It’s Monday What Am I Reading?

I haven’t done one of these in a while, but as I sual, I’ve been reading quite a few interesting books, and I wanted to share a bit more about them!

I just finished reading:

The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite
After finishing Count Your Lucky Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur, I was in the mood for reading another sapphic romance, and picked up this one since it had been on my TBR for quite some time. This one is a historical fiction that deals a lot with the place of women in science and art, which is why I wanted to read it (in addition with the fact that I needed a bit of fancy dresses and romance in my life). I really enjoyed the audiobook, and ended up giving the book 4 stars.

Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales
This is another book I was really curious about. It’s a queer (M/M) modern retelling of Grease and I loved it to pieces. I read it over the weekend, and ended up giving it 4 stars as well. The French translation for this book is getting released in April, and the publisher was kind enough to provide me with an ARC can’t wait to share it with my YA readers art work! (And I also badly want to rewatch Grease in order to be able to really make all of the parallels…)

I also read one literary fiction book which was translated from Portuguese (Brasil). It’s called We All Loved Cowboys by Carol Bensimon and it follows Julia and Cora who used to date but lost touch after both of them moved abroad. On a whim, they decide to reconnect and go on a road trip together. Over the course of their trip, old feelings and old secrets resurface. It’s a quick read, and I rather enjoyed it. I gave this one 3.5 stars.

I’m currently reading:

Life Isn’t Binary by Meg-John Barker and Alex Iantaffi, which I picked up at a feminist bookstore last weekend. As expected from the title, it challenges different ways through which society is always presented as binary, from the dichotomy between good & bad, but of course also through gender and sexuality, and more. It’s really interesting so far.

What I want to read next:

Nobody is going to be surprised when I say that my TBR is currently out of control. I don’t really know what I’m going to read next, but I do know that I have a copy of The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, and I’m really curious about it, so this might be my next read. Either that, or some French literary fiction.

Top 5 Wednesday: Required Reading

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted on Goodreads. Feel free to join the group here. I haven’t been very much active on the blog this past month, so this is kind of my opportunity to make up for it. The theme for this week is required reading, and I wanted to talk about five books that I picked up in high school or thanks to university. These were not necessarily required reading, but maybe some suggestions from professors that I ended up really loving! I studied both French and English/American literature, so it’s going to be a combination of both, with a mix of autobiographies because that’s also a subject I took many classes on!

The Ladies’ Paradise by Emile Zola

I read this one for school when I was in 9th grade, and I ended up falling in love with this book. To this day, it is still one of my favourites. I remember reading way into the night because I couldn’t sleep. And because of this book, I ended up picking up more of Zola’s work (I particularly enjoyed The Kill as well, I feel like it’s been a while since I last talked about it.) Basically the story centers on the opening of a big department store in Paris during the 19th century, while the city is being modernized. We follow Denise, who has lost everything and became an employee there. She is quickly noticed by her employer, who falls in love with her. Bonus: it’s one of the only books by Zola that actually has a happy ending!

The Years by Annie Ernaux

I picked up this one when I was doing my bachelor’s degree, and it has also become one of my favourite. It’s non-fiction this time. It’s this autobiography of the other from childhood to adulthood. She was born in 1940 during the war, and through the book, explains how she felt like through her life, she passed through major historical events without really being able to participate in them. She is an amazing writer and I can only recommend you check out her work!

A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf

I picked up this one, as you guessed it, through my English studies, and I don’t think I really need to introduce it. I’ve since then read many more books about feminism, but I still cherish this one, and I would love to reread it one day.

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

When I started my Master’s I took a class on Afrofuturism, and my professor recommended this book, which I ended up really loving. It’s a vampire reimagined story, which starts when a seeminly young girl wakes up with no memory of her life. She soon finds out that she is actually an adult genetically modified vampire, and that her community is at risk. This book was absolutely excellent, and I’m so glad I got to discover Butler’s novels through it!

The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis

And last but not least, another French autobiography that was also recommended to me by one of my professors. This one is also contemporary and contemplates questions of class, education and sexuality. Edouard Louis is an amazing writer. I have yet to pick up more of his work, but I am definitely looking forward!

And that’s it for today! Thank you so much for reading, have a wonderful day, and please feel free to recommend some of your favourite required readings!

December Reading Wrap Up

I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to read as much in December as in the past few months, because with what of Christmas month, I had more work to do, and was more tired. Thankfully, that wasn’t really the case! I started the month with three amazing middle grade books, and managed to get a decent amount of reading done in the end. With that being said, happy new year! And let’s get into the books I read last month!

Middle grade books:

Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I was really excited about this one since I loved the two previous books in the series, and it was just as great. New characters are introduced, as well as new plot twists, and it was overall wonderful. The book ends on a cliffhanger, and I can’t wait for the last instalment in this amazing series!

The Strangeworlds Travel Agency by LD Lapinski ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I also started a new series which had been on my radar for a while! In this one, we follow 12 y/o Flick who stumbles upon a mysterious travel agency. Soon she discovers that she is able to travel to parallel universes through suitcases, and that the heart of this world is in danger. With the help of the agency owner, she will do anything to stop it. This book was amazing, and really promising for the rest of the series! I’m excited for new youger readers to discover it!

Rick by Alex Gino ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I read George a couple years ago, and loved it with all my heart, so when I heard that Alex Gino had written a new story with an a-spec character, I knew that of course, I had to check it out. It won’t come as a surprise when I say that I absolutely loved it. This book is precious, it’s beautiful and important and I’m so glad that it’s out there in the world.

Young adult:

The Life and (Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly by Jamie Pacton ⭐⭐⭐
I was really excited for this book when I first heard of it because I’m all about girls who want to be knights. And to that extent, it did live up to my expectations! This book was also nicely diverse. But it was also very full of clichés. And I have come to the conclusion once again that I’m getting too old for YA books (or at least some of them… Not that it’s going to stop me from reading them!) So overall: enjoyable, but maybe not for me.

Historical fiction:

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles ⭐⭐⭐⭐
It had been a while since I had last read a good historical fiction novel, and this reminded me of how much I do enjoy them. This one follows a dual timeline betwen WWII Paris and small town in Montana in the 1980s, and mostly centers on what happened to the American Library in Paris and its members during the war. It’s a beautiful story about bravery and trust and betrayal. If you like stories with morally gray characters, and WWII stories in general, then I ddefinitely recommend you check out this one!

Graphic novels:

Chinese Queer by Seven ⭐⭐⭐
This one follows the life story of Tian Fushi as he goes through several relationships, and overall both grows up and figures himself out a little bit better.

Peau d’homme de Hubert et Zanzim ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Literally “a man’s skin”, this graphic novel takes place during medieval times and follows a young woman who disguises as a man with a precious man’s skin that is a family heirloom, and tries to get to know her fiancé a little bit better. Overall, it went places I didn’t really expect, and I really enjoyed it!

Livres en français:

La belle lumière d’Angélique Villeneuve ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A stunning historical fiction about the story of Helen Keller’s life. Based on the real life story, Angélique Villeneuve filled in the gaps left in between letters, and built an amazing character who faught for her daughter’s right to independance. It was absolutely beauitful.

La ville sans vent vol.2 d’Éléonore Devillepoix ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The sequel to a book I read earlier this year, it’s a fantasy story with a great world-building. I really grew attached to the characters, and would definitely recommend it to people who loved A Winter’s Promise by Christelle Dabos, and who like fantasy in general!

L’âme agit des livres de Mademoiselle Fa ⭐⭐⭐.5
This one is a short poetry book with many word plays.

Non fiction:

This is How it Starts by Dawn Lanuza ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A beautiful poetry book about breakups. I had read another collection by Dawn Lanuza in the past, and greatly enjoyed it, so I’m really glad I picked up this one to finish the year!

The Invisivle Orientation by Julie Sondra Decker ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This one if you haven’t heard of it is an introdution to asexuality. I bought it back in June and was really looking forward to reading it. I felt so seen and validated through it all (even if it’s not something I relate to one hundred percent of the time, it’s nice to hear that it’s OKAY and NORMAL to feel and thing like this). Anyway, I’m still confused, but I loved this book wholeheartedly and I can only recommed it.

Présentes by Lauren Bastide ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A newly released French book about feminism, developing on the place and presence of women in public space and media. I have to admit I didn’t learn that much, but I’m still educating myself, and the author did make some pretty good points.

Freedom is a constant struggle by Angela Y. Davis ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
And finally, this one was a series of speeches about freedom and anti-racism by activist Angela Davis. I’m so glad I took the time to read it, it was very interesting, and I would definitely recommend it! And overall I’m also really glad I finally took the time to pick up some non-fiction this month.

That’s it for today, thank you so much for reading, and again, happy new year!

Top 5 Wednesday: Non Fiction

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted on Goodreads. Feel free to join the group here. The theme for this week was non fiction, and it made me realise that I hadn’t really talked about this topic in a while, although I really like it! And I decided to talk about five books that left a deep impact on me.

For the record, the first book that came to my mind was obviously The Years by Annie Ernaux, but since I feel like I am already talking about it all the time here these days, I decided to go with five different titles. And without further ado, here comes the list!

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Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race
by Reni Eddo-Lodge

The title is pretty self-explanatory, and to be honest, I think I need to reread this book. It is extremely important and well-made. Reni Eddo-Lodge talks about racism, why it’s so tiring to talk about race issues with white people as well as how it’s not her job (and the job of BIPOC in general) to educate us. There is also a very good chapter on intersectional feminism. If you have not read this book yet, I highly recommend you do so!

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

I read this one back in 2017, and it was absolutely remarkable. Written as a letter to the author’s son, Between the World and Me talks about the history of race in the United States, and how the bodies of Black people have been exploited in the past, and still are today. It’s a very important lesson, based on historical research and the author’s life, and again, if you haven’t read this one, I highly recommend you do so.

No Mordenism Without Lesbians by Diana Souhami

I found out about this book earlier this year, and read it over the summer. It was so interesting, and I really learnt a lot. It is a series of biographies about lesbians who lived in Paris in the 1920s, such as Gertrude Stein and Sylvia Beach, the founder of the Shakespeare and Company bookstore, and how much of an impact they had on the modernist movement. This book was very detailed, but also truly inspiring, and I completely loved it.

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

This book was a beautiful and heartbreaking journey. It’s the memoir of a surgeon who found out one day that he had cancer. It was inspiring, and it broke me in so many ways, and yet I can only recommend it.

Can We All Be Feminists?
a series of essays collected by June Eric-Udorie

Another book that is very important, and really made me think. It includes seventeen essays by seventeen amazing women, who all have different views on society. Along with Reni Eddo-Lodge’s book, it’s a very important reflexion on how important intersectional feminism is. This book is so important, and now that I think of it I want to reread it, but I can’t seem to remember where I misplaced my copy. But anyway, you got the point: you should definitely read this book.

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Honorary mention: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami, in which the author talks about two of his passions, running marathons and writing, and how the two are somehow related. This book was both inspiring and fascinating, and I absolutely recommend it as well.

And that’s it for today! Thank you so much for reading, have a wonderful day, and feel free to recommend me some of your favourite non fiction books, as I never have enough things to read!

February Wrap Up

I know that’s not a very original thought, but I can’t believe February is over already? How is time going so fast? Already, I can see the night falling later. It’s still dark when I get out of work, but at 6pm we still get to see the light of the day which is REFRESHING. As fast as this month came and went, I still managed to read 12 books, and in addition to that, got to write a bunch of articles for the blog, so I’m really satisfied. And without further ado, here come the books that I have read this month!

A few YA novels:

Élite: Al Fondo de la Clase by Abril Zamora ⭐⭐

This is a companion novel to the Netflix series Elite which I honestly watch as a guilty pleasure. Like, this show is trash but I can’t stop watching it. It has it good moments, but it’s mostly drama. It’s fun to watch, but I could live without it. The book was okay, and I surprisingly read it to the last page, but I also felt like I could have dropped it at any moment and moved on with my life. It follows characters who aren’t in the show, and I didn’t really feel compelled to like any of them. So yeah, I was a bit disappointed.

Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was simply stunning. It’s a great coming-of-age story that deals with asexuality and instant fame on the internet, that was in my opinion perfectly executed. Check out this post if you want to see me babble abou it some more.

Tell Me Again How A Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is a book that had been on my TBR for some time now, and I eventually picked it up on a whim. I’m so glad that I did because I really enjoyed it. It was a bit cliché, but what can I say, I wanted a cute WLW story, and I got just that so I’m not going to complain!

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I wasn’t planning on reading this one actually, mostly because I already had so many other books that I wanted to read. But upon the French release I couldn’t resist checking it out, and I ended up loving it. It’s a great SFF story with a heist in space after all, how could I resist? (Full review)

Opposite of Always by Jason Reynolds ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The last book I managed to read this month! This one is a contemporary/time travel YA romance and what can I say (there is no way I stay chill with that statement) I JUST LOVE TIME TRAVEL OKAY. So of course I loved that book. The only reason I gave it four and not five stars is because of the questionable/cliché decisions that the main character took in the second part of the book. Other than that, it was just the right amount of amazing. I might write a full blog post about this one soon-ish if I have the time, we shall see!

Three French books that are mostly autobiographical:

Le Lambeau by Philippe Lançon, in which the author tells us about his journey to survival after the Charlie Hebdo shooting of January 2015 (⭐⭐⭐⭐). Les os des filles by Line Papin, in which the author speaks about how she felt uprooted from everything when she moved from Vietnam to France when she was 10. It’s a very beautiful book about a girl who, after that event, felt like she didn’t belong anywhere. (I also rated it ⭐⭐⭐⭐). And finally Toutes les histoires d’amour du monde by Baptiste Beaulieu, a tale in which the narrator/author found some notebooks that belonged to his grandfather after he passed away, which unveil a huge part of his life he knew nothing about. This one I completely fell in love with, and gave ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. I’m trying to get it together and hopefully I will write a more detailed reading update in French very soon.

Two French graphic novels:

Ma fille, mon enfant by David Ratte ⭐⭐⭐⭐, which explores the relationship between a mother and her daughter; and Les Vermeilles de Camille Jourdy ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ a very cute fantasy about a little girl who runs away from home and falls into a strange world. Both are fairly recent releases, and I really enjoyed them.

And finally, I read two mangas:

Our Precious Conversations by Robico (vol.1) and Living-no Matsunaga-San by Iwashita Keiko (vol.2) which I both rated ⭐⭐⭐. I’m gradually starting to read shojo again, which reminds me of when I was in high school and it’s just lovely!

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And that’s it for today! Thank you so much for reading, and cheers to another reading month!

I Finally Read Another Murakami Book And It Inspired Me

Title: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
Author: Haruki Murakami
Release: 2007
Genre: Non Fiction, Memoir
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was recommended to me by a customer at the bookshop where I work. As soon as she told me what it was about, I knew that I had to read this book, and I decided to give Murakami a second chance after my rather underwhelming experience with Norwegian Wood last summer (see my review). And she was right. I had the BEST time reading What I Talk About When I Talk About Running even though I am not a runner myself. It actually made me want to give it a try once again. I also want to check out more of Murakami’s work now, probably Kafka on the Shore since I heard many great things about it (and also, I’ve already acquired it on my kindle because I felt like I was on a roll).

Basically, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is a book about the author’s love for running. In several essay-like chapters, he talks about how he practices in order to run marathons and participate in triathlons. He also compares running and writing, his two passions, in terms of how both are a long term practice. And this really spoke to me on so many levels for some reason. Reading this book was a truly inspiring experience.

IT ALSO MADE ME FEEL SO MANY THINGS! Reading Murakami’s book What I Talk About When I Talk About Running made me want to reread some classics such as The Great Gatsby or Great Expectations, or even Tess of the d’Ubervilles, and fully appreciate them because they are very clever observations of our society. I fell now that I wasn’t ready to really enjoy them when I first read them. And even though I probably won’t ever get the chance to reread them (at least not any time soon, as I mostly try to read new releases for work), it feels like a few words from Murakami about The Great Gatsby gave me a better understanding of classics in general.

So yes, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is a really good book, and I devoured it. I have also now decided that I too, should dedicate my life to running and writing. And to overall becoming a better person. Of course it happens every so often that books make me want to do things with my life like trying out archery or some other random thing. Mostly, it’s also traveling, which I love doing. Sometimes, it’s something that has nothing to do with anything I have ever done or aspired to be. But this time, it’s something that is truly, absolutely in phase with who I am. It speaks to me. I do love writing, and have loved it since I learnt how to read. And I do want to leave a healthy life. So it just makes sense. And this is probably why this book left such a deep impact on me.

But that’s not all. Murakami’s style is excellent, and he is also a very humble narrator, which made for an even better reading experience. So yes, you should read this book. Read it right now, it might change your life.

Paris Bookfair 2019

Just like every year, I am back with my endless babble about this year’s bookfair in Paris, aka Livre Paris! This time, I attended on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday morning for a conference. Overall, I went to several book talks and signings, and am very happy with the experience!

This time, I had the great surprise of seeing that Kasie West was in attendance! I absolutely loved her book P.S. I Like You, and have been hoping I’d get to read more of her writing ever since. Although I like reading the books in their original language better, I couldn’t resist getting a copy of Love, Life and the List in order to get it signed. She was absolutely adorable and even complimented my hair!

On Friday, I also got to buy and get signed a copy of a French book about feminism by Margaux Collet called Is Beyoncé really a feminist? which looks super interesting, as well as a graphic novel about Frida Kahlo by Spanish illustrator Maria Hesse (pictured above) which looks absolutely gorgeous!

Just like last year, Lumen Editions’ booth was absolutely gorgeous, this time featuring a Stranger Things theme, as they recently published the translation to the show’s prequel Suspicious Minds by Gwenda Bond.

By the end of Saturday I also bought a book about vegetarianism by French journalist Hugo Clément, and I really hope I enjoy it!

Finally I bought a collection of short stories by my queen Tatiana de Rosnay which I unfortunately didn’t manage to get signed because I was feeling like shit and went home, but it’s fine, I got to meet her last year! I also just finished reading her novel The Rain Watcher (the one I got signed last year) and I absolutely LOVED it. Hopefully I’ll manage to review it soon!

The programmation for this year did not attract me as much as it did the previous year, but I still attended a bunch of very interesting “tables rondes” (which is a fancy French name for discussions). The first one was about feminism, and then there was one about Thatcher and the Brexit, one about the Berlin wall and its consequences today, and one about epistolary novels and virtual exchange. All were super interesting and I’m really happy about that!

Thoughts on Michelle Obama’s Book BECOMING

Title: Becoming
Author: Michelle Obama
Genre: Non Fiction, Memoir
Release: 2018
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

What this book is about:

From her early childhood in South Side Chicago, to her life after leaving the White House, Michelle Obama retraces her journey, and explains how she became who she is today. She gets through all the steps, from kindergarten to law school to her first job to meeting Barrack, all the election days, the campaigns, the life in the White House, to the woman she is now today. I personally listened to the audiobook narrated by Michelle Obama herself and I really loved it.

[Something I would occasionally think about while reading this book. Source: New Girl season 6 episode 11.]

Thoughts:

I’d been meaning to pick up this book ever since I learnt that it was a thing, and I’m so glad I just did. The narration by the author — and ex first lady — herself was definitely a bonus. Overall, it was clever and enjoyable. It’s so easy to really get into the story and the narration, and that definitely made it an interesting read. This book was both moving and inspiring, and I would recommend it one hundred percent.

Even if I pretty much knew what was going to happen next, every time Michelle Obama recalled holding her breath before an election result I couldn’t help but feel the suspense with her, which made me enjoy the book so much more!

Overall, Becoming was a truly inspiring book. I couldn’t help but admire Michelle Obama — even more than I did before — because of the amazing journey she went through. She switched careers three times before becoming the first lady, and that is so reassuring as a 23 years old. She truly gave me hope for my life, and made me want to be a better person. It was also interesting to get an insight into the life at the White House. This book made me want to pick up more of what she’d written! It’s impossible to even fathom what her life is right now / has been like as a first lady, but it was definitely nice to get a glimpse of it through Becoming.

I am a huge fan of memoirs and autobiographies in general, and this has become an instant favourite — possibly even more so than I would have imagined. Quite a few times, when people would ask me what I was reading in January, I would get really excited and start talking about Becoming and how great it is. Anyway, I guess my point is that this book is brilliant, and I loved it. If you still need me to write it down for you: go pick up Becoming 👏

After reading Can We All Be Feminists? it made so much sense to read something by an influential woman such as Michelle Obama, who had to fight her way through everything, and especially prejudice, day after day. Yet again, this is something that I can hardly fathom, but I’m trying my best to educate myself, and open my eyes in a better way. Reading this book was just one of the many things that contributed!

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Thanks for reading up until now, and I hope you will pick up Becoming!

Sunday Recommendations: Diverse Non Fiction

I used to make recommendation posts every Sunday at some point on this blog, but for some time, it hasn’t happened. Rest assured, some more are coming! I know I haven’t been very active on here lately, and I don’t have much of an excuse, but I’m not done with this blog quite yet, and here is a new selection of non fiction books I have been reading (more or less) recently, and would definitely recommend!

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

This book is quite a must read in my opinion. It deals with what it’s like to be a person of colour in the United States, possible differences with other countries, and what it’s like to raise a kid when you want the best for them, though you know they are bound to face racism sooner or later in their lives. This book is an absolute beauty, and a must read in my opinion.

milk and honey and the sun and her flowers by Rupi Kaur

I couldn’t make a blog post about non fiction without talking about at least one poetry book, and if I had to recommend one poetry book to everyone, it would be either milk and honey or the sun and her flowers by Rupi Kaur. The author’s poetry deals with abuse and how to get over it, what it’s like to be a a woman of colour in the United States, her love for her mother, and so much more. Both those books are absolutely stunning and I devoured them.

Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me by Lily Collins

In my opinion, mental disorders are a topic that should be major in non fiction today (along with race issues obviously, and feminism, who am I kidding). People should be more open about those, because no one is alone in there. This is exactly what Lily Collins does in Unflitered: she opens up about her eating disorders and all the mental problems she may have encountered throughout her life. Though a major topic, her book remains light and easy to read. It’s postive and an eye-opener: we need more positive books about mental and eating disorders!

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass

This is the oldest book on my list, and one I have recently read for one of my classes. It’s quite short and extremely well-written and I would say it also qualifies as a must-read. Frederick Douglass was born a slave and lived as one until he managed to run away, and ended up becoming an anti-slavery advocate. His testimony about his life as a slave is absolutely heartbreaking, but we should not forget about our history, and this is why I think this book is so important.

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

Another very important book, first about what it’s like to grow up as a person of colour in a mostly white country and even more so about what it’s like to get cancer when you are in your thirties and finishing redidency. This book is a punch in the feels, but it is also extremely beautifully written. It’s a book I would definitely recommend — if you have a box of tissues hanging around.

Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher

Again and again, we need more books discussing mental illness. We need more of them in fiction, but also in non fiction. As a person sufferring from depression and anxiety, I am craving for more of those books. They make me feel like I am not alone. You are not alone. In Wishful Drinking, Carrie Fisher talks about her bipolar disorder, and her addiction to alcohol, and proves once again that I have all the reasons in the world to admire her.

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

And last but not least, this is my most recent read, the book I’m shoving in everyone’s face right now. Every occasion is a good one for me to talk about this book. It is so important. Obviously, it’s talking about racism and how it is sadly deeply rooted in our system, whether we live in the UK like Reni Eddo-Lodge, or anywhere else in the world. What I really liked about it was how instructive it was. It explains patiently the situation, and uses many (often horrific) examples. This book is a must read.

Before I end this article I wanted to share a few lines of Why I’m No Longer Talkinng To White People About Race because I believe they are deeply important:

“I’m no longer engaging with white people on the topic of race. Not all white people, just the vast majority who refuse to accept the legitimacy of structural racism and its symptoms. I can no longer engage with the gulf of an emotional disconnect that white people display when a person of colour articulates their expreience. You can see their eyes shut down and harden. It’s like a treacle is poured into their ears, blocking up their ear canals. It’s like they can no longer hear us.”

And that’s it for today readers, thanks for reading my article, I hope you enjoyed it, and please feel free to recommend me more diverse non fiction in the comments!

Wishful Drinking: My Review

As you may or may not know, I am studying Carrie Fisher’s book The Princess Diarist for my thesis this year, and of course I am getting into reading as much as her other books as possible. I am working on questions of autobiography and memoirs, taboo and coming of age. So The Princess Diarist was a perfect choice for that. However, there is another subject that is very dear to me, and that is mental illness. This is why I was so eager to read Wishful Drinking. And this is why I absolutely wanted to talk about it on here.

Genre: Non Fiction
Publication: 2008
My rating: ★★★★★

What this book is about:

In Wishful Drinking, Carrie Fisher talks about different aspects of her life, growing up, the impact her parents had on her life, and of course the impact Star Wars had on her life, her mental health and addiction problems, the fact that one of her best friends died in her bed, different relationships she had, manic depression and shock therapy, how her daughter changed her life, and loads of other sensible and important matters. The books is actually (for the most part I believe) the transcription of a show with the same name, if I am correct.

“By the end of this book, you could be gay and insane! Unless you began that way.”

(Spoilers: I did begin that way.)

Thoughts:

Wishful Drinking is very moving, and cleverly written. Needless to say, I absolutely loved it. It’s a quick read and I devoured it almost in one sitting. I love how Carrie Fisher writes, it’s so easy to read, and yet she talks about incredibly important matters. This book is light in times, and grave when it needs to be. I seem to have learnt a lot, both about her, and about what it’s like growing up the child of worlwide famous parents such as Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher. She shares anecdotes of her childhood and hadulthood, relationships and friendships, but more importantly, she breaks the taboo surrounding mental illness. Carrie Fisher sufferred from manic depression, which means she could go through phases of intense despair, and phases of mania, which are quite the opposite and something I cannot begin to describe. And yet she talks about it as something that was just part of her life, just another element that made her who she was, without dramatizing it. And that’s what I really admire about her. She manages to present alcoholism, depression and electroshop therapy as just another eccentricity of her life, when it was also a constant burden, in the life of an amazing person.

“But imagine this though. Imagine having a mood system that functions essentially like weather “- independantly of whatever’s going on in your life. So the facts of your life remain the same, just the emotional fiction that you’re responding to differs.”

That, ladies and gentlemen, is Carrie Fisher talking about bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression. And it’s absolutely beautiful.

Before I end this blog post, I wanted to share two additional quotes which I find for the first one, incredible relatable, and for the second one, incredible inspiring:

“I didn’t necessarily feel like dying — but I’d been feeling a lot like not being alive.”

“Resentment is like drinking a poison and waiting for the other person to die.”

That it’s bookworms, I hope you enjoyed, and I most certainly hope you will check out this book if you haven’t read it yet!