Every week we’re sharing what our writers are currently reading. Please join in the chorus and tell us what you’ve been enjoying or slogging through in the comments!
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead - Maggie
This book is a fictional punch in the goddamned gut inspired by the real Dozier School for Boys—a school that became a chamber of horrors for Black boys in the 60’s. I am only 50 pages in but I can already tell you this will be one of my top reads of 2019.
Buy it here.
The Lie by Hilary Boyd - Cen
Romy & Michael married 30 years have everything—home in London and weekend house by the sea. A letter arrives addressed to Romy revealing a secret that could change everything.
Buy it here.
The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehesi Coates - Marian
I’m about halfway through this book which includes magical realism, hints of lyrical writing, and the language of historical slave narratives. Parts of it reminded me of The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, but once it began to delve into the interiority of the protagonist, I was all “in.”
Buy it here.
Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem - Sarah
A reread, because I refuse to watch the movie without a refresher.
Buy it here.
The Lying Game by Ruth Ware - Melissa
Anything by Ruth Ware is bound to have me on the edge of my seat. I'm only about 30 pages in, and the twisty nature of the characters already has me hooked.
Buy it here.
White Dancing Elephants by Chaya Bhuvaneswar - Akilah
I'm re-reading this incredible debut short stories collection for my book club, some of these stories for the third time. They only become more intense, saturated, even overwhelming, and I have no idea why it did not dominate the awards scene.
Buy it here.
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton - Victoria
This very absorbing novel is the perfect winter read. Wharton's New York is snowy and cold in a way that makes the actual snow and cold a little more bearable.
Buy it here.
So Sad Today by Melissa Broder - Lauren
A collection of dark, personal essays. Depression humor at its finest!
Buy it here.
On the Chin by Alex McClintock - Michaela
As a girl who finds catharsis in her weekly boxing session I've been delving into the written world of boxing. Part personal musing on getting into the sport and part cultural history there has been a lot of agreeable head nodding and giggling out loud on my part as our author enters the amateur ranks.
Buy it here.
Borne by Jeff Vandermeer - Nikki
Jeff Vandermeer's hard sci-fi Southern Reach Trilogy has stuck with me (and haunted my dreams) since I read it more than four years ago. If the ultra-weird first 20 pages of Borne are to be believed (we've already got a colossal city-destroying bear, a mysterious and nefarious entity called the Company, and 'memory beetles' that you stick in your ear), it's cut from the same eerie, wholly inventive cloth.
Buy it here.
Mean by Myriam Gurba - Karen
A bold, sharp memoir by a queer, mixed-race Chicana. Storytelling has never come together so beautifully.
Buy it here.
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb - Mel
I’m halfway through the audiobook of this insightful nonfiction and though I was hesitant to pick it up after seeing so much hype, I’m thoroughly enjoying it. The author wrote this during a time when she, a therapist, had to find a therapist for herself and by including her personal journey alongside the examples of some of the work she’s doing with clients, she’s created a wonderfully multi-dimensional human narrative.
Buy it here.
In The Clearing by JP Pomare - Courtney
The highly anticipated second novel by Pomare who shocked readers with his debut Call Me Evie. Strap in everyone because In The Clearing is more daring, more thrilling and will leave you questioning to the very last page.
Buy Call Me Evie here.
Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo - Jessica
A memoir by the current US poet laureate is as dreamy as I hoped, while also damning about treatment of indigenous people in America.
Buy it here.
What have you been reading this week?