Book Controversies and Indie Book Stores
Welcome Friends! I am discussing book controversies and singing the praises of independent book stores this month.
The Dirt on American Dirt
Sometimes controversy over a book overwhelms the book itself. This month there has been a major kerfuffle about the highly anticipated book American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins. At the end of 2019 and start of this year, I heard a lot about how American Dirt would be The Book. In short, American Dirt is story of a woman and her son who must leave behind their life in Mexico and escape as undocumented immigrants to the United States. It made the cover of Indie Next List in February and was on many peoples’ most anticipated novel of the year lists. Oprah even chose it as her book club pick this month.
So here is a short, simplified version of what is going on. After it was chosen by Oprah, a number of Latinx authors and others in the publishing industry sent a letter to the author and publisher criticizing the book for its stereotypical Mexican immigrant portrayal and using it as an example of the publishing industry prioritizing white authors rather than support more diverse authors. This touches on the issue of “own voices” and whether people need to stay within their own narratives (ethnicities, gender, experience) to tell stories. Unfortunately after the letter was sent, death threats to the author followed and her publisher cancelled her book tour over concerns about her safety. Further muddling the waters, authors who signed the letter calling out Cummins have now received threats as well. This is a complex story highlighting the divisiveness running throughout our culture right now. If you want to read more about this story, here are a couple good summaries:
I have not read this book. I can be thrifty and don’t often buy newly published books so I will wait and see on this one. A notable exception is listed later in the newsletter.
The Independent Book Selling Community
As I mentioned above, Indie Next List is a publication of Indiebound.org, which is a community of independent booksellers. This is a great source for finding your next read as well as exploring local bookstores. I love the search engine for indepedent bookstores on the home page. Before I travel to a new city, I use this resource to find bookstores to visit. While Amazon is paying my bills (a.k.a. my hubby’s employer), I am still a huge advocate & patron of independent book stores.
During a recent trip to Orange County we visited two great book shops. Beach Town Books in San Clemente – a used bookstore with an awesome selection and friendly staff. I grabbed Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, which has been on my TBR for a while. Later that day we cruised up the coast and stopped at Laguna Beach Books – a small but well curated bookstore on PCH, where I purchased a book of short stories. If you live in SoCal, I highly recommend a visit to both of these stores.
And Now For Some Book Recommendations…
Recent Reads:
Currently being wrecked by Know My Name:
Chanel Miller is the victim in the Stanford Rape Case and this is her story. I am not done reading but already cannot recommend enough. Her story is grueling but her courage is off the charts. She also happens to be an incredible writer. I purchased the hardcover for this because I want to support her and the courage it takes to write something from such a vulnerable place.
Parable of the Sower is a fantastic sci-fi novel written by an African-American female author. Butler wrote these (there are 2 in the series) novels in the 1990’s about life in a near future where society is breaking down, corporations and government are slicing up what is left of the functioning economy. Dystopian but pre-apocalyptic, the setting she creates gives me pause for its clarity. People are trying to survive by living behind walls and banding together to protect their families and possessions. Our heroine is a teen with a vision of the future, forced to leave the security of her neighborhood and head north to try building a new life. This is reminiscent of The Road by Cormac McCarthy but not quite as dark. And that is the scary part — Butler seems to prophetically understand environmental and societal issues we are only beginning to deal with.
I read some heavy stuff in January but also had some fun reads too. An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good by Helene Turstin is a delightful little book that had me chuckling throughout. Set in Sweden and translated into English the prose is succinct. The title pretty much sums up what is going on in these 5 short stories. Maude, our main character is an 88 year old Swedish woman who really is up to no good. Even though the stories are brief, they are crafted with care. Drawn to the small size (my suitcase was stuffed) and cute cover art, I was amused and entertained the whole way through. I found this a fun little read and would make a great gift book for mystery lovers — or a fun addition to a guest room nightstand.
If you are not following me on Instagram (or Facebook), then you may have missed this review :
Book Adjacent Podcast Recommendation:
Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone was a guest on Gretchen Rubens Happier Podcast. This was one of my favorite books last year and Gottlieb gives some really thoughtful relationship advice on the episode.
And finally, how cute is this?! An old VW bus that serves as a mobile bookstore. The owner uses profits to purchase books for classroom libraries. I am so inspired!!!
I am reading Never Have I Ever now!!! I'm about half way through.