Sponsored by Harper Perennial, publisher of BEAUTIFUL LITTLE FOOLS by Jillian Cantor.
“Jillian Cantor beautifully re-crafts an American classic, placing the women of The Great Gatsby center stage: more than merely beautiful, not so little as the men in their lives assume, and certainly far from foolish.” —Kate Quinn. USA Today bestselling author Jillian Cantor reimagines and expands on the literary classic The Great Gatsby in this atmospheric historical novel with echoes of Big Little Lies, told in three women’s alternating voices: Daisy Buchanan, Jordan Baker, and Catherine McCoy. Jillian Cantor revisits the glittering Jazz Age world of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, retelling this timeless American classic from the women’s perspective.
Welcome to Tuesday, kittens (and a special hello to Melanie!) We had a wild weekend in Maine. It was 59 and sunny on Saturday, and 25 and snowing on Sunday. Mother Nature likes to prank us, I think! Despite the wacky weather, I got lots of reading done and I’m excited for this week’s new books. At the top of my list to buy are Chilean Poet by Alejandro Zambra, Megan McDowell (translator) and Moon Witch, Spider King by Marlon James, which also happen to have my favorite covers of February!
And speaking of great books, for this week’s episode of All the Books! Tirzah and I discussed Bitter, Mickey7, The Chandler Legacies, and more. P.S. Don’t forget to check out our new line of bookish, Wordle-inspired merch! There are mugs, t-shirts, hoodies, and more. The campaign is temporary, so order yours now!
And now, it’s time for everyone’s favorite gameshow: AHHHHHH MY TBR! Here are today’s contestants:
Index, A History of the: A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age by Dennis Duncan
Listen up, book nerds! This is a delightful dive into the section at the back of books where you can find things: the index! From the thirteenth century to present day, Duncan presents way more history about this unsung resource than you ever imagined possible. If you love books about books like I love books about books, then you’re going to love this. It’s an epic nerdpurr!
Backlist bump: The Book: A Cover-to-Cover Exploration of the Most Powerful Object of Our Time by Keith Houston
Even When Your Voice Shakes by Ruby Yayra Goka
And this is a powerful YA novel about a young woman in Ghana who steps in to help her family when her mother has a miscarriage. Amerley sacrifices a lot to take a job working for one of her mother’s old school friends, a man whose status is much higher than that of Amerley’s family. When the man’s son rapes her, she must decide if she will speak up. It’s a hard novel to read at times, but it’s important for young people to know that they are not alone and that they have a voice. (CW for miscarriage, physical and sexual assault, and classism.)
Backlist bump: All the Rage by Courtney Summers
A River Enchanted (Elements of Cadence Book) by Rebecca Ross
And last, but not least, the first entry in a new adult fantasy series! This is influenced by Scottish folktales, and is about two childhood enemies who band together to discover why young girls are going missing from their clan. Jack and Adaira are in their twenties now and willing to put their differences aside to solve the mystery. This book has magic, adventure, and some sexy times. I also really enjoyed the side characters Torin and Sidra. (CW for violence, physical harm, kidnapping, miscarriage, loss of child, and loss of parent.)
Backlist bump: The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec
Don’t forget you can get three free audiobooks at Audiobooks.com with a free trial!
On your mark…get set…add to your TBR!
Bunnicula: The Graphic Novel by James Howe and Andrew Donkin, Stephen Gilpin (Illustrator) (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, August 30)
Holy cats! Or more like unholy rabbits! This was not something I knew I needed until I found out it existed. I fell in love with the middle grade novel version of this by James and Deborah Howe when I was a kid, and have read it and the sequels a few times since. (If you’ve never read Bunnicula, you should do it right now. I’ll wait here.)
The illustrations in this book are so adorable, and this version adds a more playful feel to the story. It’s about the Monroe family and their pets, Harold the dog and Chester the cat. Harold and Chester are perfectly happy with the way things are, but then the Monroes bring home a toothy bunny and things start to get weird. Someone is draining the vegetables in the fridge, and Harold and Chester suspect Bunnicula, who sleeps all day, just like a vampire. The duo are determined to clue the Monroes in on their new furry fanged friend’s habits and restore order to the home—and the fridge.
It’s really fun to see all the characters as you read the story. I loved Bunnicula’s pointy Bela Lugosi hairstyle. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for anything Bunnicula. I bought the fuzzy 40th anniversary edition, and hope to one day see the television series. And I will forever be sad that Deborah Howe died just before Bunnicula was originally released, so she never got to see just how many millions of us love it to pieces. 💔
Make sure to get your own Read Harder Book Journal from Book Riot to track your reading for the year!
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This week: I’m currently reading Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey and Murder in Westminster by Vanessa Riley. Outside of books, I’ve been having so much fun watching as the Celtics continue to climb in the Eastern conference standings, and I’ve been snacking on The Big Bang Theory when my brain gets too loud for sleep. And in music: the song stuck in my head is Head On by Pixies. And as promised, here is a cat picture: This is Farrokh’s funny flehmen face.
Thank you, as always, for joining me each week as I rave about books! I am wishing the best for all of you in whatever situation you find yourself in now. And yay, books! – XO, Liberty ❤️