#memoir – Page 26 – Cannonball Read 17

Food and socially conscious history together; I wish I would have liked it more.

The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty

July 7, 2021 by narfna Leave a Comment

**30 Books in 30 Days** Book 11/30 I’m feeling like a dick on this one, but I didn’t have the reading experience I was hoping for with such glowing reviews. I didn’t hate it, or even dislike it, but I didn’t really like it all that much either. I had two main problems here. The first may or may not have been exacerbated by the second, but as of right now, I have no way of knowing. Before I get to my issues, this book […]

“The day you finally start dealing with your past is the day you stop dragging it into the present.”

In the Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero

May 2, 2021 by faintingviolet Leave a Comment

I put this book on my to read list back in May of 2016, shortly after its publication. I don’t remember now what spurred me to do so, but at the end of the day its always the same basic reason – there was a story here that I wanted to know more about. In the Country We Love is Guerrero’s story of growing up the daughter of undocumented immigrants, and the course of her life following their deportments. It’s a big, important story. You […]

But his laptop!

Beautiful Things by Hunter Biden

April 30, 2021 by caragwapa Leave a Comment

I was not going to read this book, but then I heard Hunter Biden on WTF being interviewed by Marc Maron and I was.. intrigued. They talked about his book of course, but some details were unclear to me and I felt that the timeline would be better understood (by me) when read. But what really caught my attention was Maron saying that he was concerned or worried about Hunter still. You could just feel Maron liking, relating to, and being very worried about him. […]

Ranging from Excellent to Mediocre

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig

Pride by Ibi Zoboi

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

April 13, 2021 by Ellesfena 2 Comments

None of these books fit into my reviewing theme this year (revisiting series I’d never finished), but I wanted to review Clap When You Land anyway because it is excellent, and I decided to throw the other three in as a bonus. Clap When You Land: 5 stars. Plot: Camino lives in the Dominican Republic with her Tia and sees her father every summer, when he comes back from New York City to visit. When his plan tragically crashes and everyone aboard dies, she discovers […]

“White supremacy … is gravity. It is a ceaseless pressure intended to keep blackness ground-bound and sick.”

What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Blacker by Damon Young

March 7, 2021 by ElCicco 3 Comments

Damon Young is a Black Pittsburgh writer who has gotten national attention thanks in part to a blog he co-writes called Very Smart Brothas (now part of The Root). I started following it on social media a few years ago and have found it to be funny, entertaining, informative and a source of sharp social criticism. The local story that really put Damon Young and VSB on my radar had to do with a local white female newscaster who stepped in it with some horribly […]

“As any magician knows, it is not the smoke and mirrors that trick people; it is that the human mind makes assumptions and misunderstands them as truths.”

Wild Game by Adrienne Brodeur

March 1, 2021 by scootsa1000 1 Comment

I got this book as a holiday gift from a friend whose book taste I trust implicitly. She told me she hadn’t been able to put it down when she read it. I was skeptical — I’m just not really a non-fiction person. In fact, I’m pretty sure this was my first-ever memoir written by a non-celebrity. I usually just want to sit with a story and not think about real life. Why would I want to spend my precious book time reading about someone […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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