Thank you to @fsgbooks for sending me a copy of Luster by Raven Leilani! I was so excited to read it, particularly because of @parisperusing’s review, so definitely go read his thoughts.

This book follows Edie, a Black woman in her early 20s in NYC. Edie is trying to get by, figure out her life, her purpose, her art, when she begins an affair with a much older married white man, Eric. The affair is allowed to continue on Eric’s wife’s terms, and when Edie finds herself unemployed and adrift, she moves in with the couple and their adopted Black daughter.

This writing in this book is phenomenal - readable and sharp and wry all at once. At the same time, this book has a heaviness to it. Edie is painfully lonely at times, exhausted, and adrift (like most 20-somethings), but her experiences are weighed down even more by racism and classism. Leilani’s writing makes this story feel dreamlike at times - long sentences with perfectly apt descriptions that pull you in, right there with Edie. I can’t believe this is a debut! Leilani is an incredible writer with a style all her own. If you like character driven novels that capture that specific, unmoored early-20s feeling, definitely pick this one up. 

I want to share my experience reading Sula by Toni Morrison. @bylaurencapellan’s post yesterday about not being a book recommender (on the photo of Luster on Instagram, if you’re coming to this later) really rang true for me. This account is just a collection of my thoughts on books. I am by no means a professional reviewer (or even close), and I struggle to identify what is good or bad about a book in a technical sense as I’m reading. My connection with the books I read has more to do with the feelings I have while reading and after. And, I am not always good at describing why I feel a particular way (though I try). I loved Sula, and I loved my experience with it, and I’m not done experiencing it yet, as I am excitedly awaiting the discussion from @thestackspod on it. All of this to say: this isn’t a review. I don’t consider myself a qualified book reviewer. This is my attempt to describe my personal experience with this book.

This is the second novel I’ve read by Toni Morrison. I read this book in one day, which was great because the town and the characters swallowed me up and I felt just totally connected and “in it”. I went back and forth with the audiobook on @librofm, and that really enhanced my experience because there was something about hearing the story in Toni Morrison’s own voice, tone, and cadence, that made me feel like I understood it better. After listening to the audio, when I was reading, I could still hear the story in her voice. I feel like that’s the way it’s meant to be heard.

Sula is about a town nicknamed the Bottom, the Black residents of the town, a girl named Sula, her promiscuous mom Hannah, her larger-than-life one-legged grandmother Eve, and most of all her friendship with her best friend, Nel. The girls are so close that their friendship is more of a sisterhood. So many scenes stand out in my mind: two girls who are so comfortable with each other that silence is natural, wordlessly digging in the dirt with sticks; a daughter overhearing her mother say she loves her but doesn’t like her; a veteran waking up confused in a hospital bed with no explanation and a psychosis that makes him afraid of his hands, being sent home with nothing and no one to help him.

This is a story of Black people, flawed people, downtrodden and desperate people. Desperate people can be cruel, and this book has a bleakness to it, but is at the same time so moving. I don’t think you need to hear it from me to know that you should be reading Toni Morrison. I’m looking forward to exploring more of her work, and this is a book I won’t ever forget. 

I loved reading Mailhot’s memoir of love. She writes of her relationship, it’s ups and downs, her mental health struggles, motherhood, and life as an Indigenous woman and the specific struggles she’s faced as a result of generational trauma and abuse. She’s vulnerable, but she doesn’t let herself off the hook. This book is painful, precise yet meandering, and dark but beautiful. I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.

Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O’Nan was an impulse IBD purchase. I was scanning for short books for my #toreadinaday prompt, and the title caught my eye. It’s about the manager of a Red Lobster named Manny, and the last night at the restaurant before it permanently closes. It’s snowy, it’s almost Christmas, Manny has recently had an affair with a waitress but his girlfriend (who he doesn’t care for as much) is pregnant, and nobody seems to care but him that it’s the last day.

This book is a bit melancholy, as Manny goes through the normal motions of managing a chain restaurant, constantly aware it’s the last time at THIS restaurant. He really, really does not want to close early, partially out of nostalgia and partly because he wants to have a perfect moment with said affair-having waitress, Jacquie.

I hadn’t heard of this book or seen it posted on Bookstagram about before buying it. It’s a bit older - it was published in 2007. I… really liked it? I loved the restaurant atmosphere and the portraits of the other restaurant workers. I enjoy a contemplative and reflective book about the ordinary - a Red Lobster, of all places! Not even a hip cool NYC restaurant like in Sweetbitter. Just a good ol’ Red Lobster in the suburbs. I really liked the character of Manny - far from perfect, but I his dedication to the restaurant was touching.

I’ve never read anything else by O’Nan, but he’s officially an author on my radar!

Also now I want some cheddar biscuits.