Everything I Read in March 2021

I am so happy that it’s April. Mostly because there are 268 days until Christmas, and March was a very anxious month for me. The weather started to get nicer, and I started feeling pressured to re-enter society. I’m not worried about Covid, I’m more worried about social interaction. 

Also, due to moving, I had so much to get done but didn’t want to live in an empty apartment for the whole month. I slowly made progress (taking down art, throwing shit away, packing things I don’t need) but I was just anticipating a move the whole month and it drove me crazy. Just get me in there!!! 

So, yeah, I read a lot to distract myself. Well, I read three books with my eyeballs and listened to six with my earlobes. Here are my very professional reviews.

READ

Black Buck - Mateo Askaripour | B 

This book was funny and fast-paced, which I really enjoyed. It’s the story of a Black kid from Bed-Stuy working at Starbucks when he gets plucked right from the store to work in sales for a demanding tech start-up. The way the book described the company vibe and culture was funny, it hit the nail on the head. 

Where I struggled was honestly how psychologically unsafe the culture was, ha. I mean, that’s the point. It’s satire! But the HR person in me was so frustrated. The blatant racism, cruel jokes, and terrifying atmosphere of the company made me so uncomfortable. The main character gets sucked in and his personality changes so quickly, which I didn’t find super believable. However, it was fun and interesting and I liked how it worked out in the end. 

Good Morning Monster - Catherine Gildiner  | A+ 

This. Book!!! It’s a former therapist’s tale of five heroic patient journeys through therapy. All of the stories were so sad and awful in their own ways, but they were interesting characters and it was amazing to see how they made it through to the other side. It was super inspiring and heartfelt. I want a therapist like her! 

The Mothers  - Birt Bennett | C+ 

I really liked Brit Bennett’s other book, The Vanishing Half, so I was excited to read this one. It was a little boring and slow to get through for me, but I liked the characters enough to finish it out. When I did, I decided I didn’t like how open-ended it all seemed. It feels like all these big things happened (a suicide, abortion, an affair) and nobody properly dealt with them. There was no closure, or resolution, everyone just kind of… existed? I don’t know how to describe it. Meh. 

LISTENED

Just Like You - Nick Hornby | A-

I am a huge fan of Nick Hornby. About a Boy is one of my all-time favorites. This was his newest book, and I liked it a lot. A divorced mother of two is putting herself back out there and somehow ends up dating her much younger, Black butcher/babysitter. It was unexpected and different and I enjoyed it. It was also interesting seeing the UK take on racism, admittedly different than America but still there. 

The Wife Upstairs - Rachel Hawkins | A-

I was really enjoying this book until half-way through there was a gross sex scene with the line, “And reader; I fucked him.” I was so angry and wanted to turn it off, but I was too far in. I was also mad at this book because the title had zero intrigue but then I was surprised at the ending. The title gives away the fact that there is indeed a wife upstairs, but it’s not what you’d expect! For that, I enjoyed it. 

Also, apparently, it’s a nod to Jane Eyre which is why that awful line had to be written. I don’t care. It was DUMB. 

Caste: The Origin of our Discontents - Isabel Wilkerson | A+

THIS. BOOK. TOO. 

This was a long one that I listened to for like two straight days because I couldn’t turn it off. It was SO interesting. This NPR review explains it much better, “Wilkerson's central thesis is that caste, while a global occurrence, achieves its most violent manifestation in the treatment of American Blacks, set at the lowest level in society through historical and contemporary oppression, marginalization and violence — all legally maintained through systems of law and order.”

Lots of interesting case studies in this book. The most shocking one (to me): The Nazis actually studied and researched America’s caste system towards Blacks when they were creating their own system. But, “Through her detailed historical research, she unearths evidence that the violence toward Blacks that the American caste system espoused was too much even for the Nazis.” IMAGINE THAT. Even Hitler thought America went too far in its racism. Wow. 

Savage Appetites: Four True Crime Stories of Women, Crime, and Obsession - Rachel Monroe | B 

This was an interesting book about women’s fascination with true-crime and various tales of how far women would go or have gone. It was all true stories and I found it super interesting, but it was a weird one. A quick, weird one. (I know, I should review books professionally.) 

Don’t Look For Me - Wendy Walker | A 

It’s been a while since I’ve read a really good thriller. This one was not at all what I was expecting, and I couldn’t stop listening to it. I did that awkward thing that I hate where I only had 20 minutes left so I sat and ate my dinner while listening to my EarPods. It was so DEPRESSING! Throughout the whole book, I thought I knew what was going to happen next and I’d be surprised. It’s pretty quick and focuses on a mother who has gone missing and her daughter’s quest to find her. It has one of my least favorite “messy women” tropes in these types of books (she’s kind of a reckless drunk?) that I could’ve done without, but it wasn’t a glaring issue. 

The Rose Code - Kate Quinn | A

I love me some World War II-based historical fiction! I’ve read all of Kate Quinn’s other books, and this was very good. I liked The Alice Network just a hair better. It’s set during and after World War II in England at a private park where women have been tasked with code-breaking during the war. It jumps back and forth in time, and one of the main characters is involved with Prince Phillip prior to his engagement to the soon-to-be queen. That was a fun little side story, as I’m currently obsessed with the history of the royals and love a Prince Phillip meme.

He’s so old!