by Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna |
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| John Darnielle (The Mountain Goats) recommends: Kin by Miljenko Jergović
This is a giant doorstop of a book about a Croatian family's history and the narrator's place in it, but no one should be intimidated by its bulk: Jergović is like a friend whose stories are always good, a guest you hope stays up late with you getting to the really good stuff. Part novel, part memoir, part philosophical discourse and part historical account, I couldn't wait to start reading this one every morning: Its peaks are some of the most bracing reading I've done in a decade. Highest recommendation.
Sadie Dupuis (Sad13; Speedy Ortiz) recommends: The Sunflower Cast a Spell to Save Us From the Void by Jackie Wang
I fell in love with Jackie Wang’s writing after reading Carceral Capitalism, a series of essays on the hellish, tentacular grip of the prison business. Wang’s debut poetry collection also touches on trauma and justice, but uses the logic and humor of dream diarying to translate her political concerns into lucid cinematics. One moment she finds herself in the parasocial orbit of Kant; elsewhere, comic impatience drives her to smash windows with an axe, kicking off a viral B&E trend. Deadpan magic invites her onto the couch of a life-size dollhouse, while the growth of flowers provides reprieve from the weather-controlling omnipresence of surveillance tech. Looping pen illustrations from Kalan Sherrard, interspersed throughout, intensify the phantasmagoria. Even when Wang’s hiding out under a balaclava from the jeers of her dream-antagonists — shadow figures, maybe, for her speakers' harshest insecurities — her poems are mirror clear in their perceptions.
Otura Mun (ÌFÉ) recommends: Pop That Thang!!! by Polo Silk
Polo’s book is a raw self-published look into the heart of New Orleans bounce music spotlighting the rappers, DJs and partygoers and their unique style of self expression. Polo built backdrops and shot impromptu party portraits in the grimiest and most stylish neighborhoods in New Orleans from the ‘80s to modern times. His work is reminiscent of his contemporaries like Malick Sidibé and Ernie Paniccioli.
Indigo De Souza recommends: Leave Society by Tao Lin
When I first discovered Tao Lin’s book of short stories, Bed, it changed the way I approached my own writing. Years later I read his novel Taipei, and it affected me in a new way. The book, to me, perfectly discusses the modern struggle between irony, apathy and sincerity. After Taipei, he put out a work of nonfiction called Trip, which is part autobiography and part deep-dive into the life and work of late psychonaut Terence McKenna, which only made me more compelled by his scope as a writer. I recently bought his new book, Leave Society, his first work of fiction since Taipei. I just started it, but I am already so excited to digest this new evolution of his writing. If you haven’t read Tao Lin, please do.
Linda Diaz (2020 Tiny Desk Contest winner) recommends: Mouthful of Birds by Samanta Schweblin, translated by Megan McDowell
I got into short story collections when I worked in a bookstore, because they really give you a feel for the author’s writing style and are easy to read on the go! Schweblin is well known for Fever Dream, but I much preferred Mouthful of Birds. Each story explores the familiar darkness that lies within us all, but Schweblin manages to navigate the nuances in a poetic and almost beautiful way that is haunting. With just the first story, this masterfully written collection had me hooked and curious for more. This book is perfect for spooky season (and for reading between busy fall schedules).
Conor Murphy (Foxing) recommends: Foundation by Isaac Asimov
For sci-fi people, this is a really basic, cliché pick — like telling someone, “You should check out The Sopranos!” But if you’re like me and just casually enjoy the genre, I recommend this book hard. I never checked out Asimov because I thought I was too dumb. But in July, I decided to give it a shot and boy howdy, Foundation goes down real smooth. This is an extremely compelling story told over a century from several perspectives as a galactic empire crumbles to greed, power struggles and socio-economic hierarchies. If you’ve never read Foundation, count yourself lucky to be able to experience it now in this all-too-fitting time.
Ali Levy (Ada Lea) recommends: Mothers: An Essay on Love and Cruelty by Jacqueline Rose
Jacqueline Rose is truly a force! She is known for her work on feminism, the Middle East, and psychoanalysis, and she frequently contributes to the London Review of Books. The depth of research that went into this book is so inspiring, I can't stop talking about it!
In a general sense, Rose makes the case that mothers are, and have been, the scapegoats of the world's ills, political and personal. She begins with specific modern-day politics and weaves a thread through (mostly) Western history, classical literature and work authored by writers such as Elena Ferrante, Toni Morrison and Sindiwe Magona, to name a few. |
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