November 2021 Reads
Anyway, the first of these audiobooks was the short story "The Willows" by classic horror author Algernon Blackwood, whom I first heard of when playing the "Until Dawn" video game. (He's referenced a lot there; probably because of his 'wendigo' short story. Just a heads up, fellow white folks: don't make stories/art about wendigos. They're not ours, and they have spiritual significance to first nations folks. Kind of a no-no.) I wanted to read this story of his in particular because it's the basis for T. Kingfisher's newest novel, The Hollow Places. And while that made it interesting to me (seeing as I love Kingfisher's horror-related works), it wasn't really my cup of tea. Eldritch horror in general doesn't do it for me; I like my spooks closer to home/reality. While in theory I can understand the fear our unnamed narrator and his companion experienced in such an uncanny place, it's not something I can relate to, y'know? "It's spooky because it's mysterious/unexplained" isn't enough for my sciency brain. BUT! It was well written, it ended with a punch (as all short stories should), and if what I've described sizzles your jollies, then I recommend you go for it.
Next I listened to Ruby Bridges' Through My Eyes, which I recommend people read specifically in audiobook format. The different narrators, the Black gospel music, and the interview with the author herself at the end really added to the experience. While a very short read (at 60 pages), it was impactful. Of course I'd heard Ruby's story before; who hasn't? I use her name specifically whenever I hear stupid people say "racism is over" or desegregation took place "a long time ago." Ruby is in her 60s now and still just as much of an activist now as she was at age six... Because the need for activism in the fight for racial equality is still extremely prevalent. It scrambles my brain that there were (are!) adult human beings who dedicated months of their lives to harassing and threatening children for (checks notes) going to school. If that doesn't make your blood boil, I don't even know what to say to you. Amazing story presented in an appealing way with first-hand accounts from many involved and others from the sidelines.
Third came The Joy Luck Club which I've been meaning to read for ages. (Note: I learned after listening that this was the abridged version. I hate the concept of abridging things (what's the point?!) and wouldn't have chosen this had I known. Maybe someday I'll read the full-length version, because I quite liked what I read here.) It tells the stories of several Chinese-American immigrants and their kids, with focus on strained or complicated mother/daughter relationships. The intersection of motherhood and immigrant status is a particular one I've been learning about lately through YouTube essayists and personal friendships, and this emotional, carefully-written book increased my already growing appreciation and respect for the topic.
Fourth was Convenience Store Woman. I read the author's other English-translated novel, Earthling, earlier this year. Earthling went to some wild places (read: pedophilia, incest and cannibalism), which I gathered from the comments was highly unexpected from the author of this charming tale. And yeah, I can see how it would be jarring... CSW tells the story of an Autistic-coded woman who is satisfied with her quiet life working at a convenience store well into her thirties, with no interest in ever having a boyfriend or climbing the corporate ladder. It's a commentary on capitalist culture and the social pressure to always advance and conform, to never feel happy with what you have, and ultimately resists that drive. If you're truly happy where you are in life, that's fine. Screw everything else. (As a neurodivergent person like myself who has little interest in careers and is likely to remain single, I really appreciate this, by the way!) And I imagine that's an especially radical message in Japan, where it was originally published. While it never went to the dark places that Earthling reached, the similarities are stark with their "unusual" female protagonists questioning their place in society, particularly regarding the constant pressure to marry and reproduce. This author clearly has a lot of feelings on the topic, and I'm beyond excited to see what she publishes next.
Kinda weird that I'd never read The Giver, considering I've read a lot of Lowry's work! Anyway, I've since rectified this. I kinda knew, going in, that it was "baby's first dystopia," and that much was accurate, but it had a lot more depth and care than I was expecting. I can see why it's a classic. I don't really have much to say about it, other than it's maddening what books parents try to ban. If you honestly don't think twelve-year-olds have thoughts and questions about death, suicide, authority, conformity, and sex, then either you've never met one, or they have reason to believe they can't talk to you. None of it was presented in an inappropriate way; I feel kids could only benefit from the discussions this book will raise.
Can you believe I've never before read The Great Gatsby? Or seen the movies? I feel like my schools were all hella focused on Shakespeare and didn't teach much of anything else. And maybe they were right for that, because this was boring as shit. Barely anything happened, and as far as I could gather, the moral was just "rich people suck." Which... Everyone already knows that, right? (Right...???) Between all the casual antisemitism (they really just threw the K word out there, huh? Gross), I had to wonder why it was told from Nick's POV, instead of Gatsby's? If it was from Gatsby's POV, it might have been a bit more interesting, since then we could at least see the events firsthand instead of hearing about them after the fact. Anyway. Never reading that nonsense again.
I never read the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series as a kid (not sure why! I liked lots of animal-protagonist books), but a friend showed me the "moon blinked" scene from the movie, and it was so freaky and unsettling that I had to know more. (I love creepy kids' books!) Much to my delight, the writing in The Capture was (sometimes) even creepier than the movie, leaving me as one happy camper. It was a little weird and squicky, their obsession with food and passing pellets and all that. (I mean, they ARE owls, so. What are they SUPPOSED to revolve their lives around? But still; I feel like other animal-protagonist books I've read weren't so off-putting. Maybe it's because I've always had a bird phobia I try to keep quiet). Did they have to talk about their gizzards so much? I don't think I've ever talked about my digestive tract to anyone but doctors, personally. The snake-nanny was really cute, though.
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies was... Extremely timely for me. Strangely so, even. Not to get too personal, but I was in the midst of having my records legally removed from the Mormon church, almost a decade after leaving, when I read this. For a queer woman like myself, a childhood trapped in a misogynistic and homophobic religion is something filled with pain and trauma. And that's exactly what these nine short stories are about: Black women, sometimes queer Black women, and their complicated, often painful relationships with family, sex, their own bodies/agency, and church. It shows perspectives of converts, immigrants, different ages/generations... Honestly this was just a fascinating and gorgeously written collection that took my heart and wrenched it out of my chest. (I don't even like short stories! What the hell?!) Five stars, for sure.
Milk Blood Heat was more what I'm used to when it comes to short story collections -- inconsistent and unsatisfying. Some of the stories were better than others, but nearly all of them ended without any kind of concrete resolution and left me asking, "so what was the point of all that?" The writing was good, and if you LIKE short story anthologies, I can't see any reason why you wouldn't like this one (I mean there are some trigger warnings going in. Miscarriages, suicide, infidelity, child sexual abuse, probably a few more I'm missing), but it didn't do much for me. 2.5 stars, rounded up.
The Nothing But Blackened Teeth audiobook was quite short, at under three hours (and I always listen at 2x speed, so...). I've seen a lot of complaints about the "purple prose," but honestly that was the best part of the book. It was fun to see how the author could re-word simple statements into elaborate spoolings of thought. Underneath all that, it was just your basic (if self-aware and diverse in sexuality and race) ghost story involving a bunch of unlikable twenty-somethings surviving (or not surviving) a night in a haunted house. If that's your cup of tea, you already know it. If it's not... It's not.
Of course, it wasn't JUST super-short audiobooks. I read a couple book books, too...
The Only is the third and final book in Applegate's Endling series. (I've said it before, but it's so pleasantly strange to me that there's a children's book series about preventing an oncoming war through political meetings, treaties, and forming allies.) There's very little action and, like Animorphs, the few battles shown are portrayed as tragic. It's deeply sad and traumatic to have to hurt and kill people! Also like Animorphs is the constant focus on the balance of nature and the environment; every species of plant and animal is vital to the greater whole. As always, Applegate manages to make my heart ache, but at least she didn't completely crush my soul with this ending like she did with Animorphs. In fact, this left me with the warm fuzzies! I feel good about this series and the messages about how much the price of peace and stability can cost.
Still reading the Wings of Fire series to bond with my niece! The Brightest Night is the fifth book in the series and the last of the initial dragonet prophecy arc (there are more books, though! Lots more!). I thought this was a good wrap-up all around for the arc, resolving all the major conflicts and advancing all the character development. I really appreciate how creative and fun this series is, particularly with worldbuilding. The science nerd in me loves the differing biology and cultures of all the dragon tribes. And I really appreciate the reminder that just because someone you care about has romantic feelings for you does not mean you owe them a relationship — we should see more things like that in kids' books.
And yeah, I'm trying to step up my 'Wings of Fire' reading, since book #15 comes out this upcoming April. Moon Rising is book #6, and stars my niece's favorite character, a NightWing called Moonwatcher. In my opinion, this new arc is a definite step up from the quality of the previous! I'm more interested in a story of young people unlearning bigotry with new friends than I am a prophecy/chosen one story. Plus, now that the rules of this world are fully established, we can have some fun subverting expectations! I was pleasantly surprised at the addition of a gay character, too, especially at how he (and his crush) weren't treated any differently from the straight crushes in the series. I know more and more kids' media includes gay characters nowadays, but every time I see it, I just feel a bittersweet kinda joy... Man, that would've meant the world to me, getting any kind of positive rep as a kid.
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Sorry I didn't write a wrap-up post on what I read for October... I just wasn't feeling it. I was kind of a depressed wreck last month and didn't read nearly as much as I'd planned, and definitely didn't want to do any writing. (Mental illness! Can't live with it..... Don't really have a choice......) If you're curious, though, I wrote reviews for every item:
- Pumpkin by Julie Murphy (4/5)
- From Here To Eternity by Caitlin Doughty (3/5)
- The First by Katherine Applegate (5/5)
- The Dark Secret by Tui T. Sutherland (4/5)
- Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao (100/5)
- The second Animorphs graphic novel by Chris Grine (5/5)
- A Touch of Jen by Beth Morgan (4/5)
- Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca (3/5)
For the 5 books I recommended my library purchase this month, we've got The Teller of Secrets by Bisi Adjapon, Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong, Insatiable: Porn - A Love Story by Asa Akira, Nobody's Normal: How Culture Created the Stigma of Mental Illness by Roy Richard Grinker, and Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Make of that what you will~
