It was a day for books — totally unplanned, four of them showed up on my doorstep at once. Given everything that’s been going on in the world today (WHY CAN’T WE HAVE NICE THINGS, AMERICA?), it was a happy and welcome accident.
The first three were chosen for me by my Bibliologist Giovanna over at Tailored Book Recommendations (they brand themselves as TBR). (If you send me a recording of you pronouncing ‘bibliologist’ successfully, I will send you a picture of your favorite animal being cute as a reward, because my goodness.)
This is my first batch of books from TBR, having filled out an extensive profile describing my favorite books, most hated books, favorite TV shows and movies, favorite genres, what I’d like to explore more of, how adventurous I want to be with my reading, and my Goodreads profile. *breathes*
It took a few weeks to put my recommendations together, so I’m excited to dive into these and see how they fit, and whether the experience of having someone hand-pick titles for me (and getting hardcovers of said books along with a letter explaining the recs) justifies the expense — roughly $89 every three months.
Obviously, I’ll be reporting back, but at first glance, I’m feeling good about their selections:
Summer Snow by Robert Hass
Synopsis from Amazon: A new volume of poetry from Robert Hass is always an event. In Summer Snow, his first collection of poems since 2010, Hass further affirms his position as one of our most highly regarded living poets. Hass’s trademark careful attention to the natural world, his subtle humor, and the delicate but wide-ranging eye he casts on the human experience are fully on display in his masterful collection. Touching on subjects including the poignancy of loss, the serene and resonant beauty of nature, and the mutability of desire, Hass exhibits his virtuosic abilities, expansive intellect, and tremendous readability in one of his most ambitious and formally brilliant collections to date.
Notes from a Young Black Chef by Kwame Onwuachi
Synopsis from Amazon: By the time he was twenty-seven years old, Kwame Onwuachi had opened—and closed—one of the most talked about restaurants in America. He had sold drugs in New York and been shipped off to rural Nigeria to “learn respect.” He had launched his own catering company with twenty thousand dollars made from selling candy on the subway and starred on Top Chef. Through it all, Onwuachi’s love of food and cooking remained a constant, even when, as a young chef, he was forced to grapple with just how unwelcoming the food world can be for people of color. In this inspirational memoir about the intersection of race, fame, and food, he shares the remarkable story of his culinary coming-of-age; a powerful, heartfelt, and shockingly honest account of chasing your dreams—even when they don’t turn out as you expected.
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore
Synopsis from Amazon: It’s New Year’s Eve 1982, and Oona Lockhart has her whole life before her. At the stroke of midnight she will turn nineteen, and the year ahead promises to be one of consequence. Should she go to London to study economics, or remain at home in Brooklyn to pursue her passion for music and be with her boyfriend? As the countdown to the New Year begins, Oona faints and awakens thirty-two years in the future in her fifty-one-year-old body. Greeted by a friendly stranger in a beautiful house she’s told is her own, Oona learns that with each passing year she will leap to another age at random. And so begins Oona Out of Order…
Hopping through decades, pop culture fads, and much-needed stock tips, Oona is still a young woman on the inside but ever changing on the outside. Who will she be next year? Philanthropist? Club Kid? World traveler? Wife to a man she’s never met? Surprising, magical, and heart-wrenching, Margarita Montimore has crafted an unforgettable story about the burdens of time, the endurance of love, and the power of family.
Getting Noelle Stevenson’s new illustrated memoir was another happy coincidence; I had actually forgotten that it was coming out this week when I reviewed her book Nimona, but let’s pretend it’s all coming together as I envisioned.
Synopsis from Amazon: In a collection of essays and personal mini-comics that span eight years of her young adult life, author-illustrator Noelle Stevenson charts the highs and lows of being a creative human in the world.
Whether it’s hearing the wrong name called at her art school graduation ceremony or becoming a National Book Award finalist for her debut graphic novel, Nimona, Noelle captures the little and big moments that make up a real life, with a wit, wisdom, and vulnerability that are all her own.
I’ll be off trying to figure out what to read first; in the meantime, all of you take care of yourselves and each other, please. Look for the helpers (and for the books).
