The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune*** Book Hangover Alert** So great. This book was like a whimsical and endearing combination of A Man Called Ove and Ms. Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, which doesn’t sound like it should work, but it really does. I loved the character arc of Linus and I was very much invested in the love story. I adored all the characters and I would love to read a sequel to this book. A book about love and acceptance. 5/5 extraordinary kids
Orbit
The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart*** Drowning Empire book 2 of 3 Aaaaaand now we wait for the third book. This book was a little bit of a second book in the way some trilogies have of the second book sort of just being a bridge to the final conflict. But it was still good and I liked seeing the development of each of the characters. I’m still obsessed with Mephi. And there were several twists that surprised me in this one. 4/5 bone shards
Bodley Head
The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie CW: imperialism This book was okay. It’s not one of Christie’s best works. I thought the mystery was a little convoluted and not as satisfying to unravel as some of her other books. I did like the perspectives of Anne and Sir Eustace. I liked how plucky Anne was and I found Sir Eustace very amusing in the way he complained about everything. I didn’t really feel like I need the love story though. 3/5 diamonds
The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan*** Book Hangover Alert** This is my favorite Amy Tan book. I loved how it explored multiple generations of daughters’ relationships with their mothers. I love Tan’s writing style and I love the way her stories weave forward and backward in time. 5/5 ghosts
Random House
The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis CW: sexual assault, sexism To be honest, I think the Netflix show was better. Is this blasphemy? The show is a really faithful adaptation and all the best parts of the book are in the show. The biggest difference is probably the character of Jolene, who in the show is a really great female character and a good friend to Beth. (The next part of this review I don’t consider a spoiler because the event is not important to the main plot, but stop reading now if you don’t want to know.) In the book Jolene sexually assaults Beth in the orphanage when they are children and then this is never addressed again. Not only was it entirely unnecessary to the plot, it also is never resolved. Beth never realizes what happened to her and she and Jolene continue to be good friends. I wish Beth had had other female friends in the book. I also felt like Tevis was really hung up on how attractive every character was and seemed like he went out of his way to make Beth a sexual character. While there’s nothing necessarily wrong with that, it seemed unnecessary. 3.5/5 pawns
Audible
The Spies That Bind by Ally Carter Prequel to the Gallagher Girls series This was a fun little read. It’s a prequel novella to the Gallagher Girls series, which I loved. It was fun to see how Cammie, Bex, and Liz first met, and it had all the charm and humor of the later novels. I also loved the theme of belonging. 3.5/5 rolls with room temperature butter
Books I didn’t finish
Sourcebooks Inc
A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair I know I just said last month that I almost always finish books, even if I’m not enjoying them, and here I am, saying again that I didn’t finish a book. But I’ve decided that I should really just read stuff I like and no one is forcing me to finish books I don’t like. So I stopped reading this one. I was pretty disappointed. I love mythological retellings and I love the story of Hades and Persephone, but there was nothing fresh or new about this. It was basically a prose version of Lore Olympus, which is much better. The writing was repetitive and Persephone was annoying. I read about a third of it before I gave up. 1/5 dangerous underworld rivers
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read The House in the Cerulean Sea for more LGBTQ+ representation in fantasy. Read The Bone Shard Emperor for an Asian mythology inspired fantasy. Read The Bonesetter’s Daughter for an intergenerational look at a Chinese-American family.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
I was really busy in July so the reading was a little slow this month (also I wasted a lot of time on Revelation Space).
New Books Read
Namesake by Adrienne Young Book Hangover Alert** Fable book 2 of 2 I really enjoyed this series. I mean how can you go wrong with pirates? I liked all the twists and turns I didn’t see coming. I did miss Wes and the crew a little bit because they don’t seem to get as big a role in this one as the first one, but I still really liked it. I won’t say too much because I don’t want to give any spoilers for those who haven’t read the first one. 4/5 deals struck
Doubleday
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson This might be Bryson’s best book. I always enjoy Bryson’s humor and the way he weaves in history and science. I liked how Bryson captured the way hiking can be really not fun but still somehow enthralls you and keeps you coming back for more (we’ve always called that Type 2 fun). As an experienced hiker, it was very amusing to hear of Bryson’s and Katz’s experiences on the trail as fairly inexperienced hikers, especially because of the self-deprecating way Bryson tells the story. 4/5 thrown out supplies
Audible
The Man on the Mountain Top by Susan Trott, adapted by Libby Spurrier I don’t know that this really counts as a book but this is my blog so I can do what I want. It’s an audible original that adapts two books by Susan Trott (The Holy Man and The Holy Man’s Journey) into an audio play. I enjoyed it. It was reflective and thoughtful and sweet. I liked the performances of all the actors. 3/5 treks up the mountain
Random House
The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida*** This is a great read for anyone who wants to understand a little more about the autistic experience. So often people assume that nonverbal autistics are stupid or don’t understand what others say to them, but this book, written by a nonverbal autistic 13 year old gives us a window into what it’s like inside his head. Of course experiences of anything, including autism, aren’t universal, but I think reading this book can definitely help people understand that brains can work in different ways and people can communicate in all sorts of ways and that’s okay. 3/5 happy flaps
The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart *** Book Hangover** Drowning Empire book 1 of 3 This book was so good. So unlike anything I’ve read before. The world building was exquisite; I loved the Asian-inspired fantasy. I also liked the characterization of each of the main characters. I liked the tension created by each of their different goals and motivations, which set them at odds with each other. At the same time though, they were all compelling and I was rooting for all of them, even though they weren’t always working together. There were lots of twists and turns I didn’t see coming or only saw just before they happened, which was very satisfying. I also adored Mephi. I liked this book so much I immediately started reading the sequel. 5/5 constructs
Flatiron Books
Elektra by Jennifer Saint Book Hangover** CW: murder, rape, gore I loved this. Saint did such a great job with each of her three main characters, Elektra, Clytemnestra, and Cassandra. Each woman was unique and nuanced and had a voice and perspective entirely her own. I feel like so often we see female characters who are pretty much indistinguishable from each other. I love the Trojan war and I’ve read several retellings before; I loved the fresh perspective this book brought. I liked Saint’s last novel, Ariadne, but I loved this one. 5/5 lion daggers
Books I didn’t finish
Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds The last time I didn’t finish reading a book was July of 2020 (Tender Morsels). It’s rare for me to not finish something. I suppose I might return to this one someday. It has that quality that some science fiction books have where the first few pages you have no idea what’s going on and they’re using all this jargon that’s unfamiliar (Dune is one of these). Usually I just keep reading in the good faith that it will start to make sense eventually, and usually it does. But I read almost 100 pages of this book and it was still not making sense. I also thought it was boring and had too many characters, and the way it jumped around in time was confusing. So anyway, let me know if you’ve read this book and what you thought. 0/5 alien fossils
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read The Reason I Jump to get a better understanding of the experience of nonverbal autistic people. Read The Bone Shard Daughter for an Asian-inspired fantasy.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel*** Book Hangover Alert** Reading two books back to back with ace protagonists? Is this what representation feels like? Amazing. I adored Kaikeyi. It’s a reimagining of the classic tale of the Ramayana told from the perspective of Kaikeyi, one of Rama’s mothers (not his birth mother, but the third wife of his father). I loved the lushness of this story. I loved the exploration of Kaikeyi’s relationships, particularly with other women, and how each of the female characters was fleshed out (something I hear is missing from previous versions of the Ramayana). I recommend reading the Author’s Note, but saving it for after you’ve read the book if you’re not very familiar with the Ramayana. 4.5/5 strong bonds
Darling Girl by Liz Michalski CW: sexual assault People on the internet were excited about this book because it’s a reimagining of Peter Pan where “Peter is the villain!” They said it like it was a very novel idea, but if you paid attention when you read Barrie’s original, you know Peter’s always sort of been a villain. But I digress. I found this version refreshing; I liked the way the world of Neverland bled into present day. I liked the exploration of parenting shown by Holly who is always trying to protect and save both her children but doesn’t always do the right thing. One criticism: some of the flashbacks were in past tense and some were in present tense and the main action of the story was also in present tense. It bothered me that the flashbacks weren’t consistent in one tense or the other. Overall I did enjoy this book and I read it in like 2 days. The rest of this review has spoilers.
Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD
I thought it was an interesting choice by Michalski to give the final confrontation with Peter to Holly’s mother, and have Holly not even present. It struck me as a little anticlimactic. I guess I was also expecting to get a little more explanation of the Christopher Cooke/Hook and Nan characters. I don’t feel like we ever really figured out if they were from Neverland or what.
3.5/5 tinkling lightsRandom House Publishing Group
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid CW: substance abuse I listened to this audiobook, which I definitely recommend as the format works really well for audio and I loved the full cast interpretation. I found this book really intriguing because I had never read a book formatted like this, like a series of oral interviews. I thought it worked really well because each member of the band got to give their own perspective and memories which were often very different or disagreed entirely with other characters’. 3.5/5 album covers
Doubleday Doran
Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier CW: ableism I’ve been meaning to read this since I went to Jamaica Inn in Cornwall in 2016. I finally did read it and it was okay. I like the way DuMaurier writes, and I enjoyed the mystery of what’s going on in the Inn, but I was disappointed by the ending. If you want to know why, you can continue reading, though there will be spoilers.
Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD
It’s common in Classics and even in more contemporary work that someone with a visible difference or disability is the villain. And here DuMaurier buys into that stereotype, making the main mastermind villain an albino vicar. Disability or physical difference and disfigurement in literature are often shorthand for moral corruption and evil. And I’m very tired of reading about that. The other thing I didn’t love about the ending was Mary ending up with Jem Merlyn. The whole book she’s like “I know Jem is bad news and I can see how he could become like his brother (the other main villain in the story), and besides I’ve decided to be single forever and own my own farm.” And then she just doesn’t? She just chooses to go with Jem?
2.5/5 smugglers
The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: attempted genocide This is the last book from my haul from the Bay Area Book Fest and it did not disappoint. It just won a Newberry medal and it deserved it. I actually read this book twice this month because I read it on my own and then I listened to it with my family driving from California to Colorado. I loved the incorporation of Mexican culture and folklore in a sci-fi story, especially since that genre has been so white for so long. I love when middle-grade authors grapple with important questions. 4/5 bioloaf cubes
Anxious People by Frederik Backman CW: suicide, suicidal ideation This book has the same charm, humor, and humanity of all of Backman’s works. It explores heavy and difficult topics with levity and sensitivity. It’s full of twists and turns and the way the story unfolds keeps you guessing. I love the way everything comes together at the end. 4/5 boxes of Christmas lights that aren’t bombs
Roc Hardcover
Dead Beat by Jim Butcher Dresden Files book 7 of 17 I liked this one better than the last one, but really these books are pretty consistent. They’re enjoyable and don’t take a lot of extra brainpower, which is exactly what you need sometimes. I enjoyed the character of Butters and I hope we get to see him again. 3.5/5 zombies
The Final Revival of Opal and Nev by Dawnie Walton*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: lynching, anti-Black racism, n-word, sexism, sexual assault, trauma I said above that I’d never read a book formatted like Daisy Jones and the Six. Well, this book is also formatted like that, which did at first make it seem a little less exciting and fresh. But I really liked that this book engaged more with the current events that were happening in the 1970s. It shows the collision of rock and roll and the Civil Rights Movement. I also loved how it explores the difficulties Black women still face and how white silence can be just as insidious as loud, aggressive, in your face white racism. 4/5 platform shoes
The Girl Wakes by Carmen Lau I got this book because sometimes when you submit stories to certain presses, they ask you to pay money or get a copy of one of the books they’ve published. So this was the one I picked. It’s a collection of short stories that echo or retell dark fairytales. It does remind me of the work of Angela Carter in its darkness and subversiveness. It was enjoyable, fresh, imaginative, and the prose was clean. 3/5 gingerbread houses
Execute the Office by Colin Rafferty A disclaimer: Colin Rafferty was one of my professors at the University of Mary Washington, so obviously I think he’s great. This is a book of creative nonfiction essays, each one addressing a different president. I loved that I learned something new about each president, but the essays weren’t purely informative; they balanced information, personal connection, and the effort to reconcile how inarguably great men also did terrible things. I love Rafferty’s lyrical style and thoughtful explorations of each of the presidents (even the somewhat unremarkable ones). 3.5/5 presidential first dances
I reviewed this book for Under the Sun. The review can be read here.
Sandman: Season of Mists by Neil Gaiman Sandman Vol 4 CW: gore I have listened to the latest Audible Sandman collection, which does cover Season of Mists, but this was my first time reading it. This volume is mostly concerned with who will inherit Hell after Lucifer decides to leave, which was interesting but I do think I liked some of the other episodes better from previous volumes. One thing I really like about the comics that I haven’t mentioned yet is that I really like the way the artist changes the way Dream looks depending on who he’s speaking to. 3/5 keys to Hell
Redhook
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow CW: racism I always love a story about doors to other worlds. I really liked The Once and Future Witches by Harrow, but I’m not sure I liked this one quite as much. It had a little slower build up and it took me longer to get hooked. But I did still enjoy it. I really like Harrow’s writing style. I do feel like I need a spin-off series about Jane and the Leopard Women. 3.5/5 loyal dogs
Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine*** CW: racism, police brutality, misogyny As a Coloradan, I really liked seeing Denver from a historical and not whitewashed perspective. I also really liked the generational aspect of this book. I liked the focus on the female characters, however I also felt I could have had more Diego and his snakes in the book. I didn’t understand what Luz saw in David; I thought he was awful. I’m also not sure all my questions were answered by the end. 3.5/5 snakes
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience. Read Kaikeyi for a feminist perspective in a classic and for ace representation. Read The Last Cuentista for Latinx representation in sci-fi. Read The Final Revival of Opal and Nev to learn about the Civil Rights Movement and racism in rock and roll. Read Woman of Light for a non-whitewashed look at the history of the west.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd **Book Hangover Alert I loved this book. It was my March BOTM pick and I loved the mystery of it and the magic of maps. Shepherd really managed to instill a sense of wonder in the art of looking at and learning from maps. I feel like I appreciate maps in a whole new way now. I also liked the development of Nell’s character and the growth of her found family throughout the story. 4.5/5 gas station maps
Barnes & Noble Classics
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy There are spoilers in this review. I feel like they aren’t really spoilers because this book has been out for over 150 years, but just in case you want to read it (which I actually don’t recommend) don’t read the spoilers. I’m not sure why I finished reading this book. It’s definitely way too long. And only the parts about Anna Karenina are interesting. I did not care about Levin and how much he liked farming and that he found God in the end (spoiler alert, I guess?). Also, if I had a nickel for every time the death of a horse early in a Victorian novel foreshadowed the death of the leading lady, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot but it’s weird it happened twice (another spoiler, I guess). All in all, you should just watch the Kiera Knightly movie instead, even though Vronsky has terrible hair and a bad mustache. 2.5/5 unfaithful partners
Audible
Diary of a Hounslow Girl by Ambreen Razia*** This was an adaptation of a play arranged for Audible. It addressed some important themes for young women, especially young women of color from underprivileged backgrounds. It’s a story of a young woman trying to balance the expectations of her family and cultural roots with finding her own freedom growing up in the UK. 3/5 pretty hijab pins
Pushkin Press
I Live a Life Like Yours by Jan Grue*** Grue spoke at a panel on disability and creativity at the Bay Area Book Festival which I went to a few weekends ago. I really liked the panel and thought Grue had a lot of interesting things to say, so I went and read his memoir. I like his writing style and how scholarly it was. It wasn’t simply a catalogue of his own experiences, but a story very much in conversation with disability theorists. 3.5/5 wheelchairs
Kon-Tiki by Thor Heyerdahl CW: racism, unnecessary killing of fish and sharks This was an old book I think my dad was trying to get rid of but I stole it. It’s a fun adventure story. It is a very “boys will be boys” thing to decide to float across the Pacific in a wooden raft just because no one would publish your theory about how the South Pacific islands were populated. It’s also a very white man thing to say “no, of course there’s no way primitive people from Peru could have sailed all the way to the South Pacific in wooden rafts” even though both Peruvians and Polynesians had stories about people who left before the Inca rose to power and sailed west (Peru’s story), and ancestors who arrived from the east and peopled the islands (Polynesia’s story). But I digress. I enjoyed reading it, even though I had a hard time getting over the author’s torment of sharks for no apparent reason (boredom?) and the fact that they just chucked all their trash into the ocean as they went. I know they’re certainly not the first or the only people to litter in the ocean, but it still annoyed me. It also annoyed me that Heyerdahl felt like he had to mention the skin color of every person they encountered who wasn’t white. It is certainly a product of the 1950s. I also can’t get over that they actually developed film on the raft from their film cameras. 3/5 balsa rafts
Little, Brown
Run Rose Run by Dolly Parton and James Patterson CW: domestic violence, child abuse, human trafficking This was a solidly average book. It was enjoyable but not special. I liked learning about the music business and I liked how it highlighted the misogyny in the industry, especially in country music. I liked the full cast audio recording, especially as Dolly Parton reads one of the characters. I did feel like there were some story threads that were dropped and never got resolved, and I would have appreciated being able to solve at least parts of the mystery on my own as a reader before we were just told at the end. I liked that Annie Lee was trying to be a strong independent woman, but it got annoying that she would never ask for help and needed rescuing in the end. 3/5 guitars
I felt like I should have gone to Muir Woods to take a picture of this book but this tree by my apartment had to do.
The Overstory by Richard Powers*** **Book Hangover Alert I’m still not really sure I’ve processed this book. It was really good. But I wouldn’t necessarily say it was enjoyable to read. It’s about trees. About forests and about ecosystems and about sentience that humans have no right to destroy. It will probably change the way you think about trees and it will probably make you very sad about deforestation, like it made me. But there is a grain of hope at the end? That I might not ever live to see? 4/5 redwoods
Tom Doherty Associates
Victories Greater Than Death by Charlie Jane Anders*** CW: genocide, fantasy racism, transphobia (mentioned) This was exactly what I hoped it would be: a queer escapist space fantasy. I loved the focus on strong friendships and bodily autonomy and consent. I loved that every character shared their pronoun in their introduction and I loved that all the characters asked for permission before they touched each other. It was a fun read and I’m excited to read the rest of the series. My only real criticism is that I wish fewer of the aliens had died and that more aliens had gotten to be major characters, apart from the Earthlings. 3.5/5 universal translators
I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston*** CW: homophobia, religious trauma This one was fun. I picked it up at the Bay Area Book Festival after I heard McQuiston speak on a panel, and I also got it signed! I don’t think I liked it quite as much as McQuiston’s first two books, but it was still a fun read. I liked the exploration of queerness in the context of a small southern town and a religious school. 4/5 pink notes
Simon and Schuster
The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande*** CW: alcoholism, PTSD, domestic violence, child abuse, neglect A memoir of a young immigrant from Mexico trying to make her way in the United States. This isn’t an easy story to read. Grande has faced a lot of really difficult struggles. But in her story we can learn more about immigrant experiences and the realities of the ever elusive American dream. 3.5/5 first generation college graduates
Scout’s Honor by Lily Anderson CW: PTSD, death This book was fun! It was exactly the monster-killing, sisterhood vibes I was hoping for. I really appreciated that the main character was struggling with trying to decide whether to be a part of a toxic organization and try to change it from within, or to quit and get out of that space. I relate to that struggle. There were just a couple things I didn’t like as much. I do resent a little bit all the insinuations that Girl Scouts just sell cookies. I also thought it was gross that the author kept pointing out whenever Kelsey slurped spit off her braces. While this is a believable character trait, it’s gross and I don’t want to read about it. There were a couple of sections of the book inexplicably in verse and I feel like it was necessary or really added anything, but overall I enjoyed it. 3.5/5 mulligrubs
Time Is a Mother by Ocean Vuong*** **Book Hangover Alert Who gave Ocean Vuong permission to write like that? This is his third book, second poetry collection, and I think it’s his strongest. He’s always been amazing but he’s just getting better. Favorites include “Beautiful Short Loser,” “Dear Sara,” “The Last Prom Queen in Antarctica,” and “Woodworking at the End of the World.” 4/5 ants on the page
The Summer of Bitter and Sweet by Jen Ferguson*** **Book Hangover Alert CW: see Author’s Note at the beginning of the book I adored this book. I bought it after hearing Ferguson speak at the Bay Area Book Festival and the only regret I have is that I didn’t get it signed by her. We love that Native and asexual representation so much. This book was just so well done, I don’t even know what to say. I loved the characters; I loved the struggle of balancing your identity with what other people want you to be; I loved the sense of community and the focus on the land. Also I just really want to eat all the ice cream described in the book. 5/5 reds
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read Diary of a Hounslow Girl to learn about balancing cultural and familial expectations with finding freedom and identity. Read I Live a Life Like Yours to learn more about disability experience through a non-American lens. Read The Overstory to grow your empathy for trees, the earth, and the environment. Read Victories Greater than Death for a diverse sci-fi story. Read I Kissed Shara Wheeler for an exploration of queerness in the context of a small, southern, religious town. Read The Distance Between Us to learn about the immigrant experience. Read Time Is a Mother to learn more about AAPI and LGBTQ+ experience. Read The Summer of Bitter and Sweet to learn about Native and asexual experience.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
I didn’t read much this month because I was trying to finish writing my novel.
Books Reread
Audible
Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett You know I love a full cast audiobook. And I love both Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. It was really nice to revisit this book which I haven’t read since before the TV adaptation came out. It’s still funny. I still love Crowley and Aziraphale. There are a few jokes that haven’t aged like fine wine, (looking at you Madam Tracey’s spirit guide) but overall it’s still a really good book. 4/5 nice and accurate prophesies
New Books
Redhook Books
The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: misogyny, racism I heard about this one on BookTok and it did not disappoint. I loved Harrow’s prose and the connection of witches to the women’s suffrage and workers’ rights movements–that’s something I haven’t seen done before. I also loved the LGBTQ+ representation; it’s not every day we get another asexual character. I thought the magic system was really cool. I liked the bittersweet ending. 4.5/5 words and ways
Inés of My Soul by Isabel Allende CW: rape, genocide, gore, colonialism I love way Allende writes. This novel had such a strong voice, and I liked the focus on a strong historical woman often forgotten. I was left a little uneasy that the protagonists are Spanish conquistadors. I do think Allende does a good job of not glorifying them or the colonization of South America, and she doesn’t flinch from describing the atrocities committed by the Spanish. But I guess I wanted the protagonists to come to a point where they condemned imperialism, even though I know that’s probably not historically accurate. 3/5 water divining rods
Penguin Random House
True Biz by Sara Nović*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: ableism, oralism, mention of forced sterilization, institutionalization Amazing. I loved this. It was my sister’s Book of the Month pick for April, and immediately after she finished it, I read it. I’ve never read a book where the characters used primarily sign language, so that was super cool. I loved the emphasis on Deaf culture, history, and issues facing the d/Deaf community. I also appreciated getting to see a coming of age story where Deaf teenagers get to do teenager things; often there’s a misconception that disabled people are asexual and don’t get out much and don’t enjoy the same things we all do. I learned so much from this book and highly recommend it to everyone. 5/5 hand signs
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read The Once and Future Witches for a feminist fairytale with LGBTQ+ themes. Read True Biz to learn more about Deaf culture, ASL, and ableism.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
Wildwood Dancing by Juliette Marillier Book Hangover Alert** Wildwood book 1 of 2 I just got the companion book to this one, and I wanted to reread it before I read the companion. I forgot how much I like this book. It should probably be on my list of favorite books. It is a retelling of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” It’s set in Transylvania, and it’s just superb. Jena, the main character, is one of my favorite strong heroines. I love the feminism and the sisterhood in this book as well. Highly recommend. 5/5 enchanted frogs
New Books Read
Random House Publishing Group
The Maid by Nita Prose CW: ableism, manipulation, drug use We’re going to be talking about disability studies a lot in this blog. The Maid is told from the perspective of Molly, a maid in an upscale hotel. To me, she reads as autistic and maybe having OCD as well. Neither of these diagnoses are named by the author, who just calls Molly “socially awkward,” which I felt was weird? Did she feel that if she named them, people would criticize her for the representation? But by not naming them, I felt it made these identities seem taboo. I read a few reviews trying to get an idea of whether people though Molly’s characterization was an accurate representation of neurodivergence. The reviews were very mixed. As far as I could tell, Prose does not identify herself as neurodivergent. I do not identify that way either, so you may take my review with a grain of salt. I felt that even though the characterization relied on many stereotypes of autism and OCD, they weren’t negative stereotypes, and Molly was still a round, relatable, sympathetic character. Though she is at times manipulated by those around her, the reader doesn’t doubt her intelligence or her empathy, and her disability actually helps her do her job and makes her who she is. Overall it was a fun locked-door mystery. 3.5/5 cleaning carts
Anchor Books
Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: the holocaust, anti-semitism I don’t know if this was a Book Hangover, or I just felt sad after finishing it. Last month I read The Betrayal of Anne Frank, and I’m embarrassed to say that I haven’t actually ever read Anne Frank’s diary, despite having visited her museum in Amsterdam and reading the aforementioned book. So I finally did it. What struck me most about Anne Frank’s diary is how normal she seemed. She was just a normal 15-year-old girl, with normal 15-year-old thoughts and feelings living her life during a momentous moment in history. But when I think about, we’re living though a momentous moment in history right now and, like Anne, somehow we’ve all figured out how to carry on as if this were normal. The other thing that struck me about the book was just the terribly sad dramatic irony. Because the reader knows what happened to Anne. In her final entries, Anne could see the end of the war was coming. She had so much hope for her future, was planning her return to school, and she was betrayed and died so close to the end of the war. 3.5/5 food ration coupons
Cazadora by Romina Garber*** Book Hangover Alert** Wolves of the World book 2 CW: misogyny, homophobia I told you all last month how much I loved Lobizona, and I’m still really enjoying this series. I loved getting to see more of the Septimus world in this book and I loved getting to meet some new characters. I like that it kept me on my toes and I didn’t know what was going to happen. The ending was a surprise for me and I’m super excited to for the next one to come out! I hope Manu and her friends can continue to speak their truth. 4/5 septibol matches
Audible
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen This is only the second Austen novel I’ve read. It’s not as good as Pride and Prejudice but I did enjoy it. I particularly enjoyed the performance of the narrator of the audiobook. I liked that I could tell which characters I was supposed to like, not only by what they said, but by the various annoying voices the narrator gave them, while the likable characters had likable voices. I haven’t read many Gothic novels, but I did enjoy the way Austen pokes fun at Gothic tropes and subverts Gothic conventions. 3.5/5 mysterious trunks
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes CW: ableism, scientific animal testing, medical testing without consent I almost didn’t put this one on here, because it’s just a short story and not a novel (there is a novel but I only read the short story version), but The Metamorphosis is pretty short too. And this is my blog, so I can do whatever I want. My dad recommended this short story to me. It is a really interesting piece of science fiction. I’ve been thinking about it a lot from a disability standpoint and it leaves me…uneasy? It is certainly an interesting concept and I think it brings up a lot of good questions about humanity. I felt maybe the author’s intention was to highlight a theme of human dignity and universal worthiness, but I really just felt Charlie was an object of pity. His disability is separated from him and made into the villain, which goes against the identity model of disability studies which posits that the disability cannot be separated from the identity of the person. But I was also interested in the fact that Charlie at the height of his intelligence in the middle of the story was just as isolated as Charlie with his disability, perhaps proving that a cure for mental disability isn’t a good idea. I also get stuck on consent; Charlie can’t consent to this operation and he doesn’t have anyone advocating for his wellbeing separate from his utility as a scientific test subject. Even though Charlie is at first grateful for the operation, if he had been able to give informed consent, I would feel less weird about it. I’m not going to rate this one because I feel too conflicted.
Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: abandonment, rape, abortion, racism, alcohol and drug addiction, AIDS I got this as a gift for recruiting my sister into the cult of Book of the Month. It was stellar. Last month I read The Bad Muslim Discount, and I enjoyed that this book and that book took place at about the same time in American history. It was interesting to compare the Muslim experience to the Puerto Rican experience over the same time period. I loved Olga and all her family dynamics. I love the exploration of how doing something for a cause greater than yourself can also come with personal sacrifices. At what point is it worth it? I also highly recommend reading the poem that inspires the name of the book. 5/5 very fine linen napkins
(If you, too, would like to be recruited into the cult of Book of the Month, use this link.)
Bloomsbury USA
This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron*** Book Hangover Alert** I really enjoyed Cinderella is Dead which I read last year, so I was excited to read This Poison Heart. Honestly, I think it was even better than Cinderella is Dead. I loved the mystery of the creepy house left to you in a will. I loved the secret magical community. I loved all the plants. I loved Black and LGBTQ+ characters in a fantasy, and it wasn’t a big deal. I’m already ready for the next book. Also, isn’t the cover just gorgeous? 4.5/5 carnivorous plants
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
The Last Pow-Wow by That Native Thomas and Steven Paul Judd*** CW: anti-Native racism, blood quantum, genocide, alcohol and drug addiction This was a free audiobook on Audible and I’ve had some mixed results with the free Audible books (see the November 2020 book blog) but this one was really good. It was told in almost short stories that all intertwined and met together at the end at The Pow-Wow of All Pow-Wows. That Native Thomas reads the book, which I really enjoyed. His style reminded me a lot of other Native storytellers I’ve heard. I liked how the book mixed in history along with issues relevant to Natives today and also fantastical elements. I did feel the style was a little heavy on telling rather than showing (something we talk a lot about in creative writing), but I also felt that style was very much in keeping with more traditional Native storytelling, and it didn’t make me not like the book. 3.5/5 fancy dancers
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka There is something so oddly relatable about Gregor Samsa waking up one morning as a gigantic beetle and still feeling like he should go to work. I don’t know if Kafka intended this to be a disability narrative, but I do think that author intention doesn’t matter as much as reader interpretation. Maybe I’ve just been thinking a lot about disability this month, but Gregor’s transformation strikes me a little like a narrative of someone who becomes disabled. He is isolated from his family. At first they try to help him and support him, but then they begin to feel he is a burden. They stop being able to communicate with him, thinking that he can’t understand them anymore. Eventually they decide they can’t take care of him anymore and Gregor isn’t really inside the beetle anyway. I hope this isn’t most people’s experience of becoming disabled, but I do think it shows how family and friends can drift away from you when something happens to change the way you have to live your life. 3/5 beetles
Sourcebooks Inc
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: homophobia, microagressions I really enjoyed this. I was chasing the high of Red, White & Royal Blue and, while I don’t think I liked this one quite as much, it was still very fun. A+ banter and I loved the friendships portrayed as well. Both main characters had some inferiority complex problems that were a bit annoying but it was so funny I forgave them. It was also very charmingly British. 4/5 dung-beetles
Collins Crime Club
Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie A Hercule Poirot mystery CW: colonialism, ethnocentrism, racism (directed at the natives of Egypt) So good. I haven’t read many of Christie’s novels but I have enjoyed them every time. I do think I should read more of them. I won’t say too much about Death on the Nile since I don’t want to spoil it, but I love how she creates her mysteries. There’s always some details I can guess or figure out on my own, but I can never predict the full picture, which is so exciting. 4/5 Egyptian ruins
Cybele’s Secret by Juliet Marillier Book Hangover Alert** Wildwood book 2 of 2 This is the sequel to Wildwood Dancing above. I loved it. It followed Paula, one of Jena’s younger sisters. It’s set in Istanbul and it was full of magic and mystery. Also there were pirates. Fabulous. It’s probably not quite as good as Wildwood Dancing but I loved that it allowed me to live in that world a little longer. The only thing I’m mad about (and I am IRATE) is that Marillier left the ending just a little open for a third book about Stela, the youngest sister, and didn’t wrap up all of Tati’s loose ends, also leaving those for a third book. AND THEN her stupid American publisher asked her to write a different series and not finish this one. The audacity. This book came out in 2008, so I guess I’m not that hopeful that she’ll write a third book, but I want that more than anything. 4/5 dashing pirates
Orion
Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs by Caitlin Doughty CW: death, dead bodies Everybody has questions about death. Let a mortician answer them for you. This book is a collection of common death questions from children. It’s interesting, funny, and informative. Even though they weren’t necessarily the questions I would have asked, I still learned a lot. (The answer, by the way, is probably yes, if your cat or dog is starving several days after you die.) 3.5/5 dead bodies in the plane seat next to you
HarperCollins
Pumpkin by Julie Murphy*** Book Hangover Alert** Dumplin’ book 3 of 3 CW: homophobia, fatphobia If you loved the Dumplin‘ movie (and if you didn’t you’re probably a monster), then you should absolutely read the book and then read the next two books in the series. I loved this story of a baby drag queen in a small town. I loved Waylon’s relationships with his parents, grandmother, and sister. I loved that we got to visit characters we fell in love with in Dumplin‘ and Puddin‘. It was feel good. It was queer. I read it in like 3 sittings. 4/5 rainbow cummerbunds
A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross Book Hangover Alert** Elements of Cadence book 1 I loved this. Definitely the best fantasy book I’ve gotten from BOTM (though I did really like Piranesi). I loved the world Ross created on the island of Cadence. I loved the Scottish folklore. I loved the magic and the delicate relationships between characters. I loved the mystery, and I was surprised by the plot twist. The ending was bittersweet and left me very ready for the next book. 4.5/5 enchanted plaids
Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose CW: bigotry I have some students reading this play for class, so I read it too to be able to help them with their essays. It really is a play about 12 angry white men in a room. But it’s pretty good. It shows how biases can prevent people from being objective, which is an important lesson. I also love how the characters revise and change their opinions as they discuss the case (I mean it would be a boring play if they didn’t), but I love that it shows people changing their minds when presented with new information–something it seems many people resist doing. 3/5 switchblades
Wide Awake by David Levithan*** CW: anti-semitism, racism, homophobia I read a lot of gay books this month too. Loving that energy. This book was written in 2006, so before Trump and accusations of stealing the election, but it’s so oddly prescient. It’s set “in the near future” and it tells the story of the election of the first gay Jewish president. After he is elected and Duncan, the protagonist, and his friends are hopeful that love has won and the country is finally moving forward, the new president’s opponent tries to say that the election was fraudulent, despite losing both the popular vote and the electoral college. It reminded me so forcefully of both the election in 2016 and in 2020. I loved that it was a story about hope and about standing up for what you believe in. I also loved the portrayal of Duncan’s Christian friends; it was a nice reminder that some Christians think the most important idea in the Bible is love. 3.5/5 bad Christian pop songs
Simon and Schuster
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds*** CW: gun violence, death, drugs, gang violence This is a beautiful novel-in-verse. I read it really quickly but it was really good. It takes place in the 60 seconds a boy is in an elevator, on his way to kill the man who killed his brother. It explores grief, cyclical trauma, Black masculinity, and how society has failed poorer communities. It’s a really powerful novel, beautifully written, and very relevant. My students are going to read it in their class and I expect a lot of them will relate to it. 4/5 elevator ghosts
Princess in Waiting Princess Diaries book 4 of 11 I must admit these are starting to wear on me a bit. I sort of wish the books in the series took place farther apart from each other, so we could see a bit more character development. I still think Micheal is too old for Mia and Lilly could be a better friend. They’re still funny and charming, but they do all sort of seem the same. 2.5/5 moon rocks
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read Diary of a Young Girl to learn more about the Holocaust. Read Cazadora for an Argentine-inspired, feminist fantasy. Read Olga Dies Dreaming to learn more about Puerto Rican history and the Puerto Rican experience. Read This Poison Heart for a fantasy that includes many characters of color and LGBTQ+ characters. Read The Last Pow-Wow to learn more about Native history, culture, and current issues. Read Boyfriend Material for a lovely gay romance. Read Pumpkin for a queer coming of age in a small town. Read Wide Awake for a hopeful political story of love and acceptance. Read Long Way Down to learn about Black masculinity and cycle of poverty that leads to gangs and violence.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
The Magnolia Palace by Fiona Davis CW: ableism, racism, misogyny I actually finished this on January 31st but I had already posted the January book blog. I loved almost everything about this book. I loved the parallel story lines and the art history elements and the examination and contrast of women in 1919 and 1966 who were all unique trailblazers in their own way. What I didn’t love about this book is a spoiler so read on at your own risk.
Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD
The resolution to the mystery was that Miss Winnie is faking her deafness. I talked about this a bit last month as well, but the stereotype that disabled people are faking their disability to get benefits is so harmful. I was just really disappointed by that solution.
3.5/5 sculptures
Audible Original
The Sandman Act II Radio Drama by Neil Gaiman CW: (from Audible) “This content is not for kids. It is for mature audiences only. Just like the original graphic novels, this audio adaptation contains explicit language and graphic violence, as well as strong sexual content and themes. Discretion is advised.” I’ve mentioned on this blog before that Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite authors. I’ve read all his novels and short story collections, so I’ve been slowly trying to read and listen to the Sandman comics as well. Honestly, I’m not sure it’s my cup of tea. I’ve been trying to like it, but it’s a little too gory and violent for me. There are always a few stories in each volume that I like, but overall I don’t love it. This radio drama covers about Volumes 4-6 (doesn’t cover quite all of 6) of the comics. It’s really well performed and has a lot of big name actors. Kat Dennings as Death is one of my favorites for sure. 3/5 weird families
Lobizona by Romina Garber*** Book Hangover Alert** Wolves of No World book 1 CW: misogyny, immigration detention, ICE I loved this so much. It made me super nostalgic for Argentina, reading it felt like coming home (which is also how reading Harry Potter makes me feel). It does have a magic school and witches and magic, but it also has things that would make HP better if it did have them, for example, diversity. Our protagonist is an undocumented Argentine immigrant trying learning how to balance the different parts of her identity. I just can’t even explain how much I loved it. I need the next book. Someone give it to me. 5/5 brujas
Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez Book Hangover Alert** The main character in Lobizona is reading Cien Años de Soledad and she gushes about how much she loves it. This made me want to read it. I don’t have a copy of it but I do have a copy of Chronicle of a Death Foretold. Honestly, I was surprised. I didn’t expect to like it and I really did. It was hard to put down and I’m still trying to figure out how Márquez did it. I didn’t feel like I cared or felt bad for Santiago Nasar who dies at the beginning (whose death was foretold), but I couldn’t stop reading. I wanted to read this in Spanish but my reading level isn’t quite that high in Spanish. I liked his style a lot. The most interesting part of this book for me was the sort of bystander effect that pervades the whole community. There’s only one person who actually tries to stop the murder, but as a woman she doesn’t really have any power to stop it. I’m also thinking a lot about the woman whose accusation kills Nasar and how women have to go to extreme lengths to escape unwanted marriages and shame and all the double standards related to the sexual lives of women verses men. 4/5 pig slaughter knives
Hodder & Stoughton
The Second Rebel by Linden A. Lewis*** Book Hangover Alert** The First Sister Trilogy book 2 of 3 CW: body dysphoria, sexual slavery, fantasy racism, medical experimentation I really liked this one, maybe even a little more than the first one. The first one had to do a lot of world building so we knew what was going on, and this time, we just got to enjoy the plot and characters. Again I love the diversity of the characters; we have a few nonbinary characters, an asexual character, some wlw relationships, disabled characters. One thing I love about these books is the portrayal of the resistance fighters against the oppressive governments. Often in novels resistance fighters are unambiguously good guys and I really like how Lewis shows the hard decisions and the gray areas and the ease with which those fighting oppression slip to the level of their oppressors. 4.5/5 bioweapons
Doubleday
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury CW: femicide, serial murder I really like Ray Bradbury, but this one wasn’t my favorite. It’s billed as a novel but it’s really more like a collection of short stories or vignettes all set in the same town over one summer. Some of them I liked a lot, but it wasn’t super novel-y in my opinion. I don’t think it was as good as Something Wicked This Way Comes or Fahrenheit 451. I really like Bradbury’s writing style and the way he uses descriptive language. My usual complaint for his books is the lack of distinctive female characters that aren’t like “mother” or “wife” tropes. I liked in this book that there actually was a memorable female character in Lavinia. There were a few other female characters, but she was the most interesting. 3/5 happiness machines
HarperCollins
The Betrayal of Anne Frank by Rosemary Sullivan*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: the Holocaust, anti-semitism, persecution of LGBTQ+, Sinti and Roma, and disabled individuals In the wake of all the book banning, particularly of Maus, I thought this was an appropriate read (since I’ve already read Maus), and my best friend highly recommended it. This book was utterly fascinating. I learned so much. I loved the compassionate way the cold case team explored the mystery and how they grappled with how anyone could betray another to the Nazis. It’s so important for us to study history and see the effect that extraordinary circumstances have on ordinary people so that we can understand how so many ostensibly good people went along with the Nazis. 4/5 secret bookcase-doors
Foundation by Isaac Asimov CW: sexism, murder, suicide This book is lauded as one of–if not the–best science fiction book of all time. I didn’t love it. It was a bit dry. It was about politics and economics which people seem to think is groundbreaking in a science fiction book…but I guess I don’t usually choose to read science fiction because I want to read about politics and economics? And my tired old complaint: there is only one female character and she’s a nasty, nagging wife. Just felt pretty “eh” about it. 3/5 future plans
Faber and Faber
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro CW: classism, discrimination I guess the theme this month is science fiction. I really liked this book. I thought it was really unique. It’s written from the perspective of an AF (Artificial Friend) and the voice and the perspective are really interesting. I liked the way this future world was revealed to us slowly through Klara’s keen observation. I also enjoyed thinking about all the different ethical considerations when dealing with artificial intelligence and gene editing. What rights should androids have? 3.5/5 artificial friends
The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: classism, discrimination, poverty This was BOTM’s Book of the Year last year and it deserved it. It was great. I cried. I laughed. I cheered. I raged. I reveled in the story of two strong, gritty women and the ways they each come into their own. I also learned so much about the Great Depression, which was apparently much worse than I ever knew. I labeled this as a Book for a Social Consciousness. Usually books with that designation will be by authors of color, feature characters of color or different LGBTQ+ identities. This one is by a white woman and about descendants of Italian immigrants who were trying to survive during the Great Depression in Texas and California. It touches on themes of classism, worker’s rights, immigration, and how easy it is to “other” outsiders when times are tough. Somehow, even though it’s about the Great Depression, it’s still super relevant to today. 5/5 Hoovervilles
The Lost Continent by Bill Bryson CW: fatphobia, ableism, anti-Native stereotypes Bill Bryson is one of my favorite travel writers. He’s so funny and has such amusing observations even when he travels to a place, stays one night in a hotel, eats in one restaurant, and complains about how expensive all the attractions in the area are. This is one of his older books, and some of the humor does rely on negative stereotypes about disabled people, fat people, and Native people, which is, of course, not ideal. But overall, it was fun to go with Bryson on his long road trip across small town America. 3/5 perfect small towns
Don’t you hate it when libraries put stickers over the title???
The Bad Muslim Discount by Syed M. Masood*** **Book Hangover Alert CW: domestic violence, sexual coercion, war, anti-Muslim racism, illegal immigration I don’t really know what I was expecting from this book but it surprised me every step of the way. I loved the intimate portrayal of different experiences of Muslim immigrants living in the US through events like 9/11 and the Trump presidency . I liked the messy characters and their messy lives and Anvar’s messy family (but not Safwa’s messy family). Very contemplative and nuanced and kind. 4.5/5 bubblegum ice creams
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read Lobizona for a more diverse fantasy experience that grapples with trying to change entrenched cultural norms. Read The Second Rebel to see more diversity in science fiction. Read The Betrayal of Anne Frank to learn more about the Holocaust and the realities for Jews, other marginalized identities, and those who tried to help. Read The Four Winds to learn why Amazon’s company town idea is such a bad one that we really don’t need to repeat. Read The Bad Muslim Discount to learn about different Muslim perspectives.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien I just recently rewatched the Hobbit movies and realized I didn’t really remember what was in the book and what was added for the movie. It turns out that the movies are actually very accurate, only adding a smattering of orcs and extra action sequences, and one minor love subplot. This is definitely the most accessible Tolkein book if you’re trying to get into Lord of the Rings. Definitely one of my favorite fantasy novels. 4/5 dwarves
Princess Academy by Shannon Hale Book Hangover Alert** This is one of my favorite books. It was on my list of favorite stand alone novels, which I suppose isn’t entirely accurate as it does have a companion novel. But anyway, I stand by my review that it’s the perfect princess book. The girls of Mount Eskel are chosen to attend the Princess Academy and at the end of their studies, the prince of Danland will choose his bride from among them. I love this feminist fairytale that appears to be about girls competing for the hand of a prince, but is really about girls learning to love and support one another and their community. I love to see how Miri grows throughout the novel. I also love the full cast audiobook recording. 5/5 linder hawks
New Books Read
The Great Glorious Goddamn of It All by Josh Ritter I adored the voice of this novel; it’s so distinct and evocative. The novel is an American tall tale about lumberjacks in the 1920s and 30s. I haven’t enjoyed reading about an annoyed old man this much since A Man Called Ove. Ritter brings such lyricism to his writing–as well he should since he’s also a singer-songwriter. And the book comes with a playlist so that’s always nice. 4/5 heirloom axes
HarperCollins
Princess in Love by Meg Cabot Princess Diaries book 3 of 11 I know I keep saying this, but I still love Cabot’s super readable and relatable voice. She really keeps the pages turning and readers rooting for Princess Mia. I know freshman girls don’t see dating a senior boy as weird, but now that I’m an adult and past those days, I do feel like Mia’s and Micheal’s relationship is a little weird. Eighteen and fifteen really are pretty different. 3.5/5 secret love notes
Bradbury & Evans
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens Dickens was paid by the word and it shows. Did this book need to be over 800 pages? Probably not, but I still enjoyed it enough to read the whole thing. If you follow the blog, you know Dickens is one of my favorite Classics authors. I love how he’s constantly critiquing his society. I felt this novel was kinder and more nuanced in its approach to the disabled characters than, for example, A Christmas Carol, which holds up Tiny Tim solely as an object of pity and purity. The characters of Miss. Mowcher and Mr. Dick are much more thoughtfully realized and David revises his first opinion of both of them when he gets to know them and begins to understand the hardships they face moving through the world with their respective disabilities. I listened to the audio book and I thought Richard Armitage gave a great performance. One thing I didn’t love was Dora. She was so annoying and spoiled and childish, and I couldn’t believe how long it took David to realize Agnes was clearly the girl he should marry. 3.5/5 workhouses
I didn’t realize this book has eyes until I was outside photographing it.
Gilded by Marissa Meyer Book Hangover Alert** CW: death, gore, death of children I do love a fairytale retelling. And I love a book by Marissa Meyer. Meyer’s latest novel is a retelling of Rumpelstiltskin and I really enjoyed it’s dark glimmer. Everything about the world was lush and fantastical, but there was an edge of darkness and danger underneath all of it. I like the way the story unfolded with Serilda telling her made-up tales and discovering more about the mysterious Erlking and her magical friend who can spin straw into gold. One of my favorite novels is Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik and as they’re both Rumpelstiltskin retellings, it’s hard not to compare the two. I definitely enjoyed Gilded, but I think I liked Spinning Silver just a little bit more. 3.5/5 spinning wheels
Orion
A Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: war, refugees, trauma Stunning. Gorgeous. Heartbreaking. Haunting. Hopeful. Poignant. Joukhadar’s book The Thirty Names of Night was one of the best books I read last year, and even though it’s only January, I expect this book will be on my best books list for this year. A story of Syrian refugees told parallel to a historical fairytale. I just loved it. I love Joukhadar’s beautiful writing style. 5/5 eagle eyes
We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal*** The Sands of Arawiya Duology book 1 of 2 CW: torture, child abuse, trauma, death of family members, misogyny, mind control, slavery, child trafficking Sometimes I think Booktok overhypes books. I was led to believe this would be the best fantasy book I would have read in a while, but it was not. Whenever I disagree with Booktok I somehow always feel like something is wrong with me. Did I miss something about the book that, had I gotten it, would have made it amazing? I liked the world–it was cool to see a world inspired by the Middle East and North Africa–and the concept (although we have seen the concept before of “protagonist must bring back magic to the world”–see Children of Blood and Bone and the first several Throne of Glass books), but I thought the prose was a bit clunky and confusing in places. I often had to reread sections to figure out what was going on and there were a lot of pronoun/antecedent problems. I thought the characters were a bit underdeveloped as well, and I didn’t always understand each character’s motivation. I have another thought but it contains spoilers so read at your own risk.
Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD
Was it just me or was there a lot of unresolved homoerotic tension??? I felt Zafira had unacknowledged feelings for Yasmine, and it seemed like Altair and Nasir flirted through like the first half of the book. Which was then weird when they turned out to be BROTHERS.
3/5 evil ifrit
A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw CW: domestic abuse, torture, murder This was my December Book of the Month and I couldn’t put it down. There were a lot of things I didn’t get done because I was reading this book instead. It started off like a fairly standard missing person mystery, but spiraled into an ethereal, magical realism dream and I just HAD to know what was going to happen. One thing I do want to talk about though, is stereotypes, and this is going to contain a spoiler.
Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD
Throughout most of the book, Bee is blind. Literature has a long history of the trope of the “blind seer” or someone who is physically blind but can see “beyond,” whether that be seeing the future, knowing things about people, or even just having really acute senses apart from sight. While this is not necessarily a negative stereotype, it reminds me of the autistic savant stereotypes in that people expect all autistics to be savants or all blind people to have other special powers, which can still be damaging. The other thing I want to mention is that at the end of the book we find out that Bee isn’t actually blind. She was hypnotized into thinking she was. I feel like this feeds into both the stereotype that blind people, or disabled people in general, are faking their disability in order to get special treatment, as well as the stereotype that simply mental effort, or “believing you can overcome” can get rid of a disability. Those are negative and harmful stereotypes, and I expect the author was not trying to buy into them, but our implicit biases can do a lot to continue the cycle of oppression.
3.5/5 silver book charmsKnopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century edited by Alice Wong*** CW: each essay comes with it’s own content warnings I think everyone should read this book. I learned so much from each and every one of these wonderful essays from amazing disabled advocates. Some of them I had heard of (I read Haben Girma’s memoir in 2020) but many of them I had not heard of, and I’m so glad I now know a bit more about the work they’re doing. I liked all the essays but a few of my favorites were “If You Can’t Fast, Give” by Maysoon Zayid, “There’s a Mathematical Equation That Proves I’m Ugly – or So I Learned in My Seventh-Grade Art Class” by Ariel Henley, “The Erasure of Indigenous People in Chronic Illness” by Jen Deerinwater, “The Isolation of Being Deaf in Prison” by Jeremy Woody, “Radical Visibility: A Disabled Queer Clothing Reform Movement Manifesto” by Sky Cubacub, and honestly so many more. The true strength of the book is its intersectionality. So many of us have a one dimensional idea of disability, but as the largest minority group, disabled people are so diverse and it’s important to understand how various marginalized identities work together. 5/5 inclusive clothing brands
PRH Canada Young Readers
Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao*** Book Hangover Alert** Iron Widow book 1 of more than one CW provided by the author: “Please be aware that this book contains scenes of violence and abuse, suicide ideation, discussion and references to sexual assault (though no on-page depictions), alcohol addiction, and torture.” I would also like to add foot binding, misogyny, and femicide I think this was a BookTok book too, but it was so great. Someone please get me the sequel immediately. I loved the originality and the immersive world. I loved the complex characters that weren’t always good people, but always someone the reader could root for. I mentioned in my review of Keeper of the Night that I thought the characters were just unlikable, and even in We Hunt the Flame, I didn’t didn’t feel like the characters’ complexities were fleshed out enough for me to really care about them. But in Iron Widow, even though Shimin and Zeitan are not perfect, or even particularly nice, they’re relatable and I wanted them to succeed. 4/5 chrysalises
Saga Press
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse*** Between Earth and Sky book 1 of 3 CW: body horror, sexual abuse and trafficking, suicide, graphic violence This epic fantasy is set in a world inspired by the ancient civilizations from the Americas and there is a lot to admire here. It was kind of a slow build and it took me a little while to get into the story, but I was fascinated by Roanhorse’s world building and the different societies and cities she created. I also loved that we got to see some LGBTQ+ representation, as we know many native societies in the Americas were far more accepting of diverse gender and sexual identities–one of many things lost to colonization and often not taught in history. Older fantasy is very white, straight, and set in magical England, so I love that we are starting to see more diverse fantasy worlds. I also want to lift up Roanhorse’s blind character. We talked above about blind characters in A History of Wild Places (if you read the spoiler) and I want to say I think Roanhorse did a much better job with her blind character. He is a blind priest, sort of going with the trope of the blind seer, but he’s also very human, and his abilities with spacial perception are explained through his training and the magic he uses to borrow sight from crows. Reading the author’s note, I know Roanhorse did a lot of research and even consulted with Elsa Sjunneson, who has an essay in Disability Visibility that I highly recommend. 3.5/5 crows
The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo*** **Book Hangover Alert CW: abortion, alcohol use, colonialism, racism, domestic abuse, car accident (hit and run) This is a retelling of The Great Gatsby, which is a classic that I like, but honestly, I think I liked this version more. Everything I loved about the original was there–the decadence, the languid prose, the delicious tension building, the careless characters. This version follows Jordan Baker instead of Nick Carraway, which is of course an improvement because Jordan is inarguably the best character. But this Jordan is Vietnamese, dealing with racism and colonialism and being brought up by white American socialites far from her cultural heritage. And did I mention it’s a fantasy? And LGBTQ+? Demons, the damned, ghosts, living paper, LGBTQ+ relationships–and none of it seems out of place in Fitzgerald’s story. I already mentioned the tension building and the prose, but I’m going to mention them again because they were great. The tone and style of the prose mimics Fitzgerald’s original, giving you the feeling that you are reading The Great Gatsby, while at the same time managing to feel fresh and new. And the tension building throughout is masterful. I loved it. 5/5 cut paper dragons
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read A Map of Salt and Stars to grow your empathy for Syrian refugees. Read We Hunt the Flame to experience a fantasy set in a world inspired by the Middle East and North Africa. Read Disability Visibility to learn so much about disability and how it intersects with other marginalized identities. Read Iron Widow to enjoy LGBTQ+ sci-fi in a world inspired by ancient China. Read Black Sun to discover a fantasy world inspired by ancient civilizations of the Americas that also celebrates LGBTQ+ identities and deals with disability. Read The Chosen and the Beautiful if you thought Fitzgerald’s version was a little too white and a little too straight.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo*** Book Hangover Alert** King of Scars Duology book 2 of 2, Grishaverse CW: body dysmorphia, reference to sexual assault, suicide, war, violence, grief, death, racism The second King of Scars book! Loved it! I won’t say much about this one because I don’t want to give any spoilers. There was one death I felt like was unnecessary and I was pretty mad about it. I am a big fan of how Bardugo writes her male characters. I saw a TikTok about how Kaz is a male character written for the female gaze and I think the same can be said for Nikolai. I would go more into that but spoilers. I loved that we got to spend more time with characters we know and love from other Grishaverse books. Will there be more after this one??? I think the answer is probably yes. 4.5/5 charming thieves
Penguin
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: n-word, anti-black racism, AIDS epidemic, body dysmorphia, lynching, domestic abuse/violence, transphobia , sexual assault, colorism Stunning. I loved it. Just last month I read Passing by Nella Larsen which is a Harlem Renaissance classic that addresses the subject of passing and colorism so it was interesting to read The Vanishing Half right after. I loved how Bennett developed each of her characters. They were each so nuanced and distinct and flawed. I loved the bittersweetness of the whole story and how there wasn’t a neat resolution–even though some part of me wanted a neat resolution, I think that wouldn’t have felt as true. I also loved Jude and Reece’s relationship and how Bennett explored LGBTQ+ relationships and identity in the 1970s without that being the main focus. 5/5 long lost sisters
The Sweetest Remedy by Jane Igharo*** CW: racial microagressions I keep saying on this blog that I don’t read many romance books but I guess I read 7, which was my 4th largest fiction subcategory this year. I didn’t love this one, but it wasn’t bad. I thought the most interesting parts of the story were the relationships Hannah, the main character, explored with her father’s family as she got to know them, and how she learned to connect with her Nigerian culture. I wasn’t really that into the love interest and I almost didn’t even need that plot line. I loved the way Hannah came to self-acceptance and love by the end of the story. I guess I would have appreciated a little more Nigerian culture. Hannah didn’t really get to do any real sightseeing in Lagos other than visiting the slum Lawrence is from. The socialist in me also feels like the Jolade family could be doing more charitable work. They mention a scholarship program for kids in the slum, but considering how rich they are, it does seem like they could be doing a bit more, or be a little more self-aware about the vast economic inequality. And Hannah, being someone from a less privileged background and someone for whom charity and volunteering is so important, I felt should have explored that more. Also, just to nitpick, why did Igharo have to keep using the words “flapping” eyelids or eyelashes? Just say blinking. Ew. 3/5 also long lost sisters
The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker*** Keeper of Night Duology Book 1 CW: racism, body horror, gore, gruesome death of an animal, death I was really intrigued by the fantasy world Baker created based on Japanese mythology. I loved the idea of the Reapers and the Shinigami and how different cultures deal with death. I also liked the exploration of the two sides of the protagonist’s identity (British and Japanese) as she tries to find belonging, though I do think that even more exploration would have been better. I was disappointed by the characters. Overall they were pretty one-dimensional and the author’s efforts to make them morally gray, while interesting, ended up just making them unlikable. Ren, the protagonist, also doesn’t really change by the end of the book. She has one moment where she realizes the error of her ways, but no real change in her character happens. It also made me think a lot about Paulo Freire’s quote, “The oppressed, instead of striving for liberation, tend themselves to become oppressors,” from The Pedagogy of the Oppressed. I know this book is the first in a duology, but I would have liked to see Ren move from oppressed to oppressor to liberated. Instead she only makes it to oppressor and I don’t feel like I liked the book enough to read the second one and find out if she develops any more. 3/5 nine-tailed foxes
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: addiction, depression, suicide attempt, n-word, anti-black racism, animal testing (scientific) I loved Gyasi’s first book, Homegoing, so I was really excited to read this one. It was so beautiful. I love her writing style. This book was quiet and contemplative, exploring the protagonist’s effort to reconcile her religious upbringing with her scientific work, and through that understanding, then come to terms with the loss of her brother and her relationship with her mother. 5/5 Ensure addicted mice
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: homophobia, sexism, AIDS epidemic, alcoholism, death of family members, suicide and doctor assisted suicide, cancer I couldn’t put this book down. I talked a little about morally gray characters in relation to The Keeper of Night and I didn’t think it was done very well in that book. Here it’s done much better. Celia and Evelyn are certainly flawed characters who sometimes make questionable choices but I was always rooting for them throughout the book. I loved reading about how the characters had to navigate their identities in relation to their careers, and I think the book addresses a lot of things that are still sometimes a bit taboo in Hollywood. The book was a gorgeous, luscious exploration of the glitz and glam of Hollywood in the 1950s-80s as well as the darker side lurking beneath. 5/5 Oscars
Bloomsbury
Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas Book Hangover Alert** Throne of Glass Series book 7 of 7 CW: torture, PTSD, slavery, death, war The glorious finale! This wasn’t my favorite book of the series but I did enjoy it and I was definitely satisfied with the ending. I did think the book was a little long and I don’t know that it was actually necessary to the plot to make the characters suffer so much before the end. I still would have been satisfied with the ending even if the characters hadn’t been tortured and driven to hopelessness. Overall a wonderful conclusion to a sweeping fantasy series. 3.5/5 shifters
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read Rule of Wolves to see more LGBTQ+ representation in fantasy. Read The Vanishing Half to learn more about passing and what it’s like to juggle biracial identities. Read The Sweetest Remedy to learn about connecting with one’s roots and again juggling biracial identities. Read The Keeper of Night to learn about Japanese mythology. Read Transcendent Kingdom to enjoy one of the best African writers working today. Read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo to learn more about LGBTQ+ identities while working in Hollywood in the 1950s-80s.
Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
The Amber Spyglass by Phillip Pullman Book Hangover Alert** His Dark Materials book 3 of 3 CW: death, child abuse, kidnapping, violence, war The thrilling conclusion to the series! I reread this book in preparation for the third season of the HBO show. I’ve read the whole series before but I didn’t remember very much of this book. I mentioned in my review last month of the second book, that I didn’t get the anti-Christian allegory when I read the books as a child. Looking back now, it’s pretty obvious… I mean God literally dies. Maybe it was that I didn’t go to church as a child? Anyway, I still love these books and I love the final message that heaven isn’t a place we’re going after we die, it’s something we’re building ever day of our lives in the world we live in. 5/5 mulefa
New Books Read
HarperCollins Publishers
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doer CW: ableism, war, gore, homophobia, terrorism, radicalization I really liked All The Light We Cannot See, so I was excited to hear another book by Anthony Doer was coming out. It wasn’t quite as good, I don’t think, but I did enjoy it. A friend told me they dislike his “flowery language,” but I have to say I actually really like his writing style. I like the rich descriptions even if there is a lot of description. I also liked the way this book wove together stories set in the 1450s, in present day, and in the future. I liked how everything tied together in the end, and I liked the emphasis on climate change. I also really enjoyed the snippets we get from Diogenes’s Cloud Cuckoo Land story, and the segments about Konstance. Some things I didn’t like as much: I couldn’t help but notice that the story of Omeir and Anna was pretty similar to that of Werner and Marie-Laure. One is an unwilling participant in a conquering army, the other is a girl alone in a city besieged by a foreign army, and of course they end up meeting. I’d also like to talk about Seymour. Although I think Doer does a good job of making him a complex character that we empathize with, I think he relies heavily on standard and sometimes harmful stereotypes about autistic people. For example, Seymour is your classic white, male, traditionally-presenting autistic who fixates on something (owls and climate change), has trouble making friends, and has violent outbursts. There is so much diversity in autism and these stereotypes mean people who don’t present this way don’t get the diagnoses they need. There is also no evidence that autistic people are more prone to violence than neurotypicals. People with any disability are in fact more likely to be victims of gun violence and police brutality, and there is no empirical evidence that autistic people are more susceptible to radicalization by terrorists. Doer buys in to both of these stereotypes. Even though Seymour gets a redemption arc, I was disappointed with Doer for choosing to strengthen these stereotypes. Overall the novel is a beautiful literary tapestry weaving together across space and time to find human connection, even if it falls short in some aspects. 3.5/5 secret owls
Sorry, I read mostly e-books and audiobooks this month, so not many nice photos.
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divinia by Zoraida Córdova*** Book Hangover Alert** CW (from Book Trigger Warnings): alcohol, body horror, child death [not graphic], death, drowning [off-page, not graphic], infidelity, parental neglect, sexually explicit scenes, smoking I’ve been neglecting my Book of the Month choices; this one was from August and I’m just getting around to it. It was fabulous and I adored it. I loved the themes of immigration and family and the way they are explored. I was also struck by the unique magic of the house and the family; often I think we get stuck with witch and/or magic family stereotypes, but I found the magic in Córdova’s novel really refreshing and different from what I’ve read before. 5/5 flowers growing out of humans
W. W. Norton & Company
An American Sunrise by Joy Harjo*** Happy Native American Heritage Month! I loved listening to Harjo read more of her poetry. I like the way she’s really connected to the sound and phonetics of the poetry. If you’re following the blog, you’ll know I read another of her poetry books in September. I liked this one but I think I liked the other collection more. My favorite poem was “Washing my Mother’s Body,” which was a sweet and intimate portrayal of grief. As with the other collection, I felt I learned a lot about Indigenous culture, practices, and history through Harjo’s art. 3/5 memories
Disney Publishing
If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy*** Book Hangover Alert** CW: fat-phobia Amazing. Everything I hoped it would be. Even though this is a retelling of Cinderella and it is set on a Bachelor-type reality show, two ostensibly un-feminist things, it still manages to be a feminist story. I really appreciate that this version of Cinderella doesn’t include an abusive stepmother and step sisters. And while there is some drama and little cattiness on the reality show, there’s also some great female friendships, which we love to see. It was just overall lovely to read. I have one more thing to say but it’s a spoiler so read on at your own risk.
Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD
I really loved that at the end Cindy didn’t have to choose between falling in love and getting her dream job/dream career. So often in movies and books women are portrayed realizing that love is more important than their career and giving it up, and men never have to choose between the two. There’s no reason Cindy shouldn’t have both.
5/5 amazing shoes
Harper Trophy (I’m sorry, I don’t know why the picture is so small)
PrincessIn the Spotlight by Meg Cabot The Princess Diaries book 2 of 11 This series is so fun and it’s a really easy read. My sister and I call these Junk Food Reads. Not that there’s anything wrong with reading Junk Food Reads, on the contrary, you should not only read highly literary novels that you need to think hard about. Sometimes you just need an easy read about teenaged problems. I love the conversational tone and strong voice of these books. I also love how through Mia, Cabot explores universal teenaged problems, even though Mia is not a normal teenager. I do hope throughout the series we get to explore Mia and Lilly’s friendship more, because overall at the moment, I don’t feel like Lilly is really that good of a friend to Mia. 3/5 secret admirers
Quicksand by Nella Larsen*** CW: n-word, anti-Black racism This book, and Passing (see next entry) is a classic from the Harlem Renaissance. Both books were well-received critically when they were published, but Larsen sort of faded into obscurity after writing them. She only published the two novels and a few short stories, but she’s definitely an important figure in African American literary canon. Both books deal with being a biracial upper-class African American in the 1920s, which is not a perspective I’ve read before. Reading it sort of feels like sinking into quicksand, which I’m sure was the intention. Throughout the book, the protagonist tries to find somewhere she feels she belongs and is happy, but though changes provide her respite and a little happiness, she always slips back into discontentment and an unnamed satisfaction. I think Larsen was probably speaking to a pretty common feeling at the time (and perhaps even now), for biracial women, even privileged ones, to feel estranged from both sides of their heritage, never white enough but also not Black enough.
Passing by Nella Larsen*** CW: n-word, anti-Black racism, colorism This book focuses on those who are able to ‘pass,’ or someone of mixed race who is able to be mistaken for white and may choose to live as a white person. I thought Larsen did a really good job navigating the complex relationships within white, Black, and multi-racial communities. There is a lot of privilege associated with being lighter skinned and able to pass, but that also alienates people who never feel they fully belong to white society or Black society. Individuals living as white also live in constant fear of being found out. Another book on this subject I would recommend is The House Behind the Cedars by Charles Chesnutt, who may have been one of the first writers to address passing.
Roc Paperback
Blood Rites by Jim Butcher CW: sexual manipulation, rape, threatened rape, gore, incest, sexual abuse, misogyny The Dresden Files book 6 of 17 Chugging right along with this series. Still enjoying it. I enjoyed the themes of family in this book and I was happy that we got to know a little more about Murphy who is probably one of my favorite characters. I like the way Butcher puts a new spin on vampires with his Black Court, Red Court, and White Court vampires and how they’re all a little different, and none of them are the cliched, misunderstood, love interest. That being said, the White Court vampires are pretty repulsive and rape-y, and I just feel gross reading about them. 3/5 frozen turkeys falling from the sky
Little, Brown and Company
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie*** CW: anti-Native racism, death of family members and friends, alcoholism and drug abuse, child abuse, bullying This is a classic of YA literature and of Native American literature. It’s similar to the Princess Diaries books in conversational tone, though the themes are much heavier. I do really enjoy the comics that Junior draws and there is lightness and Indian humor to counter the sad parts. I would definitely recommend this book, but I also think you should make sure it’s not the only Native American book you read. Alexie does debunk some stereotypes but he reinforces others. Of course, many stereotypes are rooted in some truth, and Alexie speaks to his own experiences, but it’s important that we don’t just have one story about any group of people, because there is so much diversity across Native peoples. 3.5/5 comics
**Book Hangover Alert indicates the kind of book that will leave you full up on love. Satisfied, but wishing the book never had to end. You’ll be laying on the floor with no idea what to do with yourself (other friends have called this feeling Post Good Book Depression or say that certain books necessitate Floor Time). This is the kind of book that gets its teeth in you and won’t let go easily. After the last page you’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. You’ll bother all your friends trying to get them to read it so that you won’t be alone in your Hangover.
***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read The Inheritance of Orquídea Divinia to rep Ecuadorian immigrants. Read An American Sunrise to learn more about Native American life and to appreciate the current Poet Laureate of the United States. Read If the Shoe Fits for feminism, female friendship, and body positivity. Read Quicksand and Passing to learn about navigating biracial identities and to appreciate one of the great Harlem Renaissance writers. Read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian to learn about Native culture and issues. Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQ+ experience, feminism, BIPOC experience, social and political issues, history, identity, class, disability experience, immigration, gun violence, poverty, colorism, environmentalism, and more! The goal of these books is to diversify the stories we’re reading, grow our empathy for those who are different from us, and amplify voices who are often silenced.
