The Summer That Melted Everything by Tiffany McDaniel explores the loss of innocence in a sleepy Ohio town. Fielding Bliss is a kid growing up in Breathed, Ohio. His dad is a judge, and has been struggling with the ethical implications of his role. When he started his career, he saw everything in black and white,Read more
I’ve been an N.K. Jemisin fangirl ever since I heard her do a reading at the New York Public Library while I was at Book Expo a few years back. I was blown away by her writing, and the way that her fantasy stories felt so fresh and un-Tolkein-like. So when my book club decidedRead more
My Sweet Vidalia by Deborah Mantella is the story of a young woman in the 1950s American South who overcomes considerable hardship and discovers her own inner strength. Vidalia gets pregnant while in high school and has a shotgun wedding. Unfortunately, her new husband is a terrible person and abuses her to the point thatRead more
Back in June, I won a giveaway at The Book Smugglers for Karen Sandler’s novel Tankborn and its sequel Awakening. The books are from Lee & Low, a new publisher focusing on multiculturalism and diversity in children’s and young adult literature. Their mission is something that I fully support, and it’s especially heartening to seeRead more
During the R.I.P. Challenge this fall, I had decided to read some Lovecraft. The challenge has already ended, but I’m still going to continue what I started. Today I’m going to talk about two of H. P. Lovecraft’s short stories–“The Lurking Fear” and “The Rats in the Walls.” The Lurking Fear Like “Herbert West: Reanimator,”Read more