the 1980s

Appreciating an attractive middle-aged woman is one of the great luxuries in life.

Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami

November 22, 2025 by carmelpie 1 Comment

She was truly a beautiful girl. I could feel a small polished stone sinking through the darkest waters of my heart. All those deep convoluted channels and passageways, and yet she managed to toss her pebble right down to the bottom of it all. ― Haruki Murakami, Dance Dance Dance Sometimes when I’m with you. I remember the things I lost when I was your age. Like I remember the sound of the rain and the smell of the wind. And it’s really a gift, […]

“We were teen girls. Look up the word “blasé” in Merriam-Webster’s and you’d find a picture of us, our eyes burning through your soul from the page.”

We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry

April 30, 2025 by cheerbrarian 1 Comment

My Cannonball Read holiday gift exchange buddy got me this book (thank you!!!) and if they picked it because they have read it and liked it or just took a crack at my taste from my Goodreads, I’m pretty sure we would be good pals. I don’t remember (or know) who that was, so if you see this and it’s you, find me on the ‘gram at @cheerbrarian. It’s 1989 and the Danvers High Varsity field hockey team hasn’t historically been award winning, but this […]

Eighteen minutes. That’s how long you’ve got to hold ’em.

Tanqueray by Stephanie Johnson and Brandon Stanton

March 20, 2025 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Stephanie Johnson became famous later in life via the popular blog, “Humans of New York.” I learned of her a couple of months ago when a vignette of one of her stories showed up in my Instagram feed. It was the story of how she became a dominatrix in 1980’s New York. When I searched for more stories, I learned that she had a memoir titled Tanqueray, which was her burlesque stage name. Stephanie has a distinct voice, and Stanton did a lovely job of […]

For everyone who was born before us, your story matters.

Back Then: A queer journey back in time by Ralf König and Łukasz Majcher

November 5, 2024 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Read what the old gay uncles and lesbian aunts have to say in colorful picture stories. And let’s all continue to fight together so that this will never happen again. ― Ralf König, Back Then: A queer journey back in time CBR16 Bingo: Pride I picked this up a couple of months ago at a literary festival. Other than Heartstopper and other Alice Oseman books, I’ve never bought graphic novels or comic books. One of the illustrators was selling this book as well as her […]

The real happy ending is that she got to eat the whole plate of cheese.

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

March 31, 2024 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

“Since when do you wear dresses?” he said, the second he saw her. “Ugh,” Kit said, frowning. How were you supposed to change—in ways both big and small—when your family was always there to remind you of exactly the person you apparently signed an ironclad contract to be?” ― Taylor Jenkins Reid, Malibu Rising I’ve read two TJR books in the past two months. I plowed through both of them within seventy-two hours. Addictive is the only way I know how to describe them. Nina […]

One day your country is yours, and the next it isn’t.

Swimming in the Dark by Tomasz Jedrowski