Itβs been over a month since the election, and Iβm still struggling with anxiety over what our world is going to look like come January. The days have been sweeping beneath me as my mind is occupied on the future health and wellness of my friends, my family, and the other important women and girls in my life. On top of good old-fashioned seasonal depression, times have been tough for us all.Β
The one thing that has always helped me through has been reading. Books give us a mirror to our societyβs struggles, an avenue for expressing our emotions, and a road map to a better world.Β
And smut. But weβll get to that.Β
In these past weeks, Iβve reminded myself of what I have control over, and thatβs my reading. Recently, online subcultures Booktok and Bookstagram have had quite a lot to say about the role of books in our recent lives. Discourse around whether or not online reading spaces should be βpoliticalβ has ramped up in light of recent events.
Being transparent here, I am firmly on the βmake reading politicalβ side of this conversation. With book bands sweeping the country, itβs our responsibility as readers to talk about the content and consequences of even our most entertaining texts. Bonus, reminding myself of the inherent meaning in what I read helps remind me that I have power in a time when I – and so many others – feel helpless.Β
In the spirit of BookTok, here are a few reads to help you make sense of the recent chaos that so many of us are feeling. These recommendations are going to be more modern and tailored to our current situation, so no well-established modern classics like The Hunger Games or The Handmaidβs Tale are going to be on this list: youβve probably already read them, or at least know that you should. Instead, weβre going to look at some Nonfiction, Literary Fiction, and juicy spicy Romance novels to find some healing and education in whatever genre interests you. Let these books help you get to know the world we are living in, and empower you into making it the way it should be.Β
Nonfiction
This memoir from the founder of the Me Too movement explores her journey as a survivor of childhood sexual abuse in building a life filled with community, advocacy, and healing. Tarana Burke’s narrative is a powerful, heartbreaking work detailing her fractured fractured childhood, and how she persevered to heal herself, her community, and her world.
Elizabeth Camerillo Gutierrez writes a rich and raw depiction of her life as a child of Mexican immigrants in America, facing racism, xenophobia, and the violence of deportation. Her story strips away the dominant narratives surrounding the Mexican-American border, leaving us with the truth about border violence and mixed-status families in the United States.
You know him for The Fault in Our Stars, and youβll love him for The Anthropocene Reviewed. Based on his podcast of the same name, John Greenβs collection of essays reflects on our planetβs existence in the Age of Humans, both beautiful and terrifying. From Disneyβs Hall of Presidents to the Canada Goose, Greenβs meditations on our world detail his experiences within it, including his struggles with mental illness, injustice, and his place within it all.Β
Literary Fiction
From the author of the Shatter Me series comes this YA novel about a hijabi teen growing up in a post-9/11 world, navigating Islamophobia, xenophobia, a family in crisis, and her intersectional identity. This book is as heartbreaking as it is healing to read, and reminds us of the cost of bigotry in the United States.Β
Kaveh Akbar explores addiction, grief, and the struggles of a diasporic identity through his story of a poet coming to understand his world through morality, mortality, and martyrdom. This carefully crafted novel handles heavy themes with the tenderness and warmth necessary to make this an accessible and necessary book in a time when our world moves faster than our grief.
Best-selling author Jodi Picoult’s gripping crime thriller takes her readers through a tense hostage situation in a women’s reproductive health clinic. Addressing issues of bodily autonomy, abortion rights, and gun violence, this novel explores the intricacies of reproductive health and its politicized discourse through the gripping cast of characters and what brought them to the clinic.
Romance
Pricilla Oliveras’s stunning contemporary Romeo and Juliet retelling explores family, rivalry, and culture as the love interests battle one another in their community’s Battle of the Mariachi Bands. This slow-burn, forbidden love story is steeped in latine/latinx cultural experiences is sure to bring some warmth and light into your recent reading.
When two powerhouse writers in the Black literary world meet again after twenty years apart, their reconnection is sure to shake up both of their worlds. Tensions arise as the pair learns that all of their writing was secretly addressed to one another. This stunning Reese’s Book Club pick is a gripping, tender, and joyful exploration of second chance romances and an enticing portrayal of Black love.
Wait!!! Donβt let that bodice-ripper cover fool you, this Regency romance novel will grip you from the very first page. For the Jane Austen and Bridgerton lovers, this book features a Kate/Anthony style romance with a young widow falling for her step-daughterβs potential betrothed (scandal!), a British-Palestinian leading lady who you are sure to love just as much as her dashing one-night-stand-turned-nemesis.Β
These books might not restore your faith in humanity, but I hope that they empower you to take the first step down a path to reshape your community in a way that you come to love.Β