More Holds

Cantoras by Carolina De Robertis

From Kirkus: "In the shadow of a violent dictatorship, five queer women find the courage and strength to live their truth... A stunning novel about queer love, womanhood, and personal and political revolution" In takes place in Uruguay in the late 70s.

The Ten Loves of Nishino by Hiromi Kawakami, translated by Allison Markin Powell

I'm very intrigued by the structure of this one--each chapter is told by a different women who loved the same man at different points in his life.

The Glass Woman by Caroline Lea

Historical fiction set in 17th century Iceland (?!) and features tension between Christianity and Nordic religions?




The Ghosts of Eden Park: The Bookleg King, the Women who Pursued Him, and the Murder that Shocked Jazz Age America by Karen Abbott

Just the subtitle alone sells it, but I also really enjoyed Abbott's Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy.

Cold Warriors: Writers who Waged the Literary Cold War by Duncan White

Ok, at nearly 800 pages, the chances of me actually reading this are slim at best, but it does look fascinating--it's about how governments silenced writers or used their writing "as a weapon and a shield" and goes beyond just the US and USSR to include other parts of the Cold War, such as Latin America. This is a subject on my mind, as I am going to read The Secrets We Kept.


The Story That Cannot Be Told by J. Kasper Kramer

A middle grade book about the fall of communism in Romania. I think I'm drawn to MG (and YA) about the fall of European communism because I was an MG reader when it happened. (I was in 4th grade when the Berlin Wall fell). Excited for this one. (Also, because I'll yell about it every time communism and Romania come up--have you seen the wonderful documentary Chuck Norris vs Communism? It's a fascinating look at the role black market American movies played at the end of the regime)




The Magnolia Sword: A Ballad of Mulan by Sherry Thomas

SHERRY THOMAS WROTE A MULAN BOOK!
SHERRY THOMAS WROTE A MULAN BOOK!
SHERRY THOMAS WROTE A MULAN BOOK!

One Day: The Extraordinary Story of an Ordinary 24 Hours in America by Gene Weingarten

Weingarten went back to find out what happened on December 28, 1986--by all accounts a slow news day, but he finds the stories and follows up on them.  PW says "the result is a trove of compelling human-interest pieces with long reverberations."

Chop Suey Nation by Ann Hui

Long-time readers of this site know I love a food history book, especially one on Chinese food (I still recommend Fortune Cookie Chronicles whenever I can). This one looks at Chinese food in Canada. Here for it.

The Spy Killer by Jimmy Sangster

This was originally published in the UK in 1967. The plot description in PW had more twists and turns than I could track, but it only weighs in at 180 pages? I'm intrigued.



Grimm, Grit and Gasoline edited by Rhonda Parrish

Dieselpunk and Decopunk retellings of fairytales. (Apparently dieselpunk and decopunk is like steampunk, but between WWI and WWII). You know how much fairy tale retellings!

The Absinthe Earl by Sharon Lynn Fisher

Ireland, but instead of British imperialism, it's faerie invasions. Also, it's romance.

The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses by Dan Carlin

Hardcore History in book form? Yes, please!







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What I've Been Reading Lately: Series of Things

The Witch Must Burn, The Wizard Returns, Heart of Tin, The Straw King, Ruler of Beasts Danielle Paige

As I mentioned in my last post, I really like the Dorothy Must Die series, where Oz turns into a dystopian hellscape. The ending of the 3rd book changed everything and as I desperately wait for the 4th, I've been loving this prequel series that shows how Oz got to the point it got to. We see how terrible Dorothy is, but how Glinda is really the evil behind the throne, and who just gets swept up in everything. Also, as I was putting this together I discovered that a new installment, Order of the Wicked, comes out next week! Squee!




Princeless: Save Yourself, Princeless: Get Over Yourself, Princeless: The Pirate Princess, Princeless: Be Yourself, Princess: Raven the Pirate Princess: Captain Raven and the All-Girl Pirate Crew Jeremy Whitley, illustrated by M. Goodwin, Emily Martin, Rosy Higgins, Ted Brandt, Brett Grunig

OMG. This is one of those things where everyone said it was AH-MAZING and it was still better than all the hype and love for it. If you're unaware, Adrienne is a princess, the youngest one, and she's been locked in a tower, just like her sisters, because being rescued is the best way to find a husband? She is NOT HAPPY about this. So she befriends the dragon that guards her and they make a jailbreak and head off to find and save all of her sisters. Meanwhile, her father has set out a band of mercenaries to track down whomever kidnapped Adrienne out of her tower. (Awkward!) Along the way she assembles an awesome team. It's Rat Queens for the Lumberjanes set (perfectly suitable for Middle Grade!). The first volume of the Princess Raven spinoff series still makes me laugh. When Raven (a pirate princess rescued by Adrienne with her own scores to settle) tries to assemble a crew, she gets mansplained so hard and it is just so pitch perfect and hilarious that I couldn't breath I was laughing so hard. This quickly became a comic that I collect instead of waiting for it at the library.



Enchanted, Inc., Once Upon Stilettos, Damsel Under Stress, Don't Hex with Texas, Much Ado About Magic, No Quest for the Wicked, Kiss and Spell Shanna Swendson

So I read this entire series a few years ago and reread it this month and *happy sighs.* I reviewed most of it when I read it. But this was everything I remember and more and just the perfect fun, comfort reread that I needed. I enjoyed rereading so much that I just went it bought it so I can reread it whenever I want. (They're all really cheap on Kindle right now, so now's a good time to check them out.)


Books Provided by... my local library, although I then went and bought all the Princeless and Enchanted, Inc titles.

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What I've Been Reading

The Romani Gypsies Yaron Matras

I was reading a romance novel last spring that made my spidey-sense tingle in relation to stereotypical representation of Romani people. But, I don't know much about the Romani, so I've been doing some research so I can flesh out my thoughts and share them more fully. Matras's book was a great look at the Romani in Europe, historically and today. It can be academic at times, but I found it extremely useful (and horrifying. This whole project has been an exercise in realizing things you thought were bad are even worse than you imagined.)

Unterzakhn Leela Corman

I first heard about this from the wonderful podcast, The Worst Bestsellers (it was not a Worst Bestseller. It was discussed in their readers' advisory section). This comic follows two Jewish twins growing up in Manhattan's tenements at the beginning of the 20th century. One apprentices to a "lady doctor" the other works for madam who runs a theater and brothel. With bold, heavy black-and-white work (it reminded me a bit of Marjane Satrapi in terms of how both artists use line and fill) it's a moving story as their stories diverge and where their separate paths take them.

Get Your Ship Together: How Great Leaders Inspire Leadership from the Keel Up D. Michael Abrashoff

I read a lot about management. Abrasoff is a former naval commander and talks a lot about his experience in running a large ship, but also profiles other leaders he admires in many fields-- yes some military, but also a bakery, and insurance company, and more. Abrashoff's style is really easy to read and engaging, and it said somethings that really sparked some ideas for the library. (Mostly about how it all comes down to making sure our daily operations are flawless because that's what everything else is built on. As he points out, the more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war. Also, the bigger and fancier the ship, the more tugboats you need to get it in and out of the harbor.) I also appreciated how he, and the leaders he profiles, place a great emphasis on the individual, and take into account their nonwork lives. After reading Superbosses it was reassuring to see very successful people champion a good work/life balance.



Library Wars: Love and War Vol. 15 Kiiro Yumi, based on work by Hiro Arikawa, translated from the Japanese by John Werry

If you haven't yet read this manga series about Japanese libraries who take the Freedom to Read so seriously they literally fight for it, like, with their own armies, you need to start. This was a perfect end to the story and now I'm just a puddle of happy sighs. My one minor quibble is that we don't get as many of the side-bards and mini-comics like we did in the previous volumes but instead the results of fan polls from LaLa magazine, where it was initially serialized in Japan. BUT! The manga is based on a novel series, two books of which were bonus material and Yumi is currently working on those and I really, really, really hope they get translated into English, but I want more of these people!

At the King's Command Susan Wiggs

After witnessing the slaughter of her family, Russian Princess Juliana Romanov flees to England, where she lives among the Romani. Caught stealing a horse, King Henry VIII himself commands her to marry a baron, Stephen de Lacey. A marriage neither of them wants, it will be in name only until the king gets bored and they can get it annulled, but only if they can keep their growing attraction to each other in check. I didn't realize how much Romani content this had until I picked it up, so that was interesting for my project, but that aside, I really liked this one. Juliana is consumed with the need to avenge her family, but no one really believes her story. Stephen has his own issues and things would have been better if he hadn't kept his secrets for so long and just talked to someone and blergh, but I still enjoyed it.

No Place Like Oz Danielle Page

I really like the Dorothy Must Die series. (I reviewed the latest, Yellow Brick War, for RT Reviews.) This is the first in a 6 novella prequel ARC, showing how Oz ended up in the twisted mess it was in at the beginning of the series. This one shows how Dorothy returned to Oz and seized power. I loved seeing Dorothy in Kansas, missing both Oz and the notoriety she had when she returned home, but what I loved most is that Auntie Em and Uncle Henry end up back in Oz with her, and seeing their reactions to Oz. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of this arc and the fourth book in the main series.



All Books Provided by... my local library

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The Keeper

This is a Cybils book, but the opinion expressed in this review is just mine, and not the committee's.

The Keeper: The Unguarded Story of Tim Howard Young Readers' Edition by Tim Howard with Ali Benjamin

Tim Howard plays keeper for Everton FC in Liverpool, and the US Men's Team. He also has Tourette's Syndrome and OCD. The biography starts in his early years and moves through the aftermath of the 2014 World Cup.

There are a few things that really stand out in the book:

1. Howard's experiences with TS and OCD. He explains really well what it feels like, and how hard it can be with people who don't understand, but he's pretty adamant that they are what help make him such an amazing player. His hyper-focus and demand to get everything just right is what helped drive him to greatness. He also does a lot of work with kids who have TS to offer support and a role model.

2. The importance of a good coach and a good team environment. Howard has played for a lot of teams and understands what the role of good coach is at all levels of play and really focuses on what made different coaches so helpful and spectacular. He also talks a lot of team dynamics, which was really fascinating when he went from Manchester United to Everton and how different the two teams were and what allowed him to flourish at one and not the other. (He talks about this so much, coupled with his work with kids with TS, I have a feeling he would be a really great coach after he retires from active play.)

3. The changing place of soccer in the US over the course of his career. He started playing professionally right when MLS started in the US and it didn't seem like anyone in the US cared about soccer and no one expected US teams to go anywhere, and through the phenomenon of the last World Cup (I believe that we will win), professional soccer has come a long way in the US and he's been on the inside the whole time, and it was really interesting to see that change from his perspective.

Overall, it's a really readable, great book. It's not one I would have picked up on my own, but I'm glad I read it. It is a Young Reader's Edition, and I'd be interested to see if the language in some of the conversations changes in the adult version. There's a lot of "oh my goodness!" in here that I think might have been something more salty in real life.


Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.