what i'm reading now

i am on a reading roll

by the time you read this, i will have finished reading Opinions by Roxane Gay. it took me a while to get through this one because just as Trump was re-elected, i was reading Gay’s essays from his first election and presidency. needless to say, it was a little too heavy and hopeless for me to doubly immerse myself in that reality. but by the time you read this, i will have found the strength to power through the few essays detailing the ways our country’s leader is failing us because i believe that the power of the people will create necessary change— because we have to. and my part in that is acknowledging the dread of our reality and then pressing my strength and the strength of my community against it. anyway, onto my thoughts on Opinions.

recently read: Opinions by Roxane Gay

while it did take me two years to finish this collection of essays, it is one of the most impactful collections i’ve read during that time. i found affirmations in these essays; i found perspectives that i hadn’t considered and i found advice that i’d been needing but didn’t know where to find it.

my identity as a writer was affirmed in her advice to someone asking if they were too old to have a career in writing. my low bandwidth for high-level activism was affirmed by her advice to someone who felt they weren’t doing enough; i am (we are) not excused from participating at all when i (we) have the time, energy, and resources. i was reminded that as i reach for my personal goals and (hopefully) find success, i must also continue to work for a better world for those who experience outrageous and unending hardship caused by decades of structural racism and inequity.

Roxane Gay’s voice is extremely important because it stands at the intersection of so many important identities that are often ignored— fat, Black, gay, women. her perspective is invaluable, and those of us who read her words and listen when she speaks are incredibly lucky. that she wants to share her opinions and her experience with the world is a gift— a blessing not many deserve. i am grateful to have read Gay’s Opinions and look forward to reading more of them.

recently read: Come & Get It by Kiley Reid

this book was a wild ride. as a person who has experienced one year of on-campus college life, i found some of the narrative quite relatable: roommate discomforts and disputes, balancing life lessons with schoolwork, learning what you can and cannot control and the opportunity to take ownership of your choices and actions. however, i’ve never experienced sleeping with a faculty member or a rivalry with a team of RAs or an accident so ridiculously extreme it sent multiple students to the hospital.

Come & Get It entertainingly straddles the line of realism and lunacy in a way that drives the reader from chapter to chapter voraciously. you want to get to the bottom of everybody’s story; find out if and when all the loose ends will be tied up. Reid expertly crafted a story that will intrigue both mystery and realistic fiction lovers. i’m grateful to have found this book in a Maine thrift store for only $8, as it gave me the excuse to buy a new book when i didn’t need to.

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what i’m actually reading now:

i just finished Grady Hendrix’s The Southern Bookclub’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, borrowed from a friend. i will write more about that in my next edition; it was the most alluring book i’ve read so far this year.

i am currently reading two books at once, which is a new practice for me. i am reading We Begin Here: Poems for Palestine and Lebanon as well as Stay True by Hua Hsu. after reading the introduction for We Begin Here, i knew i would need to read something alongside it to keep myself from sinking too deeply into a dark state of mind. i feel that it is important to read this collection of poetry and sit with the reality of why these pieces were written, but i also know that if i read only these works that i will become listless and hopeless. so i am reading them in tandem to keep myself activated.

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if you’ve read this far, i’d like to thank you for support and your attention. my birthday is coming up (31, baby!), and i’m really hoping to really lean into my writing career this year. part of that hope includes gaining more paid subscribers. so if you enjoy my writing, i’d appreciate if you’d consider setting aside $7 a month to support my dreams. you could also share one of my free posts that you’ve enjoyed and encourage others to subscribe!

either way, thank you again for your time, attention, and support. i am endlessly grateful to be seen and read.