Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 25/09/2026medium.com/prismnpen/go... @tuckerlieberman.com @ginagwenffrewi.bsky.socialmedium.comThere Are Good Reasons for Trans Inclusion, but I Can’t Bottle-Feed Them to AnyoneOn a new book: ‘J. K. Rowling and the Anti-Trans Panic’ 020
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 23/09/2026After 30+ years of listening to "Heroin" by the VU, I finally realized it's "thank God that I'm not aware," not "thank God that I'm not all wet." 020
Reposted by Samara RafertMaris Kreizman @maris.bsky.social · 22/09/2026LOL, the gotcha part in the second paragraph is truly hilarious. Who will think of the straight white rightwing men in the literary world? WHO? WHO? 2672441216
Reposted by Samara RafertThe Onion @theonion.com · 18/09/2026Report Reveals Jesus Christ May Have Benefited From Father’s Influential Position To Gain High-Powered Role As Lord And Savior theonion.com/report-reveals-jesus-c… 442914363
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 12/09/2026Amaro + The Weakerthans (new musical obsession)=bliss @dangearino.bsky.social 120
Reposted by Samara RafertGina Gwenffrewi @ginagwenffrewi.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Out now: my book, about the institutional and localized impact of anti-trans campaigns in the UK. C1 + 4 analyse the anti-trans outputs of JKR and R.Gervais; C2 + 3 about GC ideology and anti-trans campaigns on a uni campus; C5 about media; C6 about the beauty and magic of being trans in Edinburgh. 03720
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 04/09/2026@ginagwenffrewi.bsky.social's JK ROWLING AND THE ANTI-TRANS PANIC, just published by Ohio State Press, is an @autostraddle.bsky.social most anticipated queer book for September! www.autostraddle.com/our-most-ant...autostraddle.comOur Most Anticipated Queer Books for September 2026There's so much new queer poetry coming out this month. 150
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 04/09/2026I've spent almost my entire adult life in the Midwest and they still got me (Delaware born and raised) 210
Reposted by Samara RafertGary Hornseth @garyhornseth.bsky.social · 28/08/2026Workers at the signage firm Spanjer Brothers, Newark, New Jersey, with giant wooden letters destined for the Singer Sewing Machine Co., 1897 Image: 1916 company catalog, Avery Library Architectural Trade Catalogs Collection via @archive.org; archive.org/details/cata... 114029
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 21/08/2026Michael Lowenthal's Place Envy featured in Word of the Day! @merriam-webster.com @jwi.bsky.social urldefense.com/v3/__https:/...urldefense.comWord of the Day: DivulgeInformation divulged is typically secret, or known only to insiders, and it isn’t usually shouted from the rooftops. But when divulge first entered English in the 15th century, it did so as a synonym 122
Reposted by Samara RafertGary Hornseth @garyhornseth.bsky.social · 21/08/2026Dense fog, Minneapolis 9th St. and LaSalle Ave. October 27, 1943 Image: Hennepin County Library; digitalcollections.hclib.org/digital/coll... 1479
Reposted by Samara RafertJohn Self @john-self.bsky.social · 20/08/2026This reminds me of Simon Armitage's brilliant entry in the book Mortification: Writers' Stories of their Public Shame. 816031
Reposted by Samara RafertThe Public Domain Review @publicdomainrev.bsky.social · 20/08/2026Life and Death Contrasted, engraving from ca. 1770. Discover its male counterpart here: publicdomainreview.org/collection/l… 08025
Reposted by Samara RafertDan Gearino @dangearino.bsky.social · 13/08/2026Rendered by the inimitable @cooljerk.bsky.social, here are all the new power plants that went online in the first half of the year, by state. Wow, Texas! That's a shit ton of batteries. Here's the accompanying story: insideclimatenews.org/news/1308202... 11516
Reposted by Samara RafertAaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 10/08/2026This cruelty has no need but cruelty. Haiti remains deeply dangerous; a country in the throes of anarchy. Hundreds of thousands of people are SAFE. They are safe. They are safe here and the nation has decided to make them unsafe. We are embarking on a tragedy and we cannot look away. We cannot. 15561402411
Reposted by Samara RafertCLAYFACE: CELEBRITY DIRT #3 out now @judedoyle.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Really value my morning ritual of waking up, pouring myself a cup of coffee, making my way through the next few minutes in a dissociative fugue state, and pouring myself the same cup of coffee again 1652
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 02/08/2026 I strongly disapprove of the decision to have an extremely loud rock band play in the middle of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on a Sunday afternoon #getoffmylawn 110
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 28/07/2026The two most satisfying moments so far on my trip home to Delaware: --Revealing to my high school friend that not everyone calls it "water ice" --Explaining to my Ohio children what scrapple is 021
Reposted by Samara RafertLiz Thornberry @lizthornberry.bsky.social · 19/07/2026I also did not want to cut my children’s sandwiches into star shapes, a problem for which there was an extremely straightforward solution 051
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 21/07/2026I have definitely noticed an uptick in deep backlist sales from the OSU Press list. It's not the perpetual bestsellers but one-offs from decades ago that even I, after seven years at the press, have barely heard of. www.404media.co/ai-companies...404media.coAI Companies Are Buying Tons of Old Books Because They're Free of AI SlopISBNdb, a company that sources printed books for AI companies to turn into training data, tells clients “the optics problem is real.” 13526
Reposted by Samara RafertNatee (they/them) @himmapaan.bsky.social · 17/07/2026Original artwork available via everydayoriginal.com. Pachycephalosaurus Brown and graphite pencils on Hand Book Journal Company sketchbook paper, approximately 207 x 130 mm. Another small page of studies from c.2018. As with others from then, I would do things a little differently now. 1/2 320057
Reposted by Samara Rafertceej @ceej.online · 16/07/2026I am so fucking tired of creating accounts 2071281
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 16/07/2026Convalescing from toe surgery (it's a thing) and I'm so glad I stumbled across this documentary. I just wish it was more than 20 minutes long. vimeo.com/1197413135vimeo.comThe Memories of Others: Akihiko Okamura's IrelandA short documentary film uncovering Japanese photographer Akihiko Okamura’s extraordinary work in Ireland during the Troubles, and the artistic and emotional impact of its recent rediscovery. After a ... 100
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 14/07/2026My favorite part of the print @theonion.com is "passersby were amazed by the unusually large amounts of blood" 000
Reposted by Samara RafertHyperEssays @hyperessays.net · 01/07/2026HyperEssays has had full-text search of John Florio’s and my own ongoing translation of the Essays (w/ Cotton/Hazlitt’s as a placeholder) for a while. Today I’m happy to announce that the original Middle French text is also searchable on the site. 🥳 hyperessays.nethyperessays.netHyperEssaysHyperEssays is a project to create a modern and accessible online edition of the Essays of Michel de Montaigne. 222
Reposted by Samara RafertAssociation of University Presses @aupresses.bsky.social · 30/06/2026Want to know more about the US at 250? ReadUP! Here are some suggestions from university presses & their expert authors, reflecting on the American experiment from the Founding to today: bit.ly/4xQZlFq 0129
Reposted by Samara RafertGary Hornseth @garyhornseth.bsky.social · 20/11/2024Annual Report cover Minneapolis Public Library 1966 Images: Hennepin County Library Organizational Records Collection; digitalcollections.hclib.org/digital/coll... 3347
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 26/06/2026I just heard Dan ask our child, "Should we listen to Charles Mingus or Charles Mingus?" Say what you will about Dan, when he finds something he likes sticks with it. 011
Reposted by Samara RafertDan Gearino @dangearino.bsky.social · 26/06/2026This is an excuse to repost my favorite live video of Sue’s Changes, from Montreux. This performance basically contains all the things in life. m.youtube.com/watch?v=cklE...m.youtube.comCharles Mingus - Montreux 19750725 (3/5) Sue's ChangesYouTube video by oct opus 021
Reposted by Samara RafertInstitute for Policy Studies @ips-dc.org · 25/03/2026NEW: The Water Defenders, the award-winning book on the historic 2017 metals mining ban in El Salvador, is now available as a beautiful graphic novel. “If you’re in need of some inspiration... look no further than this crucial and absorbing account." Preorder now: ohiostatepress.org/books/titles... 02412
Reposted by Samara RafertSteveBrant @stevebrant.bsky.social · 22/05/2026@ruthbenghiat.bsky.social just interviewed this book's authors! Ordinary people CAN stop corporate greed! The Water Defenders How Ordinary People Saved a Country from Corporate Greed @johnelkington.bsky.social @rbreich.bsky.social @hcrichardson.bsky.social ohiostatepress.org/books/titles...ohiostatepress.orgThe Water Defenders: How Ordinary People Saved a Country from Corporate GreedThe graphic adaptation of the acclaimed story of El Salvador’s grassroots environmental and human rights victory over a multinational mining corporation. 022
Reposted by Samara RafertPorter Square Books in Cambridge & Boston @portersqbooks.bsky.social · 22/06/2026We chatted with NiemanLab about the Porter Square Review of Books!!niemanlab.orgBook reviews are an endangered species. So this independent bookstore decided to start publishing its own.“We’re not just going to complain about it!” 1255
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 18/06/2026It's that time again. I'm really, really excited about these books. Some highlights in comments. Email me OSUP_publicity@osu.edu for review copies! bit.ly/fall-26-sbit.lyThe Ohio State University Press: Fall 2026 CatalogThe Fall 2026 catalog of the Ohio State University Press. 151
Reposted by Samara RafertJane Yager @janewords.bsky.social · 30/04/2026I am incredibly honored and excited that my story won the Fractured Lit Elsewhere Prize judged by Jemimah Wei. Enormous thanks to @fracturedlit.bsky.social, @tommydeanwriter.bsky.social and @jemmawei.bsky.socialfracturedlit.comProblems of Inheritance Law in Fig Country, Chapter 117 | Fractured 6224
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 13/06/2026I officially entered my tribute band era last night. Dead Letter Office was fantastic, as was being surrounded by joyous sweaty co-fans swapping stories of their first shows and favorite songs. @remhq.bsky.social 120
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 09/06/2026Thank you to @jessiegaynor.bsky.social at @literaryhub.bsky.social for giving SCRAP THEORY a boost! lithub.com/sneaking-the...lithub.com“Sneaking the Scraps Out the Back Door.” On Black Feminist Traditions of Memory KeepingThere is already a Black feminist tradition of using the arts as historical preservation. A dynamic sampling of contemporary literature and art created by Black women considers the forms of poetry,… 13012
Reposted by Samara Rafertkottke.org @kottke.org · 04/06/2026Jamelle Bouie: The cruelty is still the point of the Trump regime. “This isn’t a border security policy. It’s cruelty as governance — directed at people this administration has decided don’t deserve dignity.” [youtube.com]youtube.comThe Cruelty is Still the PointHundreds of detainees at Delaney Hall in New Jersey are on hunger strike. They're being forced to work without conviction, beaten, denied medical care, and served maggot-filled food. The Secretary of Homeland Security says they're "meeting the caloric standard." This isn't a border security policy. 4264
Reposted by Samara RafertBrian “Enemy of Civilization” Alexander @brianralexander.bsky.social · 04/06/2026Homeland Security killing endangered species. 011
Reposted by Samara RafertJacqueline Doyle @jacqdoyle.bsky.social · 22/01/2026AMAZING NEWS!!! So excited to announce that my hybrid essay collection THE LUNATICS’ BALL is the runner-up for the Gournay Prize and will be published in the 21st Century Essay series by Mad Creek Books (the literary imprint of Ohio University Press) in 2027. My dream publisher! 118113
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 02/06/2026"Not one, but two David-vs-Goliath victories." Human rights advocates extraordinaire Robin Broad & John Cavanagh, authors of THE WATER DEFENDERS, talk with @ruthbenghiat.bsky.social about why this story of grassroots activism is so instructive for the current moment. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUJ4...youtube.comLucid Q&A May 22 clip: Lessons in Resistance from graphic version of "The Water Defenders"YouTube video by Ruth Ben-Ghiat 27326
Reposted by Samara RafertFrankie Huang 黄碧赤 @ourobororoboruo.bsky.social · 02/06/2026Welp there’s no unseeing this 260194445008
Reposted by Samara RafertDan Gearino @dangearino.bsky.social · 28/05/2026There was a time, not long ago, when state policies helped to make the crucial first steps of deploying renewable energy. I spoke with @joshuabasseches.bsky.social about his new book: insideclimatenews.org/news/2805202...insideclimatenews.orgHow Utility Companies and States Shaped America’s Clean Energy Transition - Inside Climate NewsA new book examines “renewable portfolio standard” laws and the ways utilities drove the bus. 043
Reposted by Samara Rafertfilm-authority.com @film-authority.bsky.social · 28/05/2026Looking for new avant-garde theatre? Jake the Cat is performing American dramatist Edward Albee's seminal one-cat play Box at this year's Edinburgh fringe. It's a one-cat show for Jake, and the cat he's performing to is his big brother Joe. Aug 2nd to 25th, Tickets £9, concs £6, 7.30pm, no comps. 3540542
Reposted by Samara Rafertmattie lubchansky @mattielubchansky.com · 28/05/2026i was such an avid reader of stuff i did not even get CLOSE to understanding as a kid and all it did was make me read more, and ask more questions about the world. there's a concerted effort from almost every consolidated power on this planet to make people less curious!!!! 253455690
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 13/05/2026This senior living activity schedule took an unexpected turn 020
Reposted by Samara RafertJessica Winter @winterjessica.bsky.social · 12/05/2026Bluesky can be annoying for various reasons but it's also the only social-media platform I look at regularly that isn't an exploded septic tank of LLM-generated word diarrhea 1141
Reposted by Samara RafertGrace Loh Prasad @gracelp.bsky.social · 11/05/2026Grateful and humbled to be included on @altajournal.bsky.social’s list of 20 recommended books for AAPI Heritage Month alongside so many friends and literary luminaries!! Thank you @anitafelicelli.bsky.social for this wonderful curated list. 🙌🏽 1187
Samara Rafert @rafertess.bsky.social · 12/05/2026Lovely to see @gracelp.bsky.social's THE TRANSLATOR'S DAUGHTER on this list! @anitafelicelli.bsky.social www.altaonline.com/books/g71220...altaonline.comBooks by AAPI Authors You Need to ReadWhether you’re new to AAPI literature or looking to go deeper, these 20 books, spanning memoir, fiction, graphic novels, and more, are essential reading all year long. 011
Reposted by Samara RafertMcSweeney's @mcsweeneys.net · 10/05/2026"I don’t know why I’ve woken up in this Costco. The last thing I remember is breaking up a ninth consecutive fight over Duck Tales, and suddenly, I was floating over my own body, looking at the breakfast they brought me spilled all over my bed." www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/my-...mcsweeneys.netMy Mother’s Day Gift to Myself Is This Dissociative Episode in Costco“I don’t know why I’ve woken up in this Costco. The last thing I remember is breaking up a ninth consecutive fight over Duck Tales, and suddenly, I was float... 0403