What I Got:

• Walking on Cowrie Shells (ARC) by Nana Nkweti
• Shake It Up: Great American Writing on Rock and Pop from Elvis to Jay Z ed. by Jonathan Lethem and Kevin JH Dettmar
• Tr*nny by Laura Jane Grace
• Libertie (ARC) by Kaitlyn Greenidge
• These Feathered Flames (ARC) by Alexandra Overy
• Wild Women and the Blues (ARC) by Denny S. Bryce
• This Poison Heart (ARC) by Kalynn Bayron
• Lycanthropy and Other Chronic Illnesses (ARC) by Kristen O’Neal
• Boyz ’n’the Void (ARC) by G’Ra Asim
• Hola Papi!: How to Come Out in a Walmart Parking Lot and Other Life Lessons (ARC) by John Paul Brammer
• Don’t Hate the Player (ARC) by Alexis Nedd
• Under the Rainbow by Celia Laskey
• Harlem Shuffle (ARC) by Colson Whitehead
• Sexuality: A Graphic Guide by Meg-John Barker and Jules Scheele
• + other ARCs from Winter Institute (booksellers conference) that would make this list too long

What I Read:

• Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert
• On the Books by Greg Farrell
• Middlegame by Seanan McGuire
• Top: A Comic About Gender and Surgery (zine) by Rainer Bloodgood
• Kiki’s Delivery Service, Vol. 1 by Hayao Miyazaki
• Don’t Hate the Player (ARC) by Alexis Nedd
• Our Stories Carried Us Here: A Graphic Anthology (ARC) by Green Card Voices
• “Rapunzel” and “Snow-White and Rose-Read” by the Grimm Brothers
• Lycanthropy and Other Chronic Illnesses (ARC) by Kristen O’Neal
• Walking On Cowrie Shells (ARC) by Nana Nkweti DNF
• The Legend of Auntie Po (ARC) by Shing Yin Khor
• Start of Nobody Likes You: Inside the Turbulent Life, Times, and Music of Green Day by Marc Spitz

Mid-March hit me with a sledgehammer. The beginning of the month was fairly normal, nothing particularly out of the ordinary. And then BAM! The IBS head of the Hydra monster bit me, and I felt not great until a couple days ago. Plus, some work drama reared its head. This is all to say that my memories of March are a bit clouded. Most of these reviews are almost straight from my Goodreads because I can only remember vague thoughts like “so good!” and “uuuuggghhhh.”

Now, onto the cuteness that is Take a Hint, Dani Brown! Dani Brown is the witchy, bisexual workaholic I knew I would love. And Zaf is the emotionally in tune, romance novel loving ex-rugby player I had no idea would be so wonderful.

This book has lovely sarcastic banter and, just like Chloe Brown’s book, boatloads of important representation. It took me awhile to get through just because Zaf’s anxiety triggers are really similar to mine, but his mental health is dealt with really well. I fall into the trap of needing a before and an after when it comes to healing from past events, and seeing Zaf struggle to lean into the gray areas was really validating. It’s not seen as a horrible character flaw but instead something that he just has to breathe through and accept.

The plot of this one was a bit slower than the first Brown sisters book, but it was still delightful. And I actually found the little bit of drama at the end right after admitting their love (which I’m beginning to think is a staple of the romance genre) was actually quite plausible considering the characters’ baggage from past relationships and trauma.

Again, the three star is mostly because romance isn’t my usual genre and sex scenes still make me uncomfy, and partly because the plot didn’t pull me in as much as the first book.

The graphic novel On the Books is about the Strand workers’ union strike that took place at the same time as the Occupy movements. To be honest, it was a disappointment. The illustrations weren’t all that interesting, the text was dry and factual, and even though the author gave other workers a voice, the narrative felt very impersonal. I wanted to know more about the actual goings on with the workers rather than the politics surrounding unions and management.

Middlegame (cw: suicide attempt, blood, murder, abuse, gaslighting, etc.) by Seanan Maguire was another one that I thought would be much better than it actually was. Middlegame was by no means bad. In fact, parts of it were incredible. But then parts of it were cliché and unexciting. It tells the story of Roger and Dodger, twins who were created in a lab in order to embody “the Doctrine,” aka the ability to change reality at a whim. They are raised separately but their lives keep crossing until they begin to realize the damage they can do with their “powers.” Of course, their creator wants to either control them or kill them.

The other book I’ve read of Seanan McGuire’s (Every Heart a Doorway), which is highly loved by many people just like Middlegame, was also just meh for me. Many characters were walking cliches, the creepy underground laboratory where Roger and Dodger were “born” isn’t really explored, lots of the plot gets reversed and repeated (which is part of the time fuckery aspect, but instead of adding to the narrative, it lowered the intensity) and the ending seemed like it belonged to a different book. I’m usually a fan of the bittersweet ending, but there was a bit too much sweet in this ending for such a dark book.

The book started off so strong; it was like a mix between The Starless Sea and Frankenstein. But it devolved into something mediocre. That being said, the premise is super interesting and I can see why people might love it.

After those two letdowns, Don’t Hate the Player (ownvoices Indian rep) was a lovely surprise. I liked this book way more than I expected to. Emilia clings to her perfect student/daughter/athlete façade even though her true passion is a roleplaying game, and she is on one of the best teams who play this game. Then the company who put out this game hosts an in-person tournament, where Emilia runs into an old gaming friend, Jake, who just transferred to her school. This threatens to expose her hidden identity as a nationally renowned gamer.

I’ll admit that I don’t know much about gaming, but that didn’t hamper my enjoyment of the story. There were only a few times I was confused, and Google helped out in those instances. Of course, if you are a gamer, you’ll probably love the book even more.

This book is a wonderful example of how to make pop culture references that feel natural instead of forced. They add to the characterization and/or plot instead of being there only for “relatability.” (Plus, there was a John Mulaney reference. A surefire way to my heart.) This book is also a great example of how to use a group chat to add character depth. The Team Unity group chat added so much to the plot and characters even though they were just “dialogue.” Like the pop culture refs, they weren’t there just for relatability. The chats served a purpose for the characters and story. Two things that can really bug me in books were done super well here.

The plot started off pretty slow, but it picks up fast and I got completely caught up in what was happening. It feels action-packed because of the gameplay descriptions even though it’s a YA contemporary.

Our Stories Carried Us Here is a graphic anthology of stories by and about immigrants that are illustrated by and about immigrants. Absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking and hopeful. Since I read an ARC, all of the illustrations were black and white, but even then each illustration style stood out and matched the stories perfectly.

I don’t have much to say about the Grimm Brothers’ stories except that I read them because they were on the Rory Gilmore reading list and I love to check things off lists. J

Lycanthropy and Other Chronic Illnesses is a book that I enjoyed at the time I read it but should have done research on beforehand. The story is ownvoices for chronic illness, but the main character is Indian, and the author is white. I read some reviews by Indian readers and they point out stereotypes, appropriation, and racist imagery that I never would have noticed. So I don’t want to give this book much room on my blog. If you are curious about some of the issues, here is a comprehensive review I read.

The last book I want to discuss here is The Legend of Auntie Po, because it is delightful. This is another book that will be stunning in full color. The story itself shows how complicated friendships can be when navigating vast differences in privilege. It also explores how a myth and reality can both be true, can both be valid at the same time depending on how you see the world in front of you. And I love when authors explore the intersection between stories and reality.

The friendships, grief, discrimination, and families are all complex and real in their complexity. I knew nothing about Chinese immigrants in the 1880s logging industry, and learning about this was also a bonus to this already amazing story. The cast of main characters all want the best for each other, even if they make mistakes along the way, which warmed my heart so much.

I hope you had a good March, that you are in good health, and that you can get vaccinated soon. This is a small reminder to keep reading more diversely, especially now to stand in solidarity with AAPI folks. Enjoy the spring weather as the sun comes out and banishes this horrible winter!