mystery – Page 2 – Krista Beucler

February 4, 2023February 4, 2023

January 2023 Books

Books Reread

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians book 1 of 5
First, a moment of silence for the lost art of chapter titles. I reread this as a Buddy Read on StoryGraph, which I highly recommend. It’s super fun if you want to read with a group of people, but don’t want to do the traditional bookclub thing. You’re able to make comments about certain points in the book and then when your buddies have reached that point, they can unlock your comments, which is super fun and motivating. Now back to the book. I love this book. It’s so good. I forgot how good this series is. I loved revisiting where it all started and being reminded how far Percy, Grover, and Annabeth have come since this first book.
5/5 magic flying shoes

The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan***
Percy Jackson and the Olympians book 2 of 5
Another great installment in the series. This book introduces Tyson, Percy’s cyclopes half brother. This isn’t something I picked up on the first time I read this book, but I think it actually does a really good job handling disability. Tyson has a cognitive disability, or at least in the novel he stands in for a disabled character (he is othered by his peers in the same way a child with Down’s syndrome might be). And Uncle Rick doesn’t put him in for tokenism and he doesn’t rely on any disabled tropes or stereotypes (i.e. Tiny Tim is in the story to make Scrooge a better person, and disabled/deformed villains are disabled/deformed to signal to the audience that their disability represents a moral failing as well). Tyson is a rounded character with thoughts and motivations and interests and talents that are separate from his disability. The whole disabled-person-as-monster metaphor is a little on the nose, but at least he’s using it to prove that disabled people AREN’T monsters (a la Frankenstein). I also love how Percy is written in relation to Tyson. Percy’s and Tyson’s relationship is complicated with all of Percy’s worries about what his peers will think, and I think that’s a really real reaction that kids with disabled siblings have. At first Percy feels pity for Tyson when they’re at school together, then shame when he finds out they’re brothers, then love, appreciation, and acceptance. He underestimated Tyson and then revises his opinion and I love it so much.
3.5/5 hippocampi

New Books Read

Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson***
Vespertine book 1
We love that ace representation. This book was cool. I liked the magic system. I liked Artemisia a lot, who read to me as both ace and autistic. I also liked the revenant who also read as ace to me, though he’s a non-corporeal spirit so I’m not sure it counts. I loved seeing Artemisia’s friendships develop. I’m excited to see what the rest of the series looks like.
4/5 spirits

Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater***
**Book Hangover Alert
Dreamer Trilogy book 3 of 3
Stunning. Gorgeous. I adored it. Hennessey was a bit annoying in this one, but it’s part of her journey and she works through it. I love that for her. The ending was such a lovely note to leave this world and these characters on.
10/5 homemade sweetmetals

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner***
CW: death of a parent, illness
I don’t always read memoirs, but when I do, for some reason they’re about women whose mothers have died. Okay that’s an exaggeration, but one of the most memorable memoirs I’ve ever read was also about this subject. I enjoyed Zauner’s memoir. Maybe enjoyed isn’t the right word. It was of course very sad. I loved how she used food to explore her relationship with her mother and also her relationship with Korean-ness. Hers is a journey that many mixed-race and immigrant children will relate to. I liked that Zauner didn’t shy from examining her complicated relationships with both her parents and her culture.
3/5 delicious Korean foods

Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
CW: child abuse, mental illness
This was my September Book of the Month. I enjoyed it. It was very readable, and I liked how all the threads tied up at the end. I did think it was a bit unrealistic that literally every character had terrible parents. And I didn’t love that Charlotte, a white girl, made a living doing henna for other white people. There’s a brief mention about how all the symbols in henna mean something, but it isn’t explored or really acknowledged that this is a very important cultural and traditional practice in India with a long history. It was used more as a way to make Charlotte seem arty and like a hippie. But I liked that everyone was happy and became friends at the end.
3.5/5 invisible birds

Loveless by Alice Oseman
This month was all about ace rep! I enjoyed this book a lot. I did wish that Georgia wasn’t so obsessed with wanting a relationship, but I guess it’s just because I don’t really want a romantic relationship, and I want this book to reflect my exact experience. I loved the Shakespeare references and all the characters. I loved that we get to celebrate friendship as much as romantic relationships.
4/5 thirsty plants

Small Gods by Terry Pratchett
Discworld book 13 of 41
We love a good Terry Pratchett Discworld novel. This one satirized religion and it’s very funny and insightful. I loved how Brutha was characterized as kind of slow at the beginning of the book, but developed into a thoughtful and powerful character. I would have liked to see a single female character somewhere in the book, but some of the older fantasy novels are pretty lacking in female representation. Pratchett does have good rep in some of the other Discworld novels, just not this one.
3/5 turtles

Bravely by Maggie Stiefvater
This book is a novel companion to the movie Brave. It takes place a few years after the movie, and explores Merida’s quest to save her family and her kingdom. It was very enjoyable. I didn’t like it as much Maggie’s other books (some of my favorite books of all time), but I still liked it. I liked that we got to see Merida’s brothers get a little older and develop unique personalities. Read on for a spoiler.

Read More: SPOILERS AHEAD

One thing I didn’t love was that Merida has to fall in love and break her heart to change. The movie establishes that Merida has no interest in love, and in my opinion she is an ace queen and I don’t want her fall in love or have a relationship. Other than that I really liked it.

3.5/5 bears (although there could have been more bears in this book)

The Mystery of Alice by Lee Bacon
This was another of those free Audible books. It was enjoyable. I liked the sort of dark academia vibe. It was kind of a child safe version of The Secret History. I don’t know that it was super believable, but I still enjoyed it. I wish Emily would have made a real, actually good friend. I would like to argue that Nathan was still not a good friend, even though it’s proven (spoiler alert) that he isn’t the bad guy. He’s still a stalker with anger issues who was never a good friend to Emily.
3/5 spy necklaces

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
CW: anti-black racism
Not to be a snob, but both this book and Crying in H Mart were on Obama’s favorite books of the year in 2021, and though both were good, I don’t think either will make it on my favorite books of this year. In fact none of the books I’ve read on his 2021 list made my list the year I read it. I guess we just have different tastes. I liked this book. It was interesting and very readable. The characters were interesting and distinct. I did think Billy didn’t read much like an 8 year old; he acted and spoke like a much older child, apart from his naïveté. I thought Duchess was a really interesting, well-done morally gray character. I didn’t love the ending. It felt kind of callous. I also felt like Towles wrote this book and then his editor was like “there is not a single female character in this book.” And so Towles went back and added Sally’s chapters (Sarah doesn’t count because she’s basically a non-character). But Sally seemed really unnecessary to the plot.
3.5/5 studebakers

The World We Make by N. K. Jemisin***
**Book Hangover Alert
Great cities book 2 of 2
CW: racism, ICE
I love these books so much. I adored The City We Became and I loved this one too. I do wish there could be more books, but I also respect Jemisin’s reasons for not writing more. As a writer, I don’t even know how she managed these two books. I still love all the characters, especially Padmini. I liked seeing Aislyn’s development. I would have loved to see a little more Neek and Manny, but I am still satisfied with the ending.
5/5 boroughs of New York

**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 Sea of Monsters for disability in fantasy rep. Read Vespertine for LGBTQIA+ rep in fantasy. Read Greywaren for LGBTQIA+ rep in fantasy. Read Loveless for LGBTQIA+ rep in romance. Read The World We Make for diversity and LGBTQIA+ rep in sci-fi.

Reads marked as part of the Books for a Social Conscience series will regularly address topics like race and racism, colonialism and post-colonialism, LGBTQIA+ 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 stopped being able to change text color. I don’t know why.)

September 2, 2022

August 2022 Books

New Books Read

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

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

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

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

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

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

***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.

April 1, 2022April 6, 2022

March 2022 Books

Books Reread

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

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

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

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.)

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

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

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

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

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

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

***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.

February 28, 2022

February 2022 Books

New Books Read

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

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

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

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

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

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

***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.

June 1, 2021November 12, 2021

May 2021 Books

It’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, but it’s kind of a coincidence that I read several books from that community. We celebrate anyway!

New Books Read

Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian***
CW: suicide, substance abuse
I’ve had this book on hold at the library for weeks and I’m so glad I wasn’t disappointed. The book is a treat for those who are fascinated by stories of alchemy. What I particularly loved was that it was rooted in Indian mythology of alchemy and not in the Western canon. I also loved how the novel challenged perceptions about the history of Indian immigrants to the US (namely that it’s a recent phenomenon). I did think Neil, the protagonist, was a bit annoying, mostly just in how selfish he was, but I realize characters need to have flaws and he mostly overcomes it by the end. I’m still thinking about this scene near the end of the book that I won’t spoil, but it’s so euphoric and beautiful and the images were so strong.
3.5/5 gold bangles

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez***
CW: suicide attempt (not successful), suicidal ideation, death of a family member, anorexia, child abuse, sexual assault
I knew this book was going to be sad and it was. The premise is sad: Julia’s sister is killed in a car accident and she is left without her sister and with the weight of her parents’ expectations that she be a ‘perfect Mexican daughter’ like her sister. This is a coming-of-age story of a teenaged writer trying to find her voice and her place among her family and in the US as a child of undocumented immigrants. It reminded me a bit of The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo (see February 2021 book blog), though I don’t think I liked it quite as much. As a character Julia is pretty angsty and abrasive, though she definitely has reason to be. Overall though, it was a hopeful and lovely book that I think a lot of teenagers probably need.
3.5/5 quinceañera dresses

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala ***
First book in a planned series
CW: indications of evidence planting and police intimidation, drug use, fatphobia, racism, domestic violence (this is the warning Manansala puts in the author’s note at the beginning of the book, specifically for Filipino readers)
This was my Book of the Month for April and it was so fun. It’s a cozy mystery and its good pacing keeps the pages turning and your mouth watering. The protagonist, Lila helps run her aunt’s Filipino restaurant, but then when Lila’s ex-boyfriend ends up dead from poisoning at her restaurant, she has to figure out who is framing her. I’m usually not much of a mystery reader, and the last mystery I read (see The Accidental Alchemist in the November 2020 blog) was not good. I liked that everything I complained about in that book was handled much better in this book: I cared about the characters and their backstories, I cared about solving the mystery, and the answer to the mystery was satisfying. I also liked that I wasn’t immediately able to guess the killer, but was able to put together the clues and arrive at the answer just a hair ahead of Lila. I also appreciated the nuance of the characters from Asian diasporas. I think it’s easy as a white person to lump together immigrants from all parts of Asia, so I liked the way Manansala explored the differences and similarities in experience of her Filipino, Korean, Indian, and Japanese characters. Left me hungry for more (more novels, and also more Filipino food).
4/5 plates of adobo

In the Kingdom of Men by Kim Barnes
Based on the title of this book, I did not have particularly high hopes that I would like it. I was pleasantly surprised! I want to say this book reminded me of the Awakening by Kate Chopin, but in the best possible way, as I didn’t actually like the Awakening that much. It follows a young couple in the 1960s that moves to Saudi Arabia to work at the Aramco oil drilling site. I really liked Barnes’s writing style and how she explored femininity and feminism through the lenses of two different patriarchal societies. I loved how the protagonist Gin evolves through the story to become a strong, independent, and self-actualized woman. I also liked that the ending wasn’t super predictable. I won’t spoil it, but it wasn’t the way I would have expected the story to end.
3.5/5 Arabian horses

The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan***
CW: institutionalization and torture of disabled (and perceived disabled) people, child abuse, war and death
Weaving forward and backward through time, and through past lives, Tan creates a nuanced and rich novel. I loved the way the past lives of the characters paralleled their current lives. I didn’t think Olivia, the protagonist, was particularly likable at the beginning but she is an extremely human and believable character, which I commend Tan for, and she is more likable by the end. I loved the stories Kwan told and the descriptions of China. I also really appreciated Tan’s portrayal of sisterhood and family. Kwan and Olivia’s relationship was really nuanced and I loved the way it developed over the course of the novel.
3.5/5 snowy owls

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy***
CW: sexual assault, domestic violence, alcoholism, police brutality, incest
Roy’s writing is gorgeous. The tempo, the cadence, the sound, the way she uses metaphor and repetition. I also loved the way she built tension and a deep sense of dread throughout the novel by revealing the picture bit by bit and not in chronological order. But I will say, I didn’t love the plot or the characters. I feel like a lot of adult and literary fiction is just about miserable people doing miserable things and that was definitely the case here. My sister told me I wasn’t really going to like this one and she was right, but I’ll still say that the writing style is what kept me reading to the end.
3/5 spoiled puffs

Books read for the Community Cats Podcast Blog

Animalkind by Ingrid Newkirk and Gene Stone
CW: graphic descriptions of violence against animals
Part 1 of Animalkind reads a bit like a very long list of fun facts about animals. If you’re already an animal lover and enjoy watching nature documentaries, or you’ve studied psychology, then much of the information won’t be particularly new or surprising. In part 2 of the book, the authors make the case for not using animals in medical testing, for clothing, for food, or as entertainment (as in circuses), emphasizing the cruelties of these industries. They include a rather exhaustive list of alternatives to using animals in these industries. Though I don’t doubt the cruelties chronicled in the book, I did feel that the way they chose to share these abuses sensationalized the violence, much like our 24 hour news cycle, which just desensitizes us to violence. The arguments for not using animals also seemed not to really consider the full complexity of many issues. In the discussion of clothing, synthetic fabrics are heralded as an alternative to animal-based products, but we shouldn’t pretend that these are without their problems. Both the production and even just the washing of polyester and acrylic fabrics create microplastics that usually end up in the ocean, ultimately still hurting animals, just fish instead of sheep. It has also been well documented that laborers in the textile industry are often exploited. In the discussion of food there was no acknowledgement that veganism is often inaccessible for people who live in food deserts or low-income areas. It also tends to be gentrified and elitist. Though the authors suggested many brands of vegan chocolate, no mention was made of the fact that most cocoa is harvested by exploited workers who are often children.

While I absolutely agree with everything the authors are arguing, I found the book not nearly as compelling as Our Symphony With Animals, in which Dr. Ahktar (see September 2020 book blog) uses personal stories illustrating the human-animal bond to make a similar argument. I do like that Animalkind gives the reader a guide for what they can do personally to help animals in these industries (i.e. weaponizing your power as a consumer and a voter, advocacy, and more).
2.5/5 whale songs

Related: Read Staging Tourism by Jane C. Desmond for a nuanced discussion of why humans have always been fascinated by animal bodies and the exploitation that is animal tourism.

But First, Rumi by Chitra Ramaswami
CW: descriptions of cruelty toward animals
On the Community Cats Podcast, host Stacy always asks podcast guests how they first became passionate about cats. But First, Rumi is Ramaswami’s story. A quick read, the memoir documents how she met Rumi, a street cat who lived near her family’s home in Oman. Ramaswami began feeding the stray and he gradually wormed his way into her heart, as many of us will understand. Their story explores the deep human-animal bond and how saving an animal can be like saving yourself. Though she admits she was not much of a cat-person prior to meeting Rumi, Ramaswami fell in love with the Omani Mau and then became aware of the many problems facing animal welfare in Oman. She attempts to reconcile the kindness of the people with the cruelty she observes when it comes to the street cats. At the end of the book she also suggests ways to help the community cats in Oman and what can be done to promote kindness and compassion toward all animals.
3/5 Omani Maus

The Little Book of Boards by Erik Hanberg
Though I’m not on the board of any kind of nonprofit, I felt Hanberg’s book was a great primer for anyone who might want to be. He starts off with what a board does and what your duties are as a board member, which sounds simple but is very useful for those who have never served on or worked with the board of a nonprofit. The second part of the book is devoted to the duties of board leaders (committee chairs, board officers, and the board president). The book finishes off with an extensive appendix of resources including how to update bylaws, how to create an effective committee structure, how to recruit board members, and more. Hanberg’s book is slim and full of practical advice. I would say it’s definitely a good book to pick up if you’re thinking about joining the board of a small nonprofit. Hanberg also has other books for small nonprofits on social media (The Little Book of Likes) and fundraising (The Little Book of Gold).
3/5 nonprofits

Human-Animal Interaction: A Social Work Guide by Janet Hoy-Gerlach and Scott Wehman***
This is a good read for social workers, shelter workers, and veterinarians. The authors discuss how human-animal interaction can be integrated into social work practices to better meet the client where they are. They point to domestic violence situations where survivors might be unwilling to go to a shelter because of a pet, clients with suicidal thoughts who haven’t committed suicide because of the pet they care for, those who have lost a pet and are suffering from disenfranchised grief, and older clients who worry what will happen to their pet if they go to the hospital or die. Though pet owners know how important animal companions are in their lives, this is something that has not been fully explored within the realm of social work as far as the benefits as well as stressors that can come from pets, and the social supports that should be in place to help people and their pets thrive. The book is a great place for social workers who want to incorporate animal-based therapy and support for clients, as well as for shelter workers and veterinarians who want to take a more holistic approach to the care of both pets and clients.
3/5 animal companions

***This book is part of my Books for a Social Conscience series! Read Gold Diggers to learn more about the Indian American experience as well as Indian immigration history and Indian mythology. Read I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter to learn about the experience of undocumented immigrants and the difficulties of mental illness. Read Arsenic and Adobo for some diversity in the mystery genre, as well learning about the diversity of the Asian diaspora. Read The Hundred Secret Senses to learn more about colonialism in China as well as the Chinese-American immigrant experience. Read The God of Small Things to read a classic of Indian literature and to learn more about the caste system and the affects of colonialism in India. Read Human-Animal Interaction to grow your empathy for humans and animals and to learn how we can best support that symbiotic relationship with social change.
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.

November 30, 2020November 12, 2021

November 2020 Books

Honestly, I didn’t read much this month, so this will be a short post. I participated in NaNoWriMo, so I was frantically trying to write a novel instead. Reading is definitely a way I procrastinate writing.

Books Reread

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling*
Harry Potter book 2 of 7
We went on a socially distanced road trip and there’s nothing like listening to the soothing tones of Jim Dale reading one of your favorite stories as you drive through the desert. Chamber of Secrets is probably one of my favorite of the Harry Potter books (though I’m not sure I can choose a favorite). I love the mystery and how all the loose ends tie up so neatly. It’s also fun rereading after you’ve read the whole series, because you can see how all the groundwork is laid for the later books. I think it’s super neat the way the books sort of work in parenthetical pairs, with this book connecting to the sixth book (this is where we first visit Bourgin and Burkes and see all the items that will be important in The Half Blood Prince; our first introduction to visiting another’s memories and to the horcruxes which are both super important in HBP; meeting Aragog who dies in HBP).
5/5 basilisks

New Books Read

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson
Not good. Super disappointed. This book was set during the Great Depression in the boonies of Tennessee. It’s about this odd woman with blue skin who works as a packhorse librarian for the WPA. To me it read like a poorly constructed race narrative. This woman is the last of the blue people and she and her family are discriminated against because of their skin color. The way the story was told seemed like it was meant to emphasize discrimination against people of color, but by centering on a blue-skinned protagonist, it minimized the struggles of real people of color in favor of this mystical other race who had it even worse than Black people. It served to distance the reader from the characters. Though it may have depicted accurate racial discrimination, the reader could dismiss it because blue people don’t exist. The main character was problematic because she was so pure, unselfish, and kind, that it sends the message that she didn’t deserve to be discriminated against because look what a good person she was. No one deserves to be discriminated against. You don’t have to be a saint to not deserve that. Then there was also this white savior-y doctor who wanted to do experiments on the protagonist to figure out why she was blue and if she could be cured. She doesn’t have any agency to agree to or decline to participate in the tests and they are traumatic for her. And yet she still acts super grateful to this creepy doctor who has the “best interest” of the blues at heart. Then the doctor actually does find a cure that turns her blue skin white temporarily, though with side effects. She thinks people will treat her better because she’s white now but they don’t, so she has to learn to come to terms with her blueness. It was also unfeminist because the protagonist talks the whole book about how she doesn’t want to get married and she wants to keep her job as a librarian because of the independence it gives her, and then the minute the only not-awful man shows interest in marrying her, she throws away all her principles. The only thing I liked about the book was the packhorse librarian stuff (which is why I thought it sounded interesting enough to read in the first place). I liked learning more about that program which I have heard of before and think should still be a thing. I would love to ride a horse around delivering books to people.
Now, those were my thoughts after I finished the book. Then I read the author’s note which shed a little light on the author’s intentions for the book. Generally I don’t think authors’ intentions matter much; what matters is the reaction of the reader. But I learned from the author’s note that there was a real congenital disease called methemoglobinemia that affected a family in Tennessee and caused some of them to have blue skin. Apparently this is what the author was basing her fictional story on. So instead of a race narrative, we’re actually dealing with a disability narrative, and it’s still bad. There are a lot of tropes in disability literature and media about disabled people who are selfless and kind and bear their disability with grace so that the abled community can pity them and be ‘inspired’ by them, while still discriminating against them. Then we have the cure. Though the cure is historically factual, it’s problematic in disabled circles to try to find a cure to a disability that isn’t actually causing harm. For example for things like Autism, Down Syndrome, and others. Instead of trying to cure these disabilities, we should be trying to change our society to offer more accommodations, and be more understanding and accepting of diversity of thought and experience.
(Also I just saw that 86% of the people on Goodreads liked this book. Neat.)
2/5 ornery mules

The Accidental Alchemist by Gigi Pandian
The Accidental Alchemist Mysteries book 1 of 4
Also disappointing. Do not recommend. This was not a great month for reading. The language was repetitive, the story dragged, the characters were boring. And the main character was an alchemist who’d been alive for like 400 years, so it seems like it would be hard to make that kind of person boring. But she was not actually that good of an alchemist and very slow on the uptake, which was frustrating as a reader. Having a female character who has lived 400 years, I think, is a really interesting opportunity to analyze how the world has changed and how it has stayed the same for women and other minorities, but this is just something mentioned in passing in relation to women, not explored. There were too many characters and even when we learned their backstory it was like, “Wow, I still don’t care about them.” The mystery wasn’t a neat and satisfying story where all the clues come together in the end and you get that lovely Eureka! moment. Even when we found out what was going on, I was like, “Oh, that’s it?” And the protagonist falls in love with this detective (who doesn’t seem like he’s that good of a detective either), and the romance is just so eye-roll inducing. She talks to him like not that many times and the book would have been far more interesting if the love interest had been the bad guy (Spoiler alert, he’s not). Every time something exciting and sinister-seeming happened, it turned out to be just these teenagers getting up to mischief. Also way too many details about the protagonists energizing smoothies she drinks every morning. I. Do. Not. Care. The best part about the whole thing was Dorian, a gargoyle come to life who also happens to be a great French chef. He was definitely the most interesting character. We listened to this one on our road trip too and no one in my family was a fan.
2.5/5 talking gargoyles

Both of these not-very-good books came from Audible titles that are included with the subscription (meaning you don’t have to spend a credit on them). Is this because they couldn’t get people to actually spend money on them? Does this mean that all included titles are either Classics, bad, or both?

Now my Audible account is suggesting more books by these authors. Please. No.

*Trans women are women. Trans people are people.