What is sex? It can be running naked through stinging nettles. It can be a bunch of men disguised as randy pandas. It can be a woman in a horse mask ripping apart a teddy bear. It can be a couple arranging Christmas lights on a wall so they spell out the word FUCK. "I … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: FUTURE SEX, BY EMILY WITT (2016)
BOOK REVIEW: PRIESTDADDY, BY PATRICIA LOCKWOOD (2017)
On page 48 of her new memoir of growing up in the Catholic Church, Priestdaddy, Patricia Lockwood's husband, Jason, undergoes surgery for a rare type of cataracts--to quote his own description of the operation to Lockwood's alarmed mother, the surgeon slices open the surface of his eye, then uses "a little jackhammer to blast apart … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: PRIESTDADDY, BY PATRICIA LOCKWOOD (2017)
BOOK REVIEW: BOUNDLESS, BY JILLIAN TAMAKI (2017)
In her new graphic short story collection, Boundless, Jillian Tamaki explores the ways humans can stretch beyond the bounds of our bodies and minds, and connect with the rest of the universe. Through social media, the imagination, pop culture, weird internet cults, pyramid schemes, appeals to a shared sisterhood, bed bugs, and even, in one … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: BOUNDLESS, BY JILLIAN TAMAKI (2017)
BOOK REVIEW: THE SERPENT KING, BY JEFF ZENTNER (2016)
I should read Young Adult books more often. Whenever I hear or read that a particular YA book is good, I make a note of it, but, when I'm at the library and I'm about to borrow it, I often decide not to. It's probably, partly, a form of snobbery. But also--my teenage years weren't … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: THE SERPENT KING, BY JEFF ZENTNER (2016)
BOOK REVIEW: AN OATH OF DOGS, BY WENDY N. WAGNER (2017)
It's the twenty-third century, and Standish has found a new career in a new town. The new town is a moon, Huginn, and the new career consists of working as head of communication for a huge intergalactic corporation. Standish's predecessor, Duncan Chambers, was murdered. Who killed him, and why? Could it have anything to do … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: AN OATH OF DOGS, BY WENDY N. WAGNER (2017)
BOOK REVIEW: HOUSE OF NAMES, BY COLM TÓIBÍN (2017)
Colm Tóibín knows how to tell a story. I read House of Names in a fever of sorts, in less than 48 hours, barely able to unglue my eyes from my ereader. It's the sort of book where you think you'll just read 10 pages before bed and end up reading 50, and while you're … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: HOUSE OF NAMES, BY COLM TÓIBÍN (2017)
4 AWESOME GENDER-BENDING BOOKS BASED ON GREEK MYTH
In preparation for my upcoming review of Colm Tóibín's House of Names, based on the bloody story of Orestes, Electra and Clytemnestra, I thought I'd make a short list of all my favourite books that are based on Greek mythology. As it turns out, by some strange coincidence, they all feature some form of gender bending. Readers, if you … Continue reading 4 AWESOME GENDER-BENDING BOOKS BASED ON GREEK MYTH
6 AWESOME BOOKS STARRING IMMIGRANTS
I am an immigrant, born in Italy but living in the UK since 2009. My mother is also an immigrant (US to Italy), as were my maternal grandparents (Italy to US), and both my maternal great-grandfathers (also Italy to US). I have the immigrant gene. And I think my immigrant gene could be the reason … Continue reading 6 AWESOME BOOKS STARRING IMMIGRANTS
BOOK REVIEW: SEASON OF MIGRATION TO THE NORTH, BY TAYEB SALIH (1966)
In Naughty Dog's 2013 videogame The Last of Us, a fungus turns people into zombies. It latches itself onto your brain and, as it grows, it alters your behaviour, ramping up aggressiveness, making you instinctively attack uninfected humans. Season of Migration to the North is like this fungus. I wasn't going to write a review of … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: SEASON OF MIGRATION TO THE NORTH, BY TAYEB SALIH (1966)
BOOK REVIEW: AND I DARKEN, BY KIERSTEN WHITE (2016)
“On our wedding night,” she said, “I will cut out your tongue and swallow it. Then both tongues that spoke our marriage vows will belong to me, and I will be wed only to myself. You will most likely choke to death on your own blood, which will be unfortunate, but I will be both … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: AND I DARKEN, BY KIERSTEN WHITE (2016)
