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Riot Rundown

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Read This Book

Read This Book…

Welcome to Read This Book, a newsletter where I recommend one book that should absolutely be put at the top of your TBR pile. Recommended books will vary across genre and age category and include shiny new books, older books you may have missed, and some classics I suggest finally getting around to. Make space for another pile of books on your floor because here we go!

Today’s pick is a nonfiction comic that truly lives up to its title. It has been an invaluable educational tool for me and I’ve probably given away at least a half dozen copies.

A Quick and Easy Guide to Queer and Trans Identities by Mady G and Jules Zuckerberg

A Quick & Easy Guide to Queer & Trans Identities by Mady G. and Jules Zuckerberg

This lovely little comic is a super beginner’s guide for both people who are figuring out their own queer and/or trans identity as well as the people who are in their support network who want to learn more about queer and trans identities. By no means is the information in this book exhaustive as it’s small enough to fit into a large pocket. It manages to cover the basics of some really common questions without being overwhelming or academic.

The main characters are snails and some adorable non-humanoid creatures. It’s clear the authors don’t want you to assign gender to the characters, which is a really good thing to practice.

It’s written in a format where each little section is titled by a question, then some discussion about the answer or answers. It begins with “What is queer?” which is wonderful because that’s a question that a lot of people have. Many people who aren’t under the LGBTQ+ umbrella can be confused by it. The truth is that queer can mean different things to different people. Some people are also concerned that it used to be a slur and this book addresses that as well.

The book also offers simplified information on the definitions of and differences between gender, sex, sexual orientation or attraction, and gender expression. There’s also a section in this book that caught me by surprise but not in a bad way because it totally belongs here, and that is a section on relationship basics and what some signs of healthy relationships are and also what are some red flags. The thing is, a lot of us as teens learn about relationships from what is modeled in our life and what we see in the media. It’s rare that any of us, especially those of us in the LGBTQIA+ crowd, are given a resource before mistakes are made.

I love that this book exists. It can help alleviate some of the emotional labor involved in educating people about queer and trans identities and do so in a way that is thoughtful and fun.

That’s it for now, book-lovers!

Patricia

Find me on Book Riot, the All the Books podcast, and Twitter.

Find more books by subscribing to Book Riot Newsletters.

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What's Up in YA

Enjoy a Bite from These YA Food Truck Reads

Hey YA Readers!

I hope you’re ready to be hungry with today’s look at YA books featuring food trucks. Foodie YA has been on the upswing in the last couple of years, with tons of romances centered around finding love while competing on food reality shows and competitions, as well as on the job. It’s been fun to see so many, but I’ve got to say, I’m especially partial to YA food truck books.

I live in an area where we regularly have food truck festivals and they’re my favorite way to expand my culinary horizons. It’s a small town, so we don’t have a wide range of restaurants, and food trucks provide the opportunity to discover new foods without needing to travel far.

For teens, food trucks provide the same, and in YA literature food trucks offer such a perfect story setting. You have a workplace that’s tiny, and being in such a confined space offers a lot of time for things to happen between and among characters. This might be love, it might be friendship, or in some cases, it might be the ultimate punishment.

Find below a delicious array of food truck YA books. Included are two of my personal favorites that I never stop thinking about when I visit a food truck — my mind wonders what those characters might be up to, as well as what the actual teens who may be working those trucks are themselves experiencing. Note that there is only one book here by an author of color. We’ve seen a good number of foodie YA featuring teens (and authors) of color, but it’s surprising how few have included food trucks.

donuts and other proclamations of love book cover

Donuts and Other Proclamations of Love by Jared Reck

Easily one of my favorite books this year is Reck’s sophomore novel set on a Swedish food truck. Oscar lives with his grandfather and works with him on the truck; one of their specialties is a specific type of donut. What slowly unravels through the book is the story of how and why Oscar’s grandfather came to the US from Finland, as well as the immense weight of grief within him. There’s a fun and poignant plot in the story featuring a girl in Oscar’s class who asks him to help her with a project meant to repurpose apples tossed away during school lunches that, as you might guess, leads to a little bit of love along the way. This one’s a tear-jerker, with threads about queer love, about friendship, and includes plenty of delicious food, Swedish phrases, and even space for laughter.

cover for geekerella

Geekerella by Ashley Poston

First in a fun, fandom-centric twist on Cinderella, Poston’s novel follows Elle Wittimer, a devoted fan to the classic sci-fi series Starfield. When she learns about a costume contest wherein the prize is meeting one of the actors in the show’s reboot, she jumps at the chance. It’s with the money she makes from working at the Magic Pumpkin food truck that helps her fund the endeavor.

Darien is a teen actor who feels like such a fake. He’s been cast as one of the actors in the Starfield reboot but doesn’t think he’s cut out for it.

When Elle and Darien meet, though, they can do more for one another than imagined.

cover for the music of what happens

The Music of What Happens by Bill Konigsberg

What happens when two very different teen boys, both with a heap of challenges in their lives, are working together in the Arizona heat for the summer on a food truck?

Sparks, potentially.

Max and Jordan are complete opposites, but being side by side in Coq Au Vinny might help them fall for each other, as well as better understand themselves.

the way you make me feel book cover

The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo

This book will make you laugh, as well as potentially hate the main character who is as much an obnoxious prankster teen as you can imagine (that, to me, is precisely what makes her endearing and real).

After a prank goes too far at school, Clara’s dad punishes her to a summer working the family food truck, KoBra, alongside Rose, an uptight classmate she cannot stand. She’s dreading every second of it. That is, until she allows herself to open up, to find connection with Rose, and to maybe find love with a boy she meets at a food truck festival whose name is Hamlet.

Goo has a way of writing complex and dynamic characters and weaves them into prose and situations that are both spot-on emotionally and hilarious.

I don’t know about you, but in my dream world, all of these food trucks would be at a festival in the same place and I’d enjoy the delicious offerings at each.


As always, thanks for hanging out, and we’ll see you later this week!

— Kelly Jensen, @heykellyjensen on Instagram

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Book Radar Uncategorized

The New Hanya Yanagihara Book Cover and More Book Radar!

Happy Monday, star bits! I am back from vacation and I have some personal news to share: this will be my last week writing the Book Radar newsletter. After over four years, as sad as it makes me, I am stepping down as the captain of this ship. But don’t worry, I am not going anywhere! I will still be hosting All the Books!, writing the weekly New Books newsletter, writing posts for the site, etc. But I needed to streamline my work hours a bit. And it was a hard decision, because all of my jobs are so much fun!

So I am handing the reins over to longtime contributing editor Emily Martin! She is awesome and knows a lot about books! She will be keeping up all the news and fun stuff, and yes, cat pictures. There must be cat pictures! And for you New Books readers, I will be adding an upcoming title at the bottom of the newsletter each week, and yes, a cat picture.

Moving on to today’s newsletter: I have exciting news for you! I also have a look at one of next year’s most anticipated novels, plus cover reveals, a terrible joke, a cat gathering, and trivia! Let’s get started, shall we?

Here’s Monday’s trivia question: Build Your House Around My Body by Violet Kupersmith takes place in what country? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reals, and Squeals!

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Colson Whitehead’s Sag Harbor is going to be an HBO Max series, with help from Laurence Fishburne.

Here’s the cover reveal of To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara.

Vanessa Hua announced her new book: Forbidden City, coming in 2022.

National Book Award winner Kacen Callender also announced a new book!

Ramon Rodriguez will join Aubrey Plaza in Hulu’s adaptation of Olga Dies Dreaming by Xóchitl Gonzalez.

Here’s the cover reveal of Black Love Matters: Real Talk on Romance, Being Seen, and Happy Ever Afters edited by our very own Jessica P. Pryde!

Take a look at the first official trailer for Y: the Last Man.

Kerry Washington will star in the adaptation of the memoir Rockaway: Surfing Headlong into a New Life by Diane Cardwell.

Tillie Walden is collaborating on a new children’s book.

Jasmine Guillory announced that she is writing a Disney princess book about Belle.

Here’s the first look at Emily Henry’s next book, Book Lovers.

The Hunger Games prequel will start shooting next year.

I really, really need this book: Magic, Lies, and Murder Pies.

Twitter has since suspended the fake Cormac McCarthy account they first verified without checking the usual requirements needed to get a blue checkmark.

Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar series is being adapted for television.

Here’s the trailer for Cinderella with Camila Cabello and Billy Porter.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR! (It will now be books I loved on Mondays and books I’m excited to read on Thursdays. YAY, BOOKS!)

Loved, loved, loved: 

Sea of Tranquility cover

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel (Knopf, April 19, 2022)

Oh hello, beautiful novel. I am sorry to tease you, since this book isn’t out until April of next year, but this is my new favorite Emily St. John Mandel! It’s a time travel story, set in a few different time periods, most of which are in the future, which I LOVED. In the future, we’ve colonized other moons and planets, and people travel around like it’s no big thing. There are several characters, including a disillusioned young man in Canada in 1912; an author in the future touring for her bestselling book about a plague when an actual pandemic breaks out; and a visit with a character from The Glass Hotel, set in the present day. The common thread is a strange glitch in time that several people experience throughout out history.

The story is melodic and sad, and so fascinating. The future sounds like the world now: scary and worrying and also hopeful. I loved how ESJM pulled all the threads together and the ending was *chef’s kiss*. It was the perfect number of pages, too, which sounds weird but it’s true. I can’t wait for everyone to be able to read it!

(CW for mass illness and death, war, suicide, and murder.)

What I’m reading this week.

cover of The Verifiers by Jane Pek

The Verifiers by Jane Pek

The Caretakers by Amanda Bestor-Siegal

These Toxic Things: A Thriller by Rachel Howzell Hall 

The Book of Ebenezer le Page by G.B. Edwards 

Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey by Florence Williams

Groan-worthy joke of the week: 

How do you make 7 even? Remove the ‘S’.

And this is funny:

I wish this was my name, tbh.

Happy things:

Here are a few things I enjoy that I thought you might like as well:

  • Purrli: This website makes the relaxing sounds of a cat purring. (Why do I include this every time? Because it’s really that helpful.)

And here’s a cat picture!

three cats, one gray and two orange, standing and sitting in front of a door

I was down in our basement doing laundry when my husband took this picture of my children waiting for me to come back upstairs.

Trivia answer: Vietnam. (Seriously, read this book.)

Remember that whatever you are doing or watching or reading this week, I am sending you love and hugs. Please be safe, and be mindful of others. It takes no effort to be kind. I’ll see you again on Thursday for my last Book Radar newsletter for the foreseeable future. ❤️ xoxo, Liberty

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Today In Books

Sneak a Peek at Emily Henry’s Next Book: Today in Books

TikTok Users Launch Virtual BookTalk Conference

TikTok users launched the inaugural BookTalk conference this weekend, a virtual event that shines a spotlight on marginalized authors of young adult literature and their books. The event includes panels and author events, and it’s not too late to check it out, all for free!

Romance Writers Of America Was Doing Better With Race — Until A Recent Award Choice

After the reckoning that the Romance Writers of America faced last year regarding race, the organization reorganized and re-named their highest literary honor the Vivian, named after RWA founder Vivian L. Stephens, a Black woman who founded multiple romance lines in the 70’s and 80’s. But this year, the Vivian in “Romance with Religious or Spiritual Elements” went to a book that glorified genocide. The award was eventually rescinded after a huge outcry, but it’s left many thinking that RWA hasn’t changed all that much.

First Look: Emily Henry’s Next Novel Goes Meta — Really Meta

For all you Emily Henry fans out there, get ready for a new romance dropping next May! The author of Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation has returned to her literary roots with another bookish duo for her next book, Book Lovers. It follows a literary agent who needs a break, and heads to a small town for a vacation, only to be followed by an editor. EW has first look at the cover, and an excerpt!

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Today In Books

Laurence Fishburne to Produce SAG HARBOR Series: Today in Books

Laurence Fishburne to Produce Sag Harbor Series

Colson Whitehead’s 2009 novel Sag Harbor is now being adapted into a series with actor Laurence Fishburne serving as executive producer. The new HBO Max series follows the story of Benji Cooper, a Black teenager who spends the summer of 1985 with his family at a town in the Hamptons. The first episode in the series will be written by playwright and actor Daniel “Koa” Beaty. Beaty will also serve as an executive producer on the project alongside Fishburne, Whitehead, Katie O’Connell Marsh, and Helen Sugland. “Colson is a once-in-a-generation author who has the unique ability to craft beautiful and authentic stories that captivate and transform readers, and Sag Harbor is a true expression of that gift,” O’Connell Marsh said. “We’re thrilled to be working with HBO Max, Cinema Gypsy and Koa to bring this coming-of-age story to the screen.”

11 Year-Old Simeon Hudson Writes Book to Help Stop Bullying

After fourth grader Simeon Hudson saw a friend being bullied at school and called a “nerd,” he knew he wanted to do something about it. And so Simeon wrote a book to help stop bullying. With the help of his mother Candace Hudson, Simeon wrote Harry and His Big Nose, which is now available for purchase. “It took us about a year and then COVID slowed us down, so it took a while. It took about until I was in the sixth grade to get it out,” Simeon said. He and his mother are now working on making the book the first of the series. The next book will be entitled Harry and His Hygiene.

Kansas City Public Library Hires Dedicated Wikipedian-in-Residence

The Kanas City Public Library has hired Miranda Pratt as “the first Wikipedian-In-Residence appointed by a public library in the United States.” Pratt’s position in the library is to be an advocate for the community. Her job is to build awareness and increase engagement in Kansas City surrounding the free online encyclopedia Wikipedia.org. “With this position, I’m kind of creating community awareness that we can all write our history together on Wikipedia,” Pratt said in an interview.

Here Are All the New Suicide Squad Characters

The Suicide Squad, with all-new Suicide Squad characters, is now playing in theaters and on HBO Max. Here are all of the new characters featured in the movie!

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Giveaways

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We’re teaming up with OrangeSky Audio and their newsletter Press Play, to give away a pair of AirPods Pro! To enter, simply sign up for the Press Play newsletter and fill out the form here for a chance to win!

Here’s a little more about the Press Play newsletter: Calling all audiobook lovers! Sign up for Press Play, OrangeSky Audio’s newsletter, to receive news about audiobooks from your favorite authors and narrators, including great deals, events, giveaways, new releases, and more!

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Riot Rundown

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What's Up in YA

Queer Teens and A Lot of Magic: Your YA Ebook Deals, August 7, 2021

Happy weekend, YA fans!

Find a rich array of ebooks for sale to help you load up your ereader with outstanding titles. Prices are current as of writing.

Elatsoe book cover

A magical murder mystery by a Native author with Native main characters? Sign me up for Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger for $3.

Another magical read you should snag is A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow. $3.

Let’s continue the magical reads theme with Lobizona, first in a series by Romina Garber, for $3.

An anthology of Shakespeare reimaginings that came out this year is on sale for $3. Snap up That Way Madness Lies edited by Dahlia Adler.

Baby and Solo by Lisabeth Posthuma, one of my favorites of the year, follows the life of a suburban queer teen in the 90s. Pick this one up, especially for $3.

Victoria Ortiz’s biography of Ruth Bader Ginsberg for teens, Dissenter on the Bench, is $3.

Snag The Mermaid, The Witch, and The Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall for $3.

You can still buy Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, first in a fantasy series, for $3.

cover for the Ravens

The Ravens by Dhonielle Clayton and Kass Morgan (what a powerhouse team!) is $3. It’s the first in a series.

Anna Carey delivers a 90s-set, pop-culture infused thriller with This Is Not The Jess Show. $3.

Looking for a romantic read? Anna K by Jenny Lee — first in a series — is on sale for $3.

Julian Winters’s most recent book, The Summer of Everything, is $3.

Grab this road trip love story about a ballerina, I Want To Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest, for $3.


I hope you found your new favorite read this weekend.

Thanks for hanging out, and we’ll see you Monday!

— Kelly Jensen, @heykellyjensen on Instagram

Categories
Kissing Books

We Need To Do Better

Welcome to the Kissing Books newsletter y’all. I’m P.N. Hinton, your guide to the world of romance novels. I hope your spirit is doing well today. Whether it’s a backlist, new release, or an under the radar delight, I aim to help you find a book or two that you can get lost in. If you’re new to the Kissing Books newsletter, welcome and enjoy your stay. If you’re a long-time reader, welcome back; it’s good to see you again. 

School starts this week and I’m not ready to have an eighth grader. That is all. 

Romance News

Well, as mentioned briefly last time, the RWA has essentially tripled down on their shenanigans from last week by rescinding the award that caused such a kerfluffle. Which is probably a legal issue; so, I feel for their lawyers. And it has caused even more division in Romancelandia with people both for and against it and honestly it’s a big old headache. 

Yes, I know there’s such a thing as ‘dark romance’ with the mafia, kidnappings, and consensual non-consent. The romance genre is not without it’s problematic roots and tropes. The issue is that we know now how terrible it was and that there are many aspects of history that shouldn’t be romanticized at all. No one can make that make sense for me. 

Plus, it won the Christian reward. Miss me with the whole ‘spiritual’ aspect. We all know that’s not the case because there was not nary a romance with another religion in that category. And there’s genocide on the page. I expect certain things in my ‘inspirational’ romances. No bad language, sex off the page, and scriptures. What I don’t expect is murder on the page. And do you know why? Because you’re not suppose to murder! It is literally the Fifth Commandment. You can have it in all other tropes of romance but not that one! It just doesn’t track. 

Oh and according to the scuttlebutt from the RWA Town Hall side chats, somehow this is all (still) Courtney Milan’s fault. 

Needless to say I think the RWA’s days are numbered and, honestly, I think that’s best. At some point, cutting off the harmful limb is the only way to stop the spread of an infection. All that said, it is going to be an interesting implosion to observe. 

Around the Web in Romance:

The harmful depiction of Indigenous people is nothing new to romance and it is something that we all have to work against. I know that I have read books where this was the case an am working to actively avoid books like that again. A good quick history of this type of behavior can be found here.

If you want to hear more about Vivian Stephens, check out her interview on the Black romance Podcast. It is divided up into a part one and a part two and should make for some good listening as well as finding out more about this wonderful woman. You may also want to check out this still relevant interview with her that Texas Monthly did last year.

Speaking of Black Romance, a panel on this topic is scheduled to take place on August 14th. This line-up looks hekka exciting y’all.

The title and synopsis for Emily Henry’s latest dropped. I’m already excited for Book Lovers, especially given the premise. Books about bookish people falling in love is just *chef’s kiss* to me.

Nisha Sharma revealed the cover for her first adult romance, Dating Dr. Dil.

You want some recommendations for upcoming M/M romances? You got ‘em!

The Ripped Bodice is hosting a virtual event with Helen Hoang and Christina Lauren on Wednesday, September 1st. More information can be found here as well as other events the bookstore is hosting.

The Toronto Romance Writers Northern Hearts is also hosting a virtual conference September 17th – 19th with Mrs. Beverly Jenkins as the keynote speak.

The Seattle Library is hosting a panel discussing bisexual romance on September 18th. Yes I know it is a month away and I will probably mention it multiple times before then because this is going to be an amazing conversation.

New Releases & Deals:

Here are some of the new releases hitting the shelves this week.

Shaken or Stirred Cover

Shaken or Stirred by Georgia Beers

What We May Be by Layla Reyne

Role Model by Rachel Reid

The Wildest Ride by Marcella Bell

Beside Golden Irish Fields by Ava Miles

And here are some of the deals I was able to find when perusing the interwebs. Please note that these deals were available at the time of the writing of this newsletter.

Prisoner of Love Cover

The Spinster and the Rake by Eva Devon is currently $0.99 

When You Are Mine by Kennedy Ryan can be snagged for the same price. 

You Lucky Dog by Julia London is showing at $1.99.

Prisoner of Love by Beverly Jenkins can be picked up for $2.99.

So Sweet, So Right, and So For Real by Rebekah Weatherspoon can all be snagged for $0.99.

That’s all for today. I’ll be back Thursday (first day of school!) with more romance updates for how and I’ll try to get a few recommendations in there. If you want to follow me on Twitter, my handle is @PScribe801. Until then!