A list of organizations that are helping people in Ukraine. UNICEF UNICEF supports health, nutrition, HIV prevention, education, safe drinking water, sanitation and protection for children and families caught in the conflict in Ukraine. Médecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders MSF runs a range of activities in Ukraine working with local volunteers, organizations, health care professionals and authorities to help people travel to health care facilities and access prescribed medications Voices of Children The Ukrainian organization's Charitable Foundation helps provide psychological and psychosocial support to children affected by the armed conflict, according to its website. Sunflower of Peace The nonprofit organization is raising money to prepare first aid medical tactical backpacks for paramedics and doctors on the front lines. International Committee of the Red Cross This Switzerland-based organization is aiming to help people affected by the conflict and support the work of the Ukrainian Red Cross. Save the Children Save the Children, based in London, helps to deliver lifesaving aid to vulnerable children in Ukraine and around the world. UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) The international organization aims to provide emergency assistance to families in Ukraine — providing aid such as cash assistance and opportunities for resettlement in Canada. CARE CARE is raising money for its Ukraine Crisis Fund, which will provide immediate aid including food, water, hygiene kits, support services and direct cash assistance. International Medical Corps The global nonprofit has been delivering primary health care and mental health services in eastern Ukraine since 2014, and is raising funds to expand those services for people affected by the latest conflict. With thanks to NPR.

A list of NY Times Bestsellers in genre* fiction this week: everything drops. In Hardcover: James Patterson and Bill Clintons' The President's Daughter drops to number 6. All Presidents have nightmares. This one is about to come true. Andy Weir's Project Hail Mary drops to number 13. From the author The Martian: Ryland Grace awakes from a long sleep alone and far from home, and the fate of humanity rests on his shoulders. Don Bentley's Tom Clancy: Target Acquired falls off the top 15. A cushy assignment to help the CIA puts Jack Ryan Jr. in the sights of trained killers V.E. Schwab's The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue also falls of the top 15 after an amazing 38 weeks! In Paperback: John Grisham's A Time for Mercy, the third book in the Jake Brigance series, comes in at number 12. The Shadow by James Patterson and Brian Sitts, updates the pulp hero and comes in at number 14. Lamont Cranston wakes up a century and a half after his heyday as a crusader for justice and fins Shiwan Khan is still a threat. *I am including Science-Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery/Thrillers, and Horror/Suspense books.

As a follow up to my post about the most interesting libraries around the world, I thought I'd take a look at some of the most (totally subjective) beautiful brick and mortar bookstores globally. Bookshops can be repositories of history like Shakespeare and Company in Paris, or exist in grand architectural style like Livraria Lello in Porto, or become famous because of a specific literary tradition like City Lights in San Francisco. But what they all have in common is a love of gathering and making available treasures to hold, sift through, and cherish. It is worth a quick stop at one of these bookstores whenever you are travelling and need a little quiet time, thumbing through a new or used books. This list of the top 5 plus 1 most beautiful bookstores in the world is according to the wisdom of internet crowds, totally subjective, and in no particular order (obligatory disclaimer due to one um, person): Livraria Lelo, Porto, Portugal One of the oldest and loveliest bookstores in Portugal, with a combination neo-gothic / art-nouveau exterior and art deco interior. The staircase seen in this picture by Mark Koester is said to have inspired J.K. Rowling's moving staircases at Hogwarts in the Harry Potter series. There is an entrance fee which can be deducted from a purchase. Leakey's Bookshop, Inverness, Scotland Housed in an old Gaelic Church, Leakey's is Scotland's largest secondhand bookshop, complete with an open log fire and tons of books and rare items relating to the Scottish Highlands, Scotland, and so much more. Cărturești Carusel, Bucharest, Romania Some, erroneously, call it "Carousel of Light" in English, this is a stunning, extensively renovated bookshop. It also has a bistro on the upper floor and an art gallery on the lower for a longer browse. Whether you call it "Carousel of Light" or "Bookman's Carousel" (Romanian speakers can correct me here), it is a lovely space to spend some time in El Ateneo Grand Splendid, Buenos Aires, Argentina Named the Most Beautiful Bookshop in the World by National Geographic in 2019, this converted theatre still has customer seating using the original theatre boxes and maintains a grand feel. A must see when visiting Buenos Aires. Libreria Acqa Alta, Venice, Italy One of the coolest bookstores in the world, most books are stacked in bathtubs, rowboats and one gondola to save them from flooding. It has a beautiful feel rather than look and it will certainly appeal to bibliophiles. Yes, that is me reading by the fire exit. And my plus 1: Hay-on-Wye, Wales The town of Hay-on-Wye in Wales boasts over 20 bookshops for a population of approximately 1,500 and hosts a literary festival so the whole town is like one grand bookshop. And proving that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, the Honesty Bookshop has lots of books for one euro; just drop payment in a box, and take a memory home. Do you have a favourite independent bookshop near home or wherever your travels have taken you?

J.K. Rowling Novels: ​ Children ​ The Ickabog (published in instalments online 26 May until 10 July 2020) ​ Young Adults ​ Harry Potter series Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007) Related works: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2001) Quidditch Through the Ages (2001) The Tales of Beedle the Bard (2008) Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (2016) Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists (2016) Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies (2016) Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide (2016) Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Original Screenplay) (2016) Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (Original Screenplay) (2018) Short stories: Harry Potter prequel (2008) Adult fiction ​ The Casual Vacancy (2012) ​ Cormoran Strike series (as Robert Galbraith): The Cuckoo's Calling (2013) The Silkworm (2014) Career of Evil (2015) Lethal White (2018) Troubled Blood (2020) ​

Suzanne Collins Novels: ​ ​The Underland Chronicles : Gregor the Overlander (2003) Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane (2004) Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods (2005) Gregor and the Marks of Secret (2006) Gregor and the Code of Claw (2007) The Hunger Games series : The Hunger Games (2008) Catching Fire (2009) Mockingjay (2010) The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2020) (prequel) Other books: Fire Proof: Shelby Woo #11 (1999) When Charlie McButton Lost Power (2005) Year of the Jungle (2013)

Roddy Doyle Novels: ​ Love (2020) Charlie Savage (2019) Smile (2017) ​ The Barrytown Pentalogy: The Commitments (1987, 1991 film ) The Snapper (1990, 1993 film ) The Van (1991) ; 1996 film ) Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha (1993) The Guts (2013) Paula Spencer novels: The Woman Who Walked into Doors (1996) Paula Spencer (2006) The Last Roundup: A Star Called Henry (1999) Oh, Play That Thing! (2004) The Dead Republic (2010) ​ Short fiction: ​ The Deportees and Other Stories , September 2007. Bullfighting , April 2011 ​ Plays: ​ Brownbread (1987) War (1989) Guess Who's Coming for the Dinner? (2001) The Woman Who Walked into Doors (2003) Rewrite of The Playboy of the Western World (2007) with Bisi Adigun Two Pints (2017) The Snapper (2018) ​ Screenplays: ​ Rosie (2018) When Brendan Met Trudy (2000) New Boy (2008) The Van (1996) Family (1994) The Snapper (1993) The Commitments (1991) ​ Children's books: ​ Wilderness (2007) Her Mother's Face (2008) A Greyhound of a Girl (2011) Brilliant ​ The Rover Adventure series: The Giggler Treatment (2000) Rover Saves Christmas (2001) The Meanwhile Adventures (2004) Rover and the Big Fat Baby (2016) ​ Non-fiction: ​ Rory and Ita (2002) – About Doyle's parents. The Second Half (2014) - memoirs of Roy Keane [