Mel The Bookworm

[REVIEW] White Ivy, by Susie Yang

A Black woman's hand holds the ebook of White Ivy up in front of a little island cottage in New England. The cover depicts an Asian woman with her arms wrapped around herself on a black background. The top half of her face is not in the picture.

(Buy it on Bookshop here.) I moved to Boston recently, and as a result I’ve been slurping up books set there. Most of them are not diverse, to put it mildly. White Ivy, a book about a Chinese-American immigrant in the city, was a refreshing surprise. There are a lot of reviews of this byContinue reading “[REVIEW] White Ivy, by Susie Yang”

Last Week In Books: You Think You Can Stop Me, Mr. Zuckerberg? Think Again!

A cute Black woman with glasses, an Afro-puff, wearing a pink cardigan and a black shirt, is sitting in front of a computer monitor deep in thought.

Been a long time, fellow readers. Facebook’s little BSOD moment has reminded me not to put all my eggs into one platform’s basket. So, in order to keep bringing you diverse book and diverse author news even in the case of a social media apocalypse, let’s try bringing this back on a biweekly basis, forContinue reading “Last Week In Books: You Think You Can Stop Me, Mr. Zuckerberg? Think Again!”

[Review] Life After Death, Sister Souljah

A Kindle lays flat on a dark, plum-colored velvety blanket. It displays the black and white cover the Life After Death, which depict a pair of full women's lips above the book title.

(If you don’t love yourself today, you can buy this here at Bookshop) Did any of y’all ever read Christian end times spec-fic? By that I mean books like Left Behind, This Present Darkness, and other religious novels focused on spiritual warfare, heaven, hell, and salvation. There are a lot of odd things about evangelicultureContinue reading “[Review] Life After Death, Sister Souljah”

[REVIEW] Parable of the Sower: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, original text by Octavia Butler, adapted by Damian Duffy, illustrated by John Jennings

A Black woman's hand holds a tablet displaying the orange cover of Parable of the Sower in front of a speeding train window, passing by a grassy field. The book cover depicts a Black teenaged girl with long dreadlocks, half her face hidden, standing in front of stylized flames and mountains.

(Buy it on Bookshop here.) I just moved back to America, and man, it is weird. Watching the news from America in preparation for my return sometimes felt like watching a large angry monster run towards a cliff with someone you love strapped to their back, screaming. I haven’t lived in my country for 15Continue reading “[REVIEW] Parable of the Sower: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, original text by Octavia Butler, adapted by Damian Duffy, illustrated by John Jennings”

[Review] The Dragon Republic, by R.F. Kuang

An ebook showing the black and white stylized Chinese culture-influenced cover of The Dragon Republic lays flat on a wooden table. A big black bowl of tan tan mien, or spicy pork and sesame noodles, is in the background.

(Buy it on Bookshop here.) I spent the first quarter of this Poppy War sequel trying to remember why I liked the first book. Main character Rin is probably the most despicable hero I’ve ever encountered. Sure, she’s a fire-wielding martially-trained shaman-powered genius badass who singlehandedly won a war. She’s also a genocidal maniac.(If you’veContinue reading “[Review] The Dragon Republic, by R.F. Kuang”

[Booklist] 1984 Is Trash: Dystopias From The Global Majority

An Asian woman with sunglasses and a ponytail stands with her back to the camera. She is wearing a stylish leather jacket with two cameo faces worked into the leather of the back, and more along the shoulders and gusset.

Why yes, I did wake up and choose violence today. Why do you ask? Let me first say that for the time, place and the politics of its day, 1984 was brilliant. It contained very pertinent criticism of post-WWII European governments, strong warnings about government surveillance and police states, and it revolutionized social science fictionContinue reading “[Booklist] 1984 Is Trash: Dystopias From The Global Majority”

[REVIEW] Docile, by K.M. Sparza

(Find out more on Bookshop) This book was kinda trash. Now look–I love a good trashy book. Y’all have seen my no-bodice-left-unripped romance novel reviews. A little bit of junk food never hurt anybody, and the same goes for books. But this book is not Twinkies, Takis and giant sour pickles. This book is mysteryContinue reading “[REVIEW] Docile, by K.M. Sparza”

[REVIEW] Cemetery Boys, by Aiden Thomas

A Black woman's hand(my hand) holds up a black e-reader in front of a leafy green plant inside a sunny cafe. The reader displays the black and white cover of Cemetary Boys, which shows two cartoon-style Latinx teen boys standing back to back with Santa Muerta rising above them in the background.

(Buy it on Bookshop here.) What’s in the sociocultural water inspiring all these queer YA ghost stories lately? Yadriel is a brujo, born into a powerful family of Latinx witches in East LA. The problem is, no-one believes him. Yads is also a gay trans boy and his community’s magic is gendered–therefore everyone insists he’sContinue reading “[REVIEW] Cemetery Boys, by Aiden Thomas”

[REVIEW] Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun, by Sarah Ladipo Manyika

From left to right; A dish containing red rice and a lightly fried egg. A dusty rose tote bag with a checkerboard lining laying on its side, full of handbag junk. A black tablet is propped up in the open mouth of the bag, displaying the vivid yellow, pink and blue cover of Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun.

(Buy it on Bookshop) It’s rare that I can summarize a book with only one word, but for this one it’s easy–“delightful”. Morayo Da Silva is an almost-75 year old Nigerian woman living in San Francisco. She’s funny, well-traveled, cosmopolitan, active, and young at heart. She was a college professor, a writer, a polyglot whoContinue reading “[REVIEW] Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun, by Sarah Ladipo Manyika”

[REVIEW] Sultana’s Dream, by Roquia Sakhawat Hussain

An e-reader lying on a wooden table with a lacy white tablecloth, some green leaves and an iced coffee. The reader shows the cover of Sultana's Dream, which depicts a group of South Asian women walking on a broad country path in a black and white photograph.

(Buy it on Bookshop HERE) There seems to be this weirdly pervasive idea in popular thought that modernity is the sole property of the (white) West. There are similar backwards modes of thought about science fiction, feminism, utopia, dystopia and the examination of gender roles. Somehow, it’s acceptable in certain circles–sometimes unwittingly–to really believe thatContinue reading “[REVIEW] Sultana’s Dream, by Roquia Sakhawat Hussain”