Have you ever had feelings you don’t know where to place?
So you put them where you can, and give them their own space?
With restraint and intention, Ghost Forest by Pik-Shuen Fung says just enough to connect with the reader.
Released at the end of March 2021, Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia is a truly powerful work of literary fiction and family legacy.
Continue reading “Of Women and Salt: A Book Review”
Are you a barely functional adult? Do you hope it’ll all make sense eventually? Do you want to read, laugh, and relate to a fellow barely functional adult who is likewise holding out hope that it’ll all make sense eventually?
Then Meichi Ng has created a book perfect for you: Barely Functional Adult: It’ll All Make Sense Eventually.
Continue reading “Barely Functional Adult: It’ll All Make Sense Eventually… A Book Review”
Letter from the Editor:
Greetings! Even though February is the shortest month of the year, I still managed to read several amazing works. In honor of it being Black History Month, I exclusively read Black-authored books. Not just this month, but year-round as well, I think we should generally aim to uplift the marginalized voices which so often have been ignored throughout history.
In this issue of Bookish Brains, I will be sharing reviews for The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi, Black Boy Out of Time by Hari Ziyad, the March comic trilogy written by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, and Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde, as well as my currently-reading thoughts on Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin and my reading plans for March! Cheers!
“They burned down the market on the day Vivek Oji died.”
The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi begins with this evocative line. Vivek’s death is certain, yet the circumstances surrounding that death are hazy: the body is left upon Vivek’s parents’ house, stripped and battered, leaving mother Kavita with devastated questions and father Chika with a gap in his heart. What happened to Vivek? And moreover, who was Vivek?
Continue reading “The Death of Vivek Oji: A Book Review”
Letter from the Editor:
Happy 2021! I hope your reading year has begun on a good foot; if not, there are still eleven months to sink your teeth into delicious literature!
The very first book I read this year was Garfield Sits at Home (#7), a comic strip book. I think I find that cynical, chunky feline even funnier as an adult now that I “manage” two cats of my own, who both certainly have distinct attitudes. After that first booklet, I read two more Garfield collections because that was exactly what I needed at the beginning of this month.
Aside from misadventures in Jon’s household, I’ve also read a few other incredible books, which I’m excited to write about! In today’s issue of Bookish Brains, I’m discussing Luster by Raven Leilani, Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert, In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado, and Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi, as well as my current reads The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune and The Shining by Stephen King.
Moving forward, I plan to publish these issues of Bookish Brains on the last Friday of every month and use the opportunity to summarize the month’s reading. Hope you enjoy!
“You exist too much.”
These are the words uttered by the mother of Zaina Arafat’s protagonist in You Exist Too Much, and thus loosely encapsulate the strife of the young Palestinian-American woman. She exists too much—she disappoints her mother too much, she seeks love too much, she self-sabotages too much.
Continue reading “You Exist Too Much: A Book Review”
Glitz, glamor, romance, drama—The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid is exactly the type of book that reminds me why I love reading! Recently, I read this much-discussed book, and I’m excited to share my spoiler-free thoughts about this sensational work of fiction!
Continue reading “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: A Book Review”
At the beginning of the year, I created the Slanted Spines Book List which designated a book for each month! The reading for August is The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood, and this is my book review! It contains minimal spoilers, and I will denote when they appear.
Continue reading “The Year of the Flood: A Book Review”
If you’re looking for a good book to read, then I’ve got a great recommendation for you! In June I read The Henna Artist, and it’s one of my recent favorite books. This review is spoiler-free, so keep reading to hear my thoughts!
Continue reading “The Henna Artist: A Book Review”
Slanted Spines 