The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the only federal agency dedicated to U.S. libraries, was dismantled in March 2025 as part of the Trump administration’s sweeping cuts across the government. This quickly spawned two lawsuits.

• The first, Rhode Island v. Trump, filed by 21 state attorneys general, came to a conclusion back in November when the Judge ordered that the administration could not make any additional cuts and that all grants offered by the agency be restored. 

This week, the administration filed an appeal in the case. 

Appealing this decision underlines how much the administration is intent on doing real, long-lasting damage not only to the IMLS but to libraries nationwide, too.

• Where Trump attempted to completely defund the agency in his proposed Fiscal Year 2026 budget, Congress has signaled their intent to continue funding it at near-level rates.
• Last week, the IMLS opened up their grant programs to applicants, and the language throughout emphasized how the agency’s leadership–a Trump appointee–plans to use it as a propaganda arm. 

The second lawsuit filed against the administration in defunding the IMLS, ALA v. Sonderling, has yet to be decided. Many believed the judge would issue an order shortly after the November decision in Rhode Island, but as of now, the deadlines for filing and replying have been extended. 

TL;DR: The Trump administration continues its assault on public goods, and the IMLS–a tiny agency already half the size it was prior to March 2025– remains a favored target. – KJ

Jeanette McCurdy is no stranger to saying the things we aren’t supposed to say. It’s right there in the title of her 2022 memoir, I’m Glad My Mom Died. This week, McCurdy makes her fiction debut with a boundary-pushing novel about a 17-year-old girl who wants everything, including her middle-aged creative writing teacher.

If the setup makes you nervous, well, that’s the point. Early reviews are mostly positive, if you dare: “ rewards the fearless reader,” “precocious and razor-sharp observations,” “ a bleak, often hilarious and uncomfortable triumph.”

Also hitting shelves:

• 🧗‍♀️ A hilarious and touching novel about friendship, rock climbing, and the challenges of growing up
• 🌈 The first history of the U.S. centered on queer Black voices
• 🔪 A bold debut about Indian-American tween girls who kill their uncle and blame…the British?
• 🏈 A critic and cultural theorist explains America through the lens of football
• ⛪️ The previously untold story of how a nonbinary minister became a radical revolutionary in 1776

🔓 Unlock Book Riot’s New Release Index when you join All Access.

📚✨ Ready to refresh your shelves? We’ve teamed up with Spiegel & Grau to give one lucky reader a one-year subscription to Book of the Month!

Spiegel & Grau is the powerhouse behind some of the most talked-about books on your nightstand. Some of their bestsellers include Bruce Holsinger’s Oprah Book Club Pick, Culpability ; Margaret Renkl’s Reese’s Book Club Pick, The Comfort of Crows; and Shelley Read’s million-plus copy bestseller, Go as a River.

Amy Tan didn’t expect The Joy Luck Club to be a hit.

In her introduction to the 30th-anniversary edition, Tan recalls the 1989 release: “These were quirky stories written by an unknown Chinese-American author. And in those days, books that were non-mainstream were termed ‘ethnic,’ enjoyed by special readers, largely those who were in ethnic studies programs.” She thought it would maybe sell 5,000 copies out of the first print run of 25,000. Boy, was she off.

Not only did the original print run sell out, The Joy Luck Club went back for multiple reprints, and more than 110,000 copies were in circulation just three weeks after it first hit shelves. A few weeks later, nine houses competed for reprint rights, with Vintage Books placing the winning bid at $1.2 million (the equivalent of $3.1 million today—a HUGE deal). In the decades since, it has sold more than 5 million copies and remained a staple of book clubs, best-of lists, and English class syllabi.

This would all be surprising for just about any book, but it’s especially exciting because The Joy Luck Club is a lot more radical than the contemporary packaging might lead you to believe. Tan weaves Chinese mythology, generational trauma, and sharp social criticism into a story that’s all too often dismissed as a beach read or “book club fiction” (which, for the record, shouldn’t be dismissed, but that’s another essay for a different day).

🎧 Hear our conversation about what made The Joy Luck Club groundbreaking and how it continues to be relevant on Zero to Well-Read.

“We need a culture that says ‘take a break,’ instead of ‘tough it out.’”

Today’s libraries are more than places to do research, find a new book, attend a storytime, or use wifi. They’re also expected to fill in the gaps of social services, often putting library workers in positions to help in arenas where they have no background, experience, or expertise–frequently without the tools or resources necessary. Library workers do it because they want to, as much as they do it to keep their jobs and budgets.

While most library workers love their work, it can take a mental health toll. Book Riot Senior Editor Kelly Jensen wanted to gain insight into how library work intersects with and impacts the mental health of those working on the front lines today. In Summer 2025, she launched a survey to find out. 

Among the findings gathered from over 200 library workers across a variety of library types and backgrounds:

• 95% cited budget cuts, layoffs, closures, and defunding as the most significant concerns coming from outside the library
• “Mission Creep” was the day-to-day stressor most mentioned
• “Burnout” was the single most commonly cited mental health challenge of the job
• Stress, anxiety, and depression/helplessness were among the top mental health challenges in the job
• A full quarter of libraries offered no mental health support to staff beyond insurance–and that insurance varied in terms of what it did or did not offer for mental health treatment.

The results are concerning, but the input provided by library workers also illuminates a wide range of opportunities for libraries to address the mental health needs of staff better.

→ Read the full report.

No one can peg you as a quitter! Get organized with SKÅDIS pegboards and accessories from IKEA. Right now, IKEA Family Members save 20% on the entire SKÅDIS line. Great for every space from craft rooms to kitchens to the Book Riot office, you can customize your perfect set up. Shop the SKÅDIS sale and build your perfect storage solution today!

Buckle up for a history-heavy year, folks. Between now and July 4, when America hits its 250th birthday, any and every content angle is fair game.

PBS Books and the Library of Congress have teamed up to create a new series about America’s literary history . Each installment features a different U.S. state or territory, highlighting its famous authors, inspiring locations, and beloved bookstores and libraries. The videos, which run about 30 minutes, also utilize maps, photos, sheet music, and more from the Library of Congress’s incredible collection.

The first seven installments are live now, with more coming soon. All are free to stream on the LoC website.

Attention is precious. If you want to develop reading as an attentional practice, the Friends of Attention, authors of  Attensity! A Manifesto of the Attention Liberation Movement, have some tips for you.

• Invite your friends: Attention Activism is about getting together. Our coalition regularly hosts reading parties, where people gather in homes or public spaces to read their own books in silence (with occasional breaks for conversation). It’s the best of both worlds: the interiority of reading and the sociality of being with people you love.
• Create a “sanctuary of attention” in space: Set up your surroundings with a vision of the kinds of attention you intend to practice – and the kinds you don’t. What kind of lighting will you have? How will people be seated throughout the space? What do you bring into the space, and what do you leave out?
• …and in time:  Set a timer and mark the beginning and end of each duration (we like to use a bell). By carving out a specific amount of time, you create a pocket of special attentional experience that can bring you closer to whatever you’re reading – and to your attention itself. These “rituals,” serious or playful, can help!
• Draft agreements: Think of these as shared codes of conduct. Drafting agreements with other people can transform individual rules (punitive) into a collective experience (creative). These rules are not about discouraging “bad” kinds of reading; they’re about encouraging the kinds of reading you want to practice, with others!
• Take notes and reflect: The more we learn about our attention, the better equipped we are to protect it together. Reading is an attentional practice par excellence, and it has so much to teach us about our minds and senses.

Level up your reading life with Book Riot All Access! Join today to unlock exclusive deep dives, community features, and the full Read Harder Challenge—plus, the first 100 new annual members get a FREE copy of Good Intentions by Marisa Walz, a twisted thriller about a woman’s dangerous obsession with a grieving stranger. Sign up for an annual All Access membership today!

🌅 Wake up refreshed with a Hatch sunrise alarm clock.**

🫦 Dig into a juicy profile of Jeanette McCurdy.

🧠 Refresh your thinking with book recs from Adam Grant.

😎 The future of Barnes & Noble is bright, according to CEO James Daunt.

📘 Don’t miss the month’s best paperback releases.

_{**This is a product recommendation from the Book Riot team. When you buy through these links, we may earn a commission.}

Written by Rebecca Schinsky, Jeff O’Neal, Kelly Jensen, and Danika Ellis. Thanks to Vanessa Diaz for copy editing.

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