Let’s talk book covers. The old adage “don’t judge a book by its cover” is ridiculous. We all judge a book by its cover, and the publishers know this and spend lots of time and energy designing book covers for just this reason. If book covers didn’t matter, why do they change covers between US and … [Read more]
Cahokia Jazz by Francis Spufford
In Francis Spufford's imaginative Cahokia Jazz, life in the United States in 1922 is not as we remember it from the history books. The "Cahokia" of the title refers to a state run largely by and for Native Americans, as a partial monarchy informed by Catholic teachings. As a thriving state, Cahokia … [Read more]
The Shippers by Katherine Center
2.5 stars Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC. My opinions are my own. This book will be out on May 19th. Josephine "JoJo" Burton runs away from her own wedding, after her childhood best friend, Cooper Watts, shows up unexpectedly from London just as she's about to walk … [Read more]
Make Believe by Mac Barnett
Mac Barnett is one of my favorite picture book authors. My favorite book of his, The Important Thing About Margaret Wise Brown, is one of my favorite picture books period. I reviewed it here for this very reading challenge! So I eagerly preordered my copy of Make Believe, his first book for … [Read more]
Pot Shot by Laura Piper Lee
For a book I ended up loving, I struggled at a couple of points early in the book. First of all, there is a medical emergency in the first chapter that brings Nomi and Julian back together. That had me putting the book down for a week. The other challenge I had was Julian for the first quarter or so … [Read more]
Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K. Reilly
What an underhyped gem this is. It's funny, with quirky characters and an emotional core. Set in New Zealand, the book alternates the POVs of the titular siblings, who are biracial, gay, and living together as roommates. It's a slice of life novel with a large focus on the main characters' romantic … [Read more]
The Black God's Drums by P. Djèlí Clark
This is quite a short novella and therefore there's quite a bit of rushing to get to the plot that there is. But if the worst that I have to complain about is some deus ex machina nuns, I think we're overall pretty fine. Did not realize that there was more fiction in this vein by Clark, I've read … [Read more]
