I’ll be honest, I’m quite distractible. And I’m a book piler. I go back and forth between novels, poetry, comics, and so on. So, what could be better than reading deeply personal or timely topical essays, or short fiction that affords the fulfilling seeds of an unfulfilled story plot or character formation? How about an author’s first (published) effort at an essay or short story collection? If you need a break from other squares on your 2023 Adult Book Bingo card, or maybe this is one of the last squares you need for a Bingo or a Blackout, try one of these collections:
Debut Essays:
Amplified Heart: An Emotional Discography by Bryn Heather Gribben
Much like a curated Spotify playlist of music essays, Seattleite Bryn Heather Gribben charts her life through a mnemonic soundtrack of moments and anecdotes.
Dyscalculia: a Love Story of Epic Miscalculation by Camonghne Felix
Opening with the discovery that her boyfriend is cheating on her, this book-length essay of heartbreak applies dyscalculia’s meaning literally as well as metaphorically in order to better understand a pattern of relationship outcomes.
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures by Sabrina Imbler
In this hybrid memoir and study of the ocean’s depths, queer, mixed race writer Sabrina Imbler explores alternative ways of living through imaginative profiles of ten deep sea creatures.
Making Love With the Land: Essays by Joshua Whitehead
Poet, novelist, and professor of international Indigenous studies at the University of Calgary, Joshua Whitehead, examines the relationship between language, the body, and land to interrogate the conflict, “Am I queer enough to be queer? Perhaps the answer is no. But also, perhaps the answer is yes.”
Short Stories:
Cat Brushing and Other Stories by Jane Campbell
80-year-old Jane Campbell’s debut centers the psychological, emotional, and sexual lives of 13 older women, undermining our behavioral assumptions of aging people.
Drinking From Graveyard Wells: Stories by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu
Yvette Lisa Ndlovu offers intimately contemplative stories of African women spanning personal and generational experiences. Their histories are far from singular: encompassing heartache, pain, joy, flight, and plenty of magic.
Other Ever Afters: New Queer Fairy Tales by Melanie Gillman
Happily-ever-after has no predictable formula for the protagonists of Melanie Gillman’s feminist, queer retelling of classic fairy tales.
Out There by Kate Folk
Set in California’s Central Valley, Folk explores the uncanny and the grotesque while still managing to find and offer a kind of hope and happiness.
Checkout more debut essays or short stories on our staff list.
~Posted by Mychal L.
For more ideas for books to meet your Summer Book Bingo challenge, follow our Shelf Talk #BookBingoNW2023 series or check the hashtag #BookBingoNW2023 on social media. Book Bingo is presented in partnership with Seattle Arts & Lectures.
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