Celebrating You & Breaking Through in 2021, Plus Romance

Is last year's bumper crop of lemons the main ingredient for this year's success? 

Here's a book with plenty of reasons why yes is the answer. 
Rethink, Smashing the Myths of Women in Business  Andi Simon, Ph.D.  Non-fiction business biography Fast Company Press (Greenleaf Book Group, distributor)  January 5, 2021  
At a time when the world is reeling from being forced to improvise almost everything on a daily basis, Rethink profiles eleven women, including the author, whose lives and professional careers are prime examples of adaptability that defy entrenched gendered expectations. Invisible barriers to achievement in science, management, finance, and other industries are examined through the lenses of these accomplished women's experiences. Their profiles make for compelling reading and comprise the majority of the text, which is its strength. Notable reading frustrations include points of view and blanket statements that reinforce a narrow focus on a hetero, privileged, Anglo gender binary as the presumptive frame of reference. The author's advice leans heavily toward putting the burden of change on women rather than on strategies for systemic changes to eliminate the institutionalized career blockages formed from rampant sexism, misogyny, LGBTQUIA-phobia, and racism that hinder women from reaching the highest levels of academic and professional achievement—at least until Delora Tyler's feature in the “Myth 9” chapter. There, toward the end of the book is where Rethink explicitly acknowledges specific layers of codified oppression and exclusion in the workplace. Unfortunately, the concluding remarks undercut that refreshing candor by swinging back toward burdening the individual for cultural failings with this statement:  
“Like Delora, African American women entrepreneurs must be more self-confident and build their resilience.”  
The underlying assumption that Black women in particular, and girls and women in general, are inherently lacking in self-confidence and resilience is the fundamental weakness in this otherwise exceptional collection of assorted blueprints for success and effective leadership with an emphasis on the importance of company culture.  
Dr. Simon is a corporate anthropologist and those critical thinking and observational strengths provide narrative stability and anchor the rational layering of ideas. She refers to credible studies that quantitatively confirm the effective leadership of female CEOs for companies that consistently perform as well or better than those headed by men. It seems like a missed opportunity to connect, or at least acknowledge, these facts with the themes discussed in Reviving Ophelia and other works that track the ways in which society undercuts and warps girls' and women's self-actualization, which starts as being comparable to boys'.  
A foreword; three parts that layout the intention, eleven common myths about women in the workplace, a conclusion that speculates about future myths; and resources, discussion questions, and a list of organizations, plus acknowledgments [sic], and an index offer readers inspiration, validation, motivation, practical strategies, and tools to initiate or reignite pursuit of their most ambitious professional goals. Rethink is a call to action for the New Year. 

And speaking of bumper crops... Romance fiction yielded a bountiful selection of outstanding tales in 2020. Here are three reads that closed out the year with fireworks. (The Washington Post agrees.) 
The Duke Who Didn't  Courtney Milan  Historical romance  September 2020  
In The Duke Who Didn't, Courtney Milan offers readers a thoroughly delightful historical rom-com with substantive cultural research and emotional family legacies seamlessly combined. Forthright entrepreneur Chloe Fong is a Type A planner. Undercover Duke Jeremy Wentworth is a Type B improviser who has loved Chloe since they were children. He wants to build a life with her, but there's one significant problem: She doesn't know who he really is, or does she? Questions of identity—its sources, its authenticity, its obligations, dominate this story without weighing it down with tragic angst, especially for Chloe and Jeremy, who each develop philosophically different, yet somewhat effective coping strategies for negotiating environments that label them as outsiders. Wedgeford and its residents supply vibrant local color and community context. Milan's signature style of distinctive multifaceted characterizations gets amplified by details in cultural heritage, generational inheritances, and personal agency. An examination of racism as a nuanced and insidious construct when expressed in words and actions by oblivious family members is organically included and magnified in striking contrast to the overall lighthearted tone. Chloe constantly says, “Be serious.” Jeremy and The Duke Who Didn't prove that being serious is not the same as dour, although occasionally, like Chloe, readers may feel some exasperation with Jeremy's constant teasing even as she enjoys it. This first installment of the Wedgeford Trials series builds upon the rock solid foundation of exploring hierarchies dictated by socioeconomics, gender, age, sexual orientation, and geography in her previous series, and expands on those themes while adding a more intense and broader spotlight on race and ethnicity presented as a historical rom-com frolic in Chloe and Jeremy’s tenderhearted love story.  


Season of the Wolf  Maria Vale  Contemporary supernatural romance  Sourcebooks Casablanca, August 2020  
Evie, the ultimate Alpha of the Great North Pack, wears the heavy mantle of leadership as a position of service to the present demands and future needs of her community. There's no space or time to address her personal needs as an individual—until dangerous shifter Constantine sees Evie and recognizes her strength and her silent struggles. Twice during his lifetime the fates of powerful women have altered the course of his destiny in ways beyond his control. Now Constantine asserts his proactive intentions toward the evolution of his future. Season of the Wolf uses Evie and Constantine’s accidental courtship to explore themes of self-less sacrifice for the greater benefit of the group, and the development of emotional maturity and an ethical conscience. The essence of the depth of their connection is reminiscent of Kelley Armstrong's Elena and Clay without mimicking that fictional relationship. Threads on identity, feminism, misogyny, and toxic masculinity combined with riffs on exploiting the land versus being stewards of it weave throughout this lyrically composed fourth entry in this captivating The Legend of All Wolves series. From ableism to xenophobia, each installment projects its own distinctive focus while incorporating multiple facets of irresistible storytelling in artistry and mechanics. Individually, they're beautifully rendered, provocative literary tapestries. Together, they document a sweeping saga.     


A Touch of Stone and Snow (A Gathering of Dragons #2)  Milla Vane  Fantasy adventure romance  Jove, July 2020  
While the title conjures thoughts of hard and cold, Lizzan of Lightgale and Prince Aerax embody ranges of vulnerability and heat in their volatile relationship with each other and the people of Koth. Ten years earlier a simple military skirmish resulted in a slaughter that left Lizzan as the sole survivor, leaving her scarred, shunned, outcast, and forced into a lonely, dangerous nomadic existence from which Aerax's newly elevated status from unacknowledged, scorned royal bastard to necessary heir couldn't save her. Circumstances have honed these childhood sweethearts into fierce warriors and steadfast lovers even as fate conspires to taunt them with each other's proximity. Preventing a demon-possessed warlord from paving the way for The Destroyer to consume all of human existence becomes their first priority. If they accomplish that mission, then saving their personal romance should be easy, right?  
Scapegoating, false narratives as political leverage, silence as violence against disenfranchised members of society, and many other themes of sociopolitical commentary organically enrich this fantastical tale of supernatural beasts, magic, and  assorted mayhem. Emotional depth and range interspersed with gallows humor make these characters breathe with authenticity reinforced by gritty dialogue and vibrant descriptions of fanciful landscapes and creatures. There are also cinematic battle scenes. A Touch of Stone and Snow delivers a stellar read in every aspect of storytelling excellence.