I am living for these nonfiction reads - I'm on a solid pick streak! I'm not particularly an Austen fan but I've followed Romney's dive into Romancelandia and was excited to get into this adjacent work. While this is absolutely an insight into the lives and writings of authors with whom Austen would have been familiar, it is more interestingly a look at a studied collector's process and a personal look into a rare book professional's reading life.

An overview of female artists and their use of the body in art. But beyond that too, what does it mean to be a woman making art in a world that appreciates female bodies as art but not female beings as creators of art? Early in the text Elkin posits that her title reflects both 'art monsters' as noun and an art that 'monsters' as verb. I was so struck by this idea which she ultimately reaches back to in her final section on art as decreation.

Just absolute catnip! I was utterly charmed by this vintage historical romance. You've got to go in knowing it is old school, but it's such a fun ride! English bride wed to a Scottish laird, every requisite culture clash is there but our heroine is just so tenacious she charms everyone she meets, including the reader.

Not at all for me. I'm not a dark romance person and the stepsister thing was too much for me.

Haven't read the Nana Malone book yet, so withholding judgement there but I think the entire series may end up being too dark for my tastes.

I need everyone to read this. If you are neurodivergent, read this. If you are neurotypical, read this. I don't have autism but move through life as a high masking person (anxiety, mental illness, sensory sensitivity, yada yada yada) and this book was absolutely illuminating! It also helped me to have some grounding conversations with coworkers that will help us in the workplace. Genuinely affirming and life changing information in here.

Every day I remain grateful for Ross Gay.

Delightful graphic anthology written by, illustrated by, and featuring the stories of trans and nonbinary folks. Written with a younger audience in mind, this is a perfect read for kiddos who may not always feel 'normal' or mainstream to remind them that their futures are limitless.

Essays that blend the personal and academic to interrogate feminist praxis. McGregor uses her life in reading, academia, whiteness, queerness, fatness as the lens to explore what it means to care, to engage, to build a life through making meaning both consciously and not. I tore through this and built a new wing of my TBR with works cited here and I'm already ready to reread it.

Even travel writers had to stay home during the pandemic, lucky for us, Rick Steves decided to use the downtime to bring together this memoir of his overland trip from Europe to India in his early twenties. As charming as you'd expect, this memoir is full of hope in humanity, awe in travel, and so many vintage photos. Perfect for the armchair traveler; I love the stories and I'll happily stay home with my books.

Jurassic Park through a feminist lens. I'm obsessed. Immediately bought McGregor's other book and I'm so looking forward to more in the Pop Classics series.

Not a fav in the series but a fun read as always.

Note the difference in the books between pictured and tagged. Tagged a previous book because even though I added all the info to Litsy for the new title, it will not register for me. The Litsy interface reign of terror continues to haunt my being.

I got kinda bogged down in this one and almost jumped ship a couple times but the style is so adorable and I did care for the characters even as I would have preferred the plot move more quickly. Overall a cute and fun webtoon read.

Charming memoir of a survivor of pediatric cancer who grew up to be an ambassador for St. Jude. Arceneaux eventually became a physician's assistant, landed her dream job at St. Jude, and was ultimately chosen as a team member on Inspiration4 where she was the first pediatric cancer survivor, first individual with a prosthetic limb, and first Louisianian in space. Narrated in a super causal and inspiring way.

DNF at 30% because I did not care at all. I wanted to push through because my coworker loved it but nah.

I was excited about this one because it was pitched as 'the next BIG book' from the editors at Scholastic. It's totally serviceable as a quick YA read, but absolutely falls apart if you interrogate its ideas.

MFA fiction about existential fears and the pervasive anxieties of continuing to live as the world falls apart.

Honestly, writing that out it feels like this would have been for me but it just wasn't. I don't feel that Pattee did enough with her narrative. Beyond the voicing of these fears, what is she trying to express here?

A lovely family novel all about the way cycles repeat and the fact that you can never brush over trauma but must move through it.

My grandmother passed last year and the changes in family dynamics hit my mom and her sisters hard - definitely recommending this one to my mom.

I don't know how to properly review this except to say that the connections to the rest of the series are fantastic, the way Collins speaks to our modern politic is brilliant, comforting, and anxiety inducing, and I would read a book about every year in Panem - bring me into the dark days - I want to hear it!

I understand the criticisms that some connections seem contrived, but I frankly don't care - they worked for me.

Lisa Marie's memoir as completed by her daughter after Lisa Marie's passing. This memoir has received a good deal a praise and I had hopes for something relevatory. Behind the fame they'd share something true and universal about family. But that's not really what this is. It's a series of tragedies, a litany of defeat. A soft pick because it is organized well and the blended authorship works well but this just made me so sad.

I listened to the Whoa!mance Public Access Readalong of P&P over the last few years. One chapter at a time broken up over weeks. Morgan and Isabeau absolutely delight me but unfortunately I'll never be a true Austen fan. I know this is grave heresy.

Pick here for Whoa! commentary.

Misandry, chaos, and cannibalism - you literally cannot ask for more!

What? No! She couldn't possibly!

Just absolutely spot on horror-satire. Recommending this one to all the unhinged girlies with a twinkle in my eye!

Picked this one up because I've been feeling poorly and needed shorter, more low maintenance reads for a bit. It‘s a grouping of three commencement speeches by a comedian I had not previously heard of. I fully admit that I grabbed the ARC because I thought it was a poetry collection. Satisfying speeches made for comfort reading - an excellent graduation gift for Australians.

I was so invested in this fantasy webtoon and then it ended, unfinished, years ago - maybe I should check for resolution before I start them...

Another gorgeous novella of love, loss, and history - this time with mothers and daughters.

I'm really on a roll with these powerful short reads.

An absolutely stunning fairytale of love and loss and sisterhood. I'm so excited for folks to read this one!

Everyone knows her as the person who threw the first brick at Stonewall but this biography breathes life into Marsha's story She was so much more than a historical anecdote! From feeding and housing folks in her community through her STAR organization to providing dedicated care to many suffering from AIDS to being a vibrant and vital member of marches and vigils across the decades, Marsha was a force and inspiration whose light continues to shine

I wanted this short mystery about a dangerous plot in the Library of Congress to be more fun. Memo to me: you are not into mystery.

Cute, cozy, comedy - exactly what you are expecting with Pratchett

Putting this one down for a while because it's both a bit simple and a bit dry. I'm sure I'll pick it up again but it's been on my beside stack for ages and I'm not picking it up. On to the next.

Stunning, overwhelming, heartbreaking

Spent a few days in downtown Denver for a bookseller conference. Found some time to visit a few bookshops and the Sendak exhibit at the Denver Art Museum.

The book I needed in the moment. A warm blanket of a novel if there ever was one. Found family, light adventuring, abundant kindness...this is a balm for the soul book for sure!

Pitched as High Fidelity for the Indie Sleaze Era but it lacks Hornby's charm. I would feel like I'm too old and boring for this one but as an elder millennial I'm actually the target audience here. I was in college listening to these bands. I had a blog. I get it. But like, this did absolutely nothing for me.

I'm going to pass this on to my coworker that's into Sally Rooney. I feel like that's the better comp than Hornby.

This novella, a cute cozy mystery set on a generation starship, was a nice read but I felt there was nothing to hold on to. At times, I felt intrigued by ideas Waite presented but they were always sacrificed for brevity (this is a scant 112 pages). It ends up just being cozy space vibes which is fine, I guess, but I've already forgotten what intrigued me about it...

This one is for fans of the podcast Buffering the Vampire Slayer, which I've never heard. Bailed a few chapters in because I was hoping for more Buffy crit but this is more a memoir of the hosts.

That's not to say this is bad, I'm just not the audience for it.

Did I mostly come to this book because I wanted to gaze at Wendy McNaughton's always delightful illustrations? Yes. Was I absolutely charmed by the straightforward information on tea history, variations, and culture? Oh, absolutely. A charming book that covers a wide range in quick time.

I don't know that I can even review this one. Carmen Maria Machado has presented the most clever, vulnerable, and researched memoir I have yet to come across. The realities of abuse as chronicled are horrifying but the force of the storytelling is absolutely inspiring. In awe of this, actually.

Another delightful, cozy webtoon read.

The Babitz bits are largely recycled from Anolik's earlier work and Didion is really just along for the ride as Anolik is only interested in her as a foil to Babitz. But it's a forced comparison. Overall, I wish this had been an extended second edition to Hollywood's Eve rather than its own work.

'I am ready' ugh, absolutely gutted by that line. This novel is all contradiction for me - I hate humanity, I love Tess, I hate men, I love Hardy. It pulls at my every prejudice and every compassion. Beautiful writing describing horrific treatment. Irony and hypocrisy on open display. Oh, I love it so.

A short, middling webtoon but it sent me down a wiki spiral about the Kumari so it's a pick for that, definitely.

A fun and quick listen for sure, but I guess ultimately not really my thing because I haven't been itching to pick up more in the series.

Listened to this one at Christmas and forgot to review!

It was fine. Cute holiday vibes for sure but I didn't fully trust the romance and I'm a sucker for second chance so this should have been for me. Each individual piece of this novel I enjoyed. The emotional core of it though needed more development.

Loved the conceit of this collection, Helen of Troy as beleaguered 90s wife and mother, but the poems just didn't resonate with me.

I may have loved this one even more than the first. This series has such a silly premise but the actual romance of it, the work the narrative serves is phenomenal. I need more of this world. Give me the Queen of Arbor Day falling for the Groundhog's Day Princess. But obviously, give me Iris' HEA immediately.

“We are the Muses. Goddesses of the arts and proclaimers of heroes.“ And this is their backstory. Myth and legend, squabbling gods, and the powers of sisterhood and creativity are in perfect balance in this adventurous tale.
I've read one other title in the Twisted Tales series (also by Farrah, based on The Princess and the Frog) and I find them delightful. These middle grade stories using Disney favorites as inspiration points are a blast to read

Sadly, I enjoyed this one even less than the first.

As a romance reader, I was super disappointed in the spicy scenes. It felt like zero character development happened in those scenes. If the spice doesn't serve the plot and doesn't give us insight into the character I just kinda feel it's unnecessary. But now I probably just sound like a prude.

Not my thing and I wouldn't have read it but I got called in for the midnight release party at the bookshop and didn't want to be out of the loop. Listened to the audio on 2.5x speed.

I'm here for Andarna though.

Guzman's book began with her struggling to understand her Hispanic parents political leanings. I appreciated this as something of a black sheep in my own family - how do you love someone that disagrees with you to the point of thinking the vast majority of people who think like you are idiots, demons, or both?

A solid pre-inaugural listen. May we stay curious and humble even in dangerous and divided times.