Posted April 06, 2022in Book Review
‘When We Were Birds’ I can write this review in one sentence: This might be the perfect magical realism novel; go read it. Yejide has a complicated relationship with her mother, to say the least. Bitterness and neglect and a strange family burden crack the mother-daughter relationship beyond repair. When
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Posted March 02, 2022in Book Review
‘Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas’ Anthropology is not always an accessible topic for general reading. It’s often dense, and despite its subject being humanity, it can seem cold and remote to the general public. Not a small part of this is the historically racist, insensitive and inhumane way
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Posted February 02, 2022in Book Review
‘Last Night at the Telegraph Club’ I’m such a sucker for well-written, historical novels that don’t feel like historical fiction. Melinda Lo is known for her darkly beautiful stories, and this one hit that note just right. Unexpected romance, a turbulent time in our recent history, and a coming-of-age story
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Posted January 05, 2022in Book Review
‘Iron Widow’ The wide world of fantasy novels has so much more diversity these days, and I, for one, cannot be more excited about it. “Iron Widow” is just such a story, taking place in an alternate world in which a culture with Chinese influences is haunted by an alien
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Posted December 01, 2021in Book Review
‘Even Greater Mistakes: Stories by Charlie Jane Anders’ When life is busy, and my attention span is short, I turn to short stories to fill in the gaps of my day. I enjoy a quick punch of a story to curb a bad mood (or heighten a good one). For
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Posted November 03, 2021in Book Review
‘Comfort Me with Apples’ This is not an easy book to review. The pervading, intensely creepy feeling established from the first page of this short novella never diminishes. In fact, it just grows and expands to new heights as the pages fly by. Nothing Catherynne Valente writes is ever simple,
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Posted October 06, 2021in Book Review
‘A Spindle Splintered’ If you’ve been following along, you’ll have likely caught on to my addiction to fairy tales, myths, timeless stories of all varieties. So it’ll be no surprise to hear I’ve fallen head over heels for this gorgeous, deliciously subversive retelling of Sleeping Beauty. Zinnia’s life revolves around
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Posted September 01, 2021in Book Review
‘She Who Became the Sun’ Some stories are so old and so human that they feel like a part of our DNA. Fables, faerie tales, myths. Reading this book felt like recalling a story I’d always known. I must warn you, though, this one hurts — an ache so profound
Read More →‘Black Sun’ I have been aching for a vacation lately. A universal feeling, it seems these days. If you’re like me and can’t get away just now, then I have the book for you. Reading “Black Sun” is an experience. Filled with heart-stealing characters and writing that is so lush and
Read More →‘Sorrowland’ This is a hard one to describe well without spoiling the story. Rivers Solomon is such a talented writer. This feels like a story within a myth within a fable. Nested narratives, incredibly vivid characters, and the kind of writing that just dives right into your soul — this
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