Roar Cat Reads

Tag: Book Review

  • People Change by Vivek Shraya

    People Change by Vivek Shraya

    Genre | Nonfiction
    Page #s | 112
    Publishing Date | January 2022

    Vivek Shraya knows this to be true: people change. We change our haircuts and our outfits and our minds. We change names, titles, labels. We attempt to blend in or to stand out. We outgrow relationships, we abandon dreams for new ones, we start fresh. We seize control of our stories. We make resolutions.

    In fact, nobody knows this better than Vivek, who’s made a career of embracing many roles: artist, performer, musician, writer, model, teacher. In People Change, she reflects on the origins of this impulse, tracing it to childhood influences from Hinduism to Madonna. What emerges is a meditation on change itself: why we fear it, why we’re drawn to it, what motivates us to change, and what traps us in place.

    At a time when we’re especially contemplating who we want to be, this slim and stylish handbook is an essential companion–a guide to celebrating our many selves and the inspiration to discover who we’ll become next.

    Goodreads

    You know when you read a book that summarizes your disparate thoughts and feelings into a new life philosophy? People Change was that for me, and I think it’s incredibly useful in this age where we are realizing that identity, personality, and sexual orientation are more fluid than previously recognized.

    “I don’t believe in a single, stable, true self,” Shraya says, and in the distance, you can hear me cheering. This little novella is an emphatic assertion that it is okay to change – creatively, queerly, personally. As someone who has gone through profound shifts in identity in the last five years, I resonated with this so deeply. I see this very often in queer communities specifically; someone comes out, then retroactively finds evidence for being queer all along. This might be true, but often it feels like shoehorning new discoveries where they don’t belong. What if we just allowed ourselves to be capable of growth and change?

    Shraya allows for the confusion that comes with change, but makes a compelling case for embracing it all the same. In fact, she reframes “confusion” and “curiosity” and encourages readers to pursue a life open to change rather than living so “authentically” that we are stuck with outdated labels. Instead of trying to be a single cohesive self, Shraya suggests that we “be yourselves” – across time, across communities, and across experiences. We are complex creatures, and that’s not only okay. It is good.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Give People Change to the thoughtful reader who likes for their books to challenge their thinking and promote deep compassion for self.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera

    Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera

    Genre | YA Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 276
    Publishing Date | January 2016

    Juliet Milagros Palante is leaving the Bronx and headed to Portland, Oregon. She just came out to her family and isn’t sure if her mom will ever speak to her again. But Juliet has a plan, sort of, one that’s going to help her figure out this whole “Puerto Rican lesbian” thing. She’s interning with the author of her favorite book: Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women’s bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff.

    Will Juliet be able to figure out her life over the course of one magical summer? Is that even possible? Or is she running away from all the problems that seem too big to handle?

    With more questions than answers, Juliet takes on Portland, Harlowe, and most importantly, herself. 

    Goodreads

    One of my friends said this is her favorite book, and I totally see why! Juliet Takes a Breath is an excellent novel/primer about queerness, West Coast liberalism, and the perils of white feminism. When a Puerto Rican young woman from New York moves to Portland to intern with a feminist author, she learns a lot about the world and herself.

    This is an educational book, in that Juliet is absorbing feminist and womanist culture with wide eyes and lots of details. But the lessons portrayed are wonderfully written with either poignancy or humor (or both). I laughed so much at Juliet listening with awe and confusion to the world’s most polite argument between polyamorous lesbians.

    For being a fairly overt book in terms of showcasing queer feminist ideas, it’s also wonderfully nuanced. Juliet’s friends and family urge her to be careful in idolizing a white woman, and they urge her to dig into black and brown queer feminist spaces. I won’t give away what happens, but I thought her experience was so honest. There aren’t easy answers given, and there are no villains, even if Juliet does realize that some changes are necessary moving forward.

    As a Great Plains kid who moved to Vancouver as an adult, I was delighted by the wonderful and wacky Pacific Northwest represented here. I can only imagine that a Latinx person in a similar situation would feel even more seen and understood, and for that I adore this book.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Juliet Takes a Breath is the book for you if you want to see intersectional feminism flawlessly portrayed within a sweet coming-of-age lesbian story.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • The Heartbreak Bakery by A.R. Capetta

    The Heartbreak Bakery by A.R. Capetta

    Genre | YA Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 352
    Publishing Date | October 2021

    Syd (no pronouns, please) has always dealt with big, hard-to-talk-about things by baking. Being dumped is no different, except now Syd is baking at the Proud Muffin, a queer bakery and community space in Austin. And everyone who eats Syd’s breakup brownies . . . breaks up. Even Vin and Alec, who own the Proud Muffin. And their breakup might take the bakery down with it. Being dumped is one thing; causing ripples of queer heartbreak through the community is another. But the cute bike delivery person, Harley (he or they, check the pronoun pin, it’s probably on the messenger bag), believes Syd about the magic baking. And Harley believes Syd’s magical baking can fix things, too—one recipe at a time.

    Goodreads

    I did not expect to be emotionally moved by magical baked goods, but here we are! The Heartbreak Bakery celebrates love, whether romantic, communal, or sugar, and it’s the perfect quick read to satisfy a readers’ sweet tooth.

    Syd works at a queer bakery in Austin, TX, and literally everything about this sentence makes me happy. Austin is one of my favorite cities, and its awesomeness (as well as it’s flaws) is captured here so personally. If this is based on an actual queer bakery in Austin, someone please let me know because I want to go there immediately. The Proud Muffin is the queer community we all long for – diverse, inclusive, and full of activities and free desserts.

    Anyway, Syd works there, and accidentally bakes a batch of breakup brownies by pouring heartbreak into them. The rest of the book is a falling-in-love montage while Syd and coworker Harley scramble to reunite couples through even more magical baked goods. I honestly thought this would all turn out to be a “we were reading too much into this and thought magic but it was mundane” situation, but instead the reveal at the end turned out to be thematic and poignant.

    This book does gender non-conforming so well! Syd is agender and wrestles with what this means throughout the book, while Harley is confidently gender fluid and signals their pronouns by pin on any given day. While there is some coming out themes where Syd is concerned, it’s very much about personal understanding rather than societal acceptance. I loved it.

    For a book about falling in and out of love, I only fell in! The Heartbreak Bakery is so much fun.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Want a fun summer read to read at a (literal or imaginative) coffee shop? The Heartbreak Bakery is for you!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Across a Field of Starlight by Blue Delliquanti

    Across a Field of Starlight by Blue Delliquanti

    Genre | Science Fiction Graphic Novel
    Page #s | 352
    Publishing Date | February 2022

    When they were kids, Fassen’s fighter spaceship crash-landed on a planet that Lu’s survey force was exploring. It was a forbidden meeting between a kid from a war-focused resistance movement and a kid whose community and planet are dedicated to peace and secrecy.

    Lu and Fassen are from different worlds and separate solar systems. But their friendship keeps them in each other’s orbit as they grow up. They stay in contact in secret as their communities are increasingly threatened by the omnipresent, ever-expanding empire.

    As the empire begins a new attack against Fassen’s people–and discovers Lu’s in the process–the two of them have the chance to reunite at last. They finally are able to be together…but at what cost? 

    This beautifully illustrated graphic novel is an epic science fiction romance between two non-binary characters as they find one another through time, distance, and war.

    Goodreads

    Across a Field of Starlight is a creative sci-fi graphic novel about two non-binary kids developing a long distance friendship while surviving a revolution against an evil empire. Lu is part of a separatist faction that avoids the fighting altogether while Fassen is rising in the revolutionary ranks; they each have to figure out how to resist an empire without losing their soul in the process. Along the way, the uncover hard lines they will not cross, but no easy answers.

    For me, the highlight of this book was seeing the beautiful diversity of trans and non-binary characters drawn on the page. There is a woman rocking a beard and body hair who is badass and lovely, and she stole the show for me! Additionally, because there are so many trans characters, some of them get to be bad guys, which was also so much fun!

    I really enjoyed this quick read, but I did feel that it didn’t QUITE reach the heights to which it could have aspired. The empire was not fully developed, so it was never very clear why it was so important to resist them. I mostly came away thinking their robots and flower-shaped space ships were pretty rad, which did not help me empathize with the revolutionaries. Still, it’s lovely to see a queer-heavy cast of characters in unique sci-fi settings!

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    If you ever wished Star Wars was more queer, you’ll enjoy Across a Field of Starlight!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi

    Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi

    Genre | YA Fantasy
    Page #s | 272
    Publishing Date | February 2022

    Bitter is thrilled to have been chosen to attend Eucalyptus, a special school where she can focus on her painting surrounded by other creative teens. But outside this haven, the streets are filled with protests against the deep injustices that grip the town of Lucille. Bitter’s instinct is to stay safe within the walls of Eucalyptus . . . but her friends aren’t willing to settle for a world that the adults say is “just the way things are.

    Pulled between old friendships, her creative passion, and a new romance, Bitter isn’t sure where she belongs – in the art studio or in the streets. And if she does find a way to help the revolution while being true to who she is, she must also ask: at what cost?

    Goodreads

    The prequel to Pet (one of my favorite reads last year), I had high expectations for Bitter, and I would say they were mostly met. The world of Pet was one in which monsters were eradicated and people had stopped being vigilant. Bitter is the story of Pet’s mother and how she played a role in the eradication of monsters. It’s worth noting that here, monsters mean people, and this is the strongest facet of both books. Throughout the early chapters, we hear about billionaires who exploit their workers, police who shoot protesters, and they are described in such a way that I kept thinking, “MONSTERS! Oh, wait, whoa, these are everyday occurrences in real life… How have I become so desensitized to how terrible this is??”

    In opposition to the terrible (real) world, two factions have arisen. There is a group of protesters and a school of artists; Bitter is in the latter, and she feels real and self-imposed judgement for not wanting to join the protesters. I really enjoyed the way the book explored art as protest and how not everyone needs to take to the streets…but that also, maybe you should sometimes.

    All of this combined with a cast of queer characters living messy lives means I should have loved it from the start, but I found that the first half of the book read as a little slow to me. It wasn’t until Bitter raised an angel from her artwork that I was hooked. The way Emezi depicts angels is exactly the kind of terrifying Old Testament too-many-eyes creature that I am Here For! At one point an angel basically says, “Why do you think angels are always saying, ‘Do not be afraid’ when they appear?” and I nearly fell over from Oh Snap-ing so hard. This is liberal areligious theology nerdom at its best.

    In contrast to Pet‘s focus on the individual, Bitter focuses on group responsibility, asking questions like: What is allowable in a revolution? Is bloodshed necessary? If so, how much? There aren’t easy answers, but it’s asking the questions that matters most.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Give Bitter alongside Pet; these books go together and will pack the most punch as a unit!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth

    The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth

    Genre | YA Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 368
    Publishing Date | June 2020

    Saoirse doesn’t believe in love at first sight or happy endings. If they were real, her mother would still be able to remember her name and not in a care home with early onset dementia. A condition that Saoirse may one day turn out to have inherited. So she’s not looking for a relationship. She doesn’t see the point in igniting any romantic sparks if she’s bound to burn out.

    But after a chance encounter at an end-of-term house party, Saoirse is about to break her own rules. For a girl with one blue freckle, an irresistible sense of mischief, and a passion for rom-coms.

    Unbothered by Saoirse’s no-relationships rulebook, Ruby proposes a loophole: They don’t need true love to have one summer of fun, complete with every cliché, rom-com montage-worthy date they can dream up—and a binding agreement to end their romance come fall. It would be the perfect plan, if they weren’t forgetting one thing about the Falling in Love Montage: when it’s over, the characters actually fall in love… for real.

    Goodreads

    The Falling in Love Montage is a YA contemporary fiction sapphic love story that offers a realistic message about the worthiness of love despite its ephemerality. I have to admit that it took me a minute to get into the story, because Saoirse is a brat. She’s a cranky, moody teen, and I felt myself related more to her father than to her for a good portion of the story. However, more than most moody teens, Saoirse has good reason for her outbursts. In addition to the typical angst that comes from transitioning out of secondary school and coping with a breakup, her mom has been placed into a care home due to early-onset dementia and her dad is dating someone new.

    All of this has led Saoirse to attempt the classic “Avoid pain by avoiding intimacy” gambit. When she meets Ruby, who is visiting for the summer, they agree that they just want a romance that is light, fun, and totally on the surface. But feelings take hold, and Saoirse has to wrestle with whether or not it’s worth opening your heart when you know there is an end date to the experience.

    I really appreciated the nuance of this book. Both Saorise and her father are coping with the tragedy of her mother’s condition, and they help and hurt each other in realistic ways as a result. Love is allowed to be complicated, and it’s Chosen Love rather than True Love that is the star here.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    If you want a quick read with a lot to say, The Falling in Love Montage is for you!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

    Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

    Genre | Fantasy
    Page #s | 318
    Publishing Date | February 2022

    Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv the orc barbarian cashes out of the warrior’s life with one final score. A forgotten legend, a fabled artifact, and an unreasonable amount of hope lead her to the streets of Thune, where she plans to open the first coffee shop the city has ever seen.

    However, her dreams of a fresh start pulling shots instead of swinging swords are hardly a sure bet. Old frenemies and Thune’s shady underbelly may just upset her plans. To finally build something that will last, Viv will need some new partners and a different kind of resolve.

    A hot cup of fantasy slice-of-life with a dollop of romantic froth.

    Goodreads

    I need there to be innumerable books like Legends & Latte, a cozy coffee shop AU set in a fantasy D&D setting. Viv the butch orc barbarian uses a magical item she got from her adventuring to start a new, peaceful life as a barista. Coffee is, you see, a mostly unknown gnomish invention, so her introduction of it (as well as sweet pastries) to a small fantasy town rocks the citizen’s minds and taste buds.

    The heart of this book is its characters and the simple but lovely relationships that develop between them. It’s slow burn sapphic love between coworkers, it’s old friends and rivals crashing into a new life, it’s mysterious mob bosses, it’s gruff construction workers turned friends.

    Honestly, if “D&D party runs a coffee shop” sounds appealing to you, then that’s all that’s needed. The only other thing worth saying is that the audiobook is read by author Travis Baldree, and I really enjoyed it!

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Give Legends & Lattes to your D&D party member who just wants to start small business and romance friends in your game.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

    She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

    Genre | Fantasy
    Page #s | 416
    Publishing Date | July 2021

    Mulan meets The Song of Achilles; an accomplished, poetic debut of war and destiny, sweeping across an epic alternate China.

    “I refuse to be nothing…”

    In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness…

    In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected.

    When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother’s identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate.

    After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu uses takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother’s abandoned greatness.

    Goodreads

    She Who Became the Sun is a fantasy-lite historical fiction that centers gender and ambition against the backdrop of rebellions and war. It is utterly engrossing, drawing readers into the world’s poverty and desperation immediately. Zhu grows up as the only girl left in a starving peasant village, and her uselessness is shoved in her face by everyone all the time. When an opportunity to remake herself as her favored brother comes along, Zhu takes it, and all the world is affected.

    This is a book about gender that goes far deeper than the Mulan comparison frequently thrown around. Yes, Zhu pretends to be a man to enter a monastery and later join the army. But her relation to her femaleness and maleness is very fluid and is hugely impacted by situation. Similarly, another significant character is the eunuch Ouyang. He resents his forced gender presentation, the result of violence in his childhood, but it shapes who he is and how he moves through the world nonetheless. Zhu and Ouyang shatter the gender dichotomy and, while they’re at it, turn sexuality up and down and all around as well. I don’t think it would be incorrect to label Zhu as a sex-positive asexual, which was amazing to see!

    The story of She Who Became the Sun covers over a decade, so this is the kind of fantasy book that rewards investment and shows repercussions of long ago actions. I’m torn on using the label of fantasy, however. There are a couple fantastical elements – the reveal of the divine right to rule, ghosts – but they are very rare and would better be labeled fantasy-lite.

    Lastly, I adored the Buddhist influence on the book. Zhu spends her formative years as a monk and reckons with her growing ambition through that lens. It was fascinating to see the Chosen One narrative filtered through a perspective that desire creates suffering…so how much suffering is Zhu willing to create in her desire to be someone meaningful?

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Give She Who Became the Sun to any reader who loves a deep, gritty dive into character studies and war, especially if they appreciate a uniquely gendered perspective.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen

    She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen

    Genre | YA contemporary fiction
    Page #s | 288
    Publishing Date | April 2021

    High school nemeses fall in love in this queer YA rom com perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Casey McQuiston.

    After losing spectacularly to her ex-girlfriend in their first game since their break up, Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with the worst possible person: her nemesis, the incredibly beautiful and incredibly mean Irene Abraham. Things only get worse when their nosey, do-gooder moms get involved and the girls are forced to carpool together until Irene’s car gets out of the shop.

    Their bumpy start only gets bumpier the more time they spend together. But when an opportunity presents itself for Scottie to get back at her toxic ex (and climb her school’s social ladder at the same time), she bribes Irene into playing along. Hijinks, heartbreak, and gay fake-dating scheme for the ages. From author Kelly Quindlen comes a new laugh-out-loud romp through the ups and downs of teen romance.

    Goodreads

    An enemies to lovers fake dating sapphic book, you say? She Drives Me Crazy was basically made for me! This is such a cute, fun read about a high school basketball player getting revenge on a toxic ex by pretending to date the cheerleader…until feelings develop. I will never get tired of this trope.

    In addition to the tropey fun, there are some slightly heavier themes that are handled well. Scottie is still hung up on her ex-girlfriend despite knowing she was unhealthy. It’s a realistic response to first love that I appreciated seeing represented, though I was also very glad when she finally gets over the relationship! Additionally, there is a lot of talk about assumptions, especially where Irene is concerned. As a Homecoming Queen cheerleader, she seems to have it all, but she is very aware of the stereotypes she faces as a Desi woman, a queer woman, and a cheerleader who believes in the skill and athleticism of her sport.

    This is a small thing, but I find it so nice that YA books are trending toward stories of “my family knows I’m queer, and they’re supportive.” The drama comes from more universal experiences of love, growth, and high school rather than coming out. I don’t want books where families struggle with a child coming out to disappear, but I’m glad we’re also normalizing healthy, supportive families!

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    She Drives Me Crazy is the sapphic high school rom com that you’ve been waiting for!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • The Thousand Eyes by A.K. Larkwood

    The Thousand Eyes by A.K. Larkwood

    Genre | Fantasy
    Page #s | 385
    Publishing Date | February 2022

    The sequel to A. K. Larkwood’s stunning debut fantasy, The Unspoken Name, The Thousand Eyes continues The Serpent Gates series–perfect for fans of Jenn Lyons, Joe Abercrombie, and Ursula K. Le Guin.

    Two years ago, Csorwe and Shuthmili defied the wizard Belthandros Sethennai and stole his gauntlets. The gauntlets have made Shuthmili extraordinarily powerful, but they’re beginning to take a sinister toll on her. She and Csorwe travel to a distant world to discover how to use the gauntlets safely, but when an old enemy arrives on the scene, Shuthmili finds herself torn between clinging to her humanity and embracing eldritch power.

    Meanwhile, Tal Charossa returns to Tlaanthothe to find that Sethennai has gone missing. As well as being a wizard of unimaginable power, Sethennai is Tal’s old boss and former lover, and Tal wants nothing to do with him. When a magical catastrophe befalls the city, Tal tries to run rather than face his past, but soon learns that something even worse may lurk in the future. Throughout the worlds of the Echo Maze, fragments of an undead goddess begin to awaken, and not all confrontations can be put off forever…

    Goodreads

    The Unspoken Name is one of my favorite fantasy novels (my review is here), and I was so excited that its sequel, The Thousand Eyes, was just as good! A.K. Larkwood guides readers back into the world with ease, reminding us of important people and places very organically. This time around, the secondary characters are front and center; we get several POVs, most notably from Tal and Shuthmili. While part of me missed the focus on Csorwe, I also enjoyed getting into the heads of her friends and partners, and it was very satisfying to see her through their eyes.

    While the first book is about resisting enforced sacrifice, this sequel is about embracing sacrifice on your own terms. It seems like nearly everyone is (or wants to be) a vessel for a deity, and there are innumerable bargains made along the lines of, “Take my body so long as XXX lives!” It’s a nice balance to the previous book, and it’s lovely to watch characters wrestle with the question of what is worth sacrificing themselves for.

    Speaking of deities! There are so many, and it is so much fun to see the various iterations, the various interactions they have with their vessels, and how their universal thirst for power is actually quite diverse in scope. It was like watching a D&D party full of warlocks navigate their patron bargains in more or less disastrous ways.

    The heart of these books is the characters, though, and especially the sheer number of queer characters. Tal gets fleshed out more, and I adore him. Shuthmili and Csorwe have such a great romance that is somehow sweet and simple whilst enmeshed in gigantically dramatic plots. Sethannai is a wonderful antagonist who I never want to truly die, and Oranna is a complex delight. We also get a new character this time around: the nonbinary teen Tsereg, who is a breath of fresh air. I would read an endless series about these six.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    If you’re on the hunt for a unique fantasy series with a majority queer cast and a plot that twists and turns over decades…The Unspoken Name and The Thousand Eyes for you!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Dear Senthuran: A Black Spirit Memoir by Akwaeke Emezi

    Dear Senthuran: A Black Spirit Memoir by Akwaeke Emezi

    Genre | Memoir
    Page #s | 240
    Publishing Date | June 2021

    In three critically acclaimed novels, Akwaeke Emezi has introduced readers to a landscape marked by familial tensions, Igbo belief systems, and a boundless search for what it means to be free. Now, in this extraordinary memoir, the bestselling author of The Death of Vivek Oji reveals the harrowing yet resolute truths of their own life. Through candid, intimate correspondence with friends, lovers, and family, Emezi traces the unfolding of a self and the unforgettable journey of a creative spirit stepping into power in the human world. Their story weaves through transformative decisions about their gender and body, their precipitous path to success as a writer, and the turmoil of relationships on an emotional, romantic, and spiritual plane, culminating in a book that is as tender as it is brutal.

    Electrifying and inspiring, animated by the same voracious intelligence that distinguishes their fiction, Dear Senthuran is a revelatory account of storytelling, self, and survival.

    Goodreads

    I found Dear Senthuran to be a challenging, beautiful reading experience. Emezi is an astonishingly good writer; their prose is by turns beautiful, haunting, visceral, and unapologetic. Emezi’s book Pet quickly became one of my favorites, so I was eager to read this memoir that largely focuses on their literary career. It was a fascinating peek behind the publishing curtain, but it doesn’t stop there. We also get raw reflections on Emezi’s gender, relationships, and mental health. It is a powerhouse of a book; one I found genuinely difficult to read sometimes, but one that I can’t stop thinking about.

    There are two themes that have stuck with me the most: Emezi’s conversation about their spirithood (as opposed to personhood) and their honest journey of ambition, loneliness, and confidence as a Black writer. I admit that I am still wrestling with Emezi’s identification as an ogbanje, “an Igbo spirit that’s born into a human body, a kind of malevolent trickster, whose goal is to torment the human mother by dying unexpectedly only to return in the next child and do it all over again. They come and go.” This identification reflects Emezi’s suicidality as well as their lack of identification with any human gender. My American brain constantly wants to interpret this as a metaphor, yet Emezi directly challenges that response by asking readers why Western thoughts should be valued more highly than Nigerian worldviews. Touché!

    I also appreciated Emezi’s honesty about their authorial ambitions. Their confidence borders on arrogance, but in the best way possible. They are sure of their talent and refuse to ask for less than what they think they deserve. While this leads to financial success and recognition, it also isolates Emezi. I so admire them for sharing all sides of the situation; ambition is complicated, and it’s worth portraying the positive and negative consequences of its pursuit.

    This is such a rich book, and I really want more people to read it and share their thoughts! It would be an excellent book club choice!

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Dear Senthuran is for the literary reader who appreciates Good Writing™ as well as for anyone who appreciates a raw memoir that holds nothing back.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Thirsty Mermaids by Kat Leyh

    Thirsty Mermaids by Kat Leyh

    Genre | Fantasy Graphic Novel
    Page #s | 256
    Publishing Date | February 2021

    Fresh out of shipwreck wine, three tipsy mermaids—Pearl, Tooth, and Eez—hit on the idea of magically masquerading as humans and sneaking onto land to indulge in much more drinking and a whole lot of fun right in the heart of a local seaside tourist trap. But the good times abruptly end the next morning when, through the haze of killer hangovers, the trio realizes they never actually learned how to break the spell, and are now stuck on land for the foreseeable future. Which means everything from: enlisting the aid of their I-know-we-just-met-but-can-we-crash-with-you bartender friend, struggling to make sense of the human world around them, to even trying to get jobs with zero skill sets . . . all while attempting to somehow return to the sea and making the most of their current situation with tenacity and camaraderie (especially if someone else is buying).

    Goodreads

    Thirsty Mermaids is an absolutely delightful graphic novel that is the very pinnacle of queer chaos. Our three main characters are queer stereotypes both in personality and in body shape, and I love them all with my whole heart. First as mermaids, then as very confused humans, they just want to have a good time and be there for each other.

    One of my favorite things about this book is the body neutrality presented. It’s a cartoon, so sizes are exaggerated, and every person represented is just rocking their body exactly as they want to – albeit with some wobbly legs when they first walk on land.

    The other excellent thing about this story is how it portrays the inherent idiocy of capitalism. The three mermaids struggle to survive and bumble their way into jobs and out of sticky situations (how were they supposed to know that magic card they found in the stolen shorts was someone else’s money?). It’s ridiculous, funny, and a good argument for a living wage.

    This is a celebration of queer community, and as such, it doesn’t stop with the mermaids. They are welcomed into the home of a trans woman, and although she saves them time and again, they also save her by welcoming her into their ragtag, loving family. It’s super cute and an excellent read.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Give Thirsty Mermaids to literally any queer person. It’s excellent!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons

    The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons

    Genre | YA Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 304
    Publishing Date | June 2021

    Fifteen-year-old Spencer Harris is a proud nerd, an awesome big brother and a Messi-in-training. He’s also transgender. After transitioning at his old school leads to a year of bullying, Spencer gets a fresh start at Oakley, the most liberal private school in Ohio. 

    At Oakley, Spencer seems to have it all: more accepting classmates, a decent shot at a starting position on the boy’s soccer team, great new friends, and maybe even something more than friendship with one of his teammates. The problem is, no one at Oakley knows Spencer is trans – he’s passing. 

    So when a discriminatory law forces Spencer’s coach to bench him after he discovers the ‘F’ on Spencer’s birth certificate, Spencer has to make a choice: cheer his team on from the sidelines or publicly fight for his right to play, even if it means coming out to everyone – including the guy he’s falling for.

    Goodreads

    The Passing Playbook is a super cute story about a teen boy wrestling with the decision to pass or to live openly as trans in a high school regardless of consequences. He’s going to play soccer and fall in love along the way, so if that sounds fun to you, you’re probably going to love this sweet, quick read!

    This book wants to be an enemies-to-lovers romance, but the animosity between Spencer and Justice at the beginning feels forced and uncharacteristically rude. Once that is dropped and they’re allowed to play out a friends-to-lovers romance, it’s so much better. This is a relationship between a closeted trans boy and a closeted Christian boy – it doesn’t need the added drama. For the majority of the book, their relationship is sweet, tentative, and full of emotion…just what I love to see!

    I always find it necessary to point out when queer characters are already out to their supportive family, and this is one of those books. But there’s an added dimension here that I really liked where Spencer’s parents have fully supported his transition but are still very fearful of allowing him to live an out-and-proud life. This felt very realistic, and it was a nuanced familial dynamic that I appreciated seeing.

    Teen boys are hit or miss for me in YA books, so I was delighted to read a book about a soccer team full of boys who are very sweet and supportive of queer people. The fact that the GSA club at the school is less supportive of trans students was poignant and telling.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    The Passing Playbook is a cute YA romance with a healthy dose of soccer – read accordingly!

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • With Teeth by Kristen Arnett

    With Teeth by Kristen Arnett

    Genre | Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 304
    Publishing Date | June 2021

    From the author of the New York Times-bestselling sensation Mostly Dead Things a surprising and moving story of two mothers, one difficult son, and the limitations of marriage, parenthood, and love

    If she’s being honest, Sammie Lucas is scared of her son. Working from home in the close quarters of their Florida house, she lives with one wary eye peeled on Samson, a sullen, unknowable boy who resists her every attempt to bond with him. Uncertain in her own feelings about motherhood, she tries her best–driving, cleaning, cooking, prodding him to finish projects for school–while growing increasingly resentful of Monika, her confident but absent wife. As Samson grows from feral toddler to surly teenager, Sammie’s life begins to deteriorate into a mess of unruly behavior, and her struggle to create a picture-perfect queer family unravels. When her son’s hostility finally spills over into physical aggression, Sammie must confront her role in the mess–and the possibility that it will never be clean again.

    Blending the warmth and wit of Arnett’s breakout hit, Mostly Dead Things, with a candid take on queer family dynamics, With Teeth is a thought-provoking portrait of the delicate fabric of family–and the many ways it can be torn apart.

    Goodreads

    With Teeth portrays motherhood from an almost horror novel perspective, and I don’t know about you, but I am here for it! There is such a sense of dread throughout, but – spoilers! – for any of my fellow hypersensitive scaredy cats out there….It doesn’t get as dark as I feared it was going to. It’s just deliciously head-twisty and absolutely f***ed.

    I love a book a with an unreliable narrator, and Sammie is unreliable to the extreme. Her POV is aggressively claustrophobic, which makes the short scenes from other characters that are sprinkled between chapters so valuable. We are primed to see the world through Sammie’s eyes, and it is a shock to see how wrong she is about how people see her or what is true about her son. It’s great storytelling and an indictment on how we all can view our own situation so inaccurately.

    This is a story about motherhood generally, but it’s also specifically about queer motherhood. Sammie and Monika feel pressure to be the queer parents with a model family, and ironically, it is this imposed pressure that creates many of the problems they seek to avoid. Relatable. Much like Detransition, Baby, I am so excited to see more books about queer people and relationships that are messy and unhealthy. And boy, are Sammie and Monika unhealthy. Their relationship is painfully realistic, from the small habits that grow increasingly intolerable over time to the solutions that are bandaids over unaddressed gaping wounds.

    This is a small thing, but another realistic plot that I really enjoyed was seeing Sammie date while going through a separation. Her affections are split, and she never knows what she really wants, but it is acknowledged that love can develop slowly even in these conditions.

    I’ve talked a lot about the queer relationship in the book rather than the mothering relationship between Sammie and Samson, which is pretty on brand for me. The thing is – it’s so twisted and earnest and painful and complicated! Sammie’s life is consumed by her son, and she hates him for it while being unwilling to make changes that could help. She’s a terrible mother, and he’s an ambiguous kid, but their story is incredibly compelling and distressingly recognizable.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Give With Teeth to someone who loves books that dissect culturally untouchable topics with honesty and incredible writing.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!

  • Loveless by Alice Oseman

    Loveless by Alice Oseman

    Genre | YA Contemporary Fiction
    Page #s | 433
    Publishing Date | July 2020

    The fourth novel from the phenomenally talented Alice Oseman – one of the most authentic and talked-about voices in contemporary YA.

    It was all sinking in. I’d never had a crush on anyone. No boys, no girls, not a single person I had ever met. What did that mean?

    Georgia has never been in love, never kissed anyone, never even had a crush – but as a fanfic-obsessed romantic she’s sure she’ll find her person one day.

    As she starts university with her best friends, Pip and Jason, in a whole new town far from home, Georgia’s ready to find romance, and with her outgoing roommate on her side and a place in the Shakespeare Society, her ‘teenage dream’ is in sight.

    But when her romance plan wreaks havoc amongst her friends, Georgia ends up in her own comedy of errors, and she starts to question why love seems so easy for other people but not for her. With new terms thrown at her – asexual, aromantic – Georgia is more uncertain about her feelings than ever.

    Is she destined to remain loveless? Or has she been looking for the wrong thing all along?

    This wise, warm and witty story of identity and self-acceptance sees Alice Oseman on towering form as Georgia and her friends discover that true love isn’t limited to romance.

    Goodreads

    This book was recommended by Chelsea in her Queer Books, Queer Readers interview, and I’m so glad I checked it out! Loveless is a YA contemporary fiction novel about growing up, going to college for the first time, and figuring out who you are. This includes many things, including navigating shifting friendships, new roommates, and hobbies, but for Georgia it also means coming to terms with her sexuality.

    I have never read a book that so effortlessly portrays asexual representation. I’m on the asexual spectrum (nearer demisexual), and I resonated so much with some of the thoughts Georgia had and laughed at her belief that everyone shared them. I used to believe everyone had the same perspective on sex and relationships that I did, and was shocked to find out I was in the minority! I also used to think that my obsession with fanfic and romance meant I was experiencing life the same way my peers did and was annoyed to realize that wasn’t the case!

    There were other elements of Georgia’s experience that I did not relate to, and honestly, some aspects of asexuality that I hadn’t quite understood on an emotional level. This book helped embody those experiences and gave me even greater understanding and empathy for my aroace friends.

    The beauty of Loveless is that it’s beautifully queer in myriad ways. Georgia’s acceptance of her asexuality is the heartbeat of the book, but we also get side characters who identify as lesbian, bisexual, gay, and nuanced subcategories of each. And like any good queer book, it’s all about community. Georgia finds acceptance through her friends and through her school’s Pride society, and it is such a joy to watch her flourish because of and alongside her people.

    Who Do I Recommend This Book To?

    Loveless is a heartwarming YA book that is a perfect comfort read with broad appeal.

    Check out our Queer Lil Library for more book recommendations and reviews!