Author: Vanessa Diaz

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In The Club

In the Club – Jan 29

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

Well, friends. You’ve probably all heard of the controversy surrounding American Dirt. I’ve been frustrated, hurt, baffled, angry, more angry, and crushingly disappointed, both for reasons that are probs fairly obvious and others more complicated. So today’s In the Club is dedicated to looping you into some important goings on in the larger conversation, but also to equipping you with a big, badass list of Latinx lit with authentic representation to discuss in your book clubs instead. I’ve got a surreal border story, a suspenseful domestic drama, and a new take on the American road trip novel for you, and so much more.

To the club!!

Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri Herrera, translated by Lisa Dillman – This short, beautifully strange read is one I read twice back-to-back to feel like I really understood it. Makina is a switchboard operator in an unnamed village in Mexico who is sent across the border by her mother to try and find her lost brother. The journey, from preparing to leave to being smuggled across the border and then arriving at her intended destination, borrows from the legend of the Mexica world of the dead and its ending is one that has always resulted in interesting book club dissection for me. I highly recommend reading the translator’s note as well as this piece (and an interview with the author therein) as background, especially if you have trouble recognizing the symbolism or just want to learn something interesting.

Chasing the Sun by Natalia Sylvester – Set in Lima, Peru in a time of civil and political unrest, this is a suspenseful read about a husband who suspects his wife has left him—again—only to learn that she’s actually been kidnapped by terrorists. At first he thinks he’ll do anything to get her back, frantically trying to collect money for her ransom while caring for their two young children. Then begins to ask himself: is what they have ultimately worth saving?

lost children archiveLost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli – A nameless mother and father set out on a cross-country trip from New York City to Arizona. They’re both documentarians; he’s recording sounds at Apacheria, the place the Apaches once called home, and she hopes to return to New York after the journey is complete to finish up a project involving missing child refugees. The road trip brings the couple and their two young children face to face with the immigration crises at the southwestern border.

I could go on for days and days. Out of respect for your eyeballs, I’ll just include a sample of other important reads below. This is a mix of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry from well-known and debut authors alike.

Suggestion Section

I was moments away from penning a very ragey reaction to this whole business when contributor Romeo Rosales stepped up to the plate. Here’s his piece on American Dirt and it’s problematic premise, execution, implications, etc.

Oprah has come out and said that the conversation on the book will go deep, that “[I]t’s clear that we need to have a different kind of conversation” about the book.

I encourage you to look up the #dignidadliteraria hashtag, a nationwide call to action initiated by David Bowles, Myriam Gurba, and Roberto Lovato. Click the image below to be taken to the original Tweet.

You know I like my foodstuffs and adult beverages when I do book club, but consider switching putting the snack funds towards a cause as I’ve suggested before. Susana Sanchez-Young of The Designing Chica and Myriam Gurba have teamed up to create a scholarship for Latinx writers. If you buy the $35 illustration print pictured below (click to purchase!), 95% of the proceeds will go towards the scholarship.

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 Tuesday and 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

Categories
Audiobooks

Audiobooks – 1/23/20

Hola Audiophiles! How goes it? All this rainy Portland weather has put me in the mood for cooking lots of warm and tasty meals and that has in turn shot my audiobook consumption through the roof! Today I’ll share my thoughts on my most recent listen, and of course hit you with a batch of new releases.

Ready? Let’s audio.

New Releases – January 21 (publishers descriptions in quotes)

the seepThe Seep by Chana Porter, narrated by Shakina Nayfack – After a “gentle alien invasion” by an entity known as The Seep, fifty-year-old trans woman Trina and her wife Deeba thrive in The Seep’s new utopia. That is until Deeba abandons Trina to go off and be reborn as a baby, because that’s a thing you can do now! Trina falls apart until a chance meeting with a lost boy sends her on an unexpected quest. This alien invasion (but a gentle one!) with a side of Inception is part social commentary and part speculative fiction, “perfect for fans of Jeff VanderMeer and Carmen Maria Machado.”

Narrator Note: You may know actress and transgender activist Shakina Nayfack from her recurring role on TV show Difficult People. 

The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Double Murder in Appalachia by Emma Copley Eisenberg, narrated by the author – Emma Copley Eisenberg went to Pocahontas County, West Virginia to reinvestigate the Rainbow Murders case, a double murder of two hitchhikers on their way to a festival that took place in 1980. The author seeks to not only determine the truth behind the killings, but to unpack the trauma it inflicted on the locals.

A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende, narrated by Edoardo Ballerini – This work of historical fiction begins in 1930s Spain just as General Franco has overthrown the government. Pregnant young widow Roser finds her life intertwined with that of Victor Dalmau, her deceased love’s brother. They marry one another reluctantly for survival and embark on a ship with 2,000 other refugees bound for Chile. There they embrace exile while Europe erupts in world war, finding “that home might have been closer than they thought all along.”

Narrator Note: Edoardo Ballerini is an audio pro with a deep catalog of James Patterson and Dean Koontz’ work. He also recently joined Anna Chlumsky in narrating Inland by Téa Obreht.

Homie by Danez Smith, narrated by the author – Danez Smith is a poet who you need to know if you don’t already. This collection is an homage to the saving grace of friendship. “Rooted in the loss of one of Smith’s close friends, this book comes out of the search for joy and intimacy within a nation where both can seem scarce and getting scarcer.”

Narrator Note: Sweet slam poetry perfection, Batman: this is stunning on audio. I’m not all the way through, but Danez’ powerful delivery gives me chills every few minutes.

The Majesties coverThe Majesties by Tiffany Tsao, narrated by Nancy Wu – Gwendolyn and Estella are sisters and best friends, each other’s shoulder to lean on when their very powerful, wealthy, and often deceitful family is a little too much to handle. Plot twist! Gwendolyn, who’s now in a coma, is the only remaining member of her family. Why? Because Estella poisoned everybody else. Getting to the bottom of this extreme betrayal will reveal secrets about the family that Gwendolyn might wish had stayed hidden.

Narrator Note: If you’ve enjoyed the audiobooks of Marie Lu’s Warcross series, Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata, or Ling Ma’s Severance, that’s Nancy Wu! She brings such power and weight to her performances.

Latest Listens

I finally plucked We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia from my To Listen folder after keeping it on ice for months. The premise: The Medio School for Girls trains young women for one of two roles in their polarized society; they’ll either be a Primera, aka Wife Numero Uno who will run her husband’s household, or a Segunda, Wifey Numero Dos who will raise his children. Both paths promise a life in the lap of luxury, far from the political unrest and demonstrations of the lower class who live beyond the wall.

After a lot of hard work and a few well-placed lies about her family’s true origins, Dani earns herself a place as Primera to Mateo Garcia, Medio’s wealthiest and most eligible bachelor. But boooo: her arch-nemesis and mean girl Carmen is to be Mateo’s Segunda, and Mateo is not at all the charming or noble dude Dani thought him to be. When a member of a rebel group named La Voz threatens to expose Dani’s true identity unless she helps them with their cause, she starts to question who the good guys really are, whom she can trust, and what she’s willing to risk to do the right thing.

This book would have made teenage me giddy (like it did for mid thirties me), a story of political intrigue and girl badassery with a touch o’romance. It features brown girl spies and queerness and gutsy rebellions and an ending that made me check my WiFi connection because surely there had to be more!!

Kyla Garcia, who I’m sure you recall I’ve been critical of before, did a pretty great narration job overall. Good pacing, appropriate inflections to convey emotion, correct pronunciation of the Spanish parts of the story. My one gripe here: I’m 95% positive Garcia mispronounced the author’s name both at the beginning and the end, which just feel SO sloppy and I really hope I’m wrong. Still, give this a listen if you haven’t. Such a fun story and the sequel is out this year!

From the Internets

WaPo critics suggest these three recent audiobooks. I’ve had my eye on Lisa Jewell’s twisty thriller The Family Upstairs; this may just be the convincing I needed.

Over at the Riot

Give this roundup of queer audiobook memoirs narrated by their authors a look. You know how I feel about In the Dream House, definitely need to add these others to my list.

2019 was a banner year for digital checkouts! Over 326 million ebooks and audiobooks were checked out from libraries and schools.

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 Tuesday and Friday too!

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

Categories
In The Club

In the Club – 1/22

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Today I’m switching it up and talking less about what to read in book club and more about the howlers chat a little about the logistics of book club when all the book clubbers aren’t in the same city.

To the club!!

Book Club Goes Long Distance

Even before relocating to the Pacific Northwest, I was in a book club with a group of my amigas who all lived at least two hours away from my place in San Diego. We met in person when we could, but relied on technology more often than not for our chats. I thought I would share my tips for long distance book clubbing for anyone in the same boat!

Structure is largely up to you. I do recommend designating one person to at least kick off the conversation (and maybe to reel it back in if the feelings get out of hand!), but tailor the participation level to your group.

Good Ol’ Fashioned Email – There was one month when the gals and I were just too busy to organize a chat of any kind and took book club back to email. Here’s how: 1) We appointed one person (me) to send out a batch of questions; everyone was asked to answer within a week of finishing the book. 2) Questions were of varying levity; some were fun (who would you cast in the movie adaptation of Gone Girl?), others more thought-provoking (discussions about women as unreliable narrators). 3) I compiled everyone’s answers (with a bit of humor and creative flair) and emailed that summary to the group. This worked well for all of our busy lives and was fun to read at each of our leisure. The email chain of our reactions went on for weeks!

Group Chat Goes Lit – Run book club via text, iMessage, WhatsApp, Google Chat, AOL Messenger if you’ve hopped in your time machine (side note: if you run into 2001 me, tell her to ditch the loser boyfriend and stop over-plucking her eyebrows). Pick the messaging platform that works best for you and then agree on a time when everyone has at least 30 minutes to chat. Simple, and technically doable from just about anywhere with reliable wifi or cell reception.

Call Me, Maybe – Set up a multi-way call, whether with just voice or video is entirely up to you. Personally, I love video calls (FaceTime, WhatsApp, Skype, etc) so I can see everyone’s facial expressions along with the lively discussion. My tip here depending on the time of day you chat is to create a whole vibe by having food and wine, coffee, tea, champagne, etc “together.” Of course, if a voice call is all you can manage, that’s perfectly fine as well. Pants are optional for both, so that’s a win.

The Odd One Out Is Still In – Of course, now that I’ve moved to Portland, all of the ladies in my book club have moved back to the general LA area. I’m the only real long distance member left, although in LA it can take as long to get from one zip code to another as it would take for me to fly in… Anywho! While all of them will likely pick a place to physically meet up, I refuse to miss out on our discussion of Kiley Reid’s Such a Fun Age. Remember that you too can insist that your friends set you up on a phone or iPad and participate virtually through the wonders of modern technology. They’d better not turn my volume down is all I’m saying.

Suggestion Section

A young man founded a book club when he was just ten years old (Books N Bros, amazing!), so he could talk to other boys about books. The club has grown to include over 250 “bros” and celebrates Black culture and African American lit. It’s no wonder he’s been turned into a Marvel Superhero!

Such a Fun Age is Buzzfeed’s February book club pick. Good job, Buzzfeed! That’s a good one.

Book club questions for Tommy Orange’s There There

This New York based book club aims to improve literacy about incarceration.

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 Tuesday and 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

Categories
Events

Live Your Best Bookish Life Today!

It’s a new year and a new decade, book friends, and we want to help you step into both with your best foot forward. That’s why we’re dedicating today to living your best bookish life!

Need help keeping up with your reading goals? We gotchu. Maybe you’ve been in a reading slump, but don’t worry: we’ve been there too. Learn something new with this nonfiction roundup and help the kiddos lead best bookish lives of their own. Treat yourself to some hands-free reading tools and don’t you dare feel guilty about it: the bookish life is good for you, after all.

Come see all our tips for best bookish living at bookriot.com!

 

Categories
Audiobooks

Audiobooks – 1/16

Hola Audiophiles! Welcome to another week of audio love. I’ve been over here preparing for the snow that was promised never really came this week in Portland, which is probs for the best since I probably would have embarrassed myself if it had. But enough about me; let’s dive into this week’s new releases and notes on my latest listen.

Ready? Let’s audio.

New Releases – January 14, 2019

A World Without Work: Technology and Automation and How We Should Respond by Daniel Susskind, narrated by the author – For as long as technology has been a thing, humans have been filled with a certain level of “it’s going to overrun our lives!” angst. Susskind’s argues that a) this time is different because A.I. has arrived, b) this can actually be a good thing and solve an age-old economic problem, but c) the good can only happen if we first confront the economic disruption it will cause. Eek/yikes/okay great.

Narrator Note: I know Daniel Susskind from a TED talk and love his style. Look it up if you want more of this sort of tech talk.

Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey, narrated by Charlotte North – Rosie and Dominic are high school sweethearts whose marriage is perfect until it isn’t. Rosie decides she wants to realize a dream of opening a restaurant, but first: she wants to go to marriage boot camp. She suggests her plan to Dominic, assuming the ex-soldier and very “manly man” type will turn her down. He shocks her when he’s not only into the idea but jumps in with both feet, completing every hilarious task suggested by a weed-smoking hippie (lol). Rosie will have to confront her role in the breakdown of the marriage, as well as a secret that Dominic is keeping…

Narrator Note: Charlotte North has narrated other Tessa Bailey books from her Hot & Hammered series, works by Maya Rodale, and more.

Night Theater by Vikram Paralkar, narrated by Raj Ghatak – A surgeon flees the city when a scandal ruins his medical career and accepts a job in a remote village’s clinic. One night, a teacher, his pregnant wife, and their young son walk into the clinic asking for his help. The twist? They’re all dead (but not dead?), and say an angel will give them a second chance at life if the surgeon can heal their wounds by sunrise. Author Vikram Paralkar is a doctor himself and “takes on the practice of medicine in a time when the right to health care is frequently challenged. Engaging earthly injustice and imaginaries of the afterlife, he asks how we might navigate corrupt institutions to find a moral center.”

Narrator Note: You may recognize Raj Ghatak from books by Amitav Ghosh and sooooo many of James Patterson’s titles!

The Better Liar by Tanen Jones, narrated by Lisa Flanagan, Karissa Vacker, and Kristen Sieh – Robin and Leslie’s recently deceased father left them a big, fat inheritance, one that Leslie could really super very much use right about now. The problem? The inheritance will be disbursed to both sisters or not at all and Robin was just found dead. Then Leslie meets Mary, a woman with a striking resemblance to Robin who has nothing to lose. They concoct one of those “how could this possibly go wrong??” plans: Mary will pretend to be Robin so they can claim the money. But then! Secrets.

Narrator Note: All three of these narrators were part of ensemble cast for Sara Shepard’s Reputation and have a ton of narration credit to their names individually as well; Lisa Flanagan is known for thrillers by Liz Moore and Lisa Lutz; Karissa Vacker did Red Clocks by Leni Zumas and Krysten Ritter’s Bonfire; Allyson Ryan narrates Long Bright River by Liz Moore, which happens to be my latest listen!

Latest Listens

long bright riverLong Bright River by Liz Moore – Set in a Philadelphia neighborhood ravaged by the opioid crisis, once inseparable sisters Kacey and Mickey are now estranged. Mickey is a cop and a single mom and Kacey is an addict who lives on the streets. Kacey goes missing, then a string of mysterious murders pops up in Mickey’s district that might explain her disappearance. Mickey becomes obsessed with solving the murders and finding Kacey, putting her job and her life in danger.

My guesses as to the culprit of the murders and Kacey’s fate kept bouncing around here. I thought I’d figured it out about 12 times but the actual end result had me going, “Oh word??” I mentioned previously how Allyson Ryan’s voice has a certain apathetic tone and I stand by that as being a good thing! It’s very measured when it needs to be, especially in this book where the first person narrator has been hardened by life and has issues with feelings. She is also really great and dialects and accents, and making a kids’ voice charming and not gimmicky. I really enjoyed this one! Tip: I think this one reads best at 1.25 speed.

From the Internets

The first batch of Marvel original audiobooks is here with more to come later in 2020.

Laura Linney’s performance of My Name Is Lucy Barton, a monologue play by Rona Munro adapted from Elizabeth Strout’s best-selling novel, will soon be an audiobook.

Remember that Amazon copyright lawsuit? Looks like they’ve settled.

AudioFile’s interviewed narrator powerhouse Robin Miles. If you have managed not to know her work yet, consider this a homework assignment!

Over at the Riot

A really cool list of audiobooks by Native, First Nations, or Indigenous authors

A listening pathway to narrator Dion Graham, who I absolutely loved in several of Nic Stone’s books and Dave Eggers’ The Monk of Mokha

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 Tuesday and Friday too!

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

Categories
In The Club

In the Club – 1/15/20

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Vanessa here, fresh off of playing in the Portland “snow” that came down for all of 15 minutes. The locals were like, “Yeah, it’s frozen water coming down from the sky, we know;” meanwhile your girl jumped around in the street living her best life.

Here’s to finding joy in everyday things. To the club!!

Yo…. Harry and Meghan put a “Dear Liz, Nah.” letter on the internet and told the monarchy to go kick rocks! The extent of my interest in the royals doesn’t normally go beyond my obsession with The Crown, but Megxit reminds me how much I enjoy a good royals-defying-expectations (and sometimes giving-their-stuffy-families-the-finger) narrative. This week’s book club recs are thus about royalty acting up and out.

Discussion points: These books that include queer representation, characters of color, and a queen whose historical characterization I find overly simple. Discuss how these narratives depart from what comes to mind for you when you think of the Royal Family. Talk about the function of the monarchy and its place in modern society, and whether the trappings of life as a royal are worth having to life your life a certain way.

Nibbles and Sips

Did I pick a royals theme just so I could suggest a proper afternoon tea in this newsletter? Perhaps. Have I suggested this at least once before? Possibly. I’m a sucker for a tea party, what can I say? Here’s a sample menu:

Afternoon tea at the Jane Austen Centre's Regency Tea Room in Bath (2017 property of V Diaz)

Savories: Some mini sausage rolls with Branston pickle and an assortment of tea sandwiches, like cucumber + cream cheese, egg salad, and cranberry chicken salad.

Scones: A plain but quality scone, one that stands up to a beautiful, rich clotted cream and bright, delicious jam. I love this recipe and the delightful 88-year-old lady in it!

Sweets: Grapes, strawberries, or some sliced apples and two or more mini desserts depending on the size of the party, like a classic Victoria sponge or some petit fours.

Next you’ll need a pot or two of tea. I always serve at least one black tea  and one low (or no) caffeine option, something herbal or a nice white tea. Serve it up with some cream (or your favorite non-dairy alternative) and sugar and/or honey.

A Royal Mess

Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston – I’m shielding my eyes as I confess the following: I still have not read Red, White, and Royal Blue! I feel confident recommending this title based on many a colleague’s glowing review. This is a rom-com in which Alex Claremont-Diaz, the First Son, falls in love with Henry, the Prince of Wales. When a scandal of big ol’ nternational proportions forces them to pretend to be best friends, complicated feelings (insert sexy saxophone music here) ensues.

Nocturna by Maya Motayne – This epic #ownvoices fantasy (the first in a trilogy!) is inspired by Latinx culture and tradition, so you know I’m on board. Alfehr is a young prince hellbent on finding the brother that was taken from his family in an attempted coup. It is believed by most that the brother is dead, but Alfie believes he can get him back through the use of dark, forbidden magic. One night, his path crosses with that of a face-shifting thief in a high-stakes, magical gambling ring; that chance meeting changes both of their lives when Alfie kinda accidentally unleashes a terrible, ancient power that will bring about the end of the world if not contained.

Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff – This is the book that made me a die-hard Stacy Schiff fan; she writes non-fiction that reads like fiction and that teaches you a ton. This is a deep dive into the legacy—and infamy—of the enigmatic queen of Egypt. I tend to describe it with a line from the television gem that was MTV Diaries: “You think you know, but you have no idea.” I stand by that pitch: this fascinating historical figure is so often reduced to the sum of her womanly wiles, but she was a strategist, a shrewd negotiator, and though sometimes messy, a powerful force.

Suggestion Section

Have you heard? We recently relaunched Book Riot Insiders! It’s a new year with new perks, including a group read at the Epic level. It’s basically a book club with Book Riot friends!

Speaking of that “New Year, New Me” state of mind: some thoughts on revamping a book club or maybe starting one altogether.

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 Tuesday and 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

Categories
The Goods

Book Riot’s Most Anticipated Books of 2020

It’s a new year and you know what that means: new books! We’ve rounded up the most exciting new releases of 2020 and we’re sorry, not sorry for your TBR. So go forth, dear reader: get those pre-orders in and library holds in order. Check out our picks here, or click below. Enjoy!

Categories
Audiobooks

Audiobooks 01/09/2020

Hola Audiophiles! Bienvenidos once again to the land of audio love. I hope you all had some time to relax and unwind over the last few weeks and maybe even sneak in some quality audio time! It’s a new year, and that means lot of new books to get after. Let’s talk about some of those new releases and one of my favorite recent listens.

Ready? Let’s audio.

New Releases – January 7, 2020

Boys & Sex by Peggy Orenstein, narrated by the author – Peggy Orenstein has written extensively about girls in books like Girls & Sex and Cinderella Ate My Daughter, advocating for their right to pleasure and agency in sexual relationships and breaking down gender stereotypes. She realized that she was missing half the equation in only focusing on girls and now examines how we raise boys, addressing issues like consent and toxic masculinity.

Don’t Believe a Word by David Shariatmadari, narrated by Damian Lynch – This book sounds like language-nerd candy! It breaks down nine common myths about language with lots of science and insights into modern linguistics.

Narrator Note: Damian Lynch is the voice behind the Mycroft Holmes series by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. His accent is very posh English and pleasant if you’re into that sort of thing (and I so am).

Lady Hotspur by Tessa Gratton, narrated by Jessica Hayles – Shakespeare made gayer is a thing I am very into and Tessa Gratton is too! This is her take on Henry IV, Part I in which Princes Mora and Hal are both women caught in a battle of succession. Lady Hotspur is “the fiery and bold knight whose support will turn the tides of the coming war.” Gimme.

Narrator Note: This is the first audiobook credit I found for Jessica Hayles, an English actress with experience performing Shakespeare. Some of you may recognize her from a 2005 role on Doctor Who.

Long Bright River by Liz Moore, narrated by Allyson Ryan – In a Philadelphia neighborhood ravaged by the opioid crisis, once inseparable sisters Kacey and Mickey are estranged. Kacey is an addict who lives on the streets while Mickey walks a police beat. When Kacey goes missing just as a strange of mysterious murders pops up in Mickey’s district, Mickey becomes obsessed with solving the murders and finding her missing sister.

Narrator Note: Allyson Ryan’s voice is so awesome because it sounds like she doesn’t give a crap and cares a lot at the same time? That sounds like a diss, but I really enjoy it. She’s narrated works like The Fifth Trimester and Fleishman is in Trouble.

Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibanez, narrated by Ana Osorio – This book sounds so good! The usurper Atoc has driven the Illustrian royal family from La Ciudad using an ancient magical relic; all but one Illustrian, that is. Condesa is the last remaining survivor and Atoc has the nerve to ask for her hand in marriage! She sends her decoy Ximena to him in her place, giving Ximena the chance at the revenge that she craves. It’s inspired by Bolivian politics and history (yessss), with a little bit of magic sprinkled on top.

Narrator note: I’ve only listened to a sample of Ana’s work but I’m very interested so far. If you like her work and have been looking to incorporate more Spanish audiobooks into your listening, she’s the voice behind the Spanish versions of Jojo Moyes and Kristin Hannahs books and more.

Latest Listens

such a fun ageSuch a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, narrated by Nicole Lewis – Oh my gatos, y’all: this was so fantastic. I wasn’t all that excited about this for whatever reason and it blew me away! Nicole Lewis as a narrator gets all the gold stars; anyone who can transition that smoothly from a mid-30s Karen type to a young, semi-apathetic twenty-something and then a quirky toddler and back again is someone I want to know more about.

The book is about Emira, a young black babysitter, and Alix, her well-intentioned employer (and professional Karen, sort of?). Emira cares for Alix’ toddler Briar three days a week while Alix does her internet influencer thing. Their relationship has always been cordial, but changes for good one evening when Emira is falsely accused of kidnapping Briar at a high-end grocery store while on the job. That evening blows over at first, but will come back to reveal a surprising connection between Alix’s past and Emira’s present that threatens to undo them both. It’s a brilliant and witty examination of class, race, and privilege that would be perfect for book club. It forces you to examine your own biases and contains a whole cast of characters whose intentions might just be a little polarizing.

From the Internets

Ok, I sort of hate the title of this article because it’s just begging for the “audiobooks aren’t books” trolls to pile on. That being said, yes: audiobooks are having a moment.

Elizabeth Warren loves long walk with her audiobooks. Same, Liz.

Over at the Riot

You love Robin, we love Robin, or maybe you don’t yet but are about to love Robin: a roundup of some of the best audiobooks narrated by the wonderfully talented Robin Miles.

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 Tuesday and Friday too!

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa

Categories
In The Club

In the Club 01/08/2020

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

Feliz Año Nuevo, friends! It’s so great to be back. I hope you all had some time to reset and refresh since we last spoke and are ready to get back to books! Let’s jump right in.

To the club!!

When 2020 Tells 2019 to Hold Its Beer

If you’re anything like me, you watched the clock strike 12:00am on January 1st with a loud exhale, welcoming 2020 with open arms and a basket of mini muffins. But just as we were all, “Goodbye, 2019! So glad THAT’S over!” 2020 was like, “Is that a challenge?!” The romance world is reeling, WWIII might be a thing, Australia is being ravaged by bushfires… whew. It hasn’t even been 10 days!

Know what all this calls for? Some happy. Let’s find some happy.

Nibbles and Sips

We’re indulging here, folks. Don’t talk to me about calories and nutrition at book club because I don’t need that sort of negativity in my life. Have that third bottle glass of wine, that extra large cup of hot cocoa; treat yourself to those french fries, and get that pizza with extra cheese. Ask all club members to bring one or two of their comfort foods, and maybe also a bottle of Tums.

Come Sail Away With…

You may be the kind of person for whom “serious” literary fiction and/or heavy/issue books are escapist. If so, do you! These are just some of the types of books I turn to when I need a bandaid for my soul.

… a Cozy Mystery: I love a good cozy in general. Who doesn’t want to be cozy?! One of my faves in recent years has been Auntie Poldi and the Sicilian Lions. Auntie Poldi is like a Polish Sophia Petrillo, but more drunk and who also solves crimes. Enjoy the whodunnit and also discuss what including a woman of her age as the protagonist does for the story. It’s a vantage point we don’t see as often as we should!

… a Twisty, Turny Thriller: In The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, a psychotherapist becomes obsessed with the case of a woman who has gone silent after killing her husband. There were enough delightful little red herrings here to throw me off the scent in a psychological thriller that felt like an homage to old school mystery. I don’t want to give it all away, but I think you’ll find yourself discussing a lot about mental illness and the stereotype of the hysterical woman.

Nothing to See Here cover image… am Ouch-My-Ribs-Hurts Book of Humor: In spite of the very unsubtle book cover, I managed not to know that Kevin Wilson’s Nothing to See Here is about some spontaneously combusting ten-year-old twins. I laughed SO hard at this one on audio. It’s hilarious, but also has a lot to say about class and privilege and the ways in which we “other” people we either don’t understand or that don’t fit into our stupid human plans. Talk about what the children’s condition represents metaphorically and about false victimhood.

… a Juicy Romance: Nothing says, “Calgon, take me away!” like a happily ever after. I asked one of our romance experts Jess Pryde, writer of the Kissing Books newsletter, for a rec and she told me about Xeni by Rebekah Weatherspoon. “It’s got some grief but it’s pretty low angst and LOL funny,” says Jess. I was going to write by own summary but this one from the publisher is just too good: “It features a woman sick to death of her family’s sh*t and a plus-size Scotsman who just wants to make sweet, sweet music. And love.” Bring on the bagpipes and body positivity! Note: This one isn’t our until March, sorry! But hey- you’ll still need joy a few months from now.

Suggestion Section

Being a huge hip hop fan like I am can be a tough hang when you’re a feminist: to call a lot of my favorite songs problematic is the most generous. While there’s a lot that one could say about artists like the late Nipsey Hussle, he spent the latter part of his life doing important work to uplift his community. I was so moved to read about the book club for black men that his legacy inspired and invite you to read up on The Marathon Book Club. 

E! rounded up lots o’ celebrity book club picks for January: see what Reese, Oprah, SJP, and others are reading. Side note: Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid is so. dang. good. Such a striking examination of race, class, and privilege, told by a fresh and very funny voice.

More book club picks from Good Morning America, PBS, BuzzFeed, and Marie Claire.

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 Tuesday and 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

Categories
Audiobooks

Audiobooks – 12/19

Hola Audiophiles! Can you believe this is the last Audiobooks newsletter of the year and decade? I thought about writing a missive on Song of Achilles and all the ways in which it wrecked me, but instead went with a roundup of my favorite audio releases from 2019. I’ll be back in 2020 with more audio love in your inbox and hopefully won’t start the year with Swine Flu this time. In the meantime, may your earholes be blessed with happy listening! Thanks for being swell.

Ready? Let’s audio.

The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo, narrated by the author – This mythical, sumptuous read set in 1930s Malaysia is about a young woman working at a dance hall and a house boy whose dying master gives him a task to complete. Their paths collide when they each embark on separate and dangerous missions involving a mysterious severed finger in a glass vial. Beautiful narration and amazing descriptions of food and landscapes.

gingerbread by helen oyeyemi cover the fright stuff newsletterGingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi, narrated by the author – English schoolgirl Perdita appears to have died by ingesting poisoned gingerbread, but wait! Her mum finds a note that’s like, “BRB! Not really deadsies, just popped out to find your long-lost friend!” That friend is Gretel and the mythical place Perdita has gone off in search of is Druhástrana, the faraway place where Harriet spent her youth. The thing is, most people don’t believe that place exists, and the story Perdita has to tell when she wakes up is bananas. Helen Oyeyemi’s voice is just so charming!

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams, narrated by Shvorne Marks – Queenie is a Jamaican British twenty-something Londoner and a mess: she’s going through a breakup, she’s broke AF, and she’s slacking at a job she can’t afford to lose. Queenie continually self destructs until she’s finally forced to confront her demons. I had some small issues with the book (Queenie is told to tone to tone it down at work with the Black Lives Matter talk and it’s never quite resolved?). Overall, this is a hilarious and thoughtful listen with several timely messages about identity politics, unprocessed trauma, how mental illness is treated in communities of color, and racism.

Save Me the Plums by Ruth Reichl, narrated by the author – Foodie goddess Ruth Reichl did not disappoint! This memoir from her time at Gourmet magazine chronicles her complete revamping of the publication, it’s eventual demise, and what it was like to experience that whole arc while trying to be a wife and mother. Oh, and tasty recipes throughout!

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo, narrated by the author – Emoni is a teen mom working hard to raise her young daughter and take care of her abuela. She can cook her face off and dreams of being a chef, dreams that seems more feasible when she enrolls in her high school’s new culinary arts course. The class challenges her though, makes her doubt her potential and worth. It also forces her to examine her future, her parenting, her relationships, and allows her to want and to dream more freely. Elizabeth Acevedo, yo. That swag, that tone, that unapologetic pride in her people: perfection.

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey, narrated by Xe Sands – Private detective Ivy Gamble is just sort of getting by when the headmaster at a fancy magic school hires her to solve a grizzly murder. Her estranged twin Tabitha happens to teach at the school, the magically gifted sister of whom she’s always been a lil (read: a lot) jealous. Ivy will have to sift through secrets, lies, prophecies, and teenagers to determine who killed a teacher with dark magic. Xe Sands does such a great job of nailing both adult and teen voices here without going all over-the-top.

Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson, narrated by Jacqueline Woodson, Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Peter Francis James, Shayna Small, Bahni Turpin – How does an audiobook not even four hours long leave you in a puddle of tears?? Two families from different social classes are brought together by an unexpected pregnancy in a story that flashes back and forth between the past and the present. There is this scene involving 9/11 where Bahni Turpin DESTROYED me with her narration and I haven’t forgiven her for it yet!

cover of Guinevere Deception by Kiersten WhiteThe Guinevere Deception by Kiersten White, narrated by Elizabeth Knowelden – Arthurian retelling? Yessss. Guinevere as a changeling? Double yes! She’s come to Camelot to wed King Arthur in a plot devised by Merlin to protect him from dark magical forces. Maybe? I love when a story you think you know still manages to make you go, “Oh no she did not!!!” It’s the first in White’s new Camelot Rising trilogy, the narration iss flawless, and it left me real mad that I couldn’t immediately move on to the next book.

Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson, narrated by Marin Ireland – Lillian and Madison are boarding school BFFs until Lillian gets screwed over and is expelled. Years later, Lillian’s life is sort of whatever while Madison’s a wealthy politician’s wife. Madison rings Lillian out of the blue to beg her come be a (very well paid) nanny to her husband’s ten-year-old twins from a previous marriage. Oh and one small thing: they spontaneously combust from time to time. Marin Ireland does a Southern Accent as well as deadpan humor so. damn. well. I’m still laughing!

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado – Break my heart, why don’t you!! This genre-defying memoir of Carmen Maria Machado’s time in a psychologically abusive relationship is everything you’ve heard it is. It’s raw, it’s honest, it will squeeze your heart and kick you in the teeth. The deep, uncomfortable dive into the “mechanisms and cultural representations of psychological abuse” is not an easy read, but it’s worth it in every way.

From the Internets

Tor rounded up some SFF listens for holiday travels.

Paste suggests these festive audiobooks for the holiday season and they all sound so fun!

And that’s a 2019 wrap! Shoot me an email at vanessa@riotnewmedia.com with 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. See ya next year!
Vanessa