alexandriaslibrary's reviews
196 reviews

Maria, Maria: And Other Stories by Marytza K. Rubio

adventurous dark reflective medium-paced

Magical realism stories about brujería, primarily set in Southern California (or post-apocalyptic socal). Very adventurous and unique—some stories have illustrations which is always a great add—some stories follow a brujería teacher, old high school friends who peak into parallel universes to see the different lives (and deaths) of a classmate, a woman who buries her husband, and sisters who recount a famed vampire pop icon. 

The final story is a novella about powerful and mystical women named Maria, and while it was imaginative, I think it was slightly more fantastical than I’m used to! 

On the whole, it’s a great collection if you’re interested in some witchy stories, but most felt slightly reliant on the novelties of the worlds.

Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K Reilly

funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

Valdin & Greta are adult siblings who we follow for 6ish to 12ish months in New Zealand. This felt like reading a mini series a la Modern Family or Schitt’s Creek. Charming and funny while having sincerely touching moments, the entire blended queer Māori-Russian-Catalonian family is a hoot (and so complicated the character list at the beginning definitely comes in handy)

Greta is finishing up her grad program while dating 

Valdin is trying to get over his ex (who is also his Uncle’s brother-in-law) 

Other family members are estranged, runaways, polyamorous, coming out.

Reminded me of Gunk Baby, The Rachel Incident, All This Could Be Different 

Thank you to Avid Reader Press for the copy, all thoughts are my own

Gods of Want: Stories by K-Ming Chang

dark funny reflective medium-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

K-Ming Chang has such a unique voice, and it's perfect for me. A blend of the poetic and the horrific, bodily and queasy. These stories compliment each other thematically and stand out as some of the most original and brilliant fiction of our time! 

Throughout these stories women of Taiwanese descent bicker, turn into animals, disappear, fuck, and test the bonds that unite them. You feel so present in these pages, sweaty and grimy or exhilarated and alert. Also sooooo gay <3 

Bell, Book and Dyke: New Exploits of Magical Lesbians by Julia Watts, Karin Kallmaker, Therese Szymanski, Barbara Johnson

adventurous emotional lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.5

I love finding older lesbian books! Bell, Book and Dyke features four novellas about lesbians and witchcraft. The first “Sea Witch” is the most “magical” and singular in its action over romance. It follows a coven as strange storms and magic continues to pop up in their idyllic beachside town.

The second novella “By-The-Book” is about a stunt double who discovers she is a witch. This one was my least favorite by far, just felt a little gruff and complicated.

“Unbeliever” is a bittersweet tale of an agnostic twin who grapples with her lack of faith while her sister is dying of cancer. Then she meets a witch who might change her outlook.

Finally, “Skyclad” is probably the most contained story. A coven led by High Priestess Chameleon fights back after their petition for an adopt-a-highway sign is denied 

All of the stories helped me feel in touch with an older generation of lesbians & had some not-bad spice  

Fair Play by Tove Jansson

lighthearted reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Tove! After loving The Summer Book, I am delighted to find that Fair Play is just as charming and even more astute.

Perfect for lovers of Frog and Toad, Jonna and Mari are two older artists who live together on a remote island off the coast of Finland. Pulled from Jansson’s relationship with her partner of over forty years with Tuulikki Pietilä, the book is never explicit, but the two characters have a pure love and respect for each other. We see their movie nights, bickerings, artistic practices, and devotion. Only 100 pages but staggering in its vulnerability.

Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here: The United States, Central America, and the Making of a Crisis by Jonathan Blitzer

informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

I’ve just finished and am at a loss for words. In just shy of 500 pages Blizter has crafted such a cohesive look at the last 40 years of the US relationship with immigration and Central America (mainly El Salvador with later sections focusing on Guatemala and Honduras.) I learned something on every page, I laughed, I cried, I gasped aloud. 

Weaving together the personal narratives of people seeking asylum and those creating asylum legislation, Blitzer attempts to show the intricate and ever-evolving relationship between the United States and Central America. After every chapter (written so accessible for the amount of detail and politics they contain) I would call my Dad or friends to ask if they knew about different policies, facts, or movements.

This is a great read for anyone who is trying to educate themselves on a topic that is at the forefront of our news cycle especially in an election year.  

Thank you so much Penguin Press for sending this my way and to the author for documenting this so concisely. 

Piglet by Lottie Hazell

emotional reflective

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

True to Piglet's nature: I devoured this!

This is a very well-written novel: the author is incredibly intention with her structure, her reveals, her showing and concealing.

Piglet (a childhood nickname) is a fish out of water in her new life. She works in a publishing house, she is the proud owner of a new cottage in Oxford, and her perfect fiance's family is bankrolling it all. But two weeks out from her wedding, he reveals a terrible secret that threatens this new life she so desperately wants to fit into. 

At times, Piglet is unlikable but in a way that is achingly familiar. She loves but is deeply embarrassed by how average her family is compared to her in-laws. She can't make a decision about if she should continue with the wedding or not. She is overwhelmed with concern that she is drifting from her pregnant best friend.

The food writing in this is also top notch. Piglet is an avid chef and baker (she plans to make three towers of croquembouche for her wedding cake) and food has never sounded so good. She becomes absorbed with food as comfort, as a status symbol, and as an outlet.

And of course the reveal! Midway through I started suspecting that maybe we would never have the reveal. That whatever we imagined in our brains would be endlessly more satisfying than the "true" answer. Also, I think it's interesting commentary on the overarching theme of the book: greed. The readers are devouring the book because they need to know this life-altering secret. Most negative reviews I've seen are negative because there is no simple "reveal" as to what her fiance did. But I think it's a really brilliant stylistic choice

Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy, all thoughts are my own!

The Skin and Its Girl by Sarah Cypher

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

The Awakening by Katie Vogel

reflective medium-paced

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Dead in Long Beach, California by Venita Blackburn

• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Grief isn’t linear and is often messy, jarring, backwards, and disorienting. In her true experimental sensibility, Blackburn’s debut novel is unlike anything else. 

Coral discovers her brother’s body and begins to use his phone. But while this seems like a thriller, it’s a very internal and philosophical look at grief and the human condition. Coral is the author of a semi-popular dystopian graphic novel Wildfire and her narrators of the series (a first-person plural omniscient entity) is the narrator of the entire book. Flashbacks, excerpts from Wildfire, musings on humanity, and Coral’s week following her brother’s death—weave together harmoniously to the end. 

Also, as someone from Long Beach California, this book is a beautiful ode to an oily, salty city!