I read a lot in March, although some of that was for work (I’ve counted the books here because they were interesting, and I’ll write about them soon). Also, because I picked up way too many ARCs in March.
March was a good month for me personally, despite the craziness in the world. We celebrated my husband’s birthday with good friends, I went to the March for Our Lives in DC, and I got an a-ok from the dentist (always a plus). Mainly, I’m just happy it’s spring.
Here’s what I read in March:
- Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
- Girls Burn Brighter by Shobha Rao
- Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
- One Small Step Can Change Your Life by Robert Maurer
- Hunger by Roxane Gay
- The Merry Spinster by [Daniel] Mallory Ortberg
- Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn
- River of Teeth by Sarah Gailey
- Amberlough by Lara Elena Donnelly
- The Red Word by Sarah Henstra
My reading had an unintentional theme this month, and it was LGBTQ. Many of the books I read this month focused on LGBTQ characters and issues. The Merry Spinster had many gender-related themes and is written by a transgender author who just came out as male. Here Comes the Sun was (in part) about a lesbian couple who face severe homophobia in Jamaica. River of Teeth had a gender-neutral character in a romantic relationship. And Amberlough was an intriguing and beautiful love story.
Another unintentional theme this month was sexual violence, in the form of rape, sexual harassment, and trafficking. Hunger, Here Comes the Sun, Girls Burn Brighter, and The Red Word were all difficult but powerful reads in this regard.
I read two books, Amberlough and River of Teeth, because they were nominated for Nebula awards. Check out these sites for other 2018 Nebula and Hugo nominees.
My favorite read? This was a month full of thought-provoking reads, although there isn’t one that stands out. I’m still thinking about The Red Word, though.
Most disappointing read? I didn’t get the fuss about Exit West. I never got emotionally invested in the characters and the writing felt very distant to me.
Books for challenges:
- Nonfiction: Switch, One Small Step, Hunger
- Read Harder Challenge: Girls Burn Brighter
- SciFi/Fantasy Bingo or Swords and Stars: The Merry Spinster, River of Teeth, Amberlough
- Reading All Around the World: Girls Burn Brighter, Here Comes the Sun
What I’m reading now: The Vain Conversation by Anthony Grooms, a book about a lynching in the South in the late 1940’s.
What’s coming up: I’ve got An American Marriage and City of Brass from the library. I have three ARCs due in April: Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spires, Twenty-one Days, a new series by favorite mystery writer Anne Perry, and Miss Ex-Yugoslavia by Sofija Stefanovic. Also in April, I’ll be going with a friend to see Scott Tong speak about his book, A Village With My Name.
Added to my TBR: books from the Women’s Prize longlist! You can see my Spring TBR here.
Things that made me happy this month:
- A Wrinkle in Time: not a perfect movie, but better than I expected, and I liked the way Meg was portrayed. Some additions to the story worked, others didn’t (like Calvin falling off the flying Mrs. Whatsit). My husband, who didn’t read the book, found the story confusing and Charles Wallace annoying (not sure if he means CW under IT’s influence or just in general). I wish they’d cut The Happy Medium and included Aunt Beast, but still it was a better movie than I expected and I can see why they made some of the choices they did.
- My husband’s fallen in love with his sous vide cooker, which means we’ve been cooking lots of nice meals at home. This month we made an amazing prime rib and (my personal favorite) steak tacos. He’s making all kinds of plans for new dinner experiments, and I can totally get behind that!
Book deals I recommend (from BookRiot):
- Before the Fall by Noah Hawley for $2.99.
- Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong for $2.99.
- The Country We Love by Diane Guerrero for $3.49.
- Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks for $1.99.
- Binti by Nnedi Okorafor for $3.99.
Happy April and happy spring!
