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Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

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Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-in

Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

Normally, I start a post like this at the beginning of the season and add to it as I finish reading each book. That gives me a diary-like record of my experience with each book, which I enjoy looking back at later.

This time, I forgot to start the post and only remembered about it in mid-November when I began making my calendar of list posts for next year. At any rate, I did manage to get my Fall 2024 backlist reading list together, and I’m excited to talk about some of these books.

I somehow managed to get to a lot more backlist titles than I thought I did. My guess is that this is because I read many of them as audiobooks. A few that I read as ebooks or hard copies were basically mood reads.

I’ve had some of these books high on my reading list for quite a while, like Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews, Show Me a Sign by Ann-Clare LeZotte, and Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley. Others, like Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price, The Game of Silence by Louise Erdrich, and We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride, are newer to my reading list, but I am really glad I got to them.

Note: This post contains affiliate links that do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. Thanks for using them to do your shopping.

Fall 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: This is one of the top ten most frequently banned books in the US. It’s about two best friends who learn that a classmate has been diagnosed with cancer.

Published March 1, 2012 | My Review to Come

Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: stuff stuff

Published April 6, 2021 | My Review to Come

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: This feels like a convention-setting novel, and I’m glad I read it. Some of the commentary about the characters is very dated, which might make it challenging for today’s readers. It’s a fascinating mystery, though.

Published June 1, 1997 (Orig. 1978) | My Review to Come

Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: Weirdly, I read Warrior Girl, Unearthed before I read Fire Keeper’s Daughter, so there were a couple of elements of the plot that I already knew about. I did enjoy getting to see Pauline and her sister as younger kids and reading Daunis’s story. It’s a tightly plotted, intense book. Highly recommended.

Published March 16, 2021 | My Review to Come

The Betrayal of Anne Frank by Rosemary Sullivan

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: I read Anne Frank’s diary earlier this year, and I immediately put this book on my reading list after that. The book carefully tracks an intricate investigation into who betrayed the Frank family. It’s an amazing book.

Published January 17, 2023 | My Review to Come

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: Five teenagers spread across the US who become involved in human trafficking. This one is pretty dark with fairly straightforward characters. It’s one of the most frequently banned books in the US.

Published August 25, 2009 | My Review to Come

The Ballad of Never After (Once Upon a Broken Heart #2) by Stephanie Garber

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: Evangeline’s adventures continue! This might have been my favorite book of the three. We learn more about the fairytale for which Evangeline is named and what Jacks is truly after. It’s a pretty wild ride.

Published September 13, 2022 | Review to Come

We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: A powerful novel-in-verse about magic, depression, and the power of the stories we tell ourselves. Amber McBride is pretty much an auto-buy author for me. She’s amazing.

Published January 10, 2023 | My Review to Come

A Curse for True Love (Once Upon a Broken Heart #3) by Stephanie Garber

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: The finale of the series. I think the second book was my favorite, but I definitely wanted to know how things turned out for Evangeline and her love. If you like Garber’s work, I am pretty sure you’ll like this series.

Published October 24, 2023 | My Review to Come

The Game of Silence (The Birchbark House #2) by Louise Erdrich

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: Omakayas’s story continues as her family faces new threats to their way of life. Her dreams prove a powerful force, but is she brave enough to listen to them? I am loving this series so far.

Published June 16, 2006 | Review to Come

Show Me a Sign by Ann-Clare LeZotte

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: This is the first book about Mary and her community on Martha’s Vineyard. I wish I’d read this one first, though I don’t think you have to in order to follow the series. Reading this book made the areas of focus in the other books make more sense to me. It’s a fabulous historical fiction book.

Published March 3, 2020 | My Review to Come

Coyote Queen by Jessica Vitalis

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: The back cover copy calls this book moving and voice-driven, and boy is it both of those things! An unforgettable tale of a girl with a troubling home life finding her voice.

Published October 10, 2023 | My Review to Come

Those Pink Mountain Nights by Jen Ferguson

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: The story of three friends and their connection to a local pizza parlor and a missing girl. Moving, thoughtful, and intense. Each point of view has amazing characterization.

Published September 12, 2023 | My Review to Come

This Town is on Fire by Pamela N. Harris

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: An incisive exploration of relationships and activism and the opportunity to continue to learn and grow. Powerful storytelling here.

Published June 20, 2023 | My Review to Come

Did you read any books in the past few months that came out before 2024?

Did you do any reading over the fall season? If so, what were your favorite books?

Have you read any of the books on my Fall 2024 Backlist Reading list? Please leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Review: Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi

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Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You
Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
Little, Brown, Books for Young Readers
Published March 10, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You

A remix of the National Book Award-winning STAMPED FROM THE BEGINNING for ages 12 and up.

A timely, crucial, and empowering exploration of racism–and antiracism–in America.

This is NOT a history book.
This is a book about the here and now.
A book to help us better understand why we are where we are.
A book about race.

The construct of race has always been used to gain and keep power, to create dynamics that separate and silence. This is a remarkable reimagining of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s STAMPED FROM THE BEGINNING, winner of a National Book Award. It reveals the history of racist ideas in America and inspires hope for an antiracist future.

STAMPED takes you on a race journey from then to now, shows you why we feel how we feel, and why the poison of racism lingers. It also proves that while racist ideas have always been easy to fabricate and distribute, they can also be discredited.

Through a gripping, fast-paced, and energizing narrative, Jason Reynolds shines a light on the many insidious forms of racist ideas–and on ways readers can identify and stamp out racist thoughts in their daily lives.

My Review

First, the summary description of the book as “gripping, fast-paced and energizing” is totally accurate. I listened to this book as an audiobook twice in a row. There’s so much information packed into such a short span of pages. It is a lot to take in, so I’m sure this won’t even be the last time I read it. I have a hard copy that I’d like to go back to and highlight certain passages in as well.

So, the summary also says this isn’t a history book. Yet, it talks a LOT about history. It looks at history from the perspective of racism and relationships between black and white people in America. It looks at the beginning ideas about our differences and how those ideas evolved (or didn’t) as history played out.

One of the things I like a lot about the book is that it gives a survey overview of a lot of moments but zooms in on some critical places and familiar people as well. There’s quite a bit of discussion about Thomas Jefferson and the things he believed and where the contradictions are. I found that really helpful to clarify and explain some of the things I already knew about him. It definitely filled in some blanks for me.

I think in school, because we’re looking closely at certain parts of history, I sometimes had a “can’t see the forest for the trees” experience. In this book, Reynolds shows us the forest. We kind of get to see the whole of how the relationship between black and white people developed and changed, the rise of different ideas, and why they were harmful or helpful. I liked that. I don’t think I’ve ever seen dots connected in this way. It actually made me feel like I wish we had more books like this– conversational and easy to understand– about other topics. Give me this, but with the history of the United States from an indigenous perspective. Or from the perspective of women’s rights. LGBTQIA+ rights.

I’m sure some of those books already exist, which is awesome because now I’m hungry for them.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
The book references and briefly summarizes the lives of many people, predominantly white men and women and black men and women.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
One instance of mild profanity.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to rape and claims of rape. For example, the book references a movie called Birth of a Nation in which an actor in blackface plays a man who rapes a white woman. No graphic descriptions.

Spiritual Content
Some discussion of the Puritans and early Christian colonists and their views about indigenous people and African people. Some discussion of a church leader and prolific writer who wrote a book that spread fears about witchcraft.

Violent Content
No graphic descriptions of violence, but mentions of enslavement and enslaved people being punished by being whipped. Mentions of people being lynched. Mentions of war.

Drug Content
None.

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Spring 2024 Backlist Reading Check-In and Life Update

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Life Update: It’s Been Wild

Whew. It has been a tough few months, y’all. Wowza. I had to take an unplanned break from reading because things got too overwhelming. And the weird thing is, there wasn’t a gigantic, immediate crisis at any point.

My kids hit some big milestones and needed extra support. My partner was traveling for work. It meant additional output from me, but nothing that I would have called unmanageable.

Except that it was. Which, thankfully, prompted me to get medical advice. I’ve had some low-key, annoying, but not dangerous, issues going on for a while. I thought by now, I’d be getting relief from new meds and treatment. But that didn’t seem to be happening. In fact, I felt worse.

Anyway, thankfully, I spoke with a nurse who not only really heard what I was saying but also pretty easily connected the dots and asked me to immediately stop the meds I was on. It turns out the medicine made me feel worse. Fortunately, there are other medicines to try, so I’ll start something new this week and hopefully continue feeling better.

So, yeah. I’ve been feeling a lot less than myself since December, but it happened so gradually it was hard to notice until now, looking back. At any rate, I am starting to feel better (aside from this head cold I’ve picked up), and I hope to get caught up on my reading in the next few weeks.

Spring Backlist Reading Check-In

Let’s move on to why we’re all here: books!

Most of these backlist titles I listened to as audiobooks. The only exception is the graphic memoir by Colin Kaepernick. I’ve found audiobooks to be a great way for me to work through my backlist since I’ll listen while I’m driving or folding laundry.

One of my goals this year is to read classic literature by women and/or BIPOC. I’m counting The Color Purple by Alice Walker and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou toward that goal.

Another of my goals is to read some of the nonfiction titles I’ve had my eye on for a while. Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann and The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater will count toward that goal– and they were both absolutely excellent!

Some of these books will appear on my Beat the Backlist and Read Harder challenge pages, too.

Note: This post contains affiliate links that don’t cost you anything to use but help support this blog. Thanks for using them to do your shopping!

Spring 2024 Backlist Reading

Colin Kaepernick: Change the Game by Colin Kaepernick, Eve L. Ewing, and Orlando Caicedo

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I actually read this because I came across a pretty scathing review of the book that struck me as… well, problematic at best. I wanted to read the book and see if that context made the reviewer’s comments make more sense. It didn’t, but I enjoyed the book a lot. It’s nuanced and thoughtful and focuses on Kaepernick’s life as a middle school and high school student and the challenges he faced.

Published March 7, 2023 | My Review to Come

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (Hunger Games #0) by Susanne Collins

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: Oof. I am glad I read this one, but I struggled. It’s kind of President Snow’s origin story. Taking a character that people so despised and writing a story in which he appears sympathetic has to be a huge writing challenge. There were parts that I thought were great and characters I liked. Overall, I’m glad I read it, but not sure it is something I’d ever revisit. (Though I did reread WUTHERING HEIGHTS this year, so who knows!)

Published May 19, 2020 | My Review to Come

The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: This is an absolute must-read. I loved the way the book is structured. Slater knows exactly when to zoom into the details and when to zoom out to show the system surrounding the people in the book. I’m still reeling from the book and can’t stop recommending it to everyone I can think of.

Published October 17, 2017 | My Review to Come

Vengeance of the Pirate Queen by Tricia Levenseller

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My Thoughts: It was fun to revisit Alosa’s pirate world again and follow a ship of mostly female sailors, but this one was kind of a miss for me overall. I couldn’t really get into the romance. It felt like he didn’t respect her boundaries because he knew what she needed better than she did. Could legitimately be my perception of the characters. I wish I’d connected with the story more.

Published November 7, 2023 | My Review to Come

Killers of the Flower Moon: Adapted for Young Readers: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I discovered this YA adaptation while browsing for a new audiobook from my library. As soon as I started listening, I was hooked. I knew only the vaguest bits of history around the edges of these events. I kinda remember the Teapot Dome scandal and J. Edgar Hoover’s rise to the head of the FBI, but I knew nothing about the shocking murders of the Osage people and the racist practices that not only led to them but often protected the wrongdoers rather than the people being harmed. This is an absolute must-read.

Published November 16, 2021 | My Review to Come

We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: This one has been on my reading list for a while, so I was excited to finally pick it up. I love the big city (Washington DC) to small town (Bardell, GA) vibes and the layers of mystery perfectly folded together in this book. It’s also an incredible intergenerational story about trauma, grief, and the way that we connect to our history. Some parts were hard for me to read, but the story as a whole really moved me. This book will stay with me a long time.

Published November 29, 2022 | My Review to Come

Once Upon a Broken Heart (#1) by Stephanie Garber

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: It’s been a long time since I’ve read CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber, but I enjoyed it so much, that I knew I wanted to check out this series. Now that all the books in the series have been released, I think this is one I could seriously binge my way through. It’s got the same dangerous magical feel that CARAVAL had for me, and I think I like the forbidden love angle the story has going on. I’ll definitely read on for book two.

Published September 28, 2021 | My Review to Come

The Hazel Wood (The Hazel Wood #1) by Melissa Albert

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I can’t believe this came out in 2018! Have I really been saying I’m going to read it for six years?! Wowza. Anyway. It took me until probably the halfway mark of this book for me to decide that I really liked it. I think at the beginning, I kept waiting for the story to start? I expected Alice to spend 75% of the book in the Hazel Wood or Hinterland itself instead of the pace the actual story takes.

Published January 30, 2018 | My Review to Come

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: One of my goals for this year is to read some classic literature written by women and/or BIPOC, so this will be one on that list. It’s the first in a series of autobiographies that Angelou wrote, focusing on her life from the ages of three to sixteen. I think this is the first book I’ve read that talks about the experience of segregated life from a Black perspective. It’s haunting and beautiful.

Published April 21, 2009 (Orig. 1969) | My Review to Come

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: Some depictions of abuse in this book made it tough to read at times, but wow. Beyond those moments (and maybe also in spite of them?) it’s such a beautiful story about sisterhood and the strength women draw from relationships with one another. It’s about the power of community and the value of holding space for one another. Helping each other. I really enjoyed this book, and it’ll stay with me for a long time.

Published December 10, 2019 (Orig. 1982) | My Review to Come

Have you read any backlist titles lately?

If you’re participating in a backlist reading challenge this year, please let me know! If you have a page or post where you list the books you’ve read, please feel free to put a link to it in my comments. I’d love to check it out.

Have you read any of the books on my Spring 2024 Backlist Reading list? If so, please let me know what you think about them in the comments!

Review: I Like the Performing Arts… What Jobs Are There? by Steve Martin and Roberto Blefari

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I Like the Performing Arts… What Jobs Are There? (That’s a Job Series)
Steve Martin
Illustrated by Roberto Blefari
Kane Miller
Published August 1, 2022

Kane Miller Website | Bookshop | Goodreads

About I Like the Performing Arts… What Jobs Are There?

Whether they love the spotlight or prefer to be busy behind the scenes, there’s something for everyone in this accessible guide for children who are interested in working in the performing arts. From being an actor to a costume designer, to a special effects artist, readers are taken through a day-in-the-life of 25 workers and shown the different skills and qualities needed for each exciting job.

My Review

When I was little, I dreamed of being a professional ballerina. I took loads of dance classes, and maybe dancing professionally could have been an option if I’d kept at it. I quit when I was fourteen, tired of ballet being my entire world. I’m sure I’m not the only person who had dreams of that sort, especially as a kid. I love that this book allows kids to explore those big dreams by including high-profile performing arts careers like ballet dancer, actor, and pop singer. The book also includes a lot of other careers (with perhaps easier points of entry) in the performing arts industry, like media and entertainment lawyers, camera operators, drama teachers, and choreographers.

For each of the 25 careers profiled, the book provides some information about the educational backgrounds required for the job and takes readers through a detailed busy workday. There’s also a note listing the best and worst parts of the job, which offers a little more insight into each career.

I had a lot of fun looking through the careers in this one with my daughter. Some, we were familiar with, but others we didn’t know much or anything about. She liked being able to pick and choose which careers sounded interesting to her and jumping around the book, which is super easy thanks to the table of contents, which includes a little thumbnail illustration of a person in each career.

This is a great series for middle- or late-elementary readers who want more information about jobs in different fields of interest. The whole series is really cool.

Age Recommendation

For readers eight to twelve.

The cartoony style probably makes this better suited to fourth or fifth-grade level, but the pages have so much information that I think older kids would benefit, too.

Content Summary

Illustrations show a diverse group of people performing different jobs.

Additional Titles in the That’s a Job Series

I Like Space… What Jobs Are There?

I Like Helping People… What Jobs Are There?

I Like Machines… What Jobs Are There?

Titles I Haven’t Reviewed

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Disfigured: On Fairytales, Disability, and Making Space by Amanda Leduc

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Disfigured: On Fairytales, Disability, and Making Space
Amanda Leduc
Coach House Books
Published March 3, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Disfigured

In fairy tales, happy endings are the norm—as long as you’re beautiful and walk on two legs. After all, the ogre never gets the princess. And since fairy tales are the foundational myths of our culture, how can a girl with a disability ever think she’ll have a happy ending?

By examining the ways that fairy tales have shaped our expectations of disability, DISFIGURED will point the way toward a new world where disability is no longer a punishment or impediment but operates, instead, as a way of centering a protagonist and helping them to cement their own place in a story, and from there, the world. Through the book, Leduc ruminates on the connections we make between fairy tale archetypes—the beautiful princess, the glass slipper, the maiden with long hair lost in the tower—and tries to make sense of them through a twenty-first-century disablist lens.

From examinations of disability in tales from the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen through to modern interpretations ranging from Disney to Angela Carter, and the fight for disabled representation in today’s media, Leduc connects the fight for disability justice to the growth of modern, magical stories, and argues for increased awareness and acceptance of that which is other—helping us to see and celebrate the magic inherent in different bodies.

My Review

I heard about this book years ago from booktuber Jesse on YouTube, who read and recommended it. Sadly, it took me a long time to actually read the book myself, but I finally have! And I’m so glad I did.

This book explores fairytales through the lens of what it’s like to read them as a person with disabilities. The author not only shares her own experience as a girl with cerebral palsy, but she also quotes and shares stories of other writers and activists with disabilities as they share their own experiences as well.

One of the things I found the most impactful about DISFIGURED was seeing different fairytale characters and stories from this perspective. There were many things I hadn’t considered or was unaware of. It helped to break things down into tropes and themes and look at what those ideas say about the value or morality of those characters and through the characters the people represented.

For example, the author talks about how often in fairytales, characters with disabilities fall into two categories. Either they are noble characters whose disabilities become reversed because they were pure of heart or brave or noble. Or the disability is supposed to be evidence of an internal evil that remains a static part of the character’s nature.

There’s also some commentary about the differences in the roles of women versus men in fairytales, too. I enjoyed that a lot.

All in all, DISFIGURED is a really thoughtful book that explores familiar fairytales, where they came from, and what they teach us about who we are and what society should be. And asks whether we agree with those lessons and, if not, what we will do about it.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
The author has Cerebral Palsy. She quotes other disabled writers and activists.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Very infrequent extreme profanity.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to fairytale romance/weddings. Leduc recounts an early version of what became the Sleeping Beauty fairytale in which a maiden pricks her finger on a flax seed and falls into a magical sleep. A traveling king sees her and is so overcome with lust that he rapes her (not described in any detail). The author points out that the story never addresses the king’s behavior as problematic, wrong, or illegal.

The author references an essay written by a man with disabilities who openly talks about hiring sex workers to meet his personal needs. (No details beyond this.)

Spiritual Content
Discusses the origins of the fairy godmother/fairies in fairytales. Examines the Christian (Calvinist, in the case of the Grimm Brothers) roots or edits to many fairytales in subsequent editions. Mentions of magic in stories.

In one tale, the devil tricks a man into promising his daughter to him. The girl thwarts the bargain several times.

Violent Content
References to some gory elements of especially early fairytales. Cinderella’s stepsisters mutilate their feet to fit into her shoe. The evil queen in Snow White is forced to dance in red-hot metal shoes until she dies at the tale’s end. See romantic content.

The author also discusses the changeling myths and how people would leave their babies or young children in the snow to die of exposure if they believed the baby was a changeling. She briefly tells a story about a man who burned his wife to death. He claimed she’d been replaced by a changeling after an illness.

Drug Content
Mentions of magical potions or poisoned fruit.

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Winter 2024 Backlist Check-in

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Last year, I started doing a seasonal backlist reading check-in so I could share a little bit about some of the backlist titles I’d been reading. I prioritize frontlist reviews since I often get copies of those from publishers, so putting them up is more time-sensitive. But there are always titles I didn’t get to when they came out that I manage to fit in afterward– often as audiobooks.

As you can see, I’ve been busy since my Fall Backlist reading update, so this is going to be a long list. Several of these books are graphic novels that I got for Christmas for somewhat unselfish reasons. (I wanted to read them and also to offer them to my nephew and niece to read.)

I’m pretty happy with my progress tackling backlist books so far this year. Some of these will appear on my Beat the Backlist and Read Harder challenge pages, too.

Winter 2024 Backlist Reading

Strike the Zither (Kingdom of Three #1) by Joan He

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: DESCENDANT OF THE CRANE was one of my favorite books I read last year, so I’ve had this one on my list since I first heard it was coming out. I love the way this author crafts large-scale political conflicts and complicated relationships. This one went in some directions I didn’t predict, and I’m eager for book two in the series.

Published October 25, 2022 | Review to Come

Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I have been wanting to read this since another reviewer called it one of her top favorites for 2022. It reminded me a bit of THE SPLENDOR by Breeana Shields or CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber. Sisters. Lush magical setting filled with danger and secrets. Forbidden love. All the good stuff.

Published April 5, 2022 | Review to Come

Frida Kahlo: Her Life, Her Work, Her Home by Fransisco de la Mora

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: This is the first biography of Frida Kahlo that I’ve ever read, and it left me wanting to read more about her life. I enjoyed the details about her life and her work and afterward spent some time looking up images of her paintings and where I might be able to see them someday.

Published April 11, 2023 | Review to Come

Salt Magic by Hope Larson and Rebecca Mock

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I got this book for Christmas and had been interested in this author’s work for a while. I love the way the illustrator uses color palettes to set moods and show tension. I really enjoyed the story– it’s a quick read.

Published October 12, 2021 | Review to Come

Northranger by Rey Tierciero and Bre Indigo

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: Northanger Abbey isn’t a story I’m very familiar with, but the author includes a lovely note in this book explaining the connection between this graphic novel and Austen’s novel. I thought the romance was super sweet and the use of horror movie references and suspense added a lot of fun to the book.

Published June 6, 2023 | Review to Come

Hooky (Hooky #1) by Míriam Bonastre Tur

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I keep seeing this book everywhere, and the story (two twin witches who go on the run) sounded cute. Some of the chapters felt a bit episodic, but considering this story began as a webcomic, I suppose that’s to be expected. I enjoyed the quirky characters and fun elements.

Published September 7, 2021 | Review to Come

This Woven Kingdom (This Woven Kingdom #1) by Tahereh Mafi

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I recently discovered that a friend reads a lot and she highly recommended this series, so I figured I better check it out. So far, I am entranced by the powerful writing and slow-burn forbidden love. I finished the first book and started the second on the same day.

Published February 1, 2022 | Review to Come

Nimona by ND Stevenson

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I’ve been seeing this book everywhere, never more than now that there’s a Netflix movie. I decided it was definitely time to read it, and I’m so glad I did. This is like Dr. Horrible’s cooler, more sophisticated older sibling, and yet it’s charming and fun all in its own right. Definitely a must-read for fantasy fans.

Published May 12, 2015 | Review to Come

Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I’ve listened to an audio version of this book before, but it’s been at least ten years. I wanted to revisit the work to help keep Dr. King’s messages in the context that he issued them. In this letter, he responds specifically to the white Christian leadership who have asked him to stop protesting and “work within the system” instead. Powerful words and a message that still rings out as timely today.

Published February 22, 2018

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: I’ve seen this graphic memoir on book ban lists a lot in the last few years, so I wanted to check it out. I think the author writes with so much courage and desperately needed frankness. These are topics that a lot of people have questions about and aren’t sure how to get answers. I really appreciated having a roadmap through someone’s personal experience that can help orient me as an ally to what those experiences might be like.

Published May 28, 2019 | Review to Come

Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit (Theo Tan #1)

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My thoughts: I enjoyed the second book in this series, and I had the first one already (from a publisher), so I’d been meaning to circle back and read it. I think I actually enjoyed this one more than the second one. I really enjoyed Kai’s asides and footnotes, and Theo’s devotion to his brother melts my heart.

Published May 31 2022 | Review

These Infinite Threads (This Woven Kingdom #2) by Tahereh Mafi

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My thoughts: I started this sequel within hours of finishing the first book in the series, and I’m so hooked. I love that one of my favorite minor characters from the first book has a bigger role in this one.

Published February 7, 2023 | Review to Come

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

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My thoughts: This is technically a reread, since I read this in high school. All I remembered about it is that I did not like it, but since I’m planning to read WHAT SOULS ARE MADE OF, which is a remix of the story, I wanted the original to be fresher in my brain. I still did not like this book. I don’t know. What am I missing? This seems like a tale of people treating each other miserably (if not abusively) and suffering for it?

Published February 7, 2023 (Orig 1847) | Review to Come

A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher

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My thoughts: This is such a fun middle grade fantasy novel. I think fans of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON will enjoy the quirky voice of the narrator and the playfulness of the story. This is the first book I’ve read by T. Kingfisher, and it’s an absolute win.

Published July 21, 2020 | Review to Come

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi

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My thoughts: I listened to this one as an audiobook, read by Jason Reynolds. It felt like having someone sit with you over coffee and explain the history of racism and how it has impacted American life and politics. It made me realize how little I’ve read of important Black writers like bell hooks, and how little I know about the lives of people like Malcolm X and Angela Davis. Something I’d like to change.

Published March 10, 2020 | Review to Come

Eagle Drums by Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson

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My thoughts: This reads like an easily relatable folk tale or origin story, if that makes sense? I enjoyed the straightforward yet somehow lyrical writing style and the vivid descriptions of life in Alaska.

Published September 12, 2023 | Review to Come

Balto and Togo: Hero Dogs of Alaska by Helen Moss

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

My thoughts: The weirdest part of reading this book is, as a kid who grew up watching the movie Balto, how many times I would read facts about what actually happened and have to process my split-second denial. I’d kind of rear back and immediately think, that’s not what happened in the movie! Which…. well, duh? It was a cartoon? Anyway, I loved getting a chance to learn the real story of these brave mushers and their dogs who helped stop a diphtheria outbreak.

Published November 28, 2023 | Review to Come

Have you read any backlist titles lately?

If you’re participating in a backlist reading challenge this year, please let me know! If you have a page or post where you list the books you’ve read, please feel free to put a link to it in my comments. I’d love to check it out.

Have you read any of the books on my list? Let me know what you think about them if so.