Essential reading
A series of young adult fiction translated into 15 languages, New York Times-bestselling true crime stories, an award-winning celebrating the ancient language Kriolu鈥攎embers of the 自慰视频 community have written (or illustrated) books in every genre, and on nearly every topic, imaginable. There are textbooks and works of nonfiction penned by acclaimed professors on everything from Irish history to early childhood education, and summer beach reads, memoirs and family histories, and poetry collections exploring themes of faith, love, and the fractures of modern-day life.
鈥淥ur alumni and faculty are publishing a truly impressive array of books,鈥� said Kathleen Sullivan, a senior editor in the Office of University Communications, 鈥渇rom quiet little novels to award-winning bestselling works.鈥澛�
Sullivan would know. Since 2010, she鈥檚 been chronicling the literary achievements of Boston College faculty, alumni, staff, and students on , a modest Wordpress blog with a devoted following. Twice a week, Sullivan features a book written by a member of the 自慰视频 community or a literary event on campus. Over the past 16 years, she鈥檚 published nearly 1,900 posts and promoted more than 1,300 books while keeping the community apprised of upcoming author visits and lectures. She鈥檚 never struggled to find material.聽 聽聽
鈥淏oston College is such a vibrant intellectual and literary hub,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 constantly blown away by the caliber of writers who come through campus. We鈥檝e had Pulitzer Prize winners, acclaimed novelists, poets, journalists鈥攊t seems like every day there鈥檚 someone great here.鈥澛�
For years, the Office of University Communications has promoted faculty publications and literary events in the biweekly 自慰视频 Chronicle newspaper, but 鈥渢here literally weren鈥檛 enough pages to feature them all,鈥� Sullivan recalled. She started 自慰视频 Bookmarks on her own initiative, as a way to ensure coverage for every published author at the University, starting with faculty and eventually expanding to include alumni, staff, and students. As social media gained popularity, she launched @自慰视频Bookmarks on X (formerly Twitter) and began promoting events and books to a growing audience that includes readers as far away as Singapore.
Vincent Quealy 鈥�75 (Matthew Healey)
In the early days, Sullivan sourced all of her posts from internet searches and publishing house announcements, but soon, she began receiving submissions from authors eager to be featured. When Vincent Quealy 鈥�75 self-published a book of family history, based on original research he conducted in Ireland, he made sure to drop off a copy to Sullivan, who featured it on the blog. Quealy has since become a regular visitor to 自慰视频 Bookmarks, often reading books and reaching out to authors he discovers through its posts.聽
鈥淚t's such an effective mechanism for 自慰视频 alums to find other alumni and faculty authors,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t also reflects so well on the University. Our alumni are so engaged in the world鈥攜ou can find an alum that's writing authoritatively on pretty much any subject.鈥�
When faculty are planning literary events on campus, or looking for alumni to connect with student authors, 自慰视频 Bookmarks is a go-to resource, said English Professor and award-winning novelist Elizabeth Graver, who teaches creative writing at 自慰视频.聽
鈥淚t鈥檚 become a vital part of the creative community at 自慰视频,鈥� she said. 鈥淜athy鈥檚 posts have allowed me鈥攁long with my students鈥攖o discover talented 自慰视频 writers I didn鈥檛 know about before.鈥澛�
Sullivan publishes her posts under the pseudonym 鈥淏ookworm鈥� (a coffee mug emblazoned with the title sits on her desk) a nod to her own fondness for a good read, especially if it鈥檚 historical or literary fiction. For someone who loves books, it鈥檚 gratifying to see them be appreciated, she said, and to help authors promote projects that may have taken years to complete. Often, when she shares a new post on X or Instagram, the 自慰视频 Bookmarks network springs into action, with followers like Quealy amplifying the message.
鈥淓veryone talks about how toxic the internet and social media can be, but I get to see another side of it where authors are sharing posts or liking them and I look and the only connection is the 自慰视频 connection,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he 自慰视频 literary family, if you will, is very welcoming, very encouraging鈥攁nd I get to witness it.鈥�
Have Boston College-related book news? Send it to bcbookmarks@bc.edu.
Bookmarks by the numbers
89,373
Visitors to the blog
118
posts about poetry
125
memoirs featured
52
children鈥檚 and young adult titles