Adorable.

After watching Roxane Gay answer a multitude of questions with humility and wit (and cut a few idiots into ribbons) on her tumblr ask day I decided to pick up this volume of essays. It is excellent. A few of the real standouts for me were "Typical First Year Professor", "To Scratch, Claw, or Grope Clumsily or Frantically", about the world of competitive Scrabble, "A Tale of Three Coming Out Stories", about the trade off of privacy for cultural prominence, and "Peculiar Benefits", one of the best short pieces of the nature of privilege that I have ever read.

Smart, sharp, funny and very dark. Everything you've probably heard about this book is true. I read it all in one afternoon- almost all in one sitting. This is due to it being both quick and addictive- a definite recommend!

This book was described to me as "highly reminiscent of Firefly" which was very accurate. Set in a future in which Humans and many other species are all part of a Galactic Commons, a sort of EU of alien races, this book focuses on the crew of one ship, Wayfarer. The crew's job is to create the wormhole tunnels through space which allow other ships to travel between star systems. Rosemary Harper is a new hire, a registered clerk who has never before lived in deep space. She is welcomed by the captain, Ashby Santoso, Sissix, the pilot, Dr Chef, a Grum who works as both doctor and ship's cook, Lovey, the ship's AI and the tech mechanics, Kizzy and Jenks. She is less well received by Corbin, the grumpy algae fuel specialist, and by Ohan, the standoffish navigator. Despite her lack of practical experience Rosemary becomes an invaluable member of the crew, but she also has a secret- as, it turns out, do nearly all of the misfits on this homemade ship. The action of this book is extremely episodic, and my only major compliant in that first half was that several plot points are introduced and then quickly resolved in an over neat fashion. What I realized in the second half is that this is essentially a road trip book. Once I relaxed into the lazy pace of the journey, it was completely enjoyable.

This comic is gorgeous but very slim. It contains just four issues, each one exquisitely drawn by Brian Stelfreeze and colored by Laura Martin. Ta-Nehisi's writing was engaging despite my complete lack of familiarity with the characters.

I'm not sure I can put into words the depths of, or reasons for, my love of this book. First off, it's illustrated by Marian Churchland, whom I have adored for years. If you don't follow Marian's sketch blog of wants, needs, worries and pastries than you should be. Marian's drawn objects have both a heft and a glimmer that grounds them in reality while also subtly glinting of magic. Secondly, Arclight features a cast of genderqueer knights, living blood creatures and death wizards, which are all very high on my list of favorite character types. And last but not least- the plot is like a strange dream, both concrete and illusory. There is a sense of ancient patience in this world that seems to suggest that as urgent as Arclight's quest is, the bones of the land care little for the life or death of a single hero.

Lupe, Flapjack and Elirio are three friends in love with lowriders- customized cars which roll bajito y suavecito, low and sweet. They work at a mechanic shop but dream of winning the Universal Car Competition and taking home the grand prize. Drawn entirely in ballpoint pen, this whimsical tale follows the trio as they cruse the solar system, collecting moondust, Jupitar gas and rings from Saturn to soup up the car of their dreams.

A very satisfyingly fast-paced and grand scale fantasy debut by N.K. Jemisin. Yeine Darr's mother was once heir to the thrown of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, but she was banished when she married Yeine's father. Yeine grew up in the High North, among traditions consider barbaric to the ruling class in Sky, the capital city. Yeine is shocked to be summoned to Sky two months after her mother's murder by the grandfather she has never known, and even more disturbed when he decrees her a contender to the thrown. Now Yeine must unwillingly battle two of her cousins, only one of whom can become the ruler of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, likely killing their rivals in the process. Yeine's only allies are the enslaved children of the Sun God. These divine beings, part mortal, part immortal, have plans of their own going back centuries as they fight their father for freedom and revenge. Yeine can sympathize. She does expect to win the crown, but with the help of the enslaved gods she might be able to avenge her mother before her own death.

I found this volume much stronger than volume 6, during which I very much missed Sophie and the Lying Cat. They are back in this volume, as is The Will, and of course Hazel's immediate family. The series isn't pulling punches. We are constantly reminded that nearly ever planet is a war zone, and no one is safe.