Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

Quartz

Professional Romance Novelists Can Write 3,000 Words a Day. Here’s How They Do It.

Insider tips from some of the best hustlers in publishing.

Mental Floss

The Origins of 25 Monsters, Ghosts, and Spooky Things

From myths to literature to giant squid, here’s how some of our favorite eerie creatures and legends got their start.

Bustle

21 Non-Awkward Texts To Send A First Date You Don’t Want To See Again

“Nothing good can come of a long text explaining what about them did not work for you.”

Slate

There Once Was a Girl

Against the false narratives of anorexia.

MEL Magazine

The Rise and Fall and Rise Again of MSG

You probably know monosodium glutamate from its link to so-called ‘Chinese Restaurant Syndrome’ — and that’s precisely the problem.

The Washington Post

How Do We Get Our 4-Year-Old To Stop Negotiating and Respect Our Rules?

She’s only 4, but she’s already trying to negotiate the rules and her punishments with her parents.

The Kitchn

10 of Our Easiest Slow Cooker Drop Dinners Ever

Don’t feel like cooking dinner? Let the slow cooker do it for you.

CityLab

Dutch Central Bank Restores Amsterdam’s ‘Ugliest Building’

Following a €320 million renovation by Dutch architecture firm Mecanoo, the once-ridiculed De Nederlandsche Bank building is more open and sustainable.

BBC Worklife

Why Self-Compassion – Not Self-Esteem – Leads to Success

Talking about being kind to yourself may sound like something from a nursery classroom. But even cynics should care about self-compassion – especially if they want to be resilient.

Knowable Magazine

The Untapped Potential of Stem Cells in Menstrual Blood

Long overlooked, menstrual stem cells could have important medical applications, including diagnosing endometriosis.

Nautilus

The Book No One Read

Why Stanislaw Lem’s futurism deserves attention.

Popular Science

What the Heck Is a Time Crystal, and Why Are Physicists Obsessed With Them?

Some of today’s quantum physicists are tinkering with an esoteric phase of matter that seems to disobey some of our laws of physics.

Popular Collections

Curated guides to the best reads on the web

Pocket Collections

The Art of Navigating Thorny Office Politics

From bad bosses to gossipy colleagues and, of course, office refrigerator drama.

Today’s Pocket Hits

Sunday, June 8

The Week

Where Will International Students Go If Not the US?

China, Canada and the UK are ready to educate the world.

NBC News

Planned Parenthood Provides Basic Health Care. If They Close, Where Will Many Women Go?

Citing deep funding cuts, at least 200 Planned Parenthood clinics nationwide are at risk.

Vogue

Dance Aerobics Is So Deeply Uncool…and That’s Why I Love It

My instructor at L.A.’s Pony Sweat, a “fiercely noncompetitive dance aerobics practice,” told us to “fuck the moves” and with that exhortation came freedom.

Pocket Collections

How to Do Less at Home

Separating laundry? Pre-rinsing dishes? You just don’t need to. These articles will free you — and tell you why.

The Associated Press

What I Learned About Getting a Hearing Aid

It might start when you realize you can’t hear the doorbell, or certain ringtones. Conversation sounds garbled.

Atmos

The Science And Symbolism of a Whale Fall

When a whale dies, its body creates a new mini ecosystem on the ocean floor—a process full of biological and poetic lessons.

The New Yorker

Amelia Earhart’s Reckless Final Flights

The aviator’s publicity-mad husband, George Palmer Putnam, kept pushing her to risk her life for the sake of fame.

Real Simple

How to Pick a Watermelon at the Store That's Sweet and Ripe

Learn how to tell if a watermelon is a good one with these simple tips.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

Essence

Here, but Not Really Here: Inside the Silent Divorce Trend

In this trend, couples stay legally married but no longer connect emotionally, mentally, and sometimes physically.

The Hollywood Reporter

The 13 Commandments of Being a Background Actor

From enduring bad haircuts to avoiding stunt people, the author of ‘Unfortunately, I Was Available’ details the dos and don’ts of life as a film and TV extra.

Popular Mechanics

Will Your Air Conditioner Last Through Summer? These Telltale Signs Mean It’s Time to Replace It.

If you’ve had your a/c for 5 to 10 years, it may be worth investing in a new unit.

Fast Company

Supreme Court Rewrites NEPA Rules—Changing the Game for Environmental Reviews

It was the first major dispute over the National Environmental Policy Act before the Supreme Court in 20 years.

ProPublica

Dismissed by DEI: Trump’s Purge Made Black Women With Stable Federal Jobs an “Easy Target”

The president’s attack on diversity efforts has derailed the government careers of highly educated civil servants — even though the jobs some lost were not directly involved with any DEI programs.

Inc. Magazine

Unpaid Customer Invoices Are Piling up, Squeezing Small Businesses

A new survey finds a majority of entrepreneurs reporting growing numbers of late payments that cost companies an average of $40,000 annually.

PS

There’s a New Botox Alternative on the Block

Hailing from South Korea, Letybo is the sixth and most recent neuromodulator approved by the FDA. Here, dermatologists unpack its benefits and key FYIs.

The Atlantic

Fast Times and Mean Girls

What the great teen movies tell us about American adolescence.

CNET

The Top Black Colleges in the Country Are Still Living in Internet Deserts. Here’s What to Know

Many historically Black colleges and universities struggle to access high-speed internet. Here’s how one group is trying to change that.

Essence

Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut on Fame, Representation, and the Journey From Stage to Screen

The talented actress opens up about navigating the industry as a Black woman, embracing abundance, and setting her sights on creating new stories.

The Conversation

How to Protect Yourself From Narcissists’ Weapon of Choice – Passive Aggression

Passive aggression is appealing to narcissists because it is hard to prove.

Variety

How MrBeast’s ‘Beast Games’ Interviewed 100,000 Contestants and Edited 2 Million Gigabytes of Data for the Show: ‘It Turned Out Better Than I Ever Thought’

MrBeast says his reality competition program “Beast Games” “turned out better than I ever thought.”

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

NPR

Divorce Lawyers Say It’s a Seasonal Business. Here’s Why.

Divorce lawyers know certain times of the year are much busier than others.

Stylist

The dos and don’ts of OOO etiquette, so you don’t ruin your (or anyone else’s) holiday

Summer holiday season is upon us. These are your out-of-office dos and don’ts.

Time

10 Things to Say When Someone Won’t Get Off Their Phone

Trying to talk to someone stuck on their phone is such a universal experience, there’s a name for it: “phubbing,” short for “phone snubbing,” or ignoring someone in favor of a phone.

CNBC

With an ‘Above Normal’ Hurricane Season Forecast, Check These 3 Things in Your Home Insurance Policy

Hurricane season began on June 1. Now is the time to take a look at your homeowners insurance policy and make sure you're well covered.

HuffPost

Hand Sanitizer Isn’t As Effective at Killing Germs As You Think — Here’s What You Need to Know

Plenty of different types of viruses and bacteria are resistant to alcohol-based sanitizers. And they can make you very sick.

Well+Good

Not Only Do You Deserve a Little Treat—There Are Benefits, Too

Enjoying little sweet treats has gone viral on social media, but are there any physical and emotional benefits to treating yourself? Expert dietitians and mental health professionals weigh in here.

Harvard Business Review

Why Employees Work While Sick—and How Leaders Can Stop It

New research suggests that presenteeism isn’t simply a matter of personal choice or lack of sick leave—it’s a structural problem rooted in how jobs are designed and workplace expectations are managed.

NPR

A Surprising Trick to Making Hard Choices: Try Thinking Less

The tactic may seem counterintuitive, but it can help you make tough decisions faster and with more confidence, says decision coach Nell Wulfhart.

Business Insider

New Data Confirms It: Companies Are Hiring Less in Roles That AI Can Do

Most people assume it will take years for AI to reshape the job landscape. But tasks that chatbots can do are already vanishing from job postings.

The Atlantic

You Don’t Know Yourself As Well As You Think You Do

The dream of perfect self-knowledge is unattainable, and chasing it too doggedly can leave you more confused and stuck than when you started.

Inc. Magazine

6 Side Hustles That Could Take Off as Tariffs Grow

The full effect of the Trump tariffs likely won’t be seen in the U.S. for a few months, but the impact is already being felt on some products and at some retailers. Prices are inching higher despite temporary pauses on the highest duties in products from China and the European Union.

The Guardian

I Found Myself Googling: Can Brain Cancer Cause Hiccups? How I Fell Into a Hypochondriac Rabbit Hole

Begging doctors for tests, I worried that I was missing something and heading for an early death. Would understanding the roots of my health anxiety lead me to a cure?