New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has stirred outrage once again, this time after recommending that residents read “Heated Rivalry,” a book about two gay professional hockey players, during the ongoing winter superstorm.
Mamdani, who was inaugurated earlier this month, held a press conference alongside New York City Emergency Management on Sunday. After thanking New York City Department of Sanitation workers and city employees, including those with NYCEM, Mamdani transitioned into the comments that mayors typically make during these press conferences, from updates on salted roads to information about warming centers.
Then came one of the stranger moments in a weather-related press conference, at least that we’ve seen in some time.
“I can think of no better excuse for New Yorkers to stay home, take a long nap, or take advantage of our public library’s offer of free access to ‘Heated Rivalry’ on e-book or audiobook for anyone with a library card,” Mamdani said.
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani advises New Yorkers to stay home and read ‘Heated Rivalry,’ during the storm (via hearts530) pic.twitter.com/gopgEtiRww
— Hudson Williams Updates (@hudsonwupdates) January 25, 2026
In fairness to Mamdani, the thought of recommending a book — and, by extension, an HBO Max series that has drawn widespread acclaim — as a way to pass time during a winter storm isn’t a bad idea. However, social media users loudly criticized Mamdani’s approach, especially after he acknowledged that at least five New York City residents were found dead on the streets. That number had climbed to six as of Monday morning.
“[Eric] Adams’ ‘City of Yes’ actually built housing,” one X user wrote. “Mamdani’s ‘City of Slogans’ just hands out reading lists and calls it governance. Priorities: activism over survival, every time.”
Another added, “This timeline we’re living in truly has some very low lows and high highs.”
Mamdani’s idea of “storm prep” is telling New Yorkers to cozy up with a romance novel while his policies turn apartments into iceboxes. Rent freezes? They’ve already collapsed maintenance budgets citywide—landlords can’t fix boilers when Mamdani’s fantasy economics make basic…
— CityDeskNYC (@CityDeskNYC) January 25, 2026
This isn’t Mamdani’s first controversial decision during the ongoing superstorm. Social media users criticized Mamdani this past weekend after he quipped, “There’s snow doubt about it,” in a video preparing New York City residents for the incoming poor weather. The video also featured a New York City worker remarking, “And to all our school kids, that means the next time you see the mayor, you can get him with a snowball.”
Mamdani has built a significant following partly because of his personality and ability to appeal to and connect with younger voters. However, it’s clear that making a book recommendation and promoting the city’s public library system in a way that reads like an advertisement did not go over well with many New Yorkers or social media users, especially considering that more than 1 million Americans lost power this past weekend.
“Heated Rivalry” is the second book in Rachel Reid’s “Game Changers” series and follows two fictional hockey players, Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, as they navigate their feelings and develop a personal and professional relationship. The HBO Max show adapted the first two books of the series.
