Sponsored by Writing Wild by Kathryn Aalto.
In Writing Wild, Kathryn Aalto celebrates 25 women whose influential writing helps deepen our connection to the natural world—including Dorothy Wordsworth, Carolyn Finney, Mary Austin, and Rebecca Solnit, among others. These inspiring wordsmiths are scholars, spiritual seekers, conservationists, scientists, novelists, and explorers. They defy easy categorization, yet they all share a bold authenticity that makes their work both distinct and universal. Part travel essay, literary biography, and cultural history, Writing Wild ventures into the landscapes and lives of extraordinary writers and encourages a new generation of women to pick up their pens, head outdoors, and start writing wild.
More Pride! Pride all the time. We’re at the last Friday newsletter of June, so here we go with some real gay (or queer. or trans!) books:
Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock. This book is a JOURNEY. Mock tells her story of growing up “young, multiracial, poor, and trans in America.” What is it like to grow up trans and without privilege? When I read this, I felt like it offered tremendous clarity about the breadth of experience out there, how every person’s journey is different, and what humans are capable of accomplishing. If you’ve already read it, check out Mock’s second book, Surpassing Certainty: What My Twenties Taught Me.
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado. Kim on For Real HIGHLY recommends this. I bought it at Powell’s Books in Portland and haven’t read it yet, but I’m expecting it to be amazing. It’s a memoir of the emotionally abusive relationship Machado was in, as well as the aftermath. It’s called beautifully written, but “haunting,” so watch out if you can’t handle that kind of thing right now. What makes it truly stand out is that Machado changes up the style of every chapter, including a Choose Your Own Path and a Haunted House-style section.
Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers: A History of Lesbian Life in Twentieth-Century America by Lillian Faderman. If you were looking for queer history books 5 years ago (and I was), you would come across Faderman all the time, because she was one of the few people writing about it. This is one of her better-known works, where she traces the history of lesbian culture in America. One reviewer accuses her of holding a “culturally-based view of lesbianism,” which is legit, but overall she’s cautious with evidence and does a good job highlighting histories that might otherwise be lost.
All right! Have an excellent weekend, be safe, and as always, you can find me on social media @itsalicetime and co-hosting the For Real podcast with Kim here at Book Riot. Until next time, enjoy those facts, fellow nerds.