I’m hoping to pick up Hermaphrodite Logic by Jules Joanne Gleeson, a collection of essays about intersex liberation. I also want to get to The Hollow Half: A Memoir of Bodies and Borders by Sarah Aziza. I read the first few chapters of this queer memoir about the Palestinian diaspora and thought it was beautifully written.

Another option is Who I Always Was by Theresa Okokon, a queer memoir in essays that’s partly about her grappling with not having the complete story about her father’s death.

Those are some options, but most of my TBR for this month is still up in the air.

As for the very first book of the year, I have To Be Taught, if Fortunate by Becky Chambers, a queernorm sci-fi novella, out from the library right now, and at the time of writing this, I’m not sure if I want to have it be my last read of 2025 or my first of 2026.

The post The Queer Books I’m Starting the Year With appeared first on Our Story Insight.

New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Texas, Illinois and California are among the states that issued the warnings.

“The Trump administration has indicated to New York that it will not allow states to distribute federal funding for SNAP recipients,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.

Several states are warning that residents who rely on SNAP benefits to buy food won’t be receiving them beginning next month. Bloomberg via Getty Images

Nearly 3 million New Yorkers who rely on SNAP “could lose access to their benefits starting Nov. 1,” according to her office.

New Jersey officials were “notified by the federal government that if the shutdown continues, November 2025 SNAP benefits may not be available on time,” according to the state’s Department of Human Services.

“It is unclear if SNAP benefits loaded on your Families First EBT card prior to October 31, 2025 will be able o be used after November 1, 2025.”

The shutdown became the second longest in history on Wednesday as it entered its 22nd day.

More than 5 million people in California and nearly 2 million residents of Illinois could be cut off from food stamps beginning Nov. 1, according to officials in both states.

“Our food pantries are going to be overwhelmed with SNAP participants who rely on that critical lifeline for support and for basic food assitance,” Man-Yee Lee of the Greater Chicago Food Depository told CBS News.

New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Texas, Illinois and California are among the states that have issued notices to SNAP recipients about a possible disruption due to the ongoing federal government shutdown. AFP via Getty Images

SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is a federal government program that provides monthly assistance to low-income individuals and families. Known colloquially as food stamps, the benefits typically come in card form that can be used like cash for approved products such as fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy, bread and cereals..

The program, which is funded by the US Department of Agriculture and administered primarily by state governments, serves around 42 million people nationwide — or 12.3% of the US population.

In 2000, just 6.1% of the US population received SNAP benefits.

In fiscal year 2024, New Mexico had the highest share of its population receiving SNAP payments — 21.2%. Utah has the lowest in the nation — just 4.8%.

The SNAP program, which is federally funded by the Department of Agriculture and administered primarily by state governments, services around 42 million people nationwide — or 12.3% of the US population. AFP via Getty Images

In New York State, 14.7% of the population receives SNAP payments.

The Post has sought comment from the White House.

“Due to the Radical Left Democrat shutdown, this government website will not be updated during the funding lapse,” the US Department of Agriculture’s website read on Wednesday.

“President Trump has made it clear he wants to keep the government open and support those who feed, fuel, and clothe the American people.”

SNAP is tightly linked to farm subsidies — both of which are core parts of the federal Farm Bill, which Congress reauthorizes roughly every five years to set food and agriculture policy.

The bill combines funding for nutrition programs and farm supports, meaning legislative or budget changes to one often influence negotiations over the other.

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An Amazon spokesperson confirmed to FOX Business that it is ending the Invitee program, which launched in 2009, and focusing its advertising on its Amazon Family program, which includes allowing members to share several membership benefits with one other adult in their household, up to four teens added before April 7, 2025, and up to four profiles for children.  

These benefits include fast and free delivery on Prime eligible items, access to exclusive Prime events and deals, Prime Video, Prime Reading and access to third-party benefits like Grubhub.   

Amazon didn’t disclose specific figures for its Prime membership in its latest earnings call.

However, they described the last Prime Day sale, which kicked off in July, as its “biggest Prime Day shopping event yet.”  

“This year’s Prime Day event was bigger than any previous four-day period that included a Prime Day event, with record sales and more items sold during the four days,”  Amazon posted in a July blog following the two-day shopping bonanza. 

The company also said independent sellers, most of which are small and medium-sized businesses, also achieved record sales and a record number of items sold. 

Amazon Prime members won’t be able to share their shipping benefits with people outside their household starting in October. REUTERS

An Amazon spokesperson said the company is focusing on promoting its Amazon Family program. REUTERS

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Amazon has charged an annual fee of $139 for its Prime membership in the US since 2022.

That is an uptick from its previous cost of about $119 a year.

However, J.P.Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth said in a research note that the bank thinks the Seattle-based e-commerce giant could raise the price of its popular Amazon Prime membership in 2026.

The post Amazon will restrict Prime benefit starting October 1 appeared first on Our Story Insight.

The new midsize four-door pickup will be assembled at the automaker’s Louisville, Ky., plant. Ford is investing nearly $2 billion in the plant, which produces the Escape and Lincoln Corsair, retaining at least 2,200 jobs, it said in a statement.

Chinese carmakers such as BYD have streamlined their supply chain and production system to produce EVs at a fraction of the cost of Western automakers. While these vehicles have yet to enter the US market, Ford CEO Jim Farley said they set a new standard that companies like Ford must match.

Ford plans to start rolling out its new family of affordable electric vehicles in 2027, including a midsize pickup truck with a target starting price of $30,000. The Louisville plant, above. AP

“We have all lived through far too many ‘good college tries’ by Detroit automakers to make affordable vehicles that ends up with idled plants, layoffs and uncertainty. So, this had to be a strong, sustainable and profitable business,” Farley said in a release Monday.

Ford has been developing its affordable EVs through its so-called skunkworks team, filled with talent from EV rivals Tesla and Rivian. The California-based group, led by former Tesla executive Alan Clarke, has set itself so much apart from the larger Ford enterprise that Farley said even his badge could not get him into its building for some time.

EVs sold for an average of about $47,000 in June, J.D. Power data showed. Many Chinese models sell for $10,000 to $25,000.

Affordability is a top concern among EV shoppers, auto executives have said, and the global competition for delivering cheaper electric models is heating up.

EV startup Slate, backed by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, is aiming for a starting price in the mid-$20,000s for its electric pickup. Tesla has teased a cheaper model, with production ramping up later this year. Rivian and Lucid are also planning to roll out lower-priced models for their lineups, although price points are in the $40,000s to $50,000s.

Since rolling out plans earlier this decade to push hard into EVs, Ford has pulled back as the losses piled up. It has scaled back many of its EV goals, canceled an electric three-row SUV, and axed a program to develop a more advanced electrical architecture for future models.

Affordability is a top concern among EV shoppers, auto executives have said, and the global competition for delivering cheaper electric models is heating up. Ford CEo Jim Farley, above. Courtesy of Ford

Ford last year announced it would start building its midsize truck from the skunkworks team in 2027.

The automaker earlier this year estimated losing up to $5.5 billion on its EV and software division. It lost nearly $10 billion combined on those operations from 2023 to 2024.

Cutting costs on battery-powered models has been one of the primary goals of Farley, who has said he expects this new family of EVs to be profitable within one year.

Ford sells three EVs in the US: the Mustang Mach-E SUV, E-Transit van, and F-150 Lightning pickup. Sales of those vehicles fell 12% in the first half from the year-ago period. Meanwhile, interest in hybrids has surged, with sales up 27% over the same window. Ford recently pushed back production of its next-generation F-150 Lightning and E-Transit to 2028.

Ford sells three EVs in the US: the Mustang Mach-E SUV (above), E-Transit van, and F-150 Lightning pickup. Sales of those vehicles fell 12% in the first half from the year-ago period Getty Images

The elimination of a $7,500 consumer tax credit, loosening regulations on emissions and reduced funding for charging infrastructure are expected to further dampen demand.

All this makes it more important for automakers to pick their lanes, Farley has said.

“The pure EV market in the US seems to us very clear: small vehicles used for commuting and around town,” Farley told analysts on an earnings call last month.

By contrast, crosstown rival General Motors has electrified vehicles across its entire lineup, from the hulking Hummer to the smaller Equinox SUV. GM spent more time upfront building a ground-up platform as a base for its EV models.

The elimination of a $7,500 consumer tax credit, loosening regulations on emissions and reduced funding for charging infrastructure are expected to further dampen demand. AFP via Getty Images

Meanwhile, Ford has reconfigured many of its popular gasoline-powered vehicles with batteries to get to market sooner, delaying the development and launch of a unified EV platform, details of which it unveiled on Monday.

While being out front has exposed Ford to more EV demand fluctuations over the past two years, it has also learned more about the market, Farley has said.

Ford is using lithium-iron-phosphate, or LFP batteries, for the forthcoming family of EVs. The batteries are produced in Marshall, Mich., using technology from Chinese EV-battery maker CATL that has helped to bring down the sticker price of electric cars.

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