Books Are My People Weekly Newsletter
out today, paperback releases and more!
Dear Reader,
It’s almost officially fall, my favorite season! The season changes are subtle in Los Angeles, but they’re there! My son played in his first college hockey game over the weekend and I feel so lucky that I got to go cheer him on, and he scored two goals! It’s my husband’s birthday this week, so lots to celebrate.
Do you enjoy coffee? Tea? Perhaps hot cocoa while you read? Books Are My People: The Mug is here! It’s fun, the logo is on both sides of the mug. You can purchase yours here! I also think they’d make a fun holiday gift if you’re a planner.
A new episode of Books Are My People is out. You can listen here. I had the pleasure of speaking with Janice Hallett, author of the recently published The Examiner. And Caroline Woods, author of The Mesmerist shares a book recommendation.
Let Me Help You Discover Books You Might Not Otherwise Read! You can learn more about me by visiting my introductory post here.
The best way you can support this newsletter is to click on the books below and purchase them through my Bookshop.org affiliate store. A portion of your spending goes to independent bookstores! A win-win-win! (You win, I win, indie bookstores win!)
Out Today (I’ve starred the ones I’ve read)
Lots of heavy hitters out today! This is my kind of book release week.
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney
If you love reading about brotherly love and chess: I loved Normal People and Conversations With Friends, so I’m so looking forward to Intermezzo - a moving story about grief, love, and family--but especially love, as Rooney tends to focus on. This novel is about two. grieving Irish brothers, one, a lawyer and one, a chess player. (I love the cover!)
Playground by Richard Powers
For the cli-fy-loving naturalist: Four lives are drawn together when they meet on the island of Makatea in French Polynesia, whose deposits of phosphorus once helped to feed the world. Now the tiny atoll has been chosen for humanity's next adventure: a plan to send floating, autonomous cities out onto the open sea. But first, the island's residents must vote to greenlight the project or turn the seasteaders away. From the author of the Overstory.
The Empusium by Olga Tokarczuk
For the historical fiction / literary fiction buff: I love the colors on this cover. Set in a sanitarium on the eve of World War I, Tokarczuk’s latest novel is an exploration of ideas and fundamental philosophical questions.
*A Reason To See You Again by Jami Attenburg
For fans of sweeping family sagas: This novel follows a troubled mother and her two daughters over forty years (starting in the 1970’s) through a swiftly changing American landscape exploring motherhood, the American workforce, the tech industry, the self-help movement, inherited trauma, the ever-evolving ways we communicate with one another, and the many unexpected forms that love can take.
*Night Magic: Adventures Among Glowworms, Moon Gardens, and Other Marvels of the Dark by Leigh Ann Henion
For the nature lover: A celebration of what goes on outside in the dark, from blooming moon gardens to nocturnal salamanders, from glowing foxfire and synchronous fireflies that blink in unison like an orchestra of light. I was dazzled by all of the fascinating information about nocturnal animals and the ways in which our cities affect them.
The Repeat Room by Jesse Ball
For fans of speculative fiction: Abel, a menial worker, is called to serve in a secretive and fabled jury system. At the heart of this system is the repeat room, where a single juror, selected from hundreds of candidates, is able to inhabit the defendant's lived experience, to see as if through their eyes. This is an exciting and pointed critique of the nature of knowledge and judgment.
The Lightening Bottles by Marissa Stapley
For lovers of mysteries about music: Musician Jane Pyre is on a grunge-era journey to find out what really happened to her husband and partner in music, who abruptly disappeared years earlier. From the author of Lucky.
How to Tell When We Will Die by Johanna Hedva
For lovers of essays: A collection from one of the most influential voices in disability activism that detonates a bomb in our collective understanding of care and illness, showing us that sickness is a fact of life. Hedva argues that under capitalism--a system that limits our worth to the productivity of our bodies--we must reach for the revolutionary act of caring for ourselves and others.
Paperback Releases:
*Land of Milk and Honey by C. Pam Zhang
We read this one for my Read With Me series on Substack. A cli-fy novel about food and decadence.
Brooklyn Crime Novel by Jonathan Lethem
On the streets of 1970s Brooklyn, a daily ritual goes down: the dance. Money is exchanged, belongings surrendered, power asserted. The promise of violence lies everywhere, a currency itself. For these children, the street is a stage in shadow. And in the wings hide the other players: parents; cops; renovators; landlords; those who write the headlines, the histories, and the laws; those who award this neighborhood its name.
Evil Eye by Etaf Rum
From the author of A Woman Is No Man, a striking exploration of the expectations of a Palestinian-American woman, the meaning of a fulfilling life, and the ways our unresolved pasts affect our presents.
Julia by Sandra Newman
An imaginative, feminist, relevant-to-today retelling of Orwell's 1984, from the point of view of Winston Smith's lover, Julia. I love a novel retelling!
Paid Subscriber Corner:
I’ve pinned the reading schedule to my Substack homepage for easy access. I’ve also added an audiobook listening guide, in case you’re consuming your book that way!
Read With Me Series: It’s not too late to upgrade and join my Read With Me reading series!
November: Book to Film Series: Poor Things by Alasdair Gray. Read the book, watch the movie, or both!
UPDATED: December - I will be pausing Substack for the month of December in order to recharge. What does this mean for you? If you’re a paying subscriber, you won’t be charged for December. And there will be no paying subscriber activities. For free subscribers, this means no newsletters for the month of December. I WILL still be publishing my book recommendation podcast, Books Are My People during December.
January: Independent Reading - read a book! Let’s discuss at the end of January.
I painted this view from my friend’s mom’s incredible view. If you zoom in, you can see the Getty atop the hill. It’s such a quintessential Los Angeles view! It’s 18 x 22 inches on hot pressed paper. I used acrylics and a hint of mixed media. Reach out if you’re interested in purchasing!
I hope you all have a wonderfully bookish week! What are you looking forward to reading on or off this list! Share below.
Books Are My People: A Podcast Companion Newsletter
(click here to listen to the most recent episode of my book recommendation podcast.)
And, if you haven't yet, the greatest gift would be to rate my show, wherever you listen!
I am excited for The Empusium too
I was in Los Angeles from the 19th. Leaving the 25th. I enjoyed everything we did. Such beautiful weather and the beaches were magnificent.