baton to Limón in July 2022.

By Amy Cannon

Guilty of buying books you never have time to read? We get it. And there's a name for that.

By Kristen Hall-Geisler

Dostoevsky created some of the greatest novels ever written, full of psychological and religious insight. Here are five quotes that will stay with you, even if you've never finished one of his books.

By Dave Roos

Some books come out hot right out of the gate with iconic openers. How many of these literary works can you correctly guess based only on the opening line?

By Alia Hoyt

Flyting, which was essentially a verbal contest of poetic abuse, was public entertainment in the 15th and 16th centuries. Think of it as the rap battle of medieval times.

By Kristen Hall-Geisler

And why couldn't all the king's horses and all the king's men put him back together again?

By Rebecca Treon

We have just a fraction of Sappho's works, but what we have reveal her personal voice in Greek lyric poetry. Just who was this woman that so inspired even Plato?

By Carrie Whitney, Ph.D.

Dr. Seuss didn't live atop Mount Crumpit. He didn't have a loyal pup named Max outfitted with reindeer antlers. But there were some similarities between Seuss and his famous green miser.

By Laurie L. Dove

'Uncle Tom's Cabin' was a wildly popular 19th-century novel about a heroic enslaved man in the American South. But along the way, 'Uncle Tom' became shorthand for a Black man who's subservient to whites. What caused the switch?

By Dave Roos

Popularized in the 1897 novel "Dracula" by Bram Stoker, and the film "Nosferatu" in 1922, the word "nosferatu" is largely considered to be an archaic Romanian word, synonymous with "vampire," though the true origin story is long and complicated.

By Mark Mancini

In 'A Series of Unfortunate Events,' noted for its dark humor and sarcastic storytelling, narrator Lemony Snicket recounts the calamitous lives of the Baudelaire children, who are orphaned after a mysterious house fire.

By Laurie L. Dove

J.K. Rowling fans rejoice! The beloved author is releasing a brand-new book online. And it's totally free.

By Carrie Whitney, Ph.D.

The wildly successful author of numerous children's books, Shel Silverstein was also a poet, musician, illustrator and man of many talents. He even lived in the Playboy mansion for a time.

By Oisin Curran

This classic celebrated its 150th anniversary of publication in 2018. With a new film adaptation coming out this month, we look at how various movie versions of "Little Women" were tweaked to fit the times.

By Oisin Curran

Orson Welles was just 23 when he read a revised script of the book 'War of the Worlds' and had much of the United States believing that aliens were invading.

By Sam Abramson & Sarah Gleim

For such a simple nursery rhyme, the story behind who wrote it sure is complicated. Even Henry Ford got involved.

By Dave Roos

She's over 90, but doesn't look a day over 18. And her fans include Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush and Sonia Sotomayor. We're cluing you in on that famous girl detective Nancy Drew.

By Kathryn Whitbourne