By Design Journal
Ode to the Public Library
While the world mourned the pandemic shutdown of restaurants, travel, school, and parties, the hole in my heart was the public library. Oh, how I miss the quiet ritual of browsing in the stacks. My local library has now been closed to browsers for over one year. Sure,...
Literary Neuroscience Finds Reading Boosts Empathy
Does reading change you? The answer is yes. More importantly, though, it changes you for the better. And now there’s science to back that up. Researchers in a new field called literary neuroscience are studying the effects of reading on the brain--and ultimately the...
Freeing Minds With Books
This month I’ve had the privilege of participating in a letter exchange with several incarcerated youth about reading and writing. These youth are members of Free Minds Book Club, a nonprofit based in Washington, DC, which organizes people “on the outside” to respond...