My Favorite Genre is the Family Saga

If there’s one kind of book that I love, it’s the family saga. Novels that focus on how different generations of families interconnect and prevail almost always end up being the novels that leave the most lasting impact on me. There are endless points to identify with in these stories, no matter a person’s background, plus there is so much history within these stories. We are all connected! Here are some family sagas I have read and enjoyed (for the most part). Have you read any of them?

East of Eden by John Steinbeck is easily one of my favorite novels ever. It is quite long (which is why I keep putting off my re-read), but the compelling characters draw you in and slowly reveal themselves over the course of the story. The novel follows two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons over the course of several generations. There are so many themes in this book, but the most evident one is the biblical connection to Adam and Eve and Cane and Abel. It truly is a masterpiece that maybe…definitely made me cry several times. Not to mention the movie starring James Dean. That movie is only a quarter of this novel. It’s a classic that may be boring for some, but definitely worth the time if this is your kind of thing.

Another favorite! Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi follows the families of two sisters from Ghana with very different fates, spanning from the 18th century to the present day. This novel is incredibly rich in its character development and setting, it’s flawless in my opinion. I don’t really understand how it’s possible to write such a complex story in only 300 pages, but Yaa Gyasi does it!

Okay, okay so this is also another all-time favorite of mine. Victor Villasenor’s novel Rain of Gold is actually non-fiction, which makes it a bit different from other books on this list. Focusing on two parallel stories of families, this novel begins during the Mexican Revolution and ends decades later in the United States. The writing is beautiful. It is essentially a love story and the fact that it is true makes it so much sweeter. This made me feel so much closer to my own heritage as a Mexican-American and is close to my heart forever.

I recently finished reading Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu, which tells the story of a Chinese family during a time of war and migration. Fu truly impressed me, especially considering this is a debut novel. This story offered a glimpse at the history of modern China, which I was not very familiar with. It focused especially on war and its impact on the people involved. I was reading this on an airplane home during a particularly pivotal scene and was trying with all my might not to start sobbing right there in my seat! I’m super excited to see what else Melissa Fu releases in the future because this was a wonderful novel.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the currently most popular family saga, Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. I read this a couple of months ago and would definitely recommend it if it interests you. It wasn’t one of my favorite family sagas because I didn’t click with the writing style, but I have been enjoying the series that came out this past month so much. It pieces the interweaving stories together in a way that makes me feel connected to the characters in a way I personally felt the novel was lacking. Either way, I’m glad we have both formats as it is an amazing story worth your time.

Have you read any of these books or do you have any recommendations not on this list? I realized that most of these books feature stories of migration to the US. I’ll have to look into other works focusing on families who remain in different countries!

Spooky Book Recommendations

The past couple of months, I have been devouring horror/crime/thriller novels of all sorts and having a grand ol’ time doing it. Something about horror in general has been bringing me an odd sense of comfort. I didn’t used to be a lover of horror books or movies, but for some reason I’ve finally found love for the genre. I wanted to put together a list of spooky books that someone who is not a fan of horror can possibly take something away from (and thanks to Sarah at Suits of Stories for the idea to post a horror rec list). So starting off with some not-TOO-scary-but-definitely-eerie stories, we have….

The Haunting of Hill House & We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Shirley Jackson is a master of gothic horror. While her books aren’t outright frightening or shocking, they haunt with her beautiful prose about the horror of loneliness, grief, and love (which is kind of the case with gothic horror in general). I could talk for ages about how much I love her novels, they are the kind of reads that sneak up on you once you’ve finished and can’t really completely forget. Although she’s not for everyone, I would recommend reading one of these books if you are interested in gothic horror.

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

This classic gothic horror novel starts a bit slow, but becomes an enthralling tale of a man’s spiral into obsession and violence. Like I mentioned with Shirley Jackson’s books, this novel depicts the extreme effects of loneliness and isolation. This is probably why I love this genre so much; it deals with things that everyone has experienced and twists them into something so beautifully terrifying that you can’t look away. The Phantom of the Opera had me at the edge of my seat by the end and gave me that lovely, feverish, can’t-put-it-down feeling that is so rare (at least for me).

The Aosawa Murders by Riku Onda, translated by Alison Watts

I read this crime mystery last year and couldn’t put it down. There are some mixed reviews, but I found that the way it was written completely captivating. It’s a puzzle that the reader must solve for themselves to determine who the actual killer is. While there isn’t a perfectly tied up ending, the stories within the story and the general atmosphere of unease made it a reading experience that has been unmatched for me. I want to read this all over again. Just read this first sentence of the blurb:

The novel starts in the 1960s when 17 people die of cyanide poisoning at a party given by the owners of a prominent clinic in a town on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The only surviving links to what might have happened are a cryptic verse that could be the killer’s, and the physician’s bewitching blind daughter, Hisako, the only person spared injury.

The Shining by Stephen King

I recently finally decided to read a Stephen King book and picked out The Shining. I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed every minute of it. The most compelling part about it to me, was King’s depiction of alcoholism and the horror and havoc that addiction can create. It wasn’t super scary as in gory, but it had its moments of ghoulishness.

If you want to get the full experience with the film, reading the book is a must. Thought processes and inner feelings can’t truly be translated to film and the book fills in so much that the film version of The Shining misses completely…I kind of get why Stephen King hated the movie adaptation.

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

This is one of the more spine-tingling horror novels. If you keep at all updated on bookish things, you have definitely probably heard of The Only Good Indians. All of the praise is completely deserved. There is quite a bit of gore in this one, but it blew my mind with the shocking scenes and social/”final girl” commentary. It’s not just gore for 100% shock value, there is so much more to it’s horror. I think this is the only horror novel I have read so far that actually truly scared me in real life. Three words: Elk Head Woman.

That was a fun list to put together! I have a lot more spooky books I have enjoyed and recommend so I’ll be back with those soon. Hope you found something that interested in you if you are a horror or mystery reader. Let me know any spooky books you have read or on your TBR. Thanks for reading!

I am going to read horror books all July

The only thing I can stomach the idea of reading at the present moment is horror, which seems like an antithetical statement…but a true one nonetheless. Last month it was romance, this month it’s everything horror. I’ve been thinking a lot about this quote from Bela Lugosi and how much I love it. “It is women who love horror. Gloat over it. Feed on it. Are nourished by it. Shudder and cling and cry out-and come back for more.” Not to say that the whole vibe is gender-exclusive, because obviously not, but I still really love this. Point to the point is this: I want to be my own goth girlfriend and to get there I am going to read a bunch of horror novels next month (but absolutely no Stephen King because no). Ok. So here are the books.

Fear Street Series by R.L. Stine

If you have yet to hear of Fear Street, all you need to know is that it is a huge series of pulp fiction horror for teens by R.L. Stine, published in the 90s before Goosebumps had even hit the shelves. For some reason, my middle/jr. high school (this is about 10-14 years old here in the US) librarian had a pretty good selection of these books, with the AMAZING covers and scandalous taglines. My classmates and I would snatch them up the second someone else had checked them back in. I will always be grateful for administration never questioning 11 year olds reading books with bloody bikini tops and scalpels on the covers. Halloween Party is still my absolute favorite! Cue the autumn winds and glorious smell of the Scholastic Book Fair.

Anyway, there is going to be an entire trilogy of movies coming to Netflix in July based on Fear Street and it’s time for me to hit the ground running reading every book I can from the series. They aren’t masterpieces of literature or anything, but they are amazing if you can appreciate the campiness of it all.

Lovesickness by Junji Ito

An innocent love becomes a bloody hell in another superb collection by master of horror Junji Ito.

Junji Ito is a legendary horror manga artist who creates gross, grisly, morbid stories that are so discombobulating that I can’t look away. I’ve been slowly working through his backlist and this one finally got put on hold for me at the library. I’ll be immediately reading this once I pick it up and try not to be freaked out by the very real possibility of Rib Women coming to find me in my dreams.

 

Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark

I’m just going to leave the blurb here, because it sounds so amazing on it’s own.

D. W. Griffith is a sorcerer, and The Birth of a Nation is a spell that drew upon the darkest thoughts and wishes from the heart of America. Now, rising in power and prominence, the Klan has a plot to unleash Hell on Earth.

Luckily, Maryse Boudreaux has a magic sword and a head full of tales. When she’s not running bootleg whiskey through Prohibition Georgia, she’s fighting monsters she calls “Ku Kluxes.” She’s damn good at it, too. But to confront this ongoing evil, she must journey between worlds to face nightmares made flesh–and her own demons. Together with a foul-mouthed sharpshooter and a Harlem Hellfighter, Maryse sets out to save a world from the hate that would consume it.

Goddess of Filth by V. Castro

“Five of us sat in a circle doing our best to emulate the girls in The Craft, hoping to unleash some power to take us all away from our home to the place of our dreams. But we weren’t witches. We were five Chicanas living in San Antonio, Texas, one year out of high school.”

One hot summer night, best friends Lourdes, Fernanda, Ana, Perla, and Pauline hold a séance. It’s all fun and games at first, but their tipsy laughter turns to terror when the flames burn straight through their prayer candles and Fernanda starts crawling toward her friends and chanting in Nahuatl, the language of their Aztec ancestors.

Um. Yes! I don’t even have anything to say. I just hope the book lives up to this blurb.

Some other horror books I want to read…

This post was a bit different for me, but I have been feeling a tad uninspired and horror novels made me feel excited about reading again after a month of slogginess. Do you have any good horror, thriller, etc recommendations or are they genres you tend to avoid?

The Top 3 Most Impactful Nonfiction Books I’ve Read So Far

This week, I was thinking about books that have a substantial impact on me. Quite a few of these books have been nonfiction works or memoirs that hold a special place on my brain and continue to echo their impact in my life and way of thinking. They are mostly all also very US-centric, so I’m looking forward to reading more nonfiction works in the future that feature authors and issues of other countries and cultures. For now though, here are some of the nonfiction works that have truly stuck with me since I first read them.

The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee by David Treuer

“This book is meant to tell the story of Indian lives, and Indian histories, in such a way as to render those histories and those lives as something much more, much greater and grander, than a catalog of pain.” 

I read this book a couple years ago and truly have not been the same since. This non-fiction work by Ojibwe author David Treuer tells the history of Native American life from the Wounded Knee massacre to present, with personal anecdotes interspersed throughout. This is a great place to start if you a curious about learning of the effect of colonialism on indigenous people in the US and forming a framework of knowledge about this topic. I truly think this is a must-read for people living in the United States.

I think about the things that I learned from this book so often as I live my life on land that was plundered from indigenous tribes. It’s quite a hefty book, but one that I am so glad that I read and that I plan on revisiting in the future.

Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Brittney Cooper

“When I talk about owning eloquent rage as your superpower, it comes with the clear caveat that not everyone is worth your time or your rage.”

This is a book I have been wanting to reread for quite some time. It taught me so much the first time I read it several years ago and has continued to influence my thought processes on many issues. Brittney Cooper is a phenomenal writer and discusses feminism, respectability politics, systemic oppression, and more in a way that is understandable and intersectional. To say that I was angry reading her essays and experiences is a bit of an understatement. Just looking at the quotes from this collection on Goodreads is jogging my memory on how hard-hitting her writing is. Moving this one farther up on my TBR asap!

Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger by Rebbeca Traister

“In the United States, we have never been taught how noncompliant, insistent, furious women have shaped our history and our present, our activism and our art. We should be.”

Continuing on the topic of “women’s anger”, I first read Good and Mad around the same time I read Eloquent Rage. Traister discusses the the power the collective anger of women has had on politics and society throughout history and the attempts to stifle this anger to prevent change. She also doesn’t shy away from discussing when women’s anger impacted others in a less than positive way. Also, another win for intersectionality! It annoys me so much when non-fiction books ignore non-white issues and figures, but Good and Mad does not do this at all. Reading this book made me feel powerful and angry and I will be revisiting the audiobook of it sometime soon.

Are there any nonfiction works that have remained in your mind since you first read them? Anything that has had a lasting impact on you? Let me know in the comments so I can add some more books to my TBR!

Recent Reads: Books I’ve Loved

Thankfully, last month’s slump has abated and left me excited to read books I’ve had on my radar for a while. Many of the books have been a success so far, which I’m quite pleased about! Plus, if you’ve been wanting to read a book with a pretty good twist, these all had twists that I was not expecting (maybe that’s also just me being oblivious sometimes, though).

Reviews are spoiler-free!

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev  by Dawnie Walton  | ★★★★1/2

This was such a compelling historical fiction novel with rich characters and writing that transports you to a time and place that seems completely authentic. Written in the style of a biography of the fictional afropunk duo, Opal and Nev, the book completely made me believe that these people truly existed. Several times, I nearly reached for my phone to look up what Opal’s stage outfits looked like or to find one of the band’s songs to listen to. I love that level of realism.

This novel is very much centered on the racism that the characters experience, both in the 70s and in the present, and truly shows how little has changed in 50 years. It’s frustrating and angering, but so worth the read. The twist at the end was phenomenal as well, especially considering how true to life it was. I’m still thinking about it a week later. I would recommend Opal & Nev to readers who enjoy books like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

Check out an OwnVoices review here.

CW: Racism, racial slurs, racial beating causing death, drug use, addiction, sexual harassment (mentioned).

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas | ★★★★☆

I finally got around to reading Cemetery Boys and I am so glad that I did. I listened to the audiobook, which I think added to my enjoyment of the book a lot. I loved the world that Aiden Thomas created more than anything. His melding of the spirituality and traditions of cultures who celebrate Día De Los Muertos with his own fantastical story was so beautiful. Yadriel’s struggle to gain his Latinx family’s affirmation of his gender is at the center of the book, and I truly appreciated seeing him come into his own. Those things, executed so beautifully, clouded my judgement of the rest of the book to be honest. The romance was a bit insta-lovey (I still loved it), the pacing was a little off, but I can’t stop my heart-eyes for this book and it’s characters. I also didn’t see the twist coming. I’m super excited to see what else Aiden Thomas has in store!

CW: Misgendering, allusions to deadnaming, depictions of gender dysphoria, exploration of parental death, non-violent references to blood magic, some descriptions of self-harm (for ritualistic purposes)

CWs from this OwnVoices review by Adri.

The Removed by Brandon Hobson | ★★★★☆

I don’t really know where to start with this book. The writing style was fascinating and so steeped in intricate Cherokee tradition and history, I couldn’t put it down. The Removed confused, enthralled, and surprised me. Focusing on a Cherokee family dealing with the grief of losing their son and brother at the hands of a police officer, we witness their grief and loneliness from their various perspectives chapter to chapter.

The symbolism and imagery of the many perspectives had me flipping back to previous chapters to recall the patterns that were appearing in nature and their lives. There were definitely connections and aspects that I did not understand completely, especially considering that I am not an OwnVoices reader, but by the end of the novel I was able to understand more of characters’ motivations with some revelations, which put it all into perspective. I would recommend reading this book without expectation and some historical knowledge ( read about the Removal Act and Trail of Tears here ). The examination of trauma, grief, and the effect of colonialism on an entire people was so profound and worth a read.

Check out reviews by Indigenous reviewers here and here (not OwnVoices reviews).

CW: Drug and alcohol use, addiction, racism, assault, police shooting resulting in death, gun violence, graphic depiction of colonization (Trail of Tears, removal), allusions to suicide.

Have you heard of any of these books, do any of them sound like your cup of tea? Thanks for reading, hope you are having a lovely April!

My Favorite Books of 2020

Here I finally am with my list of 2020 favorites. For the past week, I have been contemplating how I would write up my favorites post. I couldn’t possibly narrow down my favorites to 10, nor could I pick a favorite per genre. So, I decided to put together my favorites out of all my 5 star reads.

Not all of my 5 stars are listed here, but a majority of them are. The covers shown + highlighted and starred titles are also my top 10 books of 2020, so keep a look out for those as well!

Literary Fiction

 Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi*: A sprawling, intricately woven story of family and survival. Looking forward to finally reading Transcendent Kingdom in 2021.

What it Means When a Man Falls from the Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah: Short stories from a mix of genres. Some weird, some eerie, some more realistic. // Review here.

Contemporary Fiction

Us Against You (Beartown #2) by Fredrik Backman*: A sequel that I loved even more than the first book in the series. // Review here.

Classic Fiction

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux*: Slow start, but became an “edge of my seat” kind of book that kept me up into the early hours reading. // Review here.

Orlando by Virginia Woolf: It’s Virginia Woolf…is there much else that I have to say?

Horror

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones*: A beautifully crafted horror novel, even considering the miasma of gore. Truly scared me in the best way possible. It also encouraged me to do more research about the book’s themes and Blackfeet culture. // Review here.

Thriller

The One by John Marrs: I was so enthralled with this book that I read it in one day. I’m not sure any thriller can top it for me any time soon.

Science Fiction

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu*: An intensely science/physics heavy sci-fi that I couldn’t put down. It confused and amazed me with its scope. // Review here.

Vita Nostra by Marina and Sergey Dyanchenko*: Such a weird, disturbing book that straddles the line between sci-fi and fantasy (and maybe even a little bit of horror). I thoroughly enjoyed it. // Review here.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel: A disturbing, yet fitting book to have read in 2020. Couldn’t put it down. // Review here.

Starsight (Skyward #2) by Brandon Sanderson: I rated this one a 4 initially, but many months later and I’m still thinking about it. Which rarely happens with YA. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!

Romance

Forbidden (Old West #1) by Beverly Jenkins*: Never did I think I would read a historical romance prior to 2020…and then I did. Then, never did I think I would read (or enjoy) a western historical romance. Beverly Jenkins changed everything for me. She’s now one of my absolute favorite historical romance authors. I would highly recommend reading this one if you are interested in jumping into the genre. // Review here.

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover: Definitely more than your typical fluffy contemporary romance.

Fantasy

The Silvered Serpents (The Gilded Wolves #2) by Roshani Chokshi* : Obsessed. That is all. // Review here.

Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore: So beautiful, so magical! // Review here.

Chain of Gold (The Last Hours #1) by Cassandra Clare : Yes, this book is another regurgitated storyline with new characters from the Shadowhunter world. Yes, I absolutely loved every second of it and impatiently await the sequel.

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger: Loved this story, loved this world. I will read anything Darcie Little Badger writes.

Middle Grade

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer*: Perfection in the form of a middle grade book. I would highly recommend the audiobook of this one. I would have loved this as a kid and I love it now. 

Graphic Novel

When They Called Us Enemy by George Takei: A novel I think everyone should read at some point about the internment camps of the Japanese by the US during WWII.

Non-fiction

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado*: Wow. This was a gripping memoir that examines abuse in queer relationships that hasn’t left my mind half a year later. // Review here.

When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele: A valuable book that I’m so glad I read. There are parts of it that are permanently marked onto my heart. // Review here.

Inside This Place, Not of It: Narratives from Women’s Prisons edited by Robin Levi and Ayelet Waldman : A hard-hitting, haunting read with every trigger warning possible, but one that I think people who can handle the content should read at some point.

Well, that looks like everything! 2020 is now finally packed up for me. It’s already the end of the first week of January and so much has already happened. Yesterday was a horror show in itself with what happened at the U.S. Capital.

I hope you are doing well, wherever you are in the world and I wish you a wonderful new year in spite of all that has already occured in the world on this first week of 2021. The books we read, whether it be fiction or non-fiction, help us to understand this world and other people in a way that cannot be replicated. Here’s to a new year of reading, learning, and evolving.

Expanding My Horizons with Speculative Fiction

One of my constant reading goals is to constantly rotate through genres: romance, fantasy, nonfiction, sci-fi, and everything in between. One of these “in-betweens” is the elusive genre of speculative fiction, which has quickly become one of my absolute favorite genres.

According to Goodreads, speculative fiction is “a fiction genre speculating about worlds that are unlike the real world in various important ways.” Other genres such as science fiction, horror, and fantasy can easily converge into speculative fiction. The central question for the genre is, “What if [insert thing here] happened on Earth?”

One of my personal favorite things about this genre is how utterly confusing and discombobulating these stories tend to be. There are rarely times when I finish a speculative fiction book and completely understand its events or world mechanics; something I truly enjoy, especially in between reading books that follow the traditional formula of a novel.

If you haven’t delved into the genre, it can be a bit intimidating, especially considering the odd styles of writing that many of these books adopt. It isn’t a genre for everyone and many of the books are ones that people either love or hate. In my opinion, the joy of reading these books is in slowly peeling back all their weird, possibly disturbing layers (even if sometimes they don’t end up being my favorite reads). Here are a few of the books I’ve recently read that fall under this genre and won’t leave my brain with all of their oddness…

The Seep by Chana Porter

This is a very short book that I think would be a good way to dip into the genre of science fiction and speculative fiction. In under 200 pages, the author weaves a story of a world that has been transformed into a utopia by a “soft invasion” of an alien species that has come to be referred to as The Seep. The main character is forced to confront the complexity of her grief and alienation in a world that no longer follows the traditional laws of life and death. It was a very interesting take on the alien invasion trope and was pretty easy to get through.

Vita Nostra by Marina & Sergey Dyachenko, translated by Julia Meitov Hersey

This Ukrainian novel walks a thin line between science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Never have I read a book that more accurately describes the complete and utter anxiety of higher education (or any education for that matter). Imagine being compelled under an unspoken threat of violence against your family by a mysterious entity, to complete odd repetitive tasks and attend a school at which you will be taught something completely unknown. That’s this book. There are passages that make barely an inkling of sense, pages of heavily philosophical and confusing language, and endless repetitive tasks forced upon characters with seemingly no purpose but to disturb, all within the confines of a gloomy Ukrainian town.

More than halfway through reading it physically, I had to switch to the audiobook since it was so dense and meandering. I couldn’t stop reading it, though! It was like falling into a trance and I loved every second of it. I know I’m not completely selling it, but if you are finished with higher education and don’t mind a book that doesn’t answer many questions about its “magic” system and world, then I’d recommend giving it a shot. This is also the first and only book in the series that has currently been translated to English. I feel like it wraps up enough to be satisfying, but I have my fingers crossed that we get the sequel eventually!

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu, translated by Ken Lui

I really jumped into the sci-fi deep end with this book! Set against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution, it tackles the question of how the planet would deal with first contact with aliens. The factions that arise vary between those who want to help the aliens destroy a humanity that has caused the destruction of the planet, those that want to introduce an assumed higher alien morality to the world, and those who want to merely survive.

It is a super science and physics dense book, which coming from someone that couldn’t wrap her head around high school physics, didn’t confuse me beyond recognition. I was able to understand the general purpose of the more scientific passages/chapters and I feel like even reading it as someone who is not versed in science added to the discombobulating nature of the massive existential questions that the author poses about life on Earth and life beyond our solar system.

I was completely absorbed by this book and found myself reading into the wee hours of the morning- it took a thriller-like turn a quarter of the way through. It may not be something that’s the best to read as an introduction to sci-fi, but it’s a book I think that anyone interested in the genre should eventually read. The scope of this book is incredible and I am so excited to check out the other two books. It’s definitely one of my top books of 2020.

Here are some other works that fall under speculative fiction that you may or may not have heard of before and that I plan on reading.

(Covers link to Goodreads)

  

Have you read any of these books or anything you think might fall under the genre of speculative fiction? Is it a genre that interests you or doesn’t interest you at all? It definitely is a bit of an acquired taste!