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Nearly everyone loves Harry Potter. It was only recently that I finally met someone who genuinely (and appallingly) did NOT love Harry Potter, and even then I was skeptical that we were talking about the same thing. But whether you loved the books or despised them, whether you’ve seen all the movies ten times over or never at all, whether you’re a Firebolt-owning, Hippogriff-loving Potter preacher or a certified muggle, we all have to suffer that one inevitable eventuality in life (besides death and taxes of course): holiday dinner parties. 

Say it again with me. Holiday. Dinner. Parties. 

Ugh.

There are only so many bundt cakes and bean dips that you can throw together haphazardly before everyone starts to resent you. So why not change it up? Witch, wizard, and non-magical folk alike can all take a cue from the wonderful wizarding world and make the evening a little more special with the following seasonal Potter Treats: 

Being a teenager is not easy. Balancing school and work, along with the expectations and demands of parents, teachers, friends, and potential love interests, can so often create a stressful and messy situation. And sadly, it’s even harder for LGBTQ teenagers. LGBTQ teens are more likely to attempt suicide than their straight peers, and the statistics become far worse when their families are not supportive of them. It’s reasons like this that make depictions of LGBTQ characters in YA literature so important.

Winnie the Pooh changed my life. Not in a he’s-an-adorable-bear-and-was-my-childhood kind of way but in my-major-was-influenced-by-a-fat-yellow-bear-wearing-a-red-shirt kind of way.

​November 10-14 is National Young Readers Week, an annual event to encourage children to read! It was co-founded by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress and Pizza Hut! I think there is no greater incentive for anything than pizza, but the program also gets celebrities, both national and local, to read to children in order to reinforce the positive example of reading.

But back to pizza! Here are some events you can hold during National Young Readers Week to encourage young readers everywhere!

Update: Horrorstor has been added in the semi-final round! Thanks for voting it in, everyone! 

Ah, the Goodreads Choice Awards. I don't know about you guys, but I get pretty psyched for them every single year. I knew they would be opening up this morning, and I had a hard time sleeping, waking up and checking Twitter to see if they had gone live.

This year, Quirk has three FOUR titles nominated in the Goodreads Choice Awards, and we are absolutely thrilled. 

HORRORSTOR by Grady Hendrix is nominated in Best Horror of 2014.

WORLD OF TROUBLE by Ben H. Winters is nominated in Best Science Fiction of 2014.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S THE EMPIRE STRIKETH BACK by Ian Doescher is nominated in Best Humor of 2014. 

HOLLOW CITY by Ransom Riggs is nominated in Best Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction of 2014.

Go cast your votes! And congrats to Ben, Ransom, Grady, and Ian!