Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix
Given the current backslide of reproductive rights and my still relatively new motherhood (which I was able to choose to begin on my own time), this novel hit me like a ton of bricks. I want to scoop every girl into the biggest hug and never let them go. I want to scream at every adult. Without spoilers, the way magic as an escape for women is treated is brilliant. I laughed and I cried probably in equal measure. The characters are rich and well imagined-even and perhaps especially the adults, who seem to all believe what they are doing is best for everyone.
Fantastic read if you can handle the subject matter right now.
CW for discussion of sexual assault and rape, graphic depiction of childbirth, graphic self-mutilation, forced adoption
~ michellethestan
“P.S. I Miss You” by Jen Petro-Roy
Okay… I thought the reflective tone in this was lovely, and the author did an amazing job of building the relationship between Evie and June, especially when considering blossoming feelings for tweens. But that twist… sorry to get into this but I need to kvetch. Spoilers ahead for everyone!! So much of this book centers on Evie writing letters to her older teenage sister, who had been sent to live on a great-aunt’s farm because she got pregnant. Evie’s sister is not replying to her letters and she is being kept in the dark about her sister, only knowing that she’s been enrolled in a Catholic all-girl boarding school. After she and her friends sneak to find her at said school, it is revealed that all the letters Evie sent following her sister giving birth were read and responded to by her parents. Why? BECAUSE HER SISTER DIED IN CHILDBIRTH AND THEY JUST DIDN’T TELL HER.
Listen, I’m all for novels not inherently being reflections of an author or what they would do in a given situation. But Evie’s apparent forgiveness of her parents by the end of the book, to the point of having a memorial with them for her sister, all while still accepting that they have their beliefs is insane. These people let their religious beliefs alienate their daughter, send her to an underfunded and rural medical facility, all while lying to their child, family, and community about the death of their sixteen year old that they indirectly caused. AND ALSO THERE’S A ONE OFF LETTER WHERE EVIE FINDS OUT HER PARENTS HAD A MISCARRIAGE BEFORE HER OLDER SISTER WAS BORN, A CHILD THAT WAS CONCEIVED OUT OF WEDLOCK AND SHE IS JUST LIKE “OH WELL MOM SAID THATS WHY THEY BECAME GOOD CATHOLICS BECAUSE THE CHURCH SAVED THEM”!?!? Maybe it’s my own personal anxieties around teen pregnancy and Catholicism, but the bullshit ending of “well, it’s hard to accept, but at the end of the day, we’re all grieving” message had me losing my shit. They lied about her sister dying for almost a year, and were an indirect cause of her death, and we see no real repercussions to that. Hell, there is more time spent on Evie reconnecting with her parents than there is on her dealing with the fact that her sister was DEAD for more than two-thirds of this book.
Idk. Maybe my anger is displaced. But this book has like an average 4/5 star rating, and it reminds me a little of “The Outsiders”, in that people love the concept of it so much that they don’t look critically at the fact that sometimes, shit can’t be forgiven and it shouldn’t be.
~ Delaney @lavenderluxury
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall
Fun fake dating set up, flawed of careers who you cheer for and who get on your nerves in turn. Would have loved a little more of the quirky friend group shenanigans too! 4/5
~ tightenupmate
Indigo and Ida by Heather Murphy Capps
Indigo is an aspiring journalist who wants to stand up against the racial injustices at her school. She finds herself running for class president, but the journey is not easy. Indigo takes comfort in letters she finds from Ida B. Wells-Barnett, feeling encouraged to continue to stand up for what's right even if she's standing alone.
This was a wonderful, heartfelt middle grade book with a focus on social activism. I was rooting for Indigo throughout the rollercoaster of emotions and situations she faces.
~ Bookloverstede.bsky.social
Desi Arnaz: The Man Who Invented Television by Todd S. Purdum
I saw this one on my library's new book display and decided to give it a go. The title oversells itself a bit imo but the book was still plenty interesting. The writing is a very straightforward accounting of events style; it held my attention well enough but I could definitely see some people finding it somewhat dry.
~ remreader
“Across So Many Seas” by Ruth Behar
This was beautifully crafted and a solid means of realistically showing middle grade readers the intensity of Jewish persecution over time without either going too intense or focusing exclusively on the Holocaust. However, reading this with the knowledge of what’s going on in Palestine and the way the genocide there has been largely at the forefront of social media was difficult. I’m Jewish and while this text ached me deeply, I had a hard time reflecting on how there are other Jewish individuals who use the events from this text to excuse what Israel is doing. That’s not the fault of the book or the author, but it just made it hard to engage.
~ Delaney @lavenderluxury
Freedom House by KB Brookins
A highly recommended poetry collection by a Black, queer, and trans writer. Hard to narrow down my favorite poems to just a few, but some standouts are:
-"Curriculum Vitae"
-"T Shot #8"
-"A List of Things I Want Before This Life Lets Me Go"
-"Freedom House Manifesto"
-"He/they in the streets, they/them in the sheets" (poem encourages donating to Transgender Education Network of Texas)
-"Good Grief"
-"S.B. No. 8: Erasure"
~ Bookloverstede@bsky.social
“Good Different” by Meg Eden Kuyatt
This was a reread but remains one of my favorite middle grade books, especially as explicit autism representation in young girls. Wonderful read.
~ Delaney @lavenderluxury
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
I watched the Winona Ryder version of Little Women over and over again as a kid, but somehow I had never read the book until now. I didn’t realize how much 19th century moralism would be packed into its pages, but overall I enjoyed it. I probably would have enjoyed it less without the childhood nostalgia attached to it.
~ Lindsay (wildflowerstede)
A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ Charles
I prefer romance with a bit of adventure and high stakes. This second installment in the Doomsday story doesn’t have as much action as the first, but makes up for it with a bit of angst and high Family Drama.
Luke Doomsday was going through a lot in the first book and he still understandably has many feelings about it all here, thirteen years later-which was a good carry over to the new plot.
Although I would have loved a straightforward sequel with Joss and Gareth, I thought the new characters were interesting and enjoyed the appearances of so many previous ones, along with a lot of call outs to those who couldn’t appear directly on the page along with past events. Even beetle hunting gets a mention or two. Another ten ⭐️ read. Oh, and if you haven’t read the first book, it’s a total Stede and Ed au.
~ FelinePharma
The hunger games (book #1) Suzanne Collins
I LOVED it, by far one of my new favorite books. I'd always been a fan of the movies but never read the books. Now i'm working through the series. Sad to say, I am going to fall into the Peetah VS. Gale wars...on Gale's side lol. But I'm also only starting book 2, so my opinion may change! Anyhow, I relate to katniss so deeply i adore her. She's my new favorite girl.
~ Trashdog13
Warp Your Own Way by Ryan North, with art by Chris Fenoglio
I'm a big fan of Ryan North's Squirrel Girl comics so of course I had to track down a copy of this after finishing watching Lower Decks. It captures the feel of the show really well and there are some cool unexpected twists, even for a format (choose your own adventure) that's basically built on twists already.
~ remreader
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
“Mama used to say Life isn’t fair when he cried over not getting his way, but he hadn’t known then that unfairness was so big, covering the world.”
Brilliantly written historical horror about the Deep South during the height of Jim Crowe; in which the ghosts aren’t nearly as terrifying as the human villains. A gripping and powerful read.
~ HipHopAnonymous
World War Z by Max Brooks
The book is people in various walks of life & different parts of the world sharing their personal experiences of the Zombie War.
~ killerweasel
Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie
Wonderful conclusion to the trilogy! Very satisfying ending.
~ Aletea
Impossible creatures - Katherine Rundell
This book grabbed me front the start, full of mythical creatures and a nice twist on creatures from our world being viewed as mythical in the other world. Some elements were a little predictable but not to the point that it took from the story.
~ Robotpinemarten
The Hymn of Dionysus by Natasha Pulley
Incredible and moving. A must read for any fans of Madeline Miller or of myth retellings in general.
~ wannabewesley
Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth
This is a good one - as long as you go in with the right expectations. I went in with absolutely none, but now that I've finished and seen that it is promoted as a thriller or mystery, I can see how it might seem lacking if you're expecting a typical whodunit. Not that there are no moments of thrills or mystery, but the central theme here is working through childhood trauma by looking back at what actually happened with more data and an adult perspective. There is absolutely a (view spoiler), but the central story of Jessica, Norah, and Alicia stands on its own without it. The audiobook makes this a bit challenging by lacking a transition to indicate that the therapy sessions are different from the rest of the chapters with alternating narration, but that is likely intentional since it builds suspense about the source and truth of the story told there.
The narrator does a good job of keeping things on track without doing different voices for the characters - the phrasing generally makes it clear who's talking (or whose inner monologue we're hearing). There are some Aussieisms, and for Americans the casual relationship between the police and the central characters will seem implausible - but the children's services and legal systems are similar enough that US readers shouldn't have any trouble following the action.
This is a great book club pick, since it opens up discussion about parenthood, childhood trauma, and the various coping mechanisms used by the characters - just be aware that there are non-explicit scenes of (view spoiler) if those are hard limits for anyone in your group.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.
~ meganreal
Man, Fuck This House by Brian Asman
Fun twist on the whole 'family moves into a haunted house' trope. It was different and enjoyable. If you like humor with your horror, check this out.
~ killerweasel
The God and The Gumiho by Sophie Kim
Nice way to learn more about Korean mythology specially because we meet certain creatures lots of times so I got a lot of chances to get familiar with the names!
~ Highwaystars
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M Miller Jr
I wish I’d liked it more than I did! It was fine but it was a little tough to get through. The parts that really felt like they focused on the post-apocalyptic setting at the start of the book and then towards the end were so fascinating. In between, though, it felt slow and dry. I wish it had kept that same energy throughout, I would have loved it a lot more overall.
~ CommunionNimrod
The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley
I liked it! It had twists in it I didn’t even consider til the end.
~ @silverbatwing.bsky.social
Firefly Wedding Vol 3 by Oreco Tachibana
I really enjoyed this installation of Shinpei and Satoko’s unconventional relationship. Still stuck on the inescapable island, still struggling to get back home, and still lying about their feelings towards each other as the stakes get higher and the peril toward’s their lives increases.
~ frazzledwriter@bsky.social
Wicked by Gregory Maguire
I first read this book in high school when it was pretty new (I’m aging myself) and I remember enjoying it but can’t recall much else.
With all the recent acclaim of the movie I thought to revisit and I’m not disappointed. Warning for anyone who is a fan of the musical/movie- this is not the same in many ways. Many things are changed and characters you know do not follow the same arcs. It does hold a lot of the same ideas and themes but it’s very much darker and sadder. You also don’t get the flash and whimsy of seeing them sing out their feelings and it feels grittier. In some ways I also feel the book is even queerer than the movie as well if that is possible.
Overall a great read with some problematic characters and plots, but that’s the beauty of a good story. Makes you think and be challenged.
~ AJ McKay (ajmckay)
Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century By Kim Fu
This was an anthology of short stories. I went in expecting to have some good and not good (as most anthologies go) but honestly they were all just ok. Worth reading as it’s a quick read and maybe someone else can glean more out of them, but nothing that stuck with me or made me question things. It felt like a season of Black Mirror where all the episodes were ok and enjoyable in the moment, but forgettable.
~ AJ McKay (ajmckay)
Artificial Condition by Martha Wells
Martha Wells has perfected the short novel form (her books in this series barely hit 150 pages). She gets right down to business making us laugh, giving us sci-fi adventure, and a nonbinary/asexual storeyteller that makes many people feel scene.
Murderbot is the protagonist and it loves its favorite tv show so much but also its now making its own decisions yet trying to shake off its old programming habits. I won’t say too much but if you want queer rep sci-fi this is the book series for you.
Also, even when Wells writes side characters that only appear for one book (remember how short they are) we care about them. She is writing in a style few others can seem to master.
~ AJ McKay (ajmckay)
Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells
Third book in the Murderbot series and holy hell did this one deliver. Wells gives us an action packed story and makes us once again care about the minor characters introduced.
I don’t want to give it away but this one left me reeling and I had to stop and really think about some things at the end.
Overall my fave in the series so far and just as hilarious as the first two.
~ AJ McKay (ajmckay)
The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers by Maxwell King
It's some cruel timing that I finished this book on the same day that the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the home of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, has announced that it has to close in the wake of the administration's horrific funding cuts. I picked up this book because like a lot of people, I'm in desperate need of a reminder of the good in the world. Thankfully, it provided just that.
~ Lindsay (wildflowerstede)
The Library Book by Susan Orlean
Lots of good stories, you just have to get past the jumping around the timeline part.
~ meganreal
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