Curlygeek04

LATEST ARTICLES ( 1001 )

• ARC Review: As a Jew by Sarah Hurwitz

  

  This book came along at just the right time for me, and was exactly what I needed. I’ve been struggling with my Jewish identity since the events of October 7,... Read more

  Posted on 29 September 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Freewriting Friday: Exploring Los Angeles

  

  I wasn’t able to write much this week, because we came back from a trip to Los Angeles, and then things have been busy. This week I went to a retirement party... Read more

  Posted on 26 September 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Reading by the Ratings: Books on My Shelf I Need to Read

  The topic of this week’s Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl) is our fall To Be Read (TBR) list. I’ve gotten away from TBR lists, outside of... Read more

  Posted on 23 September 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• ARC Review: Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley

  

  Angeline Boulley has done it again. She’s written a story that’s hard to put down, but is also steeped in Native issues and history, with characters that are... Read more

  Posted on 06 September 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review: Cue the Sun! The Invention of Reality TV by Emily Nussbaum

  

  This book is a detailed history of reality television, and Nussbaum begins the book by explaining that if you think reality television is a product of the 2000s... Read more

  Posted on 20 May 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• ARC Review: The Ill-Mannered Ladies Series by Alison Goodman

  

  I received Book #2 in Goodman’s Ill-Mannered Ladies series from NetGalley, but I quickly realized this was a book I wanted to read properly, so I stopped and... Read more

  Posted on 16 May 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• ARC Review: The Sea Gives Up the Dead by Molly Olguín

  

  I loved this book of short stories that are a blend of magical realism, fairy tale retellings, history, love, grief, and horror. Read more

  Posted on 12 May 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• ARC Review: Time Loops and Meet Cutes by Jackie Lau

  

  If you’re a fan of Groundhog Day, you may like this novel by Jackie Lau, a time-loop romance set in Toronto. Noelle Tom leaves her job late on June 20, as she... Read more

  Posted on 05 May 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• My April Reading Wrap-Up

  

  April was my first month out of work. I wasn’t sure what to expect – daily sobbing, possibly. Boredom, stress, anger, anxiety. I experienced some of all that,... Read more

  Posted on 01 May 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• ARC Review: The Vengeance by Emma Newman

  

  The Vengeance is a fun escapist read, combining historical France, female pirates, LGBTQ romance, and vampires. Newman is a writer of fantasy and science fictio... Read more

  Posted on 28 April 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review of Spell Freedom: The Underground Schools That Built the Civil Rights...

  

  This was an incredibly thoughtful, comprehensive view of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s, beginning with the Brown vs. Read more

  Posted on 21 April 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review: Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

  

  I loved the last book I read by Perkins-Valdez, Take My Hand, so I jumped at the chance to preview her newest book. I wasn’t disappointed. Read more

  Posted on 15 April 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review of Barely Visible: Mothering a Son Through His Misunderstood Autism by...

  

  I had mixed feelings about this book, which was provided to me as an advanced reading copy by publisher She Writes Press. I appreciated the honesty of the... Read more

  Posted on 08 April 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• My March Reading Wrap-Up

  

  I didn’t post much in March, because I was busy (and stressed) filling out retirement papers. On March 31, I left a job I’ve had for 22 years at the U.S.... Read more

  Posted on 03 April 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• My Progress on the Jewish Genre Reading Challenge

  

  This year I set myself a challenge to read more books by Jewish authors and about Jewish characters. I’m hoping to explore my Jewish background and my faith... Read more

  Posted on 01 April 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review: Swordheart by T. Kingfisher

  

  Kingfisher is one of my favorite fantasy authors, so I was very happy to receive a copy of Swordheart from NetGalley, and it didn’t disappoint. Read more

  Posted on 06 March 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• My February Reading Wrap-Up

  

  In February I had my surgery, which went well, and it was nice to have time off from work to recover. There are things I can’t do for a little while, but I’ve... Read more

  Posted on 02 March 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review: The Rainbow Comes and Goes by Anderson Cooper and Gloria Vanderbilt

  

  I picked up this book last year when I visited the Vanderbilt’s summer house, The Breakers, with my in-laws. The lives of the Vanderbilts seemed like something... Read more

  Posted on 28 February 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review: Fagin the Thief by Allison Epstein

  

  Fagin the Thief, as you might expect, is a retelling of the Oliver Twist story from the perspective of its villain, Jacob Fagin. I haven’t actually read Oliver... Read more

  Posted on 24 February 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Review: Twisted: The Tangled History of Black Hair Culture by Emma Dabiri

  

  The books of Emma Dabiri have been on my TBR for a while. I’m interested in reading and understanding more about race, andthis book held a particular appeal... Read more

  Posted on 19 February 2025 BOOKS, CULTURE