I started reading YA when my daughter was old enough to start reading YA books. That was over 20 years ago, and we both continue to enjoy reading lots of YA. Many people think YA books are somehow less worthy than other genres of books. Yes, there are YA books that are poorly written, predictable, … [Read more]
Am I Blue by Marion Dane Bauer
I picked up Am I Blue?, an anthology of "gay and lesbian" stories for young adults right around when it was published in 1994. I was in middle school, which I had entered with a new haircut that earned me a lot of accusations from more ignorant classmates. But I think this was just a coincidence; I … [Read more]
Poets Square: a Memoir in Thirty Cats by Courtney Gustafson
I am very far behind my book goal for the year so far, so I did some TBR triage by moving shorter books up to the front of the request queue with my library. Poets Square is one of the first of that reshuffle to make its way to me and was a welcome bit of solace this past weekend. Poets Square is … [Read more]
Ship Happens by Mason Deaver
One of the reasons I love romance novels is that there are infinite ways to tell a story. Ship Happens is a second chance romance, and as such, it looks at whether the initial breakup was a good choice, what has happened to the characters since they broke up, and whether, if they get back together, … [Read more]
The Apocalypse Codex by Charles Stross
Still making my way through the re-read of the Laundry files novels and I’ve hit on one of my favorites. The Apocalypse Codex is set nearly a year ofter the events of The Fuller Memorandum, and poor Bob is still sort of in recovery. It’s not just the whole business of receiving a bit of a … [Read more]
I learned today (June 4 2026) that Marjane Satrapi passed away at 56 years old. It sounds as though she died of a broken heart as it was a little more than a year after her husband's death. I cannot say how this saddens me. I really have no words. I mean, I can say how she was an amazing author who … [Read more]
Letters from the Last Apothecary by Bita Behzadi
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House | Hay House LLC for the Audio ARC. It hasn't affected the contents of my review. This is a promising debut by Bita Behzadi, and I will be reading further books from her, but this one had some issues that mean I can't give it a full four stars. Mostly, … [Read more]
