Author: Vanessa Diaz

Audiobooks – 9/5

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date September 5, 2019

Sponsored by The Flight Girls Audiobook by Noelle Salazar

50 audio downloads of The Flight Girls by Noelle Salazar are up for grabs!

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Download codes for the winners supplied by Audiobooks.com.

Hola Audiophiles! Por fin, I’m in Portland! Time to settle in, unpack what’s left of my things, and throw on some audiobooks while I explore my neighborhood. Fun!

I also want to thank everyone who has sent me messages of welcome and congratulations! I’ve been too much of a mess to respond, but I will soon. Thank you for being such cool book people!

Ready? Let’s audio.

New Releases – September 10th (publisher’s descriptions in quotes)

Gun Island by Amitav Ghosh, narrated by Sagar Arya – You know me by now, friends: I see the words “folklore” and “rare book dealer” and I’m adding to cart in a euphoric trance. Dean Datta is a rare book dealer in Brooklyn who makes an annual trip to his native Calcutta. On one of said trips, he learns of a Bengali legend that sends him on a worldwide adventure in search of truth, meaning, and the roots of his heritage.

Narrator Note: Sagar Arya is part of the ensemble cast that narrated Zadie Smith’s White Teeth. Sold!

Lost in the Spanish Quarter by Heddi Goodrich, narrated by: Lisa Flanagan – I’ve been looking for something comforting and pleasant to read and this book fits the bill. Set in the Spanish Quarter of Naples, it’s a coming-of-age story about an Italian woman and American man who meet and fall in love as university students in Italy.

Narrator Note: You may know Lisa Flanagan from Naomi Novik’s Spinning Silver, The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames, and Alexander Chee’s The Queen of the Night. She is so good at building suspense with tone variation!

The Starlet and the Spy by Ji-min Lee, narrated by Janet Song – Ji-min Lee has written numerous books, but this is the first translated from Korean to English. It’s a piece of historical fiction set in 1954 about a Korean war survivor and translator who meets an American starlet on a four day visit to Seoul. That starlet? Oh yeah, it’s Marilyn Monroe.

Narrator Note: I love Janet Song’s work! She’s performed Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and numerous other Lisa See books, Nicole Chung’s All You Can Ever Know, and The Vegetarian by Han Kang to name a few.

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood, narrated by Ann Dowd, Bryce Dallas Howard, Mae Whitman, Derek Jacobi, Tantoo Cardinal – I probably don’t need to highlight this title, but I thought I’d give it a quick shout-out all the same. This Handmaid’s Tale sequel is already abuzz with controversy (and not-super-fantastic press, yikes). Give it a listen and decide for yourself.

Will My Cat Eat my Eyeballs: Big Questions from Tiny Mortals by Caitlin Doughty, narrated by the author – No one does death quite like best-selling author and mortician Caitlin Doughty. Now the author of Smoke Gets In Your Eyes is taking her skill set to the children, answering kids’ questions about death, dying, and decomposition. That title alone has my attention!

Narrator Note: I’ve only ever read Doughty in print, but the sample audio of her first two books did not disappoint. And like we always say: no better way to hear a story than to have it told to you by the person who wrote it.

Latest Listens

Now that I’m settled in my new place, I’m finally audiobooking again! I’m finally wrapping up Speaking of Summer and think I’ll probably tackle The Ten Thousand Doors of January next! What are you listening to and loving??

From the Internets

A piece from Publishers Weekly on the evolution of the Spanish-language audiobook market.

Ummm… what? Apparently serial killer Ed Kemper voiced hundreds of audio books, like Flowers In The Attic and Star Wars. Gulp.

Over at the Riot

Look, I know everyone’s all “Waaah summer’s over!” To that I say: 1) So what? Fall is AWESOME, and 2) Calm down, it was 83 degrees in Portland today. Because warm weather is sticking around for so many of us, I’m throwing it back to this post from last year on great poolside audiobooks.

That’s all I got today! Shoot me an email at vanessa@riotnewmedia.com with audiobook feedback & questions or find me on Twitter and the gram @buenosdiazsd. Sign up for the In The Club newsletter, peep the Read Harder podcast, and watch me booktube every Friday too!

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

In The Club

In the Club – 9/4

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date September 4, 2019

Sponsored by Memories of Glass by Melanie Dobson, new in paperback from Tyndale House Publishers.

Josie and Eliese work together during World War II to rescue Jewish children who are awaiting deportation. But dangerous secrets could derail the entire mission. Seventy-five years later, Ava suspects her great-grandfather was not the war hero he claimed to be, and family members will do anything to keep the truth buried. Inspired by three real-life Dutch heroes who rescued more than 600 Jewish children, Memories of Glass tells a heart-wrenching story you won’t soon forget.

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed.

Looks like we maaaade iiiitttt. Yes y’all, I have finally, actually, no-really-I-mean-it-this-time moved all the way to Portland! I may not have all of my furniture and my clothes may still be in trash bags, but the books have all been put away and that, my friends, gives me peace.

Speaking of books, let’s talk about em. To the club!!

Today’s theme is very simple: Sh*t I Like. I took more than one warm and fuzzy trip down memory lane while packing up and shelving some of my favorite reads and thought I’d share a few with great club potential.

Let’s Pretend this Never Happened by Jenny Lawson – I’m a big fan of funny books that make me cry and “The Bloggess” Jenny Lawson has that combo on lock. One minute she’s talking about a taxidermied mouse, the next she’s sharing her struggles with mental health. I heart her so much for those candid conversations.

Book Club Bonus: We don’t all have a story about our fathers and taxidermied mice, but we do have funny stories of our own. I, for example, thought Madonna was not a Material Girl but a Cheerio Girl and DEMANDED to snack on the cereal while dancing to it in our living room as a kid. Your turn! Get real with the club and share funny childhood memories! Read your story aloud, or to make it even more interesting: have everyone write or type theirs up, put them in a bowl, then designate someone to read them aloud at random. See if the club can guess who each memory belongs to!
Related: Jenny Lawson recently announced that she’s opening a bookstore and bar in San Antonio!

We Are La Cocina: Recipes in Pursuit of the American Dream by Caleb Zigas, Leticia Landa – If you don’t know about La Cocina, look into this amazing nonprofit now: based in San Francisco’s Mission District, they provide affordable commercial kitchen space, technical assistance and even job placement for women of color and immigrant communities in the food business. This cookbook is a collection of stories and recipes from 40 of the talented women who got their start with La Cocina and I can personally vouch for their food’s deliciousness. All proceeds from sales of the book go right back into helping other women entrepreneurs and the fight for equity in the culinary industry.

Book Club Bonus: If you’re wanting to get away but can’t quite swing a group vacay right about now, dive into this cookbook to take a trip with book club through food. That braised fish recipe from Hang Truong of Noodle Girl Restaurant is the Vietnamese comfort food I didn’t know I needed in my life.
Bonus: Hold your club gathering at a woman-owned restaurant or eatery; if you’re in Northern California’s bay area, go support one of the women from the book!

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie – I re-read this for what has got to be the 20th time recently and its genius strikes me every time (though some bits are problematic; yikes, that original title!). The premise: a bunch of strangers get a mysterious invite to an island mansion and guess what: they die. Shocking! They’re picked off one by one as bits of their shady pasts are revealed. It’s so unsettling and creepy and one of my favorite Christie works to date.

Book Club Bonus: Discuss whether any of the characters were likeable; if they’re awful, did they deserve to die?! Did you see the ending coming? What books or films do you now recognize as drawing from this Chrisie classic?

Suggestion Section

Some more musings on what celebrity book clubs do for writers.

September celebrity book club picks from Reese Witherspoon, PBS, Emma Watson, and Emma Roberts.

Thanks for hanging with me today! Shoot me an email at vanessa@riotnewmedia.com with your burning book club questions or find me on Twitter and the gram @buenosdiazsd. Sign up for the Audiobooks newsletter, get it on the Read Harder podcast, and watch me booktube every Friday too.

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Audiobooks

Audiobooks – 8/29

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 29, 2019

In the Club – 8/28

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 28, 2019

Sponsored by Roberto to the Dark Tower Came by Tom Epperson and by Meerkat Press.

Now in paperback, the powerful novel by Tom Epperson, author of The Kind One and Sailor. Roberto, a left-wing journalist in a right-wing country in South America, gets an ominous phone call. He has 10 days to leave the country or die. But as he prepares to leave, he gets a tip on an important story developing in the jungle. Many lives are at stake. He decides to travel into the heart of darkness and risk everything to uncover the truth.

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed.

‘Sup, club nerds? The time has come! This is the last newsletter I will write as a San Diego resident (at least for the foreseeable future). I’m mostly packed, very excited, and more than un poquito emo as I prepare to say my goodbyes. I’m also nursing one hell of a headache because my going away party’s theme was apparently tequila.

Let’s get to club business so I can go back to avoiding bright lights and loud noises.

Ready? To the club!!

As I prepare to leave the place I’ve called home for most of my life, I’ve reflected on how privileged I am to be moving under these circumstances. For many, leaving home isn’t some fun and emotional adventure; it’s a matter of life and death, a harrowing journey fraught with peril in pursuit of shelter, safety, a chance.

Today’s book club suggestions each examine the immigrant experience: two unique works of fiction on the journey itself and one nonfiction title about Dreamers. They should get your clubs talking about what it means to be an immigrant.

Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri Herrera, translated by Lisa Dillman – Yuri Herrera is one of Mexico’s most exciting contemporary novelists. In this tiny but powerful quest novel, a young Mexican woman crosses the border to deliver a letter to her brother at her mother’s request. It’s a border story unlike any I’ve read before; the maybe-magical realism, the play on language, the haunting dream-like quality… so good.

Book Club Bonus: First, and perhaps especially if you do speak Spanish: do yourself a favor and read the translator’s note first. It’s at the end of the book but I don’t feel like it spoils anything. When you’re done, discuss the translator’s word choice as discussed in that note; the author’s choice not to name specific destinations; how the story draws from other quest and hero journeys.

In the Distance by Hernan Diaz – When I tell you I’m recommending a powerful immigrant narrative, odds are you aren’t expecting a western about a Swedish dude. That’s precisely what this Pulitzer finalist novel is though! Håkan is just a boy when he’s sent to America by his father and is separated from his brother when he gets on the wrong boat. He embarks on an eastbound cross-country journey on foot to find him while everyone else is migrating west in the American 1800s.

Book Club Bonus: What Hernan Diaz does with the immigrant story by making the protagonist a very safe white male is just brilliant. Brilliant, I say! Discuss the language device (yeah, it’s weird, but also kind of genius), the cast of characters he encounters; how Håkan’s physical size as he grows into manhood is a metaphor for his legend; the physical and less tangible characteristics that we use to “other” people.

Just Like Us: The True Story of Four Mexican Girls Coming of Age in America by Helen Thorpe – I was in my early twenties when this work of nonfiction made me think a little harder about the ways in which the immigrant experience varies from person to person, and that’s coming from the child of immigrants. We meet four Mexican teens, all of whom have grown up in Colorado and two of whom are undocumented. This is an intimate view into their lives and specifically the plight of the Dreamer: poverty, citizenship status, and increasing fear of immigrants are just some of the threats they face in pursuit of an education, and their friendship often suffers in turn.

Book Club Bonus: This book was published in 2009, but I don’t have to tell you just how many of the topics discussed could easily have been plucked from 2019. Compare and contrast each young woman’s situation and the ways in which the system helped or failed them. Do some extra reading on the DREAM Act and DACA while you’re at it.

Suggestion Section

How a tiny Edinburgh book club grew to reach over 20 countries worldwide.

I know many of you won’t need help here, but for those that do: how to start a boozy book club.

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Audiobooks

Audiobooks – 8/22

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 21, 2019

Sponsored by hibooks - the club for audiobook lovers

Calling all audiobook nerds! The hibooks club is waiting for you. One membership gets you 1 free book to start and an additional catalog of audiobooks for unlimited listening. After all, we’ve got audiobooks. You’ve got ears. It’s a perfect match!

Hola Audiophiles!

Ay ay ay, I think I jinxed myself. I was on an audiobook roll and then… splat. More packing, more cleaning, more dinners, more stops on my farewell tour as I prepare to finish this move to Portland (8 days!). It’s cool though- we’re going to chat about new releases, a backlist bump, and some other goings on in the world of audiobooks.

Ready? Let’s audio.

Latest Listens

I thought I’d do a backlist rec for Zadie Smith’s White Teeth, narrated by a full cast, just because I’ve been talking about this book a lot at the bookstore (yes, I am still working 2 jobs). Archie Jones and Samad Iqbal are two wartime friends (WWII) looking back on their friendship while navigating life in a London they’ve watched transform. It explores friendship, culture, race, class, colorism, and the aftermath of war. It’s also absolutely hilarious.

One thing: the latest version of the audiobook has a completely different narrator than the one I listened to! While I enjoyed Jenny Sterlin’s version plenty, I love a full cast recording and liked what I heard in the sample online. I think you’re in for a treat.

New Releases – August 27 (publisher’s descriptions in quotations).

My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich by Ibi Zoboi, narrated by the author – The author of American Street and Pride makes her middle grade debut with this title about twelve-year-old Ebony-Grace Norfleet. She was raised in Alabama by her grandfather, a NASA engineer who taught her to love space and science fiction. When extenuating circumstances force Ebony-Grace to go stay with her father in Harlem, she finds the place daunting. “But soon 126th Street begins to reveal that it has more in common with her beloved sci-fi adventures than she ever thought possible, and by summer’s end, Ebony-Grace discovers that Harlem has a place for a girl whose eyes are always on the stars.”

Narrator Noe: Ibi Zoboi put on the audiobook narrator hat for this one. I can’t wait to hear her perform it!

The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri, narrated by Art Malik – When war erupts in Aleppo and destroys everything they love, a beekeeper and his artist wife must flee their beloved, broken Syria. The journey through Greece and Turkey is made all the more difficult by the wife’s recent onset of blindness; the pair must make it to Britain for even a chance at survival, but even that future is beset with uncertainty.

Narrator Note: There’s an actor by the named Art Malik who’s starred in all sorts of stuff from Dr. Who and Sherlock to cinematic jewel True Lies. I’m pretty sure he is the same Art Malik who narrates this novel; that voice is so dreamy!

The Girl Who Lived Twice: A Lisbeth Salander Novel by David Lagercrantz, narrated by: Simon Vance – You know the deal here, right? This is the sixth book in the Stieg Larsson Millenium series, which David Lagercrantz took over after Larsson’s death in 2004. Lisbeth Salander, the famed girl with the dragon tattoo, has disappeared, gone off the grid! What no one knows is that she’s finally done it: she has her enemy twin sister Camila in her sights.

Narrator Note: If you’ve been keeping up with Lisbeth Salander, you’ll recognize Simon Vance from the rest of the audiobooks in the series. He’s also narrated Interview with the Vampire, Dune, Dracula, and Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series, and that’s not even the tip of the narration iceberg.

From the Internets

A piece in the Wall Street Journal on audiobooking and drowning out the “wah wah wah audiobooks don’t count!” crowd.

Taron Egerton, star of Rocketman, will narrate the audiobook of Elton John’s memoir.

Libro.fm has rounded up this fall’s most anticipated audiobooks. This list is hurting my brain, it’s so good. Leigh Bardugo, Erin Morgenstern, Jaqueline Woodson, Tomi Adeyemi, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and more… excited yet?

Over at the Riot

Button Poetry audiobooks are now available! Slam poetry + audiobooks are just a natural fit.

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

In The Club

In the Club – 8/21

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 20, 2019

Sponsored by The Line Between by New York Times bestselling author Tosca Lee—now out in paperback!

In this frighteningly believable thriller, which New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak calls “an infectiously good read,” an extinct disease has re-emerged from the melting Alaskan permafrost to cause madness in its victims.

For recent apocalyptic cult escapee Wynter Roth, it’s the end she’d always been told was coming. Filled with action, conspiracy, and romance, The Line Between is a high-octane story of survival and love in a world on the brink of madness. The sequel, A Single Light, releases September 17!

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed.

It’s happening! I’ve officially kicked off my See Ya Later, San Diego tour with numerous farewell activities planned throughout the week while also trying to work, and ya know, sleep? Before I start those “if I go to bed by X time, I can sleep Y hours and not die” calculations, let’s talk a little about book clubs + SFF.

To the club!!

The Hugo Awards were announced this week! Reading about the awards reminded me of our last Question for the Club; so many of you told me that science fiction and fantasy are the genres your book clubs are most reluctant to read. Let’s change that! This week I’m recommending some SFF reads great for sparking book club conversation.

The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie – In this latest from award-winning author Ann Leckie, the god known as the Raven protects the kingdom of Iraden. He speaks through a living bird called the Instrument and rules via a human agent known as the Raven’s Lease. The Lease is a powerful position, but comes at a price: when the Raven’s Instrument dies, so must the Lease. Bye bye birdie, bye bye you!

Everything is fine and dandy until someone finds a way to usurp the Lease’s throne, a feat that isn’t supposed to be possible. Feuding gods, a fight to reclaim the throne, blood sacrifice, invading forces… it’s so good.

Book Club Bonus: I love how this book plays with the idea of fate and destiny; talk about that and whether the characters acted from a place of autonomy. Discuss the role of faith and sacrifice and how the plot mirrors that of other well known stories and myths. How did the identity of the narrator work (or not) for you?

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell – I listened to this audiobook while living in a gorgeous home in the English midlands that sat on 18+ acres of woods. I’d audio while I walked through them every morning, which started off a peaceful experience…

In the year 2019 (gulp!), Jesuit priest and linguist Emilio Sandoz leads a team of missionaries on a mission to make first contact with intelligent alien life on the planet Rakhat. In the year 2059, we witness the debriefing and interrogation of the ill-fated mission’s lone survivor, a broken human in the midst of physical and emotional recovery. Details of what occurred are revealed slowly in these alternating timelines. The ending made me stop dead in my tracks in those woods and say, “Oh… hell.”

Book Club Bonus: Talk about the role of love and faith/religion in the story; do you see it as a parable for man’s search for God and/or meaning? Should we be looking for extraterrestrial life? Unpack the reasons for the survivor’s reticence to tell their story. Then there’s the missionary angle: discuss the parallels to this mission with missionary expeditions to other countries with disastrous implications. I COULD GO ON. This book, y’all.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi – This West African fantasy (and one of this year’s Hugo winners) is set in Orisha, where the maji were massacred by a ruthless king who wants all magic erased from the world. Zélie is a diviner with the power to restore magic to Orisha, but she must first outrun the prince who’s after her head. With her brother and a defiant princess by her side, Zélie sets out to defeat the oppressive monarchy and harness her newly awoken magical abilities for good.

Book Club Bonus: If you don’t immediately pick up on the ways in which this book harkens to current events, Tomi Adeyemi makes sure to smack you in the face with that connection in her author’s note at the end. Discuss how the book addresses issues like racism, colorism, police brutality, and social justice within the framework of this lush and magical setting.

Suggestion Section

How the Great Big Romance Read, book club brainchild of The Ripped Bodice, has driven the @$&# out of Avon’s sales.

How Long Beach, California became a “book club superhub.” The LBC has 130+ registered clubs!

Current book club picks for BuzzFeed, PBS, plus a roundup of celebrity book clubs.

Barnes & Noble’s current national book club pick is Inland by Téa Obreht. Discussions are scheduled for September 10th in stores.

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Audiobooks

An Emma Retelling, RadicaI Candor, and Airhorns for Bahni Turpin

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 14, 2019

In the Club – 8/14

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 14, 2019

Sponsored by Book Riot's Tailored Book Recommendation service!

TBR is Book Riot’s subscription service offering Tailored Book Recommendations for readers of all stripes. Been dreaming of a “Stitch Fix for books?” Now it’s here! Tell TBR about your reading preferences and what you’re looking for, and sit back while your Bibliologist handpicks recommendations just for you. TBR offers plans to receive hardcover books in the mail or recommendations by email, so there’s an option for every budget. Sign up here.

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed. This week, your girl is back in San Diego wrapping up loose ends. I’m counting down the days until I’m no longer living out of a suitcase while also trying not to cry when I thinks of moving away from her nephew. So many feelings!

On a less weepy note, August is Women in Translation month! I’ll be talking about some awesome translated titles written by women for you to add to your club rotations. Tirzah Price and I will also be recommending works by women in translation on the next episode of the Read Harder podcast (airing Tuesday, August 20). If you’re participating in Read Harder or just want to read more translated work, we’re making it super easy for ya.

Ready? To the club!!

So why do we celebrate women in translation this month? First: because they’re awesome. Second: because there is still a huge disparity in publishing between the number of translated works by men and those by women. Shocking! As Rioter Rebecca Hussey states in her recent post on WIT month, “Translated books by men get more review coverage and critical attention as well. We need more books by women in translation and we need to give these books more attention!”

Here are some suggestions to get you started.

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, translated from Spanish by Carol and Thomas Christensen – I’m going to recommend this book until someone grabs me by the shoulders and tells me to stop. Tita is the youngest daughter in the De la Garza family; that means she’s bound by Mexican tradition to remain unwed and to care for her tyrannical mother Mama Elena until she croaks. As luck would have it, Tita falls helplessly in love with Pedro and wants to marry him. Mama Elena is like, “Nah, girl,” so Pedro marries Tita’s sister Rosaura instead to at least be close to Tita. Excellent plan with zero flaws! This heartbreaking love story and work of magical realism (Tita cooks her feelings into her food!) is a Mexican classic set during the revolutionary war.

Book Club Bonus: The format of this book is my fave: it’s split into twelve chapters, each of which starts with a recipe that is essential to the plot of said chapter. Make a Mexican feast with these recipes (quail in rose petal sauce!!!!) for book club and unpack how tradition can both be a beautiful set of customs and a cruel trap & killjoy.

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk, translated from Polish by Antonia Lloyd-Jones – I’m about halfway through this 2019 Booker prize nominee from the author of Flights. It’s a literary murder mystery about Janina, a reclusive woman in a remote Polish village who minds the homes of bougie, well-to-do Warsaw residents when she’s not translating poetry or studying astrology. When a neighbor’s suspicious death leads to the discovery of several other bodies, Janina finds herself the object of everyone’s suspicion.

Book Club Bonus: From what I’ve gathered so far, this book is less concerned with the who and more with the why: it’s not as much about finding out who committed the crime as it is a study of human behavior, of empathy in particular. Dig into these ideas in book club: is the why just as important as the who, perhaps even moreso? Why we should care about other people?

The First Prehistoric Serial Killer and Other Stories by Teresa Solano, translated from Spanish by Peter Bush – This is such a slept-on little book! It’s a darkly humorous collection of short stories, the second half of which are linked and explore the city of Barcelona’s darker underbelly. The stories are all kinda weird and super funny, and yes: the titular tale does indeed involve a caveman trying to solve a murder. The twist made me go, “HA!” out loud at the register of the bookstore.

Book Club Bonus: One of the things I enjoyed most about this quirky little book is how it depicts the darker side of Barcelona. I won’t say too much to avoid giving away bits from the linked story portion, but discuss how the stories connect and overlap and what lessons there are to be learned from the narrative on the whole.

Another resource for WIT Month:

15 Discounts and Giveaways for Women in Translation Month

Suggestion Section

NPR recently published a cool piece about silent book clubs. All the bookish communion, none of the pressure to be “on.”

A piece about book clubs where discussion is never about the book; it be like that sometimes! It turns out that’s ok.

If you’re in the UK and looking for a local book club, Bustle is here for you.

Oh boy, this Dear Abby letter made me chuckle: a concerned book club member wants to know how to handle the know-it-all smarty pants in the group (see the second question). Raise your hand if you’ve been there!

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Audiobooks

Audiobooks – 8/8

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 8, 2019

In the Club – 8/7

Post author By Vanessa Diaz
Post date August 7, 2019

Sponsored by The Two Lila Bennetts by Lisa Steinke and Liz Fenton

Lila Bennett has had an illustrious career as a criminal defense attorney, but she’s left a trail of wronged people and poor choices on her path to success. Now, Lila’s past mistakes have finally caught up with her, and one of them may just kill her. Can Lila determine who’s targeting her before it’s too late? From bestselling authors Lisa Steinke and Liz Fenton comes a gripping new summer read. Read The Two Lila Bennetts. Prime members read for free.

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed.

Hey now! I’m finally (sort of?) moved into my place in Portland! I survived the 17 hour drive with la familia (all in one day, mind you) and spent the next several days unpacking and shopping for housewares. Ikea furniture assembly frustrations aside (porqueeeee?!?!), it’s actually been kind of fun. Plus this is the patio/common area at my new spot: come through, greenery!

On a more somber note, this week I’m reflecting on the loss of a great American writer, the inimitable Toni Morrison. Let’s examine how we might honor her legacy in book club.

Ready? Vamos. To the club!!

Question for the Club

Alrighty, friends! In our last round of QFTC, I asked what sorts of books you’ve been wanting to read in book club but haven’t and why. The overwhelming response was: YA and sci-fi! seems like the rest of your book club members haven’t been into the idea. Bummer!

Let me say once and for all that YA and genre fiction make great book chats! Read Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give or Samira Ahmed’s Internment, or just about anything by Octavia Butler and N.K. Jemisin: I promise your group will have plenty to talk about.

In Honor of Toni Morrison

PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel said of Toni Morrison: “Her unmatched ability to use story to kindle empathy and rouse the imaginations of millions to contemplate lived experiences other than their own has transformed our culture.” I couldn’t put it better if I tried; the experience of reading her work changed me, challenged me, dared me to think more critically about the world I move in. In honor of the loss of this great American writer, here are some suggestions for Morrison works to tackle in book club.

The Bluest Eye – This is Toni Morrison’s first book and an excellent introduction into her lush, evocative style, her particular brand of metaphor, and use of magical realism. It’s about a young black girl named Pecola who just wants blue eyes.

Paradise – I love this line from a 2011 Reading Pathway piece by none other than Jeff O’neal: “A crucial skill in reading Morrison is getting comfortable with ambiguity and a certain amount of confusion about what is going on. It’s not just you; it’s part of the ride.” This is certainly true of Paradise, where Ruby is a patriarchal “paradise” built by the descendants of freed slaves. It examines how patriarchy seeks to blame its shortcomings and failures on subversive women. WEIRD does that sound familiar?!?

Beloved – Shame! I’ll admit that I’ve never read this most famous of Morrison works because I’ve feared it’s painful and difficult nature, but this is the year I think that will change. Sethe escaped slavery eighteen years ago but has never once felt free; she’s haunted by the memory of the farm where she was enslaved and by the ghost of a nameless baby whose tombstone reads, “Beloved.” By all accounts, this is an unflinching, violent, and uncomfortable read that stares slavery and it’s long reaching toll straight in the face.

The Source of Self Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations – This last of her published works came out earlier this year at a time when many of us needed it most. The essays embody her thoughts and views on a myriad of topics (the foreigner, female empowerment, money, “black matter(s)”), but it’s the three-part structure that I live for; the first is a prayer for the dead of 9/11, the second is a meditation on Martin Luther King Jr,, and the third is a euology for James Baldwin. There is power on literally every page.