Short stories & horror aren‘t something I seek out, but I did seek this book out. In retrospect, I should have gotten a physical copy, because illustrated books are super cool.

This middle grade book explores the theme of separation. The @wow_reads Reading Ambassadors had a great chat with Lisa McMann, who brought her husband, Matt. He‘s also an author! (Book tagged in comments.)
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Take a listen to what the Reading Ambassadors said in their podcast: https://worldsofwords.buzzsprout.com/2080893/13928841-wow-reads-s2-e2-msrap-read...

The @wow_reads Teen Reading Ambassadors hosted the book launch for “The Broke Hearts” by Matt Mendez. They drew a great crowd & had a good discussion. The idea that we are always becoming something hit with the teens.
Mendez profile: https://wowlit.org/blog/2023/11/01/authors-corner-matt-mendez/
Teens‘ podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2080893/13768827 (also available on Apple Podcast)

As a child, I wore a T-shirt with the slogan, “The best man for a job is a woman.” I call myself a feminist even. However, feminism has not appealed to me the way other inclusive or poverty-related issues were. I even resisted this book. But it is 🔥 & reconciles my thinking. A lot of readers say take it slow, think about it. Sure if you want. Or swallow it whole like Bacchanalian-style. That‘s what I did.

Just about everything in this book fascinates me—including the absurd legalities/sensibilities of the time & how ppl can strip one another of their humanity even as they recognize that humanity. Also, Mary Lumpkin is a mighty woman. Friggin‘ made of steel.

Blame this one on BookTok. It‘s a pick for this desert dweller. Equal parts discouraging & encouraging.
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Global warming has been on my mind since the Carter administration, but my strongly worded letters to power brokers, attendance at neighborhood meetings about tree cover, & solar panel purchase haven‘t fixed it yet. Go figure.

Dad: I‘m going to use my fortune to force my daughter to have a child.
Mom: I‘m going to use parental privilege to force my daughter to be sterilized.
Power Elite & other Jerk Faces: We are going to use this case to reinforce our claim that we should control the bodies of women and entire groups of people who we don‘t like.

It‘s been a minute since I read this, but two things I know about myself. 1) I don‘t always want to be happy; and 2) I don‘t like to be told what to do.

Love the rawness & the honesty. However, maybe in updates he could footnote the parts that are casually racist & actively misogynistic to show areas for growth. We 💯 knew swastikas sucked back then. They still suck. Fuck nazis wherever they exist, and fuck their propaganda. Glad he has his shit together.

I don‘t know that any of this text is surprising, but I do appreciate the framework. I tell people I could be religious but not spiritual, because I enjoy ritual but not so much the navel gazing. Accordingly, I appreciate the social commentary, but the last chapter on sadness goes too far out for me. I did chat my friends up about the book & would rec to newbie career peeps.

I read this because:
* Someone at work said of a 17 YO I admire, “PF would say the oppressed will become the oppressor.” And now I can say that work person doesn‘t know jack about what PF would say about this kid.🖕🏻
* POTO was banned at my kids‘ high school.
* I‘m working on my advocacy.

For a time, I lived with my mom, her mom, & her mom‘s mom, but still I didn‘t know much about menopause. Maybe the workplace should separate us out to teach these hormonal changes like schools did for puberty.
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I like the feminist take. I like the balance of honoring the knowledge of crones & science. And I like that it got me to bypass my sucky PCP & head return to my GYN.

Just out of high school a classmate with cancer died of pneumonia. Just a few years ago, a coworker died of HIV/AIDS. Living that 30 year stretch, I remember the big events of this book, but putting them all together was something else.
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I read this chunkster after seeing a post by @AlizaApp. My plan was to challenge my perspectives on advocacy, which I did. My preference was (& still is) somewhere between Roberts Rules & chaos.

I‘ve been waiting on this book since Boulley mentioned it to the teen readers I work with in the summer of 2021. It is even better than anticipated!

At an event a couple of weeks ago, an intern asked Boulley a question about the title. Her answer gave a glimpse of the next two books. Is it too early to preorder?

Also, this jacket art by Caldecott winner Michaela Goade is stunning.

I appreciate the racism & economic privilege that‘s called out, but I can‘t shake the feeling that this examination is surface level. There‘s no accountability beyond the author. Good as a memoir but light as a study.

Gather round young ‘uns. I‘m going to tell you a story that took place before social media became a hellscape, when people could freely create, bond & heal alongside total strangers w/o the interference of trolls or monetization.

Major after school special vibes. 📖 ➡️ 📺

You know how you get what you get from a book & then someone tells you their takeaway is graphic (not really, just frank) sex talk when you were swept away that an entire family can be so loving & accepting of gender fluidity, expression & romantic love? No one reads the same book.

Teams message with classics degree-holding coworker:
ME - What‘s a laconophile?
ME - Oh, he digs Spartans.
…
THEM - Probably a jerk. That‘s how it tends to go with Classics guys like him.
ME - I appreciate your learnéd insight.
THEM - Sparta guys are another version of WWII fanboys.
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I didn‘t love this book.

When I wait too long to post the books I read, I forget what I want to remember about them. This memoir makes me think of the young ppl in Ukraine. We all just want to live “normal” lives — whatever is typical to our region/community. It‘s fundamentally unfair to be caught in someone‘s crosshairs.

Daisy is my friend IRL. I did not know she was in this book until Krouse introduces her in the telling. I have some mixed feelings, obviously. Feeling protective.

iamsoshockedcorporationsmanipulatefoodtoprofitoffouraddictions;&wouldyoubelievephillipmorrisisphillipmorrising? Honestly, why bother eating or trying to teach kids to eat healthfully?

I recommend going into this book cold (knowing there will be some sexy bits, in case you aren‘t into that). Knowing the premise was a bit spoilery for me. Also, I suck at bread making, but I made, ate, & survived this.

ATLWC feels like it leans into self help.
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Organized most of my nonfiction as BeReal popped off. This is where the truly insightful Becoming lives on my bookshelf.

Madcap yet oddly relatable.

This is a Litsy-made-me-read-it. No regrets. Although…

Did every page, paragraph, sentence or word make me angry? Yes. Pretty much rage read this one.

I waited a long time for my library hold to come in. As soon as I finished, I bought multiple copies to distribute. Libraries definitely generate book sales.

From Kirkus: A disappointing, unfulfilling journey with forgettable characters.

Kirkus! Ouch! Was that necessary? This is not an important book; it‘s a fun book. It allows for imagining modern-day families without mobile phones or social media. Plus, there‘s a mystery. Read it for what it is, not what you think it should be.

Also 1) I could use a little less pocket computer in my life, & 2) how cute is the cassette stamp the authors had made up?

It‘s tough to look internally when things are raw & then faithfully relate what you discover. I read a ton of memoir & this will be among the ones I remember & recommend.

Strategically placed for my adult son to find, he moved it to my adult daughter‘s room. Like a mom still momming, I nag both, “It won‘t take you more than four hours to read this.” 😒

I‘m about to buy some comfy shoes, quit my job & go to work at the Met. Or at least visit a museum.

I wasn‘t exactly avoiding this book; I just wasn‘t interested. A reader I respect loaned me her copy, so I felt obligated. I‘m glad I did. Delightful. Also, as a life-long domestic scientist, I‘ve done loads of experiments. They aren‘t fun & often fail, but I understand EZ‘s approach to life.

I‘m 💯going to say “police occupation” instead of “over-policing” from now on.

This was a Litsy-Made-Me-Read-It. I feel like I should have been into it, but I listened to it on lunch breaks. Instead of it distracting me from work, work distracted me from this book. Also, I may have over-focused on female experience in male dominated workspaces & not enough on the relationships.

As much as I love watching Porter take down corrupt assh*les, I‘d be terrified to be schooled by her. 😆 I appreciate this memoir because she‘s candid about her feelings of inadequacy. OTOH, her drive is unforgiving.

Reading this made me feel guilty for liking Sam so much. On the plus side, I read this with my own daughter.

I‘m not sure which Litten put this on my TBR, but thank you! Now I need a Mitford biography.

Read it. Read anything by Matt Desmond. Idk what we value in this country, but it‘s not humanity.
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Anyway, I love books so thoroughly that I read all the fine print. In this case that includes the information on the typeface, Dante, a “venerable” face.

You think you‘ve been poked in the heart but really you‘ve been impaled while maybe laughing sometimes. Also, strong “this or that” game.

Levine Querdido may just be my new favorite publisher. This is historical fantasy, a compelling genre. It uses inclusive (& correct) language. It‘s funny & sweet while tackling dark issues. Of course Lamb is a librarian; they are made of awesome. But also, LQ has really got me this season. 🙌🏼

Although I score high on the Visual Thinking test, I don‘t see myself that way. That‘s about all that interested me in this book. Her adoration for Evil Musk & Edison 🤢. She knows squat-all about public education, cherry picking research. Contradicting herself at multiple points… I wanted to love this b/c a friend does, but I did not. I will say her drafting is gorgeous, & the animal welfare parts make for good reading.

I‘m on the fringe of Davis‘s readership because I don‘t have the means to hire out help. I do have “chore trauma”. As a result, I only clean in an empty or sleeping house. I do it silently, & I don‘t ask for help. I don‘t have friends over b/c I can‘t meet my own standards. It is a relief to be told my trauma isn‘t my children‘s trauma. Coincidentally, I share some of her cleaning techniques. Also, I do follow Davis on the 🕰️ app.

I describe my years in food service as sex, sarcasm & stress. Plenty of alcohol & drugs too (I didn‘t partake). That is captured here. Although C-A acknowledges the sexual antics would constitute harassment today, he also says no one was bothered back then. I hated having to sidestep sticky fingers. I said nothing because I needed the job. Doesn‘t mean I wasn‘t bothered! Also, Woody Allen deserves a table nowhere.

I‘ve had enough of Bowen… and his mother… and his secret… and mushrooms. I‘m ready for something better for Song.

“Nestled in the branches of a tree, Arlo opened his book & breathed in. Beginnings were always the best part. they smelled as if anything were possible.” Moral: Banning books doesn‘t suppress imagination. More books will come.

I wanted a consent-driven, sex-positive feminist boss‘s take on all the ‘90s misogyny. Instead she tells readers a hundred times how smart she is (she read Hamlet like every other high schooler) & how easy success was for her. She also reinforces the perception around her terrible taste in men by gushing over Assange. I have empathy & want success/happiness for her, but I kinda wish I hadn‘t read this book.

The first half engrossed me. I was less interested in the second. Was it because we are already saturated in Meghan mania or because the writing lost some of the stronger themes in the first half? Idk. Unlike Harry, I think monarchy is total BS. I do not find value in noble classes. This is likely why I‘m curious about the mindset of someone so entrenched & benefitting from a happenstance of birth stretching understandings of humanity in this way.

I‘d have liked to have read this through the lens of a 12YO. Reading it as an adult left me a little frustrated with the adults in the book, even though they were ‘80s adults.

These companion books to Dr. Robbins‘ DEI seminars through Visceral Change include useful info with room for notes. Sherard is a former coworker, now friend.
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These aren‘t in the Litsy database, but the tagged book reminds me that I should read that so I can have the big idea and not the sprinkles of insight gathered over years of our Zoom mtgs, dinners out & the hilarious group chat I hope continues indefinitely.

My favorite #picturebooks integrate text & illustrations so well that the two are beyond complementary—they are greater than their sum. This is a book I‘d read on repeat with kids & enjoy every moment. Marta & her neighborhood are the coolest.

#GlibalLit