Happy Tuesday! Time for your weekly dose of books! I have a few great titles to tell you about today, and as always, you can also hear about several more great books on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Rebecca and I talked about some of our favorite books of 2017 so far, such as Pachinko, Chemistry, and Hunger.
Reminder: All the Backlist debuts this Friday, June 23rd. I AM SO EXCITED. If you’re already subscribed to All the Books, you don’t have to do anything – it will swim right into your stream. If you’re not yet subscribed, you can do so right here.
This week’s newsletter is sponsored by We Are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby.
Sometimes you just have to laugh—even when life is a dumpster fire! Bitches gotta eat blogger and comedian Samantha Irby turns the serio-comic essay into an art form. Whether explaining why she should be the new Bachelorette—she’s “35-ish, but could easily pass for 60-something”—sharing awkward sexual encounters, or dispensing advice on how to navigate friendships with former drinking buddies who are now suburban moms—hang in there for the Costco loot—she’s as deft at poking fun at the ghosts of her past self as Irby is at capturing powerful emotional truths.
Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman by Anne Helen Petersen
An in-depth discussion on women in pop culture who are pushing the boundaries of what it means to be an “acceptable” woman, like Lena Dunham, Nicki Minaj, and Kim Kardashian, and why society loves to hate them (and love them) (and hate them again). A great look at feminism and empowerment in the 21st century, told with wit and a sharp eye.
Backlist bump: Shrill by Lindy West
Empire of Glass by Kaitlin Solimine
An American teenager, Lao K, faced with a tough decision in China: Should she help her dying Chinese homestay mother, Li-Ming, end her life? Fast-forward twenty years: Lao K receives a package, containing the story of Li-Ming’s life. As Lao K begins translating the book, the story becomes the novel. But what role with Lao K play in Li-Ming’s tale this time around? Pushing the boundaries of the novel form, this is a gorgeous experimental work.
Backlist bump: No other book, just read this one again.
Mapping the Interior by Stephen Graham Jones
This is a creepy Native American horror novella from one of the most inventive writers working today! A teenage boy wakes in the night to see his father going through a doorway. There’s a problem: his father is dead, having died under mysterious circumstances before his family left the reservation. Still, he follows him through the doorway, only to discover the house is much bigger than he thought. And if he goes the wrong way, he will find things that were better off hidden. Dun-dun-dunnnnnnnnn!
Backlist bump: After the People Lights Have Gone Off by Stephen Graham Jones
The Force by Don Winslow
If you haven’t read a book by Don Winslow, now is the time to start. He writes gritty, gutsy crime novels, and this one might be his best yet. It’s about crooked cops, criminals, and the fine line that separates them. Denny Malone is a revered cop on the force, but he’s also on the take, and he’ll do anything to protect what he has. If you like The Wire, you’ll love this book!
Backlist bump: The Choirboys by Joseph Wambaugh
The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter by Theodora Goss
Ooooo, it’s several classic characters all in one place! Mary Jekyll is looking for her father’s old partner, the murderous Edward Hyde. If she turns him in, the reward will solve all her financial woes. Instead she finds Hyde’s daughter, Diana, and a group of other women: Beatrice Rappaccini, Catherin Moreau, and Justine Frankenstein. With the help of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Mary and the others are going to solve the mysteries of their origins. This book is an epic nerdpurr!
Backlist bump: A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavellaro
That’s it for me today – time to get back to reading! If you want to learn more about books new and old (and see lots of pictures of my cats, Millay and Steinbeck), or tell me about books you’re reading, or books you think I should read (I HEART RECOMMENDATIONS!), you can find me on Twitter at MissLiberty, on Instagram at FranzenComesAlive, or Litsy under ‘Liberty’!
Stay rad,
Liberty