Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met and well-read.
People of the Club! I believe I might finally be on the mend. With the help of an inhaler, Mucinex, and a whole lot of rest, I think I’ve finally turned the corner on kicking this stupid infection. Not super jazzed about the fact that the sinusitis I now have might last 4 to six *#^@$! weeks, but what can ya do?
In the meantime, let’s talk persistence, climate, black girl magic and erotica, shall we?
This newsletter is sponsored by The Milk Lady of Bangalore by Shoba Narayan, new in paperback from Algonquin Books.
The Milk Lady of Bangalore is the surprisingly heartwarming story of two women and the animals they love. Shoba Narayan has just returned to India after years in the United States when she encounters a cow in the elevator of her modern apartment building. With the cow is Sarala, who sells fresh milk across the street. It is the beginning of an unexpected friendship and a quest to buy a new heifer. “A journey through cultural mores and female friendship, as well as a look at the spiritual and historical part that cows play in India; an easy read that you can’t help but love,” says Refinery29.
Erotica for Feminists – Y’all… have I ranted and raved at you about New Erotica for Feminists yet? This absolutely hilarious satirical collection of musings on what the modern woman finds erotic began as a viral McSweeney’s post and is one of the funniest and wittiest things I’ve read in some time. It includes gems like this:
SOLD.
- Book Club Bonus: The ladies behind New Erotica for Feminists have put together a book club kit! Available for both print and download, it contains discussion questions, games, recipes, and info for sharing your event on the sosh meeds.
Still Persisting – Thank you to all of you who joined in our fourth installment of Persist, our feminist book club! I hopped in and out of the Instagram Live sessions in between coughs and sneezes to support my girl Jenn and the convo looked like a good one!
- Book Club Bonus: If you’re looking for a great book club read and didn’t get a chance to join Persist this time around, consider reading Guidebook to Relative Strangers. Also, click here for info on next quarter’s installment in March. María Cristina will host!
Change Starts Here – Those of us with sense know that climate change is a real and pressing phenomenon. That’s a start. We may not all be as well versed in its complexity and range though; enter these books.
- I think many folks accept that climate change is a thing but also don’t know enough about it to understand the importance of policy and individual action. Read a book about climate change in book club to get in the know and commit to some kind of change together. Write a letter to an elected official, donate to an environmental org, swap glass for plastic food containers… lots of options.
Well-Read Black Girls – PBS’s Jeffrey Brown recently sat down with Glory Edim to talk about Well-Read Black Girl, the online community and book club she founded to give a voice to black women. I’ve been following WRBG online for a couple of years and have a deep appreciation for the work they’re doing to uplift black women writers.
- Book Club Bonus: Learn more about Well-Read Black Girl! Get to know Glory and her vision, get into the WRBG reading list, and sign up to hear about their events. Don’t forget to also check out Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, a collection of essays by Black women writers curated by Glory Edim herself.
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