Between working two jobs and writing, I was lucky to find time to read any book. Here are the top five I read this year.
Although I had heard podcasts and news regarding Israeli occupation of Palestine, The Destruction of Palestine is the Destruction of the Earth was my first glimpse into the political and environmental history of the West’s involvement with Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I purchased this book at the airport in Amsterdam while waiting for my flight to South Korea. It is a succinct read on the history of the occupation of Palestine and the colonial forces that backed Zionism and the ethnostate, Israel. For readers looking for a brief introduction into the current genocide, this book is ideal.
In a post-apocalyptic world brought about by a religious cult, Benji, the trans son of an important cult leader, narrowly escapes the cult with his life. He is given refuge with an LGBTQ+ youth group called the ALC. There, Benji could be himself if it weren’t for one important factor: Benji was injected with a bioweapon that is slowly mutating him into a monster. Hell Followed With Us was a surreal read as Trump (with Evangelical and alt-right backing) continues to target trans individuals and as Christian Fascism rises in the United States.
I haven’t had a chance to write a blog post about this story, but stay tuned! Zikora, by the brilliant writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is a stunning portrayal of romantic and familial relationships in the United States, and on whom responsibility for procreation falls. The complex relationship between the main character and successful lawyer, Zikora, her ex-boyfriend, and her overbearing mother is breathtaking to read as Adichie unpacks societal expectations for working women and mothers.
At the beginning of this year, I was directed to remove this book from the library shelves where I worked. Instead, I checked out the book, curious about what it had to say. It is a collection of experiences, poems, and essays by Tiffany Jewell and her friends. It is resounding.
As a child of the 90s and considered a “gifted” kid, I was blissfully ignorant of the tracking system public schools often do, and the methods of shame and punishment towards kids who are not in “gifted” programs or who are neurodivergent in ways that aren’t generally accepted in a highly binary and structured society.
This book was a great, personal introduction into the history of institutional systemic racism and sexism (but mainly racism) from elementary school to university. When I finished the book, I re-shelved it as I had done with many of the books I was told to remove for DEI content. People needed access to this valuable information.
A beautiful remaking of The Great Gatsby, Local Heavens takes us into New York City in 2075 when big corporations can give out intragenerational loans and digital inequity is rampant, reflecting the ever-widening wealth gap. Filipino-American Nick Caraway is hired for a contracting job to investigate the charming Jay Gatsby. Local Heavens is a stunning reflection of U.S. society and corporate greed if left unchecked and unquestioned.