We are in the full-fledged summer reading season. My sunroom is piled high with books that have made it onto my (overly ambitious) summer TBR. Just to name a few, I would love to read Pandora’s Jar by Natalie Haynes, This Is Major by Shayla Lawson, and High on the Hog by Jessica B. Harris. So I’ll keep reading and report back. But what are you reading this summer? As always, this newsletter will be full of recommendations for you. But first, let’s accessorize with bookish goods!
Learn something new, sharpen your skills, and expand your horizons with our Better Living Through Books newsletter. Better Living Through Books is your resource for reading material that helps you live the life you want. From self-help to cookbooks to parenting to personal finance, relationships, and more, Better Living Through Books has got you covered. If it’s part of life, it can be part of your reading life. Sign up for your free subscription to Better Living Through Books today, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.
Bookish Goods
Personalised Favourite Bookstack Linen Bookmark by TheWildflowerinBloom
I adore a custom bookmark, and this one has that cute aesthetic that’s all the rage. $5
New Releases
Shadow Men: The Tangled Story of Murder, Media, and Privilege That Scandalized Jazz Age America by James Polchin
Over 100 years ago, Clarence Peters, a working-class man, was found dead. Later, Walter Ward confessed to the murder as an act of self-defense against a group of men that was blackmailing him. The court case swept through the country, drawing the attention of the masses as everyone seemed to be weighing in on the case.
Out of the Sierra: A Story of Rarámuri Resistance by Victoria Blanco
Through decades of interviews and research, Victoria Blanco details the history of the Rarámuri people’s resistance to colonization and their efforts to preserve their language and culture. One of the largest Indigenous nations in North America, the Rarámuri people in Chihuahua, Mexico, have endured immeasurable loss as they have refused to leave their sacred land.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
Divine Might by Natalie Haynes
We are now in a golden age of myth retellings. Everyone and their mother’s brother has been trying their hands at these myth-inspired tales, but few authors are as good as Natalie Haynes. While Haynes is known more for her fiction, Divine Might is brilliant nonfiction, with each chapter examining different goddesses and their stories. Haynes’ holistic way of viewing these goddesses invites readers to reexamine their own assumptions about these divine figures.
The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama is back with The Light We Carry, a collection of essays that each expand on her ideas about standing her ground and going high when they go low. She also shares about her family’s experience weathering the pandemic. Her essays are kind, supportive, and encouraging, while firmly making her points. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook, which Obama reads herself. Listening to the audiobook feels like you’re sitting down with her for a cup of coffee while she shares encouraging anecdotes from her own life.
That’s it for this week! You can find me over on my substack Winchester Ave, over on Instagram @kdwinchester, on TikTok @kendrawinchester, or on my podcast Read Appalachia. As always, feel free to drop me a line at kendra.d.winchester@gmail.com. For even MORE bookish content, you can find my articles over on Book Riot.
Happy reading, Friends!
~ Kendra