Thanks Obama

It’s that time of year again! Former President Barack Obama has released his list of favorite reads in 2018 and it’s gooooooooood.

Becoming by Michelle Obama – Obviously his favorite! And a Peak Pick!
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
American Prison by Shane Bauer
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Arthur Ashe: A Life by Raymond Arsenault
Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday
The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die by Keith Payne

New Nonfiction Roundup – January 2019

It’s a new year, and there’s no shortage of books to make 2019 happier and healthier. A few memoirs and a pair of revealing histories round out the best of January nonfiction.

1/1: Bad With Money. Put your financial house in order with this humorous guide from Gaby Dunn.

1/1: The Martha Manual. From entertaining to cleaning and everything in-between, Martha Stewart provides guidance on all things domestic.

1/8: 5 Ingredients. Quick and easy recipes from acclaimed British chef Jamie Oliver.

Bus Reads for December

Commuting to Seattle by bus five days a week gives me a lot of reading time. Here’s what I read on the bus in December:

Sal by Mick Kitson. A beautiful book despite its tough subject matter. The sisters, Sal and Peppa, are adorable and charming. Sal, the oldest, has been taking care of her younger sister for years as her mom drinks the days away. Her mother’s boyfriend uses the mother’s addiction to his advantage and sexually assaults Sal numerous times. Despite this Sal is tough and getting prepared because the boyfriend has made it known Peppa is next. With Sal’s resourcefulness and determination the girls will flee to the woods and start a life of self-sufficiency. ​Also, there is so much hope in this novel!

Food Comics and Manga

I’ve been reading a lot of food-focused manga and comics recently. Maybe I’m just a hungry person? I do like food, but really, while these manga and comics share the culinary theme they span some wildly different story-telling territory; from D&D-esque dungeon crawlers, to queer slice-of-life stories, to cooking competitions. Some of these stories even include actual recipes (though a few use fictional ingredients).

Delicious in Dungeon by Ryoko Kui
Follow a band of adventurers as they attempt to rescue a party-member from the dungeon’s infamous red dragon, but not before killing and cooking up other monsters along the way. You can try to make these recipes at home, but you’ll have a difficult time finding all of the ingredients…

Get Jiro! by Anthony Bourdain

Seattle Rep’s IN THE HEIGHTS: Beyond the Theatre

Seattle Repertory Theatre presents IN THE HEIGHTS by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes from November 23 – December 30, 2018. Librarians at Seattle Public Library created this list of books, films, and music to enhance your experience of the show.

In the Heights blends hip-hop, jazz, pop, salsa, and merengue to tell a story set in the Latinx community of New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood. For more stories of Latinx folks making their way in New York City check out Julia Alvarez’s classic novel How the García Girls Lost Their Accents or the 2018 National Book Award winning The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo.