Seduction and Betrayal
Literary criticism is a bit off of the beaten path of what I normally review, but when I find a volume that really complements my reading, then I make an exception.
S. Hargrave
S. Hargrave is a Canadian writer and the book reviewer at Old Paper & Cats. Hargrave has a love of rare, antiquarian, and classic literature, works in translation, and cats.
At the Bottom of the River
It’s important that one does not expect completely linear stories when one picks up a Kincaid work.
The Weary Blues & The Ways of White Folks
It’s hard to express just how incredible his verse is. Often, it is the perfect union of opposites. Harsh and beautiful. Joyful and full of grief.
Neighbors and Other Stories
Though the book is new, the stories are classics. Oliver’s prose is crisp and stark as she takes the reader into the realities of Black life under Jim Crow.
The Harlem Book of the Dead
It’s a beautiful testament to the love and care that went into caring for the dead, as well as the images that survivors carried with them after the funeral was done.
Vegas
I think it’s a pretty common experience to have a dark season. I can remember how lost I felt in my mid-twenties, when school was over and everyone started to ask me what was next.
The Art of Asking Your Boss for a Raise
It takes a lot to take tragedy and not only write about it but also to transcend it and attack life with gusto and literature with joie de vivre.
Paris Vagabond
Clébert doesn’t shy away from any part of his experiences, no matter how ugly, but he also paints a portrait of community and belonging among those that traditionally do not belong.
The Restraint of Beasts
Comedic novels aren’t exactly plentiful in my stacks, but I do turn to them, especially in bleak times and on bleak days. A gloomy January thaw is the perfect time to enjoy one and so I dug one out of my read stacks that I have been meaning to review for a while.
Sylvia
Lenoard Michaels’ novel/memoir Sylvia is basically a book about a terrible relationship. Michaels meets and then rapidly marries Sylvia in front of the backdrop of 1960s Manhattan.