New Reads for the Rest of Us for December 2018
November 30, 2018 15 Karla Strand Books Reads for the Rest of Us
Welcome to New Reads for the Rest of Us for December 2018!
With these monthly lists, I aim to amplify the books written by those who are historically underrepresented including, but not limited to: womxn, women of color, women from the Global South, women who are Black, Indigenous, dis/abled, queer, fat, immigrants, Muslim, sex-positive, and more. My lists meant to be intersectional, feminist, and trans-inclusive. I also want to highlight books by gender non-conforming people (who may or may not be described by the term "womxn").
If you'd like to learn more about which books I focus on, see my Review Policy. These are just guidelines and I reserve the right to include (or not!) any books I see fit. I usually add to this list as I learn of others; if you have a suggestion, please share it in the comments below!
So here are the New Reads for the Rest of Us for December 2018. There are so many great titles here, which will you read??
Islamophobia, Race, and Global Politics by Nazia Kazi (@NaziaKaziTweets)
December 1 (Kindle)
Tags: Islam, women writers
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 168 pages
Nazia Kazi's Islamophobia, Race, and Global Politics is a devastating critique of the prevailing ways that Americans talk about Muslims, especially liberals who apparently mean well. Kazi makes her case elegantly and persuasively; her frustration is palpable and engaging. Anyone who thinks they have something worthwhile to say about Islamophobia in the United States should read this book first.–Arun Kundnani, New York University
Revolutionary Masculinity and Racial Inequality: Gendering War and Politics in Cuba by Bonnie A. Lucero
Tags: Masculinity, Cuba, politics, gender, war
University of New Mexico Press, 360 pages
"One of the most paradoxical aspects of Cuban history is the coexistence of national myths of racial harmony with lived experiences of racial inequality. Here a historian addresses this issue by examining the ways soldiers and politicians coded their discussions of race in ideas of masculinity during Cuba's transition from colony to republic."–Description
Tides of Revolution: Information, Insurgencies, and the Crisis of Colonial Rule in Venezuela by Cristina Soriano
Tags: Venezuela, women writers, colonialism, nonfiction
"This is a book about the links between politics and literacy, and about how radical ideas spread in a world without printing presses. In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Spanish colonial governments tried to keep revolution out of their provinces."–Description
Decolonizing Academia: Poverty, Oppression and Pain by Clelia O. Rodríguez
Tags: Education, women writers, colonialism
Fernwood Books Ltd, 150 pages
"Poetic, confrontational and radical, Decolonizing Academia speaks to those who have been taught to doubt themselves because of the politics of censorship, violence and silence that sustain the Ivory Tower. Clelia O. Rodríguez illustrates how academia is a racialized structure that erases the voices of people of colour, particularly women."–Description
International Surrogacy as Disruptive Industry in Southeast Asia by Andrea Whittaker
Tags: SE Asia, health, reproductive freedom, women writers
Rutgers Univ Press, 244 pages
"An original, comprehensive, and eye-opening account of the unprecedented growth of commercial surrogacy in Southeast Asia. By focusing on the industry's multiple stakeholders—particularly Thai surrogates who have gestated babies for Australian intended parents—Whittaker writes with ethnographic sensitivity and compassion, while at the same time critiquing the "disruptive industry" within which surrogacy takes place. A must-read for those interested in globalization, biotechnology, and reproductive justice."–Marcia Inhorn author of Cosmopolitan Conceptions: IVF Sojourns in Global Dubai
At the End of the Century: The Stories of Ruth Prawer Jhabvala by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
Tags: Short stories, women writers, family, historical fiction
Counterpoint, 448 pages
"A young German Jewish refugee in England in the 1940s, a resident of India for two dozen years, and a New Yorker from the mid-1970s until her death in 2013, Jhabvala triangulated her three adopted cultures in the 17 enthralling stories gathered in this sterling retrospective collection. . . . Jhabvala was a spellbinding short story writer of fluid empathy, exceptional cross-cultural insight, and abiding respect for unconventional love . . . This is a richly captivating, revelatory, and important collection."–Booklist (starred review)
Feminist Accountability: Disrupting Violence and Transforming Power by Ann Russo
Tags: Feminism, women writers
NYU Press, 280 pages
"As a feminist organizer, I've been waiting for this collection of essays for years. How do we address and transform violence in non-punitive ways? Ann Russo offers a compelling analysis of how a praxis of accountability can guide us toward some answers to this question. As a scholar-activist, Russo's insights are drawn from both theory and practice. She has tried on and tried out the ideas she espouses in community with others. The essays are beautifully written and accessible to all. Feminist Accountability is a must read for anyone interested in community accountability practices, anti-violence organizing and transformative justice."–Mariame Kaba, Founder of Project NIA
I'm Gonna Make You Love Me by Tracey Richardson (@trich7117)
Tags: Lesbian, romance
Bella Books, 250 pages
"Ellie Kirkland is at loose ends―and not for the first time. Resistant to following the path her parents insist on, she's been trying out careers like she's trying on outfits at Banana Republic. Now that her dream of being a journalist is over, Ellie must begin again. And the woman who crushed that very dream is the very woman who just might hold the key to Ellie's future."–Description
Revolution Sunday by Wendy Guerra and Achy Obejas (Translator)
Tags: Cuba, women writers, thriller, Latinx
Melville House, 208 pages
"Arresting, an explosive portrait of loneliness and isolation. Thick with the atmosphere of… Havana on the cusp of the Cuban thaw, the novel reads like the world's most poetic anxiety dream, vibrant and stifling. Demanding and unforgettable."–Kirkus (starred)
Where There's a Will by Virginia Hale
"As their friendship blossoms, Beth's unspoken desire to sell remains the single wedge keeping them apart. Will asking for what she needs cost Beth a chance at a life with Dylan? Perhaps the richest inheritance of all may be a second chance."–Description
Graceful Woman Warrior: A Story of Mindfully Living In The Face Of Dying by Terri Luanna da Silva with Laurie O'Neil and Marisa Alegria da Silva
Tags: Health, death, women writers, memoir
"Diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer at 37, artist Terri Luanna da Silva's example of living and dying with grace and integrity is an inspiration-not only for the dying, but for anyone aspiring to live with greater mindfulness and authenticity."–Lauren Mackler, best-selling author of Solemate: Master the Art of Aloneness & Transform Your Life
Postfeminist War: Women in the Media-Military-Industrial Complex by Mary Douglas Vavrus
Tags: Military, feminism, women writers
"That women are increasingly on the front lines of war since 9/11 may not surprise readers of this book, but the many ways that women are symbolically enlisted in the promotion and perpetuation of endless global conflict certainly will. This well-written and timely book is essential for students and scholars alike to understand the PR strategies employed to curry favor for war, even as the public sours on American militarism. Unveiling the constructions and contradictions of a kinder, gentler post-feminist war mythology offers all of us a pathway to become ethical witnesses to war narratives, in the hope of ending war and its inhumane consequences."–Robin Andersen author of A Century of Media: A Century of War
Fire on the Water: Sailors, Slaves, and Insurrection in Early American Literature, 1789-1886 by Lenora Warren (@Lenora_DW)
Tags: History, literary criticism, women writers
Bucknell University Press, 170 pages
"The book's topic is superb: the role of black sailors, particularly enslaved or emancipated black sailors, has been woefully understudied. In locating both revolutionary potential and abolitionist inspiration in the insurrectionary activity of black sailors, Warren provides a fresh, exciting new unit of analysis for scholars and students of American literary history. I cannot stress enough how vital and necessary the topic is, and how overlooked it has been."–Hester Blum, Pennsylvania State University and President of the Society of Nineteenth-Century Americanists)
Liberating Hollywood: Women Directors and the Feminist Reform of 1970s American Cinema by Maya Montañez Smukler
Tags: Feminism, film, US history
"A counterintuitive feminist history of the new Hollywood that convincingly challenges widely held assumptions about the boys' club movie brat auteur renaissance. In Liberating Hollywood, Maya Montanez Smukler is remarkably attentive to the industrial as well as sociopolitical histories that made such a new women's cinema and such a suddenly liberated Hollywood possible."–Jon Lewis, author of Hard-Boiled Hollywood: Crime and Punishment in Postwar Los Angeles
Modern Spanish Women as Agents of Change: Essays in Honor of Maryellen Bieder edited by Jennifer Smith
Tags: Spain, history
"This book is a beautiful tribute to Maryellen Bieder, an important and significant scholar of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Spanish narrative by women. The essays in this book—by scholars and writers of several different generations who are also highly esteemed in the same and other areas—expand and continue Bieder's research to new horizons."–Sandra J. Schumm author of Mother and Myth in Spanish Novels
African Immigrant Families in the United States: Transnational Lives and Schooling by Serah Shani
Tags: Africa, Ghana, immigration, women writers, education
Lexington Books, 186 pages
"This beautifully written book elucidates the educational trajectories of immigrant children as they confront rigid American systems of race and class, and it documents how parents rely on the 'network village,' a transnational network of fellow Ghanaians in New York and Ghana, to provide academic and other types of support and resources for their children. This superb ethnography will appeal to readers interested in immigration and education, anthropology of education, and African diaspora cultural studies.–Lesley Bartlett, University of Wisconsin
Afro-Asian Connections in Latin America and the Caribbean by Luisa Marcela Ossa, Debbie Lee-DiStefano
Tags: Latinx, Caribbean, Asia, Africa, essays
"The essays collected this book by Ossa and Lee-Distefano present a formidable addition to Latin American, African, and Asian studies—where the fields converge in vigorous and well-researched conversation with one another."–Sheridan Wigginton, California Lutheran University
Brooklyn On My Mind: Black Visual Artists from the WPA to the Present by Myrah Brown Green
Tags: Art, women writers, New York, US history
Schiffer, 272 pages
"This new resource assembles 129 Black artists and their magnificent works, highlighting their important contributions to art worldwide. Beginning with the Brooklyn-based artists active during the Works Progress Administration years and continuing with artists approaching their prime today, the collection spans 80 years of art. From highly publicized artists to rising talent, each is tied to Brooklyn in their own way."–Description
Crime and Violence in the Caribbean: Lessons from Jamaica by Sherill V. Morris-Francis, Camille A. Gibson, Lorna E. Grant
Tags: Caribbean, violence, women writers, essays
"This book provides an excellent historical overview of crime and violence in the Caribbean. The contributors identify and present many of the forces that contribute to this phenomenon."–Zelma Henriques, John Jay College
Gender and Environment in Science Fiction by Bridgitte Barclay, Christy Tidwell
Tags: Science fiction, gender, environment
"This book delivers shrewd analyses of a wonderful and quirky range of SF texts. Barclay and Tidwell situate the project brilliantly, and the collection as a whole will illuminate familiar texts anew and add unfamiliar stories to your high-priority reading and screening queues."–Andrew Hageman, Luther College
Pan African Spaces: Essays on Black Transnationalism by Msia Kibona Clark (@kibona), Loy Azalia (@LoyAzalia), Phiwokuhle Mnyandu (@DrMnyandu)
Tags: Essays, women writers, #OwnVoices, Africa, African American
"The essays [in this book] represent a wide spectrum of experiences and viewpoints central to the bicultural Africans/Black experience. The contributors offer poignant and grounded perspectives on the diverse ways race, ethnicity, and culture are experienced, debated, and represented. All of the chapters contribute more broadly to writings on dual identities, and the various ways bicultural Africans/Blacks navigate their identities and their places in African and Diaspora communities."–Description
The Question of Class in Contemporary Latin American Cinema by María Mercedes Vázquez Vázquez
Tags: Latinx, women writers, film, class
"This book offers a theoretically rich survey of directors and films that found international notoriety as well as those that have been little known outside Latin America. It examines the history, institutions, contexts, and practices that have reshaped Latin American cinema under neoliberalism, and it does so in an impressive, intellectually rigorous manner."–Cacilda M. Rêgo, Utah State University
Twentieth Century Forcible Child Transfers: Probing the Boundaries of the Genocide Convention by Ruth Amir
Tags: Women writers, family
"A well-researched report about the horror of 'legal' child abduction by the state, which deems itself the savior that will elevate the children of what it deems inferior cultures to it's notion of 'civilized' heights. Slay their children, or rob them of their cultural heritage by removal, the end result is genocide!"–Daniel N. Paul, Mi'kmaw Elder
Women of the 2016 Election: Voices, Views, and Values edited by Jennifer Schenk Sacco
Tags: Politics, women writers, essays
"This fascinating collection of essays provides a rich overview of women's multiple and diverse contributions to U.S. presidential campaigns. The book's focus on individual women with prominent roles in the 2016 election reflects an innovative approach that illustrates superbly the complicated and varied ways that gender is at play in contemporary electoral politics."–Susan J. Carroll, co-author of A Seat at the Table: Congresswomen's Perspectives on Why Their Presence Matters, Rutgers University
Women, Social Change, and Activism: Then and Now by Dawn Hutchinson, Lori Underwood
Tags: Activism, essays, women writers
"Through the study of local and global activism, Women, Social Change and Activism: Then and Now engages scholars interested in the artistic, economic, educational, ethical, historical, literary, philosophical, political, psychological, religious, and social dimensions of women's lives and resistance."–Description
The Kingdom and the Republic: Sovereign Hawai'i and the Early United States by Noelani Arista (@Noeolali)
Tags: Hawaiʻi, politics, US history, women writers, Native American
University of Pennsylvania Press, 312 pages
"The Kingdom and the Republic challenges some of our most basic assumptions about native Hawaiʻi, the encounters between natives and foreigners, and the processes of colonization, upending our expectations of who, in Hawaiʻi, had law and governance, and who was encountering whom."–Rebecca McLennan, University of California, Berkeley
One-Dimensional Queer by Roderick A. Ferguson
Tags: Queer, nonfiction, people of color
Polity, 200 pages
"One-Dimensional Queer is as clear an account as you could hope to encounter of how race and sexuality came to be understood as separate formations in US history. The resultant mainstreaming of LGBT cultures has been disastrous in terms of seeing our way out of the current crisis we inhabit. Offering solutions as well as critique, Ferguson's book is destined to be a crucial part of any library of liberation."–Jack Halberstam, Columbia University
29 Dates by Melissa de la Cruz (@MelissadelaCruz)
Tags: Romance, women writers, humor
Inkyard Press, 400 pages
"A refreshingly modern love story, 29 Dates serves up a funny and heartfelt rom-com about finding love and figuring out life on your own terms."–Maurene Goo, author of I Believe in a Thing Called Love
Dear Heartbreak: YA Authors and Teens on the Dark Side of Love by Heather Demetrios (@HDemetrios)
Tags: YA, essays, relationships
Henry Holt and Co., 256 pages
"Eighteen young adult novelists . . . respond to letters from real teenagers in this timeless and breathtakingly honest collection."–Booklist, starred review
"A masterful combination of painful honesty, gentle encouragement, and irreverent humor."–Kirkus Reviews
The Disasters by MK England (@GeektasticLib)
Tags: Queer, YA, sci fi, debut, #OwnVoices
Harper Teen, 368 pages
"Much to recommend: nonstop cinematic action, strong feminist messages, and great diversity of characters."–ALA Booklist
"An action-packed, entertaining blend of space hijinks, humor, and romance."–Kirkus Reviews
Hunting Annabelle by Wendy Heard (@wendydheard)
Tags: Debut, thriller, women writers
MIRA, 304 pages
"This dark, gritty thriller keeps the pages turning, making this a solid pick for readers who enjoy a trip through an unstable mind, such as in Caroline Kepnes's You."–Library Journal
Punishment Without Crime: How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes America More Unequal by Alexandra Natapoff (@ANatapoff)
Tags: Women writers, criminal justice
Basic Books, 352 pages
"This important book completely upends the criminal justice conversation. Natapoff documents dark truths about the misdemeanor process-how it forces the innocent to plead guilty, how it disregards basic legal rights, and how it inflicts deep injustice. Her insights inspire both outrage and innovation. Punishment Without Crime provides a terrific new understanding of a flawed criminal system, and it offers a much-needed path toward the fair and just criminal system America deserves. A necessary book for our times."–Barry Scheck, cofounder of the Innocence Project
I'll add more titles as I find them. What are you reading this month??
New Reads for the Rest of Us for November 2018
October 29, 2018 29 Karla Strand Books Reads for the Rest of Us
Welcome to New Reads for the Rest of Us for November 2018!
So here's New Reads for the Rest of Us for November 2018. These lists are getting long; I may have to start dividing them up! There are so many great titles here, which will you read??
Girls on the Line by Jennie Liu (@starnesliu)
Tags: Historical fiction, pregnancy, women writers, China
Carolrhoda Lab, 232 pages
"A powerful view into the struggles faced by young women in a world that doesn't value them–and where they must find strength within themselves and each other."–Joanne O'Sullivan, author of Between Two Skies
Queering Kansas City Jazz: Gender, Performance, and the History of a Scene by Amber R. Clifford-Napoleone
Tags: Music, queer, women writers, US history
University of Nebraska Press, 234 pages
"Queering Kansas City Jazz offers a new and exciting perspective on the jazz scene that accompanied the growth of Kansas City from frontier town to metropolitan city during the early twentieth century. It will potentially change the way in which we understand regional identity and recognize those who were pushed into the margins of our social histories."—Tammy Kernodle, professor of musicology at Miami University and author of Soul on Soul: The Life and Music of Mary Lou Williams
Black Love, Black Hate: Intimate Antagonisms in African American Literature by Felice D. Blake (@FeliceBlake)
Tags: Literature, literary criticism, women writers
Ohio State University Press, 156 pages
"Black Love, Black Hate is the first book to uncover the role of intimate antagonisms in the ongoing production of African American literature. Felice Blake teaches us how African American literature becomes a type of 'town meeting that cannot meet anywhere else.'"–Margo Natalie Crawford, author of Black Post-Blackness: The Black Arts Movement and Twenty-First-Century Aesthetics
Beyoncé in Formation: Remixing Black Feminism by Omise'eke Natasha Tinsley
Tags: Feminism, Black women, women writers
University of Texas Press, 216 pages
"You'll come away from each chapter with a new appreciation of what Beyoncé has meant to women, particularly black women, across the country."–The Current
"Sure to appeal to scholars and pop-culture enthusiasts alike, this provocative book works to blur the lines between straight and gay black feminism. . . Lively and intelligent reading."–Kirkus Reviews
Beyond the Call: Three Women on the Front Lines in Afghanistan by Eileen Rivers (@msdc14)
Tags: Afghanistan, military, women writers, biography, history
Da Capo Press, 275 pages
"[The] story of the fight for women's rights in a country where the male power structure opposes them…Compelling. The author's own military experience gives the book a perspective that is especially useful. A solid, fact-filled look at an underreported piece of the American military."–Kirkus Reviews
Do You See Ice?: Inuit and Americans at Home and Away by Karen Routledge
Tags: Women writers, Canadian history, Canada, First Nations, Native Americans, Inuit
University of Chicago Press, 272 pages
The author intends to donate all royalties from this book to the Elders' Room at the Angmarlik Center in Pangnirtung, Nunavut.
"Weaving together stories told by Inuit men and women with those set down by white men who chased whales, wealth, and adventure, Do You See Ice? lets us consider what it has meant to travel, to be lost, to be homesick, and finally, to be home."–Ann Fabian, author of The Skull Collectors: Race, Science, and America's Unburied Dead
Empress of All Seasons by Emiko Jean (@emikojeanbooks)
Tags: YA, fantasy, romance, folklore
HMH Books for Young Readers, 384 pages
"With rich mythology and elegant atmosphere, Empress of All Seasons will latch onto your imagination and sweep you along for a magical and dangerous ride."–Joelle Charbonneau, New York Times best-selling author of The Testing Trilogy
Girls on Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan (@girlinthelens)
Tags: YA, fantasy, LGBTQ
Jimmy Patterson, 400 pages
"Thrust into the beauty and horror of the Hidden Palace, will this Paper Girl survive? Ideal for those seeking diverse LGBTQ fantasy stories."–Kirkus
Hide with Me by Sorboni Banerjee (@sorbonified)
Tags: YA, women writers, debut
Razorbill, 366 pages
"Suspenseful and gritty, Hide With Me is a beautifully written novel that captivates from the very first page."–Robin Roe, author of A List of Cages
The Kinship of Secrets by Eugenia Kim (@Eugenia_Kim)
Tags: Korea, women writers, #OwnVoices, coming of age, family
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 304 pages
"I felt as though I had stepped into a graceful story of two countries, South Korea and America, and family ties that survive the challenges of history."–Krys Lee, author of How I Became a North Korean
"What an extraordinary time to read this heartfelt novel about the bonds of family, set against the backdrop of the Korean War. Eugenia Kim is a masterful storyteller who makes her characters come to life as she spans decades, continents, and cultures."–Jung Yun, author of Shelter
The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories by Yukiko Motoya and Asa Yoneda (Translator)
Tags: Japan, short stories, women writers
Soft Skull Press, 224 pages
The Millions Most Anticipated in the Second Half of 2018
"This inventive and chilling volume will have U.S. audiences craving more from Motoya."–Library Journal
Monument: Poems New and Selected by Natasha Trethewey (@NTrethewey)
Tags: Black women, poetry, women writers
"The poems are haunting reflections on a mother's murder, the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, an early 20th-century prostitute in New Orleans, a regiment of black soldiers guarding Confederate POWs, mixed-race families and the black working class. The opening poem, a new one, titled 'Imperatives for Carrying On in the Aftermath,' ends with an emotional punch to the gut that sets the tone for what follows."–Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Those Who Knew by Idra Novey (@IdraNovey)
Tags: Politics, literary, contemporary women, women writers
Viking, 256 pages
"Genius. That's what I kept thinking as I read this novel that somehow combines an invented island, a political bookstore, fragments of a stage production, and a story that's at once a damning critique of craven self-interest and a tale about our inescapable connectedness. Idra Novey has written an irreverent, magical, perfect puzzle of a book."–Cristina Henriquez, author of The Book of Unknown Americans
Black. Queer. Southern. Women.: An Oral History by E. Patrick Johnson
Tags: Queer, Black women, oral history, US history
University of North Carolina Press, 592 pages
"An amazing work that reflects Johnson's passion, care for his subjects, sharp analytical skills, and standing in the field."–Beverly Guy-Sheftall, Spelman College
Becoming by Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama)
Tags: Black women, women writers, politics, memoir, #OwnVoices
Crown, 400 pages
"An intimate, powerful, and inspiring memoir by the former First Lady of the United States."–Description
Empire of Sand (The Books of Ambha) by Tasha Suri (@tashadrinkstea)
Tags: Fantasy, debut, women writers
Orbit, 496 pages
"A darkly intricate, devastating, and utterly original story about the ways we are bound by those we love."–R. F. Kuang, author of The Poppy War
Fade Into You by Nikki Darling
Tags: Literary fiction, women writers, Latinx, debut
Feminist Press at CUNY, 224 pages
"A deeply personal mythology interwoven with the fibers of LA, simultaneously shaped by and shaping our city, Nikki Darling's Fade Into You is a poetic portrait of a young girl's life in the Angeleno multiverse."–Alice Bag, author of Violence Girl
First Comes Marriage: My Not-So-Typical American Love Story by Huda Al-Marashi (@HudaAlMarashi)
Tags: Women writers, Iraq, memoir, #OwnVoices
Prometheus Books, 304 pages
"Told with exuberance and honesty, First Comes Marriage is a charming, delightful memoir of love and self-discovery. Huda Al-Marashi has written a smart, down-to-earth, and unforgettable modern-day love story that celebrates the enduring bonds of culture, faith, and family. A wonderful book."–Jasmin Darznik, New York Times–bestselling author of Song of a Captive Bird
Insurrecto by Gina Apostol
Tags: War, family, women writers, Philippines
Soho Press, 336 pages
"Gina Apostol—a smart writer, a sharp critic, a keen intellectual—takes on the vexed relationship between the Philippines and the United States, pivoting on that relationship's bloody origins. Insurrecto is meta-fictional, meta-cinematic, even meta-meta, plunging us into the vortex of memory, history, and war where we can feel what it means to be forgotten, and what it takes to be remembered."–Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize-winning author The Sympathizer
All the Lives We Never Lived: A Novel by Anuradha Roy
Tags: India, women writers, family, literary
Atria, 288 pages
"[Roy] is a writer of great subtlety and intelligence, who understands that emotional power comes from the steady accretion of detail….[All the Lives We Never Lived] does not directly refer to #MeToo or the macho hyper-nationalism of today's India. But in its portrayal of power structures, it is part of those very contemporary political conversations. It is also a beautifully written and compelling story of how families fall apart and of what remains in the aftermath."–Kamila Shamsie, The Guardian
My review is coming soon!
Ask Me Again by E. J. Noyes (@zgrokit)
Tags: Lesbian, romance, military
"There's no doubt that both Sabine and Rebecca want the same thing. But how do you help the most important person in your life when they don't want to need your help?
Ask Me Again is the must-read sequel to the best-selling Don't Ask, Don't Tell."–Description
Cameron's Rules by Baxter Brown
"When screenwriter Julie Carter accidentally spills hot coffee all over her, lawyer Cameron Kassen is convinced that her day can't get any worse. But Cameron's mood quickly improves when Julie starts to flirt with her. Only in town for a couple of days, they both lament that the flirtation can go nowhere.
Fiction mirrors reality and when Julie decides to add a surprise alternate ending to the story, Cameron is presented with a puzzle. Only by solving it will she be able to unlock the ending Julie intends just for her…but will it also unlock her heart?"–Description
Last Days of Theresienstadt by Eva Noack-Mosse with Skye Doney (Translator) and Biruté Ciplijauskaité (Translator)
Tags: History, memoir, Holocaust, women writers, nonfiction, #OwnVoices
"Includes the rare account of someone involved in the continuing administration of the camp after the war, facing the issues of epidemic and quarantine and coping with the inquiries from relatives seeking any word of their family members' fates."–Christopher Browning, author of Remembering Survival
Love in the New Millennium by Can Xue and Annelise Finegan Wasmoen (Translator)
Tags: Translation, women writers, China, literary fiction, #OwnVoices
Yale University Press, 288 pages
"Ambitious . . . masterful . . . Can Xue's superb experimental novel is sure to keep readers hooked."–Emily Park, Booklist
"Love in the New Millennium is, as always with Can Xue's work, a marvel. She is one of the most innovative and important contemporary writers in China and, in my opinion, in world literature."–Bradford Morrow, author of The Prague Sonata
My Sister, the Serial Killer: A Novel by Oyinkan Braithwaite (@OyinBraithwaite)
Tags: Nigeria, Black women, women writers, debut, humor, #OwnVoices
Doubleday, 240 pages
"Who is more dangerous? A femme fatale murderess or the quiet, plain woman who cleans up her messes? In My Sister, the Serial Killer, Oyinkan Braithwaite answers that question with an original and compelling debut. I never knew what was going to happen, but found myself pulling for both sisters, as I relished the creepiness and humor of this modern noir."–Helen Ellis, New York Times bestselling author of American Housewife
My review coming soon!
Not Just a Tomboy: A Trans Masculine Memoir by Caspar Baldwin (@CasparBaldwin)
Tags: Trans, memoir, #OwnVoices, queer
Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 248 pages
"As someone who was called a tomboy growing up as well, it gives invaluable and often ignored insight into the life of a trans masculine person. Strong, powerful and a valuable resource about the importance of supporting trans youth, regardless of their gender expression."–Fox Fisher, film maker, artist and campaigner
How Long 'til Black Future Month?: Stories by N. K. Jemisin (@nkjemisin)
Tags: Women writers, short stories, science fiction
"The stories are wonderful. In worlds both invariably cruel and brilliantly imagined, heroism thrives in the margins."–Nicky Drayden, author of The Prey of Gods
Lord of the Butterflies by Andrea Gibson (@andreagibson)
Tags: Poetry, lesbian, loss, romance
Button Poetry, 96 pages
"Andrea Gibson's latest collection is a masterful showcase from the poet whose writing and performances have captured the hearts of millions. With artful and nuanced looks at gender, romance, loss, and family, Lord of the Butterflies is a new peak in Gibson's career. Each emotion here is deft and delicate, resting inside of imagery heavy enough to sink the heart, while giving the body wings to soar."–Description
What We Talk About When We Talk About Rape by Sohaila Abdulali (@SohailaAbdulali)
Tags: Violence, feminism, India, #OwnVoices, women writers
The New Press, 224 pages
"If the #MeToo campaign is to have any lasting impact . . . it will be because of books such as this."–Preti Taneja, author of We That Are Young
"The right to our own bodies is the first step in any democracy, and by that measure, women in general—especially those of us also devalued by race, caste, or class—are still subject to an intimate dictatorship. Read the personal stories in What We Talk About When We Talk About Rape and see how far we have come—and have yet to go."–Gloria Steinem
Settlin': Stories of Madison's Early African American Families by Muriel Simms
Tags: Wisconsin, US history, women writers
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 224 pages
"Only a fraction of what is known about Madison's earliest African American settlers and the vibrant and cohesive communities they formed has been preserved in traditional sources. The rest is contained in the hearts and minds of their descendants. Seeing a pressing need to preserve these experiences, lifelong Madison resident Muriel Simms collected the stories of twenty-five African Americans whose families arrived, survived, and thrived here in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries."–Description
Those are the New Reads for the Rest of Us for November 2018! What are you reading this month??
October 2018 New Reads for the Rest of Us
September 23, 2018 20 Karla Strand Books Reads for the Rest of Us
Welcome to the October 2018 New Reads for the Rest of Us!
So here's the October 2018 New Reads for the Rest of Us list. These lists are getting long; I may have to start dividing them up! There are so many great titles here, which will you read??
Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoption by Susan Devan Harness
Tags: Memoir, Native American (Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribes), women writers, family, adoption, #OwnVoices
"One Salish-Kootenai woman's journey, this memoir is a heart-wrenching story of finding family and herself, and of a particularly horrific time in Native history. It is a strong and well-told narrative of adoption, survival, resilience, and is truthfully revealed."–Luana Ross (Bitterroot Salish), codirector of Native Voices Documentary Film at the University of Washington and author of Inventing the Savage
In Defense of Loose Translations: An Indian Life in an Academic World by Elizabeth Cook-Lynn
Tags: Women writers, memoir, Native American (Crow Creek Sioux), education, Indian studies
"As a Native intellectual and a Dakota intellectual, Elizabeth Cook-Lynn constructs indigeneity as well as her own life while deconstructing U.S. settler-colonialism. She is one of the world's experts on the subject area, which gives the subjective text a solid foundation. The book is beautifully written, poetic, lyrical, a signature style. It is truly a brilliant work."–Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, author of An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States, winner of the American Book Award
Painted Cities: Illustrated Street Art Around the World by Lorna Brown
Tags: Art, women writers
Head of Zeus, 128 pages
"Lorna has travelled around the world to produce this collection of illustrations of street art in urban landscapes. Visiting London, Bristol, Helsinki, Berlin, Cairo, Bethlehem, New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, Christchurch, Melbourne, Painted Cities demonstrates how the architecture shapes the unique street art in each city and tells the story of the painters and people who live there."–Description
The Taiga Syndrome by Cristina Rivera Garza (@criveragarza)
Tags: Women writers, folklore, Latinx
Dorothy, a publishing project; 128 pages
"Fiction. Latinx Studies. Women's Studies. Translated from the Spanish by Suzanne Jill Levine and Aviva Kana. A fairy tale run amok, The Taiga Syndrome follows an unnamed female Ex-Detective as she searches for a couple who has fled to the far reaches of the earth."–Description
Terrorism, Betrayal, and Resilience: My Story of the 1998 U.S. Embassy Bombings by Prudence Bushnell
Tags: Memoir, women writers, politics, Kenya, history
Potomac Books, 288 pages
"Prudence Bushnell's name is not household familiar—but it should be. She was at the center of one of the most infamous terrorist attacks on American people and property in history. And she was a woman in the highest ranks of the State Department when such a thing was rare. She tells her story with integrity and intelligence—and gives lessons on leadership based on life experience."–Barbara Kellerman, James MacGregor Burns Lecturer in Leadership, Harvard Kennedy School
When a Bulbul Sings by Hawaa Ayoub (@HawaaAyoub)
Tags: Child marriage, #OwnVoices, women writers, Yemen
Hawaa Ayoub, 416 pages
"Hawaa Ayoub, author of When a Bulbul Sings, has experienced the traumas of forced child-marriage first hand. She hopes to raise awareness through writing about child-marriage."–Author biography
My review of this title will be coming soon!
All You Can Ever Know: A Memoir by Nicole Chung (@nicole_soojung)
Tags: Adoption, Korea, family, women writers, memoir, #OwnVoices
Catapult, 240 pages
An Indies Introduce Pick
The Rumpus, What to Read When You've Made It Halfway Through 2018
The Millions, Most Anticipated in the Second Half of 2018
"In her memoir, All You Can Ever Know, Nicole Chung takes the qualities that make her writing sing―warmth, inquisitiveness, and deep personal investment in the words she types―and turns them inward. Her debut is an investigation into her past in which she aims to leave no stone―or emotion―unturned."–Shondaland
The Best American Short Stories 2018 edited by Roxane Gay (@rgay)
Tags: Short stories, women writers
"The artful, profound, and sometimes funny stories Gay chose for the collection transport readers from a fraught family reunion to an immigration detention center, from a psychiatric hospital to a coed class sleepover in a natural history museum. We meet a rebellious summer camper, a Twitter addict, and an Appalachian preacher—all characters and circumstances that show us what we 'need to know about the lives of others.'"–Description
(Don't) Call Me Crazy: 33 Voices Start the Conversation about Mental Health by Kelly Jensen (@veronikellymars)
Tags: Health, women writers, YA, depression
Algonquin Young Readers, 240 pages
"Lively, compelling . . . the raw, informal approach to the subject matter will highly appeal to young people who crave understanding and validation . . . This highly readable and vital collection demonstrates the multiplicity of ways that mental health impacts individuals."–Kirkus Reviews
A Dream Called Home: A Memoir by Reyna Grande (@reynagrande)
Tags: Memoir, women writers, immigration, Latinx, #OwnVoices
"Candid and emotionally complex, Grande's book celebrates one woman's tenacity in the face of hardship and heartbreak while offering hope to other immigrants as they 'fight to remain' and make their voices heard in a changing America. A heartfelt, inspiring, and relevant memoir."–Kirkus Reviews
"Reyna Grande's A Dream Called Home is a moving memoir about building a family, becoming a writer, and redefining America. Writers in need of inspiration should read this book."–Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author of The Sympathizer
Feminists Don't Wear Pink and Other Lies: Amazing Women on What the F-Word Means to Them by Scarlett Curtis (@scarcurtis)
Tags: Feminism, #OwnVoices, essays
Ballantine Books, 384 pages
"Brilliant, hysterical, truthful, and real, these essays illuminate the path for our future female leaders."–Reese Witherspoon
"As a feminist who loves pink, I give this brilliant book of essays an enthusiastic 'YES.'"–Mindy Kaling
The Feud of the Fan Dancers: Sex, Scandal, and the Showgirl by Leslie Zemeckis (@LeslieZemeckis)
Tags: Dance, history, feminism, women writers, biographies
"Zemeckis has once again given us a fascinating history of entertainment, a bold story of two brave women and the origins of the fan dance. A page-turning time machine to another era. Don't miss it."–Sara Gruen, New York Times bestselling author of Water for Elephants
Footprints in the Dust: Nursing, Survival, Compassion, and Hope with Refugees Around the World by Roberta Gately
Tags: Women writers, globalization, politics, activism
Pegasus Books, 304 pages
"Roberta Gately calls herself nurse, a humanitarian aid worker, and a writer. To that list I would add hero. Her willingness to step outside herself, to see and feel the pain of others is as inspiring as it is admirable. Gately nimbly uses tools of a novelist to tell this story, and as a result, the people she writes about spring fully to life in our imaginations. Here is a book filled with compassion, wisdom and yes, grace. Read it and weep."–Yona Zeldis McDonough, author of The House on Primrose Pond
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Politics by Donna L. Brazile, Yolanda Caraway, Leah Daughtry, and Minyon Moore
Tags: Nonfiction, politics, Black women, women writers, #OwnVoices
"For Colored Girls is basically part history book and part biography but wholly significant. I'm so glad this book exists because the stories of these 4 women, who were instrumental in so many moments of history needed to be told. I'm honored that we can take a sip of their life tea in this way, because what they've done and been a part of are the watershed moments of this nation's contemporary politics. It also doesn't hurt that it's super juicy. The transparency of The Colored Girls as they tell their stories, is admirable. Thank you for showing Black girls and women, that we too belong in the rooms we're in."–Luvvie Ajayi, New York Times-bestselling author of I'M JUDGING YOU: The Do-Better Manual
Freedom Is an Inside Job: Owning Our Darkness and Our Light to Heal Ourselves and the World by Zainab Salbi
Tags: Women writers, self help
Sounds True, 184 pages
"A true spiritual seeker must eventually search inside her own self. This Zainab Salbi does with great consistency and courage in Freedom Is an Inside Job. Sharing her discoveries with determination and resolve, she demonstrates what is possible for anyone who sincerely desires to be part of a new imagination for changing the world."–Alice Walker,author of The Color Purple and The World Will Follow Joy
Girl Squads: 20 Female Friendships That Changed History by Sam Maggs (Author), Jenn Woodall (Illustrator)
Tags: History, women writers, feminism, friendship
Quirk Books, 273 pages
"An impressively researched and fascinating compendium of history's greatest gal pals."—Booklist
Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women's Anger by Rebecca Traister (@rtraister)
Tags: Feminism, politics, anger
Simon & Schuster, 320 pages
"Good and Mad is Rebecca Traister's ode to women's rage—an extensively researched history and analysis of its political power. It is a thoughtful, granular examination: Traister considers how perception (and tolerance) of women's anger shifts based on which women hold it (*cough* white women *cough*) and who they direct it toward; she points to the ways in which women are shamed for or gaslit out of their righteous emotion. And she proves, vigorously, why it's so important for women to own and harness their rage—how any successful revolution depends on it."–BUZZFEED
History vs Women: The Defiant Lives that They Don't Want You to Know by Anita Sarkeesian and Ebony Adams
Tags: Women writers, YA, biography
Feiwel & Friends, 144 pages
"Readers of all ages, across the globe and socioeconomic spectrum, can find an icon to look up to within these pages. Filled with strength, this collection is incredibly inspiring and will instill in teens a take-charge attitude and powerful mind-set."–School Library Journal, Starred Review
In Deep: How I Survived Gangs, Heroin, and Prison to Become a Chicago Violence Interrupter by Angalia Bianca (@AngaliaBianca) with Linda Beckstrom
Tags: Violence, Illinois, addiction, #OwnVoices, women writers
"A riveting, raw, and brutally honest portrayal of a roller-coaster street life fueled by gang violence and drug addiction; a real page-turner that sucks you in from the get-go and takes you on an adventure you can only imagine in your wildest dreams. Awe-inspiring and nothing short of a miracle, Bianca is a force to be reckoned with and an unlikely heroine and role model. She has proved that nothing is impossible and it's never too late."–Vera Ramone King, author of Poisoned Heart
Microaggression Theory: Influence and Implications by Gina C. Torino et al.
Tags: Race, women writers, psychology, education
Wiley, 400 pages
"Microaggressions are brief, everyday exchanges that send denigrating messages to certain individuals because of their group membership (e.g., race, gender, culture, religion, social class, sexual orientation, etc.). These daily, common manifestations of aggression leave many people feeling vulnerable, targeted, angry, and afraid. How has this become such a pervasive part of our social and political rhetoric, and what is the psychology behind it?"–Description
On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden (@TillieWalden)
Tags: Graphic novels, women writers, queer, science fiction
First Second, 544 pages
"Phenomenal . . . Utterly mesmerizing . . . A remarkable, stunning comic."–Booklist (starred review)
"Both gently romantic and heartbreaking, the story ultimately celebrates love and the importance of chosen family. An affirming love story."–Kirkus
Taking the Arrow Out of the Heart by Alice Walker
Tags: Black women, poetry, women writers, #OwnVoices
"Presented in both English and Spanish, Alice Walker shares a timely collection of nearly seventy works of passionate and powerful poetry that bears witness to our troubled times, while also chronicling a life well-lived."–Description
Things to Make and Break by May-Lan Tan (@amanlyant)
Tags: Thriller, short stories, contemporary women, women writers
Coffee House Press, 224 pages
"There's plenty of darkness and a sprinkling of magic, and these strange, flinty, cigarette-stained narratives speed by, offering lots of surface tension and compelling deeper passions."–The Guardian
Unladylike: A Field Guide to Smashing the Patriarchy and Claiming Your Space by Cristen Conger (@CristenConger) and Caroline Ervin (@TheCarolineErv)
Tags: Trans, feminism, women writers, gender
Ten Speed Press, 288 pages
"This book is truly special. Not only do the authors present the problems, but they also offer potential solutions and inspirational tools that are so crucial in driving the conversation forward. Their charming tone combined with the incisively detailed breakdown of all the ways in which the patriarchy affects women make Unladylike a must-read."–Morgan Jerkins, author of This Will Be My Undoing
We Say #NeverAgain: Reporting by the Parkland Student Journalists edited by Melissa Falkowski and Eric Garner
Tags: Violence, education, women writers, #OwnVoices, Florida, journalism
Crown Books for Young Readers, 272 pages
"A journalistic look at the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland and the fight for gun control–as told by the student reporters for the school's newspaper and TV station."–Description
The Wolf Queen: The Hope of Aferi (Book I) by Cerece Rennie Murphy (@CereceRMurphy)
Tags: Fantasy, folklore, romance, women writers
LionSky Publishing, 198 pages
"To fight for her future, she must first discover the magic of her past
Once great and powerful sorcerers, the Amasiti were hunted to the brink of extinction by the Hir and his followers. For four hundred years, their legacy faded from memory waiting for the hope of Aferi to be renewed…
In the Land of Yet
At the edge of the Forbidden Forest
A young woman lives alone."–Description
The Broadcast 41: Women and the Anti-Communist Blacklist by Carol A. Stabile
Tags: Women writers, history, media
Goldsmiths Press, 320 pages
The Broadcast 41 is a must-read book for media scholars who want to understand the historical origins of entertainment media as a powerful reinforcer of sexism, racism and classism in American culture.–Caroline Heldman, Associate Professor of Politics, Occidental College
The Future Is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin edited by Lisa Yaszek
Tags: Science fiction, women writers, short stories
Library of America, 475 pages
"Make no mistake: The quality of the stories here is unassailable."–Kirkus Reviews
Hearts Unbroken by Cynthia Leitich Smith (@CynLeitichSmith)
Tags: Native American, YA, romance, race, #OwnVoices, women writers
Candlewick Press, 304 pages
"New York Times best-selling author Cynthia Leitich Smith turns to realistic fiction with the thoughtful story of a Native teen navigating the complicated, confusing waters of high school — and first love."–Description
The Long Term: Resisting Life Sentences Working Toward Freedom edited by Alice Kim, Erica Meiners, Jill Petty, Audrey Petty, Beth E. Richie, and Sarah Ross
Tags: Essays, human rights, crime, incarceration
Haymarket, 250 pages
"The Long Term is a powerful collection of voices, curated and edited by a powerful line-up of veteran organizers and radical thinkers. The writers in this collection make a compelling and eloquent case against 'the prison nation' and give us a glimpse of the resistance and the alternatives that are already in the works."–Barbara Ransby, historian, writer, activist and Distinguished Professor of African American Studies, Gender and Women's Studies, and History at the University of Illinois at Chicago
Read & Riot: A Pussy Riot Guide to Activism by Nadya Tolokonnikova (@tolokno)
Tags: #OwnVoices, women writers, activism
HarperOne, 256 pages
"With its stellar mix of personal experience and hard-won advice, Tolokonnikova's guide is sure to fuel social movements for years to come."–Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Training School for Negro Girls by Camille Acker (@cam_acker)
Tags: Black women, contemporary women, women writers, short stories, Washington DC
The Feminist Press at CUNY, 248 pages
"Camille Acker navigates the lives of young African American girls and women in Washington, DC with humor, heart, and grace. I loved these stories."–Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers
"A devastating and subtle portrayal of what it is to be black and female in America: the ache, the rage, the sorrow, the unending will to rise."–Shobha Rao, author of Girls Burn Brighter
White Dancing Elephants by Chaya Bhuvaneswar (@chayab77)
Tags: Debut, women writers, queer, short stories, women of color
"White Dancing Elephants is a searing and complex collection, wholly realized, each piece curled around its own beating heart. Tender and incisive, Chaya Bhuvaneswar is a surgeon on the page; unflinching in her aim, unwavering in her gaze, and absolutely devastating in her prose. This is an astonishing debut."–Amelia Gray, author of Isadora
Nasty Women and Bad Hombres: Gender and Race in the 2016 Us Presidential Election edited by Christine A. Kray, Tamar W. Carroll, and Hinda Mandell
Tags: Politics, US history, feminism
University of Rochester Press, 336 pages
"Gender and racial politics were at the center of the 2016 US presidential contest between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Contributors to the volume examine the ways that gender and racial hierarchies intersected and reinforced one another throughout the campaign season."–Description
On My Way To Liberation by H. Melt (@HMeltChicago)
October 18 (ebook, paperback out now!)
Tags: Trans, poetry, queer, #OwnVoices
Haymarket Books, 28 pages
"How do you imagine trans liberation while living in a cis world? On My Way To Liberation follows a gender nonconforming body moving through the streets of Chicago. From the sex shop to the farmers market, the family dinner table to the bookstore, trans people are everywhere, though often erased. Writing towards a trans future, H. Melt envisions a world where trans people are respected, loved and celebrated every day."–Description
The Lesbian South: Southern Feminists, the Women in Print Movement, and the Queer Literary Canon by Jaime Harker (@jaimeharker)
Tags: Lesbian, queer, US history, literary criticism, women writers, feminism
"In this essential study of southern literature, Jaime Harker uncovers the complex networks of affiliation, sometimes antagonistic and sometimes loving, that shaped southern lesbian feminism, and the rich literary archive that women in these networks produced. A must-have for any reader."–Michael Bibler, Louisiana State University
Why Does Patriarchy Persist? by Carol Gilligan (@CarolGilligan1) and Naomi Snider
Tags: Gender, anthropology, women writers, nonfiction
"Taking on the long brewing battle between true democracy and the pervasive 'ghost' of patriarchy, this compact book exists in a category of its own. The voices of its authors are accessible, incisive and engaging – the perfect book to launch almost any conversation about our current socio-political times."–Jill Gentile, author, Feminine Law: Freud, Free Speech, and the Voice of Desire
Everything's Trash, But It's Okay by Phoebe Robinson (@dopequeenpheebs)
Tags: Humor, essays, Black women, women writers, #OwnVoices
Plume, 336 pages
"Phoebe Robinson brings her infectious charm and utterly delightful sense of humor to her second essay collection, Everything's Trash, But It's Okay. From body image to contemporary feminism to our culture of overwork, Robinson offers deft cultural criticism and hilarious personal anecdotes that will make readers laugh, cringe, and cry. Everything may indeed be trash but writing like this reminds us that we're gonna make it through all the terrible things with honesty, laughter, and faith."–Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author
Gender: Your Guide: A Gender-Friendly Primer on What to Know, What to Say, and What to Do in the New Gender Culture by Lee Airton (@LeeAirton)
Tags: Gender, queer, trans, family
Adams Media, 240 pages
"An authentic and accessible guide to understanding—and engaging in—today's gender conversation."–Description
In Your Hands by Inês Pedrosa and Andrea Rosenberg (Translator)
Tags: Translation, women writers, Portugal, historical fiction, literary fiction, queer
AmazonCrossing, 205 pages
"In Your Hands is another work in the fine tradition of European literature. Told from a definite feminist perspective it focuses on the inner feelings of its principal characters, each a finely drawn and vital woman as they navigate the turbulent times of twentieth-century Portugal."–Writers & Readers Magazine
Memoirs of a Born Free: Reflections on the New South Africa by a Member of the Post-apartheid Generation by Malaika Wa Azania
Tags: South Africa, memoir, race, women writers
Seven Stories Press, 240 pages
"By forcefully interrogating the problematic notion of the Rainbow Nation, and by daring to address the broken promise of an ANC in dire need of strong leadership, Memoirs of a Born Free is a must read—a book that reveals just how inadequate political freedom without socio-economic freedom truly is."–Independent Online (South Africa)
My Love Story by Tina Turner
Tags: Music, Black women, women writers, #OwnVoices, memoirs
Atria Books, 272 pages
"Tina Turner—the long-reigning queen of rock & roll and living legend—sets the record straight about her illustrious career and complicated personal life in this eye-opening and compelling memoir."–Description
Period Power by Nadya Okamoto
Tags: Health, YA, women writers
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 368 pages
"[T]ruly intersectional and…a useful guide for activists inspired by this work…A smart, honest, and comprehensive education on movement building and menstrual rights."–Kirkus, starred review
"If you're looking for a way to turn your anger about gender inequality into action, this book is a must read. You'll learn a great deal about menstrual inequities and the intersectional impacts created because of our failure to address them. This is a how-to handbook on what you can do to change that."–Former state Senator Wendy Davis
Riddance: Or: The Sybil Joines Vocational School for Ghost Speakers & Hearing-Mouth Children by Shelley Jackson
Tags: YA, coming of age, horror, women writers
Black Balloon Publishing, 512 pages
"Not only an incredible yarn but a delightfully strange, wondrously original, and dazzlingly immersive gothic love letter to storytelling."–Booklist
She Wants It: Desire, Power, and Toppling the Patriarchy by Jill Soloway
Tags: Memoir, women writers, queer, trans, gender, entertainment, #OwnVoices
Crown Archetype, 256 pages
Read my review!
"Most writers hide in memoirs, sharing little real stories. With generous openhearted honesty, courage, and compassion, Soloway invites us to hear true stories. They share the difficult painful revelations, triumphs, and failures. Listening to them, readers laugh, cry, love, and most important, learn."–bell hooks
Thursdays and Every Other Sunday Off: A Domestic Rap by Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor
Tags: Nonfiction, work, women writers, Black women, US history
Univ Of Minnesota Press, 176 pages
"Thursdays and Every Other Sunday Off is an exploration of the lives of African American domestic workers in cities throughout the United States during the mid-twentieth century. With dry wit and honesty, Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor relates the testimonies of maids, cooks, child care workers, and others as they discuss their relationships with their employers and their experiences on the job."–Description
A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi (@TaherehMafi)
Tags: YA, Islam, racism, family, identity, women writers
HarperCollins, 320 pages
"Mafi tackles the life of an American Muslim teenager in the wake of 9/11 in this visceral, honest novel. Shirin's captivating story opens a window onto a different narrative than the one typically dominating airwaves after 9/11. Rich characters, incisive writing, and a powerful story will thrill readers."–Booklist (starred review)
What We Owe by Golnaz Hashemzadeh Bonde and Elizabeth Jane Clark Wessel (Translator)
Tags: Literary fiction, family, women writers, translation, Iran
Mariner Books , 208 pages
"I read this ferocious novel in one sitting, enthralled by the rage of its narrator. Nahid confronts her own suffering with dark humor and noisy honesty, while taking aim at a patriarchal tradition that expects her to be silent."–Leni Zumas, author of Red Clocks
Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago's South Side by Eve L. Ewing (@eveewing)
Tags: Education, women writers, Chicago, US history, #OwnVoices
"…Ewing gives direct voice to those served by those schools often dismissed as failing. What she finds is that these schools are often among the last working institutions in neighborhoods which have been systematically stripped of everything else. Mixing history, sociology, and even memoir, Ghosts in the Schoolyard is an important addition to any conversation about the future of public schools and those they were designed to serve."–Ta-Nehisi Coates
A Political Education: Black Politics and Education Reform in Chicago Since the 1960s by Elizabeth Todd-Breland (@EToddBreland)
Tags: Politics, Chicago, US history, women writers, education
"This is a brilliant and necessary expose of a collision that we all know too little about. Using Chicago as a case study, Elizabeth Todd-Breland shares the devastating collision between Black community-based education reformers and corporate education reformers since the 1960s. Black education organizing comes alive–and fights on and on against all odds–in this expertly framed and vividly told book."–Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award winning author of Stamped from the Beginning
Kat's Nine Lives by Laina Villeneuve
Tags: Lesbian, women writers, romance
"Wedding bells are ringing for Kat Morehart―just not her own. When the church she works for refuses to let a gay couple marry in the sanctuary, she aims to make it up to them by offering her home as the perfect venue. Caterer Wendy Archer enjoys the business Kat directs her way and their friendship even more. As they work together to create the perfect setting for the wedding, Kat and Wendy struggle to fight what simmers between them."–Description
Lex Files by Celeste Castro
Tags: Lesbian, women writers, science fiction, romance
"What is terrorizing a nature preserve near a small town in rural Idaho? Half the town believes it's the Lake Lowell Ghost and the rest are convinced it's a diabolical beast. With no end in sight, they need help. Can two women work together when one faces east toward logic and the other faces west toward the realm of impossibility? In an age where science and facts rule, blind trust can be a lot to ask of anyone."–Description
The Mental Load: A Feminist Comic by Emma
Tags: Graphic novel, feminism, women writers
"The Mental Load, a feminist comic by Emma, takes readers on a journey of awakening that is at once delightfully whimsical and frustratingly serious. The graphic stories take aim at the way women's unpaid caregiving and labor is invisible, undervalued and expected at home, and how it shapes and limits their experiences and career trajectories at work. An eye-opening gem."–Brigid Schulte, award-winning journalist, author of the New York Times bestselling Overwhelmed: Work, Love & Play when No One has the Time
Paper Gods: A Novel of Money, Race, and Politics by Goldie Taylor
Tags: Black women, women writers, politics, mystery
All Points Books, 336 pages
"A moving and unflinching portrait of a city and its many layers of power…Taylor has created a hero we see all too rarely: black, female, powerful." —Tim Teeman, Senior Editor of The Daily Beast
Useful Phrases for Immigrants: Stories by May-Lee Chai (@mayleechai)
Tags: China, women writers, short stories, #OwnVoices
"With insight, compassion, and clarity, May-lee Chai vividly illustrates the reverberations of migration―both physical and psychological; between countries, cities, and generations; and within families and individuals. You won't forget these characters."–Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers, finalist for the National Book Award in Fiction
Family Trust: A Novel by Kathy Wang (@bykathywang)
Tags: Family, literary, women writers
William Morrow, 400 pages
"A wicked and witty send up of Asian-American Silicon Valley elite, a delightful debut that Jane Austen would have approved of."–Micah Perks, author of What Becomes Us
"Astute…[Wang] brings levity and candor to the tricky terrain of family dynamics, aging, and excess [and] expertly considers the values of high-tech high society."–Publishers Weekly (starred review)
The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory (@thebestjasmine)
Tags: Romance, women writers
Berkley, 336 pages
"There is so much to relate to and throughout the novel, there is a sharp feminist edge. Loved this one, and you will too."–Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author
This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kheryn Callender (@kheryncasey)
Tags: YA, romance, queer, queer writers
Balzer + Bray, 304 pages
"As an unapologetic fan of a great rom-com, This is Kind of an Epic Love Story gave me all I was looking for, including the one thing that's challenging to find—a beautiful LGBTQ love story. Kheryn's novel is hopeful, romantic, and everything my gay heart needed!"–Angelo Surmelis, author of The Dangerous Art of Blending In
Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves edited by Glory Edim (@guidetoglo and @wellreadblkgirl)
Tags: Literary, essays, Black women, women writers
"A brilliant collection of essential American reading . . . smart, powerful, and complete."–Min Jin Lee, author of the National Book Award finalist Pachinko
Hope you find something of interest on the October 2018 New Reads for the Rest of Us – What will you be reading this month?
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