The past month has included pink (March) and red (April) books. Here's what I've been reading!
A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum: Murder in Ancient Rome by Emma Southon: This was a surprisingly entertaining history lesson on ancient Rome and the way that killing of various sorts was regarded. There are plenty of wild stories throughout, not to mention details that may turn your stomach. But whether you pick this up for the Roman history lesson or the humor, it's an interesting lesson in how the concept of "murder" varies between times and places.
We Both Laughed in Pleasure: The Selected Diaries of Lou Sullivan ed. by Ellis Martin and Zach Ozma: This was a remarkable collection. Sullivan's writing itself is clear and compelling, and I found it fascinating to accompany him so intimately on this life journey of being one of the first openly gay trans men. I appreciate the immense effort that the editors put into whittling down Sullivan's diaries into something so focused and readable.
When the World Was Ours by Liz Kessler: Through the story of three best friends separated by the machinations of Hitler's Europe, we see three very different experiences of that time period: the Jewish family that got away, the Jewish family that didn't, and the non-Jewish family that gained power and prestige through Hitler's regime. The characters and their stories felt real, at times painfully so, and I think Kessler does an excellent job of helping a middle grade reader understand what it might have been like to live through that period of time.
Here for It; Or, How to Save Your Soul in America by R. Eric Thomas: This was fine. I appreciated the parts that were funny and some of his more sincere reflections on life (I truly enjoyed the play in the last chapter), and I have a feeling that, while this collection as a whole felt uneven and not my favorite, there will be distinct moments from his life story that stick with me past this reading.
Making Numbers Count: The Art and Science of Communicating Numbers by Chip Heath and Karla Starr: This feels kind of intentionally like an offshoot of Made to Stick, focusing narrowly on helping people really grasp any numerical information you might be trying to convey. Although I'd heard many of the analogies (or "translations") they shared in the book, such as converting the history of the universe into a single day, having them collected in one place and their principles laid out clearly was helpful.
Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera: I devoured this in just a few days! There were elements of this that reminded me of The Girl on the Train, and there were definitely other tropes that made this somewhat predictable, but ultimately none of that took away from my enjoyment. I highly recommend this on audio.
Shrill: Women Are Funny, It's Okay to Be Fat, and Feminists Don't Have to Be Nice by Lindy West: The core elements that West writes about — anti-abortion rhetoric, fatphobia, online trolls, sexual assault — are certainly all still present today, and she is incisive and funny in the way she tackles these issues, and also, there are elements that didn't age well. I can see why it got such positive attention when first published, but it's probably not the first thing I'm going to hand someone that deals with any of these issues.
Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: You Know, Sex, The Name of the Wind, More Than Two, and The Vanderbeekers of 141 Street
Five years ago I was reading: A Pocket Full of Rye, Womanist Midrash, Freddie Ramos Rules New York and Rick
Ten years ago I was reading: The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Ragtime, and A People's History of the United States
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