Books by men – Equal Opportunity Reader

[REVIEW] On Tyranny, by Timothy Snyder

On Tyranny, a small tan academic paperback folio, lies face up on a shelf clogged with other books. Someone has written "Gird Your Loins" on the cover with a sharpie.

(Buy this book here.) This book has been everywhere since last year’s election in the US–indie shops, TikTok diatribes, little free libraries and coffee shop share shelves with snarky messages inked on the cover. Something about the idea of a little book of twenty short lessons on how to stem the tide of tyranny, basedContinue reading “[REVIEW] On Tyranny, by Timothy Snyder”

[REVIEW]Several People Are Typing, by Calvin Kasulke

The black and white Kindle cover of Several People are Typing leans against a laptop screen displaying an empty Slack chat. The cover depicts a series of Slack chat bubbles with odd emojis of wolves, weather, and death symbols interspersed throughout.

(Buy this book here.) Read time: 2 minutes Gerald is trapped in his work Slack chat. Literally. While his body sits dormant in his New York apartment, his consciousness has been fully uploaded to the worst thing about every remote job in America. If he doesn’t find a way out, he’ll be in danger ofContinue reading “[REVIEW]Several People Are Typing, by Calvin Kasulke”

[REVIEW] Gaysians, by Mike Curato

(Buy this book here.) AJ arrives in Seattle, fresh out of the closet and dreaming of art school and self-discovery. On his first venture into a gay bar, he spills a drink on drag queen K, who introduces him to John and Steven. The four of them (and a few others) become a found familyContinue reading “[REVIEW] Gaysians, by Mike Curato”

[REVIEW]Finding American: Stories of Immigration From All 50 States, by Colin Boyd Shafer

A hardback copy of Finding American sits on the knees of the author. The cover phot is a young, ethnically ambiguous woman standing in the middle of an empty American road.

[Buy this book.] I’m sitting here trying to remember the first time I thought of someone I knew as an immigrant and I can’t. Maybe it was my great-aunt Una, who came to New York from Panama just after WWII, from what I’ve been told. Maybe my godmother, a French Canadian who eventually repatriated andContinue reading “[REVIEW]Finding American: Stories of Immigration From All 50 States, by Colin Boyd Shafer”

[REVIEW] Condomnauts, by Yoss, translated by David Frye

A paperback of Condomnauts is held up against a cloudy night sky. The cover shows a red mouth open to reveal a starry galaxy, all on a sky blue background.

(Buy this book in the Equal Opportunity Bookshop) Whew this was a weird book. But, here goes. Josué is a queer, light-skinned AfroCuban with locs, a survivor of the cutthroat slums of future Havana, and part of a highly specialized intergalactic ambassadorial sex worker class. Known as “condomnauts”, Josué and his colleagues are responsible forContinue reading “[REVIEW] Condomnauts, by Yoss, translated by David Frye”

Last While In Books: Bye Colleen, Hello Black folks, Give Bookshop a Chance

Hey, fellow readers. Things are still going the way that they are in the US and elsewhere. The initial stress and shock has died down to a dull roar of anxiety, however, meaning I can a)focus more on real action and b)share some diverse bookish news. Hope you’re all hanging in there as well. (AndContinue reading “Last While In Books: Bye Colleen, Hello Black folks, Give Bookshop a Chance”

[REVIEW] The Dead Cat Tail Assassins, by P. Djèlí Clark

A hardback copy of The Dead Cat Tail Assassins lays on a yellow cushioned ottoman on top of a few other books and a Kindle.

(Buy this book here!) I’m back, annoyed with everything, and politically and emotionally exhausted so let’s talk about a fun book today, fellow readers. An extraordinarily well-written fun book that happens to have won an Alex Award (for adult books that have special appeal to teen readers), but a fun book, nonetheless. Eveen has noContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Dead Cat Tail Assassins, by P. Djèlí Clark”

[REVIEW] Crazy As Hell: The Best Little Guide To Black History, by Hoke S Glover III and V. Efua Prince

The paperback cover of Crazy As Hell, black with bright orange block text, is held by a Black women's hand(my hand) in front of a heaped indie store's bookshelf.

(Buy this book) Black Americans are simultaneously unlikely and affirming, resilient and fragile, cautious and crazy. It’s that last dichotomy that this little book of historical vignettes of Blackness in America delves into. Instead of taking refuge in respectability and uprightness, the authors highlight how much of Black history and its makers are absolutely batshitContinue reading “[REVIEW] Crazy As Hell: The Best Little Guide To Black History, by Hoke S Glover III and V. Efua Prince”

[REVIEW]A Treasury of African-American Christmas Stories, edited by Bettye Collier-Thomas

The classically styled Kindle cover of A Treasury fo African American Christmas Stories lays on a yellow cushion next to a bowl of salsa and a highball glass.

(Buy this book here.) While most Decembers I re-read Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, this year I had the good fortune to work on a stage production of Scrooge’s adventures as an audio describer(more info on what that means soon). That means I also had the bad fortune to hear, read, and see my favorite ChristmasContinue reading “[REVIEW]A Treasury of African-American Christmas Stories, edited by Bettye Collier-Thomas”

[REVIEW] Somebody’s Dilemma, by Joshua Valentine

The blue trade paperback of Somebody's Dilemma lays on a blonde wooden table top, next to a shirt with stylized drag eyes printed on it. Drag and scene stickers are laid on the shirt.

(Buy this book directly from the author here.) It’s 2347, and Earth is a polluted, barren wasteland. Exploratory research robots roam, collecting information and sending repetitive transmissions while they prepare to resurrect the human race more than 200 years after its extinction, using carefully banked embryos. Jacey-One is the first of the new humans, raisedContinue reading “[REVIEW] Somebody’s Dilemma, by Joshua Valentine”