“I see their politics as a response to a challenge they both face”

This week poet Mark Baumer was struck and killed by an SUV while walking barefoot across the country. Baumer, 33, began his cross-country walk to raise awareness about climate change, and was documenting the journey on his blog (as well as Instagram and YouTube). Florida, where he was killed, was recently ranked "the most dangerous place for pedestrians" in the United States.

"[P]ublishing is a behemoth that is trudging along slowly in the direction of progress. But it still has a long way to go." GQ editor and Year-in-Reading alum Kevin Nguyen gets the interview treatment from Poets & Writers (and gives a few shout-outs to us while he's at it!). Among the books he's read in the last year that stood out: "White Tears by Hari Kunzru by a mile."

A new service available to Australian students might cut down on the line lengths at university bookstores. Then again, it might also usher in an age of self-aware, Skynet-esque airborne Terminators. Presenting: drones specializing in textbook delivery.

What goes better together than wine and cheese? Authors and cheese. The Airship paired ten gourmet cheeses with famous writers. Virginia Woolf goes well with a Bayley Hazen Blue. "This Stilton-like blue is a mix of narratives – the Mrs. Dalloway of cheeses, if you will."

Behind the scenes at the New York Times crossword puzzle.