2020 Reading Round Up, Part One
In the not so distant past, I wrote quarterly book reviews. No idea why I stopped. Possibly because I started to have so many friends become authors and I got nervous about my third grade level book reviews. But alas - I’m back! Because, what else am I doing?
As a reminder, these (air quotes) “reviews” are pecked into my phone, sans glasses, immediately upon finishing the book, and are not to be mistaken for anything being submitted to, let’s say, The New Yorker.
🎶 Let’s talk about books, baby! 🎶
Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia HibbertMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I loved it! So much Sexy Time™️. These sex scenes are HOT. I loved the descriptions of Chloe's body as told from Red's perspective. Yes to fat bodies being described as beautiful, sexy and desirable. Yes to big boobs, soft bellies, and big thighs. I can't wait to read #2.
Intimations: Six Essays by Zadie SmithMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
WHEW, this book. I’m not usually a book-crier, but this one got me, especially the last essay. As someone who lived in NYC on 9/11, Zadie’s first person account of NYC in the early days of the pandemic was really powerful for me to read. Bonus: if you listen to the audiobook, Zadie reads it and you get to hear her sing and do all kinds of voices. It’s great.
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale HurstonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Such a gorgeous book. Everyone talks about the prose, and for good reason. The language and the descriptions are beautiful. I love that this is the story of Janie, even though it's told through the lens of 3 marriages. It's always about her. If you read this book in high school or college, give it a re-read. It'll land differently now.
The Boyfriend Project by Farrah RochonMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I'm new to the romance genre, but yes to books about women in tech! The best part of the book for me was the friendship between the three women. I love their Friday night dates and 6-month plans to get their careers off the ground. It's also refreshing to read a book set in Austin, TX as opposed to the usual settings of NYC, LA, San Fran, etc.
Trixie and Katya's Guide to Modern Womanhood by Trixie MattelMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I mean, it’s obviously hilarious. It’s more words on a page than you’d expect, but it’s a fast read. Their individual voices and distinct senses of humor really come through. I’m not sure how funny it will be if you’ve never watched their YouTube show, or aren’t very familiar with them, but if you love them, you will love this book. It’s worth it just for the pictures alone.
H Is for Hawk by Helen MacdonaldMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
A beautiful book, but a slow read for me. More so in the beginning, but the frequent going back in time to tell the story of White and his hawk was distracting for me. I wasn’t very interested in that part of the story, and found myself increasingly frustrated that I’d have to read pages about White before she’d switch back to herself and present day. She writes about grief and nature unlike anyone I’ve read before. I was fascinated by everything I learned in this book.
I Don't Want to Die Poor: Essays by Michael ArceneauxMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I feel so seen by the existence of this book. I have so few friends who know the shame of carrying crippling student loan debt into your forties, as well as not having access to either employer provided, or affordable health insurance. Aside from that, this book is hilarious and makes great use of internet parlance and current pop culture.
Small content warning re: disordered eating. One whole chapter is about an eating disorder and many chapters have jokes about body image, eating, and weight.
So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma OluoMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Longtime fan of Ijeoma’s writing and presence online. Her voice shines in this book. If you bought a bunch of anti racism books and haven’t started them yet, begin with this one.
Pretty Things by Janelle BrownMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I listened to this as an audiobook, which was MANY hours long. I wonder if I would give it a higher rating if I had read it faster than I listened to it. I did really enjoy it, and it’s getting great reviews all around. It’s a fun read, and it is the best writing on modern-day Instagram that exists.
Big Friendship: How We Keep Each Other Close by Aminatou SowMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Written in the signature voice of the two women we’ve gotten to know via CYG, Aminatou and Ann tell an honest story about what it takes to keep an important friendship alive and thriving. Fans of CYG will devour this book for the behind-the-scenes look at their decade-long friendship. But this book is for everyone, maybe especially older Millennials struggling to balance career, success, and female friendships. As someone with experience in both individual and marriage therapy, I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve never thought about how much work it takes to keep a Big Friendship going. I can’t think of a person I know who wouldn’t love this book.
Thin Girls by Diana ClarkeMy rating: 1 of 5 stars
CW: disordered eating, anorexia, weight loss
I work at a bookstore and had seen a positive review for this book from an author I respect, so when I saw the ARC, I grabbed it, planning on making it my staff rec for it's pub month. I'm about 2 years into recovery for disordered eating and have moved past getting triggered by books or essays that deal with ED (eating disorders), but this book triggered me pretty early on and continued to until I put it down at page 115.
This review is going to be harsher than I tend to be, but this is personal for me. This book feels irresponsible to me. We live in a culture promoting weight loss through any means necessary, and it's everywhere. It's in the water we swim in. According to the *National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, at least 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder in the U.S., and every 62 minutes at least 1 person dies as a direct result from an eating disorder. Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. To know that (presumably) and to basically write a how-to book for anorexia is at the least, tone-deaf, and at the worst reckless.
If you've spent any time on Instagram, you know how unsettling it is to read what people weigh and how they either maintain that weight or manipulate it. This is a whole book of that. Whatever other storyline the author is trying to get through is lost on me because of the flashing billboard that reads, Here's How To Be Skinny.
I'm curious who the author wrote this book for. Who does she hope will read it? What problem is it solving? No one with anorexia can read this book. So who is it for? Why do we need it? I'd argue that we don't.
I hope someone points this author to the dietitians and activists in the HAES and anti-diet world working to dismantle diet culture.
TL/DR: skip this one if you have a disordered relationship with eating and/or exercise, or have body image issues
* https://anad.org/education-and-awaren...
The Chiffon Trenches by André Leon TalleyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I LOVED this book. I was worried it would be the same stuff that was in the documentary, but it’s so much more. The book does a good job of giving you all the details behind the stuff that was in the documentary. There is so much more to all of his stories. This book is for everyone who loves fashion, 90s fashion, Vogue, and of course, Anna Wintour.
CW: disordered eating ** He does talk about his weight, weight loss, gastric bypass surgery, and “food addiction”. Those are triggering topics for a lot of us. So just know that’s in there. The bulk of this is in Chapter 12, just FYI.
Nothing Is Wrong and Here Is Why by Alexandra PetriMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book is so smart and so funny, I wanted to clap at the end. I follow the author on Twitter, but I haven’t read a lot of her columns in the Washington Post. I will now! I will read everything she writes from here on out. God, this book is so funny. Do yourself a favor and just read the table of contents. I mean, you’ll laugh at the essay titles alone.
All My Mother's Lovers by Ilana MasadMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
If you liked Mostly Dead Things, I think you’ll like this book. Queer, woman protagonist - dealing with the week after her mother’s sudden death. I liked the character development and thought it was well written. It fell short for me in the last third of the book. The last boyfriend and the last drive home pulled me out of the story. I gravitate towards books with diverse characters, but this felt like diversity for diversity’s sake. This is the author’s debut novel and I hope it does well. I look forward to reading her second and third books and seeing how her voice develops.
Writers & Lovers by Lily KingMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I expected to like this more than I did. I think it may be more to do with the current state of the world than the book. Plus I listened to it on audiobook spread out over two months, so that probably has something to do with it, too. I liked it, but I didn’t love it.
******
Whew, that’s a lot of books!
I posted everything I’ve read in May, June, and July. If you want to go back further, it’s all on Goodreads. I also contributed to the staff picks for Parnassus Books from July 2019 - June 2020 if you want to go check those out, as well.
Now, tell me, what are YOU reading?
P.S. Don’t forget about audiobooks! Please consider using Libro.fm instead of audible. Libro.fm buys your book through the independent bookstore of your choice, as opposed to audible, who buys your book from Amazon 👎🏼. I have a discount code if you’re new to Libro.fm. Use code LADYLAND at checkout to get 2 audiobooks for the price of 1 ($14.99) when you start a monthly membership.
