\Hello! I’m Joy, and I love to read. I consider it my greatest talent and favorite hobby. Another one of my preferred pastimes is recommending reads to anyone who is the least bit curious. Seriously. I am always volunteering book recs to people near me, whether they ask or not. I thought it would be fun to bring this passion to Baton Rouge Parents Magazine. I will share with you every book I read month by month and what I think about them. Let’s get started! You can also follow me on Instagram at @joyfulreadswithjoy!
Life’s Too Short by Abby Jimenez
Unexpected delight! This is my second Abby Jimenez novel, and she’s just so good at delivering snappy banter, lovable characters, multi-dimensional backgrounds, and real life issues. I flew through this, and I’m still thinking of these characters!
Summary: Vanessa is a famous YouTuber and travel vlogger whose life has radically changed since she started fostering her sister’s infant daughter. She crosses paths with her hot lawyer neighbor when she is desperate for baby help. Adrian, said hot lawyer, is captivated by Vanessa and taken with her cute baby. They quickly join lives as friends and neighbors, helping one another in all kinds of ways. Vanessa, a possible carrier of ALS, refuses to date, and Adrian follows her lead. These neighbors turn into lovers, but they must overcome the very real issues in their lives: grief, chronic illness, fear, family struggles, family member’s addiction, and heartbreak. They do this with adorable conversation, memorable outings and Office marathons, and great food. Precious!
Jimenez really knows how to captivate her reader with just the right amount of romcom and reality. Vanessa and Adrian take turns narrating their story, and the double POV really adds to the complexity of the storytelling. I love getting to know both of them through their perspectives. Just a fun read with enough substance and depth to make it thought provoking. I just wanted them to get together a little sooner! On a personal note, the ALS and disability elements really resonated with me. This romcom was not on my TBR; I checked it out on Libby for my Kindle and read it super fast!
American Midnight by Adam Hochschild
Back on my history game. I love a deep nonfiction dive into American history that I annotate like a madwoman. Adam Hochschild is a phenomenal researcher and captivating author that weaves very human stories with documented primary sources. In American Midnight, he investigates the disastrous period in America between 1917-1921.
In the style of Howard Zinn, Hochschild takes a critical view of powerful leaders who oppressed the common man. From the U. S. entry into WWI to the Espionage and Sedition Acts to the anti-labor crackdown to the influenza epidemic to the imprisonment of conscientious objectors to the rampant mob violence of lynchings and tar/featherings, American Midnight surveys the oppressive landscape that was our nation. It’s fascinating how many events, laws, backlash, surveillance, and political rhetoric have nearly been repeated in the last few years, a hundred years later. It’s so important to learn and understand our history, especially when it’s uncomfortable and hard to read.
Hochschild follows several main historical figures, some well known and others barely known, throughout this period. He also focuses on lesser known perspectives of the big events. Exceptional read for the history nerd like me.
I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai
Rebecca Makkai is a fantastic author, and when I read The Great Believers a few years ago, I became completely taken with her. This novel is very different, but still deeply provocative and haunting. More than a murder mystery, this novel approaches truth and justice from a feminist and race conscious lens that explores the 90s and where we are today. Makkai guides the reader through the questions of memory and adolescence while investigating a twenty-year old murder.
Summary: Bodie is a well-known podcaster and film professor who returns to her boarding school in New Hampshire to teach a podcasting class. Upon arrival at her former campus, she is flooded with memories, specifically of her roommate who was murdered in 1995. Everything she thought she knew comes into question as she considers if the wrong person is unjustly imprisoned. With her friends and young teen podcasters, Bodie explores her past with a “Me Too” lens that changes her perception of what really happened.
I Have Some Questions for You connected with me because the narrator and main character is a few years older than me, and so as she describes her 90s high school years, I caught some real nostalgia vibes. I really enjoyed the plot, the twists, and the depth throughout the mystery. I found myself questioning many decisions Bodie made, and I can’t say I loved her, but she was a dynamic character who grew and developed well. She is a bit unreliable at times, but she is questioning herself the entire time. I appreciated all of the angles represented. I’ve recommended this to several people already, and I really want to talk about it!
Warning: violence, assault, harassment
Normal Distance by Elisa Gabbert
I don’t read much poetry that I’m not teaching. With that being said, this collection of poems by Elisa Gabbert didn’t totally do it for me. However, there were a few I really liked, and some beautiful sentences and thoughts here and there. I read this for my book club, and the poems did provoke some earnest and interesting conversations.
Gabbert ponders topics like time, boredom, nature, death, and experience. She includes random facts and musings about the world and life. I also think I read this too fast, and this collection would be more enjoyed if spread out and read slowly. Give yourself time to marinate on the poems and read them to others!
Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop by Danyel Smith
Brilliant nonfiction with soul and emotion always brings a smile to my face. Opening up this beauty filled me with introspection and elation. Danyel Smith’s thoughtful and impeccably researched examination of influential Black Women in pop taught me so much. Shine Bright was a perfect way to end Women’s History Month.
Summary: Part music history and part memoir, Shine Bright is a celebration of Black women in pop music as well as a sociological investigation into their lack of acknowledgement and power. Danyel Smith, a music journalist and editor, begins her book with an in-depth look at Phillis Wheatley as a precursor to Black women in lyricism and creativity who did not get their just honor. From there, Smith dives into the Dixie Cups, the Supremes, Gladys Knight, Aretha, Diana, Whitney, Janet, and Mariah, just to name a few. While she recaps their lives and musical influence, she also shares her personal history and love for music and writing.
Shine Bright is powerful and beautiful, like Smith herself. The book radiates both an admiration for these exceptional artists and a criticism of the patriarchal and racist systems that did not give these artists their full due. My favorite parts were Smith’s interview excerpts with the subjects and her recollections of their music’s impact on her.
Quote: “Because if we stop, we will be forgotten. That is the fear. And it’s not an irrational fear, because so many Black women and so much of Black women’s work is undervalued and strategically un-remembered…But what’s even more heartbreaking than that is the thought that people may not truly know us, or the details of our lives…What if our spirits and stories are never truly known?” (Smith 271).
