Take a photo of a barcode or cover
1.23k reviews by:
nuhafariha
Thank you to Scribner and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available Nov 10 2020
Honestly, this collection was just fun to read. That's really all I have to say. From Mona Awad's chilling tale of plastic surgery gone wrong in "A Blue Sky Like This" to Margaret Atwood's hilarious alien comic in "Impatient Griselda" to the emotional connection between a New York City taxi driver and his nephew in Dinaw Mengestu's "How We Used to Play", The NYT's The Decameron Project is a richly textured, multifaceted collection that offers a kaleidoscopic view into the current pandemic. Some stories are available online in the New York Times Magazine, but it's a different experience reading the stories together and realizing the vast impact of the pandemic on all aspects of life.
Available Nov 10 2020
Honestly, this collection was just fun to read. That's really all I have to say. From Mona Awad's chilling tale of plastic surgery gone wrong in "A Blue Sky Like This" to Margaret Atwood's hilarious alien comic in "Impatient Griselda" to the emotional connection between a New York City taxi driver and his nephew in Dinaw Mengestu's "How We Used to Play", The NYT's The Decameron Project is a richly textured, multifaceted collection that offers a kaleidoscopic view into the current pandemic. Some stories are available online in the New York Times Magazine, but it's a different experience reading the stories together and realizing the vast impact of the pandemic on all aspects of life.
Thank you to Boom Comics and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available Dec 1st 2020
Gabby Rivera's Juliet Takes a Breath was one of the most memorable BIPOC coming of age stories I'd ever read & this adaptation certainly lives up to the promise of the book! When Juliet Milagros takes a chance to intern with Harlowe Brisbane, self proclaimed white feminist, she doesn't know what to expect. After all, Juliet is still learning about her own identity as a self respecting, Puerto Rican feminist and lesbian from the Bronx. Struggling with her relationships with her partner Lainine and her conservative mother, Juliet takes the chance to escape to Portland.
Colorful, inviting & entertaining, "Juliet Takes a Breath" is a book you have to read in one sitting. Much like Juliet herself, the story is larger than life and spills out onto your heart. Check it out today!
Available Dec 1st 2020
Gabby Rivera's Juliet Takes a Breath was one of the most memorable BIPOC coming of age stories I'd ever read & this adaptation certainly lives up to the promise of the book! When Juliet Milagros takes a chance to intern with Harlowe Brisbane, self proclaimed white feminist, she doesn't know what to expect. After all, Juliet is still learning about her own identity as a self respecting, Puerto Rican feminist and lesbian from the Bronx. Struggling with her relationships with her partner Lainine and her conservative mother, Juliet takes the chance to escape to Portland.
Colorful, inviting & entertaining, "Juliet Takes a Breath" is a book you have to read in one sitting. Much like Juliet herself, the story is larger than life and spills out onto your heart. Check it out today!
Thank you to University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Now available!
From his early days as a teenager in the hoods of Minneapolis to the star-studded days of playing bass guitar as a part of Prince and the Revolution, Mark Brown has truly lived a memorable life. "My Life in the Purple Kingdom" is a fun, lighthearted and contemplative memoir in which Brown reflects on his musical journey, his romantic relationships, racial tensions and his close relationship with his mother. Written in a conversational tone, Brown lures in the reader with his easygoing charm and takes them on a whirlwind journey behind one of America's biggest and most influential bands. Definitely worth a read!
Now available!
From his early days as a teenager in the hoods of Minneapolis to the star-studded days of playing bass guitar as a part of Prince and the Revolution, Mark Brown has truly lived a memorable life. "My Life in the Purple Kingdom" is a fun, lighthearted and contemplative memoir in which Brown reflects on his musical journey, his romantic relationships, racial tensions and his close relationship with his mother. Written in a conversational tone, Brown lures in the reader with his easygoing charm and takes them on a whirlwind journey behind one of America's biggest and most influential bands. Definitely worth a read!
Thank you to Blackstone and NetGalley for the Reader's Copy!
Now available!
Like any good Western, Rudy Ruiz's latest book "The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez" has it all - a tortured male protagonist, a love story that lasts the years and legendary arch nemesis. However, there's more than meets the eye in the border town of La Frontera like drug addled crime lords, religious Catholic priests and roaming undead spirits. With a touch of magical realism, Ruiz plays around with the concept of intergenerational trauma, machismo and the healing power of love. Like a hearty tortilla soup, "The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez" will leave you with a full heart and a smile on your face.
Now available!
Like any good Western, Rudy Ruiz's latest book "The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez" has it all - a tortured male protagonist, a love story that lasts the years and legendary arch nemesis. However, there's more than meets the eye in the border town of La Frontera like drug addled crime lords, religious Catholic priests and roaming undead spirits. With a touch of magical realism, Ruiz plays around with the concept of intergenerational trauma, machismo and the healing power of love. Like a hearty tortilla soup, "The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez" will leave you with a full heart and a smile on your face.
Thank you to Button Poetry and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available October 13th
I've been a long time fan of Javon Johnson after hearing his poetry on Button Poetry's Youtube channel, so I was really looking forward to reading "Ain't Never Not Been Black". And whew, what a wonderful collection. Johnson does not shy away from addressing Black pain, especially in the conversation he has with his nephew in the car. What grounds this collection, though, is Black love - the deep love Johnson has experienced from the women in his family, the deep love he shows for his community day in and day out, the deep love that has the ability to protect and repair the tattered holes in American society.
Available October 13th
I've been a long time fan of Javon Johnson after hearing his poetry on Button Poetry's Youtube channel, so I was really looking forward to reading "Ain't Never Not Been Black". And whew, what a wonderful collection. Johnson does not shy away from addressing Black pain, especially in the conversation he has with his nephew in the car. What grounds this collection, though, is Black love - the deep love Johnson has experienced from the women in his family, the deep love he shows for his community day in and day out, the deep love that has the ability to protect and repair the tattered holes in American society.
Part memoir, part analysis, part manuscript for the future, Mikki Kendall's Hood Feminism is hard to pin down to a category. While there were many great parts, something that struck me is Kendall's exploration of obesity and hunger. A few years ago, I worked with the City of Philadelphia as a Mayor's Intern. At the time, there was a lot of talk about the new soda tax and my boss, a Black woman who had grown up in North Philadelphia, was adamantly against it. At the time, I couldn't fully understand her perspective - after all, shouldn't people want less soda and more money for the library? Reading Kendall's Hood Feminism made me realize the many class assumptions I had to make to support the soda tax. For example, like Kendall's Chicago, many neighborhoods in Philadelphia lack access to clean water or safe housing conditions. In these conditions, it makes sense to use whatever resources are available to you - including high calorie soda. In fact, the tax would only apply to the poorest folk, those who couldn't leave the city to avoid the tax. I love reading this level of analysis & much needed perspective on public policy.
Thank you to University of Illinois and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Now available!
In "West of Jim Crow", Professor Lynn M. Hudson details the lives of Black folk in the Golden State of California from the Great Migration to the post Jim Crow era. Addressing both the horrific acts of racial injustice as well as the brave acts of resistance by Black folk throughout the years, Hudson shows that indeed the only difference between Pasadena and Mississippi is the spelling. I could not help but be moved by the ways large and small that Black folk resisted white supremacy. Whether it was bringing national attention to the tragedy and prevalence of lynching to fighting for civil rights in court, Black folk have remarkable stories of resistance that can be a light to modern activists and organizers. Indeed in a time of national reckoning of racial justice, in a time when the President of the United States bans anti-racism trainings at the federal level, Hudson's West of Jim Crow is more important than ever before. A thorough and overall enjoyable read!
Now available!
In "West of Jim Crow", Professor Lynn M. Hudson details the lives of Black folk in the Golden State of California from the Great Migration to the post Jim Crow era. Addressing both the horrific acts of racial injustice as well as the brave acts of resistance by Black folk throughout the years, Hudson shows that indeed the only difference between Pasadena and Mississippi is the spelling. I could not help but be moved by the ways large and small that Black folk resisted white supremacy. Whether it was bringing national attention to the tragedy and prevalence of lynching to fighting for civil rights in court, Black folk have remarkable stories of resistance that can be a light to modern activists and organizers. Indeed in a time of national reckoning of racial justice, in a time when the President of the United States bans anti-racism trainings at the federal level, Hudson's West of Jim Crow is more important than ever before. A thorough and overall enjoyable read!
Thank you to University of Illinois and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Now available!
In "West of Jim Crow", Professor Lynn M. Hudson details the lives of Black folk in the Golden State of California from the Great Migration to the post Jim Crow era. Addressing both the horrific acts of racial injustice as well as the brave acts of resistance by Black folk throughout the years, Hudson shows that indeed the only difference between Pasadena and Mississippi is the spelling. I could not help but be moved by the ways large and small that Black folk resisted white supremacy. Whether it was bringing national attention to the tragedy and prevalence of lynching to fighting for civil rights in court, Black folk have remarkable stories of resistance that can be a light to modern activists and organizers. Indeed in a time of national reckoning of racial justice, in a time when the President of the United States bans anti-racism trainings at the federal level, Hudson's West of Jim Crow is more important than ever before. A thorough and overall enjoyable read!
Now available!
In "West of Jim Crow", Professor Lynn M. Hudson details the lives of Black folk in the Golden State of California from the Great Migration to the post Jim Crow era. Addressing both the horrific acts of racial injustice as well as the brave acts of resistance by Black folk throughout the years, Hudson shows that indeed the only difference between Pasadena and Mississippi is the spelling. I could not help but be moved by the ways large and small that Black folk resisted white supremacy. Whether it was bringing national attention to the tragedy and prevalence of lynching to fighting for civil rights in court, Black folk have remarkable stories of resistance that can be a light to modern activists and organizers. Indeed in a time of national reckoning of racial justice, in a time when the President of the United States bans anti-racism trainings at the federal level, Hudson's West of Jim Crow is more important than ever before. A thorough and overall enjoyable read!
Thank you to Troubador Press and NetGalley for the Reader's Copy!
Available now!
As written, A.K. Karla's Mr. Gupta's Hardware Store reads as a series of observations on the lives of British Indian immigrants in 1970s suburban London. As readers, we meet homesick Meera, her strict older husband Mr. Gupta, her best friend Babita and Babita's impish husband Chandu. As the years progress, we see the maudlin dramas of their lives unfold amidst a changing London. What I wish the author had done more was to tie in historical and political events. In a way, the novel doesn't really feel like it's set in the 1970s. I also wish we knew more about the character's backstories as I didn't feel much of a connection to the protagonist, Meera, or any of the main characters. The writer feels very distant and overly involved in detailing the particular foreignness of Meera/Chandu/Babita's behavior compared to Mr. Gupta's British mannerisms. Overall, this is a somewhat entertaining read,
Available now!
As written, A.K. Karla's Mr. Gupta's Hardware Store reads as a series of observations on the lives of British Indian immigrants in 1970s suburban London. As readers, we meet homesick Meera, her strict older husband Mr. Gupta, her best friend Babita and Babita's impish husband Chandu. As the years progress, we see the maudlin dramas of their lives unfold amidst a changing London. What I wish the author had done more was to tie in historical and political events. In a way, the novel doesn't really feel like it's set in the 1970s. I also wish we knew more about the character's backstories as I didn't feel much of a connection to the protagonist, Meera, or any of the main characters. The writer feels very distant and overly involved in detailing the particular foreignness of Meera/Chandu/Babita's behavior compared to Mr. Gupta's British mannerisms. Overall, this is a somewhat entertaining read,
Thanks to Guernica and NetGalley for a Reader's Copy!
Now available.
Daniel and David seem like a match made in heaven - a couple of young Toronto urbanites with both passion and vulnerability. Yet life is hardly ever that simple. As David Yeh chronicles in Tales from the Bottom of My Sole, life has a way of bringing out characters from your past. Whether it is Daniel's old boyfriend Marcus or dealing with David's conservative Italian family, Tales from the Bottom of My Sole show how much work and dedication is needed to make a modern relationship work. A fun, relaxing read.
Now available.
Daniel and David seem like a match made in heaven - a couple of young Toronto urbanites with both passion and vulnerability. Yet life is hardly ever that simple. As David Yeh chronicles in Tales from the Bottom of My Sole, life has a way of bringing out characters from your past. Whether it is Daniel's old boyfriend Marcus or dealing with David's conservative Italian family, Tales from the Bottom of My Sole show how much work and dedication is needed to make a modern relationship work. A fun, relaxing read.