This very detailed account of the author's privilege-fueled rise within an MLM was kind of a rough listen for me! I did appreciate her candor, and I liked the connections to larger social and systemic issues. (Discussion of MLMs during the pandemic was crazy and really interesting.) I would have preferred much more of the commentary/analysis and less of the memoir/plentiful workplace drama & dish that didn‘t work for me on a number of levels.

Great collection! I love the range of voices, styles, and topics included - so many absolute gems both in message and artwork (like the pages shown here!). Must get a print copy to casually leave around the house for my autistic teen to happen upon. ❤️

Add me to the list of Samantha Irby fans who bought this for the cover but just *had* to read via audiobook. (I‘ve enjoyed flipping through the print after listening, though, as it‘s full of all-caps emphases, unclickable links, bursts of exclamation points, and other fun flourishes.) Loved this as I have loved each of her other books. No matter the topic, she is just very funny. Book posed by the garden gate that my husband has tried ⬇️

A niche recommendation, to be sure, but this is a great read if you have kids (or others in your life…including yourself!) that have issues with behavior, social interactions, anxiety, etc. Lots of good research and tips within, and most valuable is the encouragement to reframe misbehavior as stress behavior and to shift the focus from self-“control” to self-regulation.

This is so fun! (Includes an interactive map.)

https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2023-05-28/american-novels-1001-literary-g...

This could be viewed as just the musings and snark of three socioecomically privileged young people who are insecure, jealous, and hypercritical of each other. But there‘s also some insightful stuff around gender, culture, identity, and more. A quick and thought-provoking listen that features three excellent audio performances!

Wowsers. Intense memoir that‘s mostly about Kelly‘s traumatic childhood/younger years. Her reality certainly differs greatly from the assumptions I‘d made about her! She seems very sincere and was super open and analytical about her issues and how they relate to her upbringing, even as it‘s clear she‘s still processing and working through things (with lots of personal and professional support). Her audio narration was lovely and emotional.

I thought this was an excellent novella and am increasingly becoming a big Kelly Barnhill fan. This was really great at a sentence level and full of things I enjoyed - rural Midwest setting; bits of sci-fi-ish technology; a smart, empathetic, and gutsy young heroine; and lots of humor poking through the deep darkness.

I loved this book! Which kind of surprised me, since I felt like I was less of a fan of Ask Again, Yes than the average reader. I just thought the writing in this was amazing, the characters were compelling and believable in their complexity, the setting felt lived in and real, and the audio performances from Rebecca Lowman (always excellent) and Norbert Leo Butz (loved him as Kevin in Bloodline!) were stellar.

Happy Mother‘s Day to me, I guess! 🤣 Had too much fun at a nearby branch‘s exceptionally good semi-annual sale.

Another Stradal novel, another beloved reading experience! I know I love the food and drink and recognizable characters, but I‘d like to reread all of his books one day with attention to the deeper themes and values that are probably also speaking to me as someone born and raised in the Upper Midwest. I *had* to have my own Betty‘s Lemonade while reading. (Having no Bubble Up, I substituted Blake Lively‘s Meyer lemon club soda, the brand ⬇️

What an incredible book. The art is SO expressive, and the story is just as emotionally rich. Felt like the perfect balance of Takei‘s personal/family history and the American history that needs to be told and retold. Love this quote from Takei in the back matter: “Around the world, the same prejudices and hysteria that we endured in the 1940s continue to threaten the freedom and livelihoods of people whose voices have been suppressed… ⬇️

I love Malaka Gharib and will keep reading as many graphic memoirs as she publishes! She has such a straightforward but thoughtful way of addressing issues of identity, being multicultural, navigating complex family relationships, and more. I thought the colors were especially great in this book, too.

Second time camper, first time nominator! Here are a few titles I think would be fun to read this summer. 🏕️📚❤️ #CampLitsy23

Greatly enjoyed! Despite being a longtime Curtis Sittenfeld completist, I went into this with low expectations bc of mixed reviews. Totally worked for me, though. There was kind of a lot about the SNL clone workplace of the main character in the beginning of the book, but I was fine with that. I liked how COVID factored into the story, too. Sittenfeld‘s writing always pleases me (and has since I stumbled upon Prep at the library back in 2005! 💖).

I'd never read this as a kid! I was prudish and very sheltered and am sure I would have been scandalized by various aspects (Dad‘s Playboys! Two Minutes in the Closet! Religious questioning! 😱🤣). It was sweet, and I will now allow myself to watch the movie trailer.

I was lured into trying this by a couple of podcasts, and I ended up really liking it! Familiar unlikable rich people territory, but some of the characters were uniquely drawn, and I appreciated the social commentary. The writing and humor worked for me, too. Marin Ireland elevates anything she narrates, so I‘m sure that shaped my experience. 🙂

This was super interesting, and I loved the art and black/white/yellow palette. I think I *mostly* understood the business machinations but am hoping that watching the movie fills in whatever gaps remain. I never had a Nintendo growing up or played Tetris, but my husband and kids are Nintendo devotees. (Also pictured is a functioning VCR which my teen who is a vintage entertainment enthusiast does actually use. 🤣)

Was hesitant to read more about this awful tragedy but very glad I pressed play on this audiobook, as it was remarkable. Incredible writing, gives voice to the birth families of the children, and gets one thinking about all sorts of issues, from judgments about parenting to journalistic ethics. I most appreciated what I learned about the U.S. child welfare system and have bumped a few of the books referenced up on my TBR (tagged in comments).

Unexpected bookmail of an ARC from a fave (local) author feels like an excellent First Day of Spring Break present! 📚🎁 (Thanks, #GoodreadsGiveaways !)

This was fun! My favorite part was the baking competition setting - loved every detailed recipe/ingredient/technique description. I might have preferred to read via print, as I was not a fan of a couple of the audiobook performances and, knowing this was a murder mystery, kind of started hoping those characters might meet untimely ends. 😜

This book is magnificent! I remember reading it in HS and liking, but that's about all I remembered about it. Guessing I didn't truly get it back then, but boy does it ring true now. So glad I revisited while my own high schooler was reading for class (and he loved it, too). Great audio performance (and I defy any listener to not be singing “Beasts of England“ around the house for days!).

I didn't love this, but I still liked it! There was something about the writing that kept me from full love…a little sugary at times, I guess? But I did enjoy many aspects, including wonderful characters and the attention paid to mental health. (And I did love how the author thanked our mutual fave Golden State Warriors in the acknowledgments. 💙💛)

I‘m really in the mood for post-apocalyptic content after finishing The Last of Us on HBO (loved it, an all-time fave season of TV for me). Enter this, which I had never read, and actually I‘ve never read any Cormac McCarthy, fearing it was too brutal for me. This was brutal, but not in a way I couldn‘t handle. I loved the writing and language. The boy was just so sweet, and I spent a lot of time thinking about how he stayed that way.

Really nicely done memoir that touches on so many themes - identity, college life, activism, friendship, and loss among them. Highlights for me were the writing, the immersion in 90s pop culture, and the multiple and distinct California settings. (Weird aside: I sometimes was getting details about Hsu's life mixed up in my head with details of Steven Spielberg's life, because I was mid-this on the day I watched ⬇️

I loved this book but wasn‘t sure what I would think about the adaptation. I found it incredibly well done, devastating, with an amazing cast giving memorable and moving performances. Definitely worthy of the Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay Oscar nominations (and should have earned others, in my opinion!). So glad I saw that it was on Prime on a limited basis, expires around this time tomorrow!

Well that is quite the endorsement. Onto the TBR it goes!

Was so curious as to whether I'd be in the “Overrated!“ camp or the “I LOVE THIS BOOK!“ camp for this one. Very firmly in the latter! Adored the story, the characters, the writing, the gaming culture, the philosophical musings, and everything else about it.

This was great. Super educational and a book I wish many people would read. Myths like the obesity epidemic and the moral righteousness/culture of celebration around weight loss/thinness are ones that I have a hard time convincing some people in my life are myths. This book explains why they are and brings ample receipts. Gordon's writing expanded my own understanding of a lot of things, including the harmful ways in which ⬇️

This certainly lived up to every bit of the hype for me. Loved it from start to finish. She is amazing, and I had no idea how amazing given everything she's endured. Loved the Grammy-winning audio but am wondering if there are pictures in the print copy? If so I must see them. (I also watched The Woman King this past weekend and thought that was amazing, too.)

This intimidated me a bit, maybe bc of the heft of the print version. I ended up loving my experience of it, which included
1. the audiobook, with its magnificent cast of narrators
2. a list of who narrated what! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Hundred_Souls
3. my own print copy for highlighting bc there were so many points I want to remember.
Read this way, I found it super engaging, accessible, and enlightening.

Listening to the audio/highlighting in my print copy of the tagged and working toward some goals in the process: taking part in the Feminist Book Club readathon, fitting in at least one more Black History Month read, and finally making time for this brilliant book. There's no understanding women's history or American history without the study of Black American women's history, as many pieces in this so well illustrate. #FBCReadathon

Such a fantastic book! Been meaning to get to it since well before it came out bc I love Ed Yong (his previous book I Contain Multitudes, plus his Atlantic writing in general and his pandemic pieces in particular). Endless cool facts about how animals sense the world (as best we can tell!). And a wonderful reminder that humans' perceptions of the world are limited by our own senses and perspectives...but learning can expand both of these. 💚

This is an amazing Black History Month or anytime read, carrying forward the excellence of the March series. It deepened my understanding of divisions within SNCC and the movement overall, and of how those connected to the Vietnam War, backlash to the Voting Rights Act, and more. Cool how many lesser-known activists were highlighted. I gasped at the final page bc I wasn‘t ready for the story to end. Hope his co-creators will put out a Book Two?

Lots to like here - cool premise, and I LOVED the early 2010s SF/Silicon Valley setting (and esp. how the author constantly mentioned foods/restaurants that were trending in that era; I lived in Santa Cruz then and would food-pilgrimage up to SF just to take part in those trends! 😆). The pace slowed for me at some point, and I had a love/hate relationship with the audio narration. I do wonder what it would have been like in print. Still a pick!

I really enjoyed this! So much about Maddie as a later-blooming, overthinking heroine was likable and relatable. Lots of interesting supporting characters, too, and thoughtful cultural commentary throughout. Quite a bit of food and cooking in the story, which I loved. Excellent audio narration, and obviously the cover is magnificent. ❤️

I entirely loved this collection! Such an interesting range of characters and settings. And of tones - sweet and funny to heartbreaking and dark, even brutal at times. The complexity of relationships shines through in every story. Hard to even pick faves, but the title story, When in the Dordogne, and Creature were standouts.

Still working through what I thought about this one. I definitely liked the writing/language - kept me fully engaged (in conjunction with great audio narration). Nobody was likable to me, but that‘s not something I care much about. I didn‘t necessarily find it super suspenseful or twisty, but had I not been kind of expecting that (based on some reviews), I don‘t think I would have considered that an issue. So I guess I liked it! 🤣

Even though I‘d never even heard of the video game, I was eagerly awaiting the HBO adaptation of The Last of Us (they had me at Pedro Pascal, plus other cast members I love). Didn‘t expect to fall for the show so hard (obsessed!), nor did I expect to become hungry for any and all fungi content! This was EXACTLY what I was seeking - tons of fascinating info, great writing, LOVED the author‘s voice on the audio (plus that cover! 😍). Just fantastic.

This was lovely and sweet and also sad and brutal. Loved the way Erdrich wrote about this family/community, the immersion in the natural world/Upper Midwest seasons, and the way the book showed everyday life intersecting with the horrors of that historical moment. Happy to have fit in another #AuthorAMonth book (maybe time for one more?).

Love love LOVED this!! If Kingsolver hadn‘t already been one of my favorite authors, this would have made her so. So incredibly good! Demon‘s voice is one of the greats (and audio narrator Charlie Thurston brought it to life beautifully). I literally clutched my chest after the last line out of pure love and also sadness that it was over. (Much to my surprise, I actually kind of want to read David Copperfield now!)

I liked this. Certainly a cool and thought-provoking premise, and an interesting cast of characters (though some felt better developed than others). The story took a few disturbing detours that seemed kind of forced/shoehorned in to me, but otherwise I enjoyed the ride. I did love the narration by Dominic Hoffman.

Finally got to this, after being sure I'd start it RIGHT after finishing Razorblade Tears in 2021, and then sort of hoarding it bc I figured it was a sure thing. High expectations met and exceeded! Loved this at least as much as RT. Once again, I appreciated the high energy, super flawed but relatable characters, and especially how Cosby manages to subtly weave important social issues and themes into it all. Eagerly awaiting the next one!

I thought this was fantastic. Not sure it‘s classified as a novella, but it‘s a slim 200ish pages with huge margins, so it‘s a quick read. Not too much happens, but the premise, tone, and character development totally worked for me. The writing is spare but so visually evocative that I kept imagining a film version as I read. I found this quite special and am so grateful that @Tin_House put it on my radar.

I enjoyed this one. I didn‘t find the author very relatable (in life experiences or, in some cases, in philosophies of living), yet I liked the writing a lot. Hoping for many more great memoirs, essay collections, and mashups of the two in 2023.

Happiness is having a bunch of Louise Erdrich‘s backlist on your TBR! Minus this one now, which was fantastic - such complex and interesting characters/relationships (and now I want to reread The Round House to remember which characters from this reappear in it). I just love the way she writes. Hoping to be motivated by #AuthorAMonth to fit in a few more of her titles this month.

A few fun finds from my favorite local Little Free Library crawl. (I GUESS I‘ll take our Christmas tree down this week…sigh.)

I appreciated this book a lot. Loved the premise, writing, story (and how books, libraries, and librarians play into it!), and message. The pace felt slow for me in some parts, though it might have just been me because I was admittedly at times listening while distracted. Great author‘s note at the end with recommended resources that expanded my expansive TBR! My favorite of Ng‘s books so far.

What a great graphic memoir about a tough childhood, a complicated family, and the early development of an artistic career. Krosoczka drew (in both senses of the word!) his characters so vividly and I loved the art and colors. Several substantial notes sections at the end deepened the reading experience for me.

Thoroughly enjoyed this story and its takes on scientific discovery, academia, relationships, hope, and more. Would have loved to have gotten to know a few of the characters even better, yet I also appreciate that feeling of wanting more.

(My slowness in getting to it does not properly reflect my gratitude to @Tin_House for sending the ARC!)