Good Reads & Views

Pig Hearted by Alex Perry
J Fiction

What it’s about: Jeremiah is a 12-year-old boy who needs a heart transplant. J6 is a pig, but not just any ordinary pig. He has strong ventricle walls. J6 is a genetically altered pig, who was  injected with human stem cells before he was born. He’s growing Jeremiah’s new heart meant for human transplant.  

Why you might like it: The chapters alternate between the perspective of Jeremiah and J6. You learn that J6 has more than a human heart, he has a human brain, capable of feeling and communicating with humans. He’s smart and loves being the center of attention by dancing on Instagram. It’s a really interesting story and the characters captivate the reader. 

Want a taste? The chapters from J6’s point of view are so pure and imaginative. Because he’s a pig, he doesn’t know a lot of specialty words, like attic, but uses simpler words to describe things, like, “...he yanked on a string in the ceiling and ripped a square hole in it. A ladder fell down, and he climbed up it and into the house’s skull” (p. 184).  

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Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
YA Fiction

What it’s about: A hard-hitting novel about a black teenage boy who just wants to do right by his family. Maverick Carter is 17 years old. He has friends, a girlfriend, a strict, but supportive Mama, and a Pops in prison. His life turns upside down when a paternity test reveals he’s the father to a 3 month old baby boy, and he witnesses his cousin, Dre, get shot and killed. Maverick needs to decide what is the best way to support and do right by his family, while navigating his gang ties and personal relationships.

Further reading: Evolve with Maverick Carter and his family in The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.

About the Author: Angie Thomas was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi. Though her current claim to fame is being an author for young adults, she is also a former teen rapper.

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If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy
Fiction

What it’s about: Cindy is down on her luck, feeling drained creatively, and in need of a reset. She moves in with her stepmother, who happens to be a big-time producer for America’s favorite romantic reality TV show, Before Midnight. In a pit of desperation, Cindy finds herself on the show as a contestant, and she unknowingly becomes a plus-sized, body positivity icon for all of America.

Why you might like it: You’ll love this book if you’re a fan of romantic reality television, girl power, shoes, and fairy tale rehashings.

About the author: Julie Murphy is a former-librarian-turned-author. She wrote the #1 New York Times bestselling YA book Dumplin’, and lives in Texas with her husband, dog, and 2 cats.

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You Exist Too Much by Zaina Arafat
Fiction

What it is: Are you looking for a novel about a bisexual love addict who has mommy issues? Then this book is for you. The main character, a Palestinian-American woman who remains unnamed for the entire book, tells her story through vignettes that flash between the United States and the Middle East. She details her ever-changing love life and her maternal traumas, which leads her to a treatment center for her love addiction.

Why you might like it: The reader goes on a journey with the main character, falling in and out of infatuation with people. You are rooting for her to mend her relationship with her mother, then get trampled when she receives a back-handed compliment. It’s a roller coaster.

About the author: Zaina Arafat is a queer Arab-American writer. You Exist Too Much won a 2021 Lambda Literary Award for bisexual fiction and was named Roxane Gay’s favorite book of 2020. Zaina teaches creative writing at Barnard College in New York.

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Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
YA Fiction

What it's about: This book is about the blossoming relationship of Aristotle Mendoza and Dante Quintana, two boys who fell in love. It picks up right where Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe left off, summer before their senior year of high school. Ari is learning how to open up to his friends, parents, and sisters, by having honest conversations about his father’s involvement in the Vietnam War, his imprisoned brother, the AIDS epidemic, and coming out. And Dante is preparing for the birth of his new baby brother or sister. Together, they navigate and chart their lives together, as Ari and Dante.

From the Author: “It took me five years to write a book I never intended to write. Aristotle and Dante came from somewhere inside me and I thought I was finished with them. But they were not finished with me. I came to feel very strongly that I had left too many things unsaid … this was the most difficult book that I have ever written.”

Reviewers say: “There’s an unhurried quality to the author’s wistful, tender prose that feels utterly intimate. Messily human and sincerely insightful” (Kirkus Reviews).

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The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova by Ruth Hogan
Fiction

What it’s about: A clairvoyant, Imelda Burova, does readings, and thus keeps secrets for her clients. When Billie walks into her life, she learns that some secrets cannot be kept forever, and she uncovers some of her own truths as well.

Is it for you? Like all of Ruth Hogan’s books, this novel is on a dual timeline. It switches back and forth from the past to the present, so readers are welcome to make their own connections and solve the mysteries. If you like somewhat predictable twist endings that wrap themselves up nicely, you’ll love this.

Look for: The Keeper of Lost Things, The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes, or Queenie Malone’s Paradise Hotel all written by Ruth Hogan.

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The 2000s Made Me Gay: Essays on Pop Culture by Grace Perry
Nonfiction

What it is: This is a collection of essays about 2000s pop culture and how it helped shape the author’s sexual identity. The topics range from trashy MTV reality shows, Dumbledore, Mean Girls, Katy Perry’s I Kissed a Girl, the Banter Boy trope, Disney Channel Original Movies, Taylor Swift, and Glee, among many, many others. The author has thoroughly researched these topics, including citations, but also mixes in personal stories and anecdotes, making it an easy, enjoyable, and funny read. Since each essay can stand alone, I had no problem skipping certain topics I couldn’t relate to or reminisce over. For example, I glazed over the bits about Glee, The OC, and Dawson’s Creek because I never watched those shows. But me doing that didn’t take away from the collection as a whole.

Who it’s for: This is a great collection suitable for any millennial who wants to learn about queer culture and the impact of that culture during early adulthood. You do not have to be part of the LGBT+ community to enjoy these essays.

About the author: Grace Perry is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles. She mainly writes about pop culture, LGBT+ issues, food and drink, and health/wellness. This is her first published book, but she’s been featured in The Onion, The Takeout, Reductress, and Chicago magazine.

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It’s Not What You Thought It Would Be by Lizzy Stewart
Fiction

What it is: This is a collection of short graphic stories that form a longer narrative, but you don’t realize all of the stories are connected until you finish the book as a whole. Complicated? Yes. Worth the effort? Absolutely.

What it’s about: Two inseparable best friends, who eventually drift apart after high school, but get together occasionally just to chat about the past. Honest feelings come to a head at a mutual friend's wedding, as they finally talk honestly about what happened to their once tight friendship. My favorite chapter is, “A Quick Catch Up,” because it will rip your heart out and leave you weeping on the floor, wanting to call your oldest friend.

Reviewers say: “There’s a quiet but powerful immediacy to this that will appeal to lit fic fans who may not always pick up comics” (Publisher’s Weekly).

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Stone Fruit by Lee Lai
Fiction

What it’s about: Bron and Ray are a queer couple who take their roles as eccentric aunties to Ray’s niece, Nessie, very seriously. When they aren’t on grand, imaginative adventures, tension grows between their families, which causes them to isolate from each other. They separate to try to mend their relationships with their family. Ray with her sister, single-mother to Nessie; and Bron with her mother and overly religious little sister. There are interesting and heartbreaking conversations of gender identity, inclusion, and trans awareness, which make this graphic novel an essential read.

Why you might like it: There is a lot of focus on relationships in this novel. The way Bron and Ray interact as a queer couple. How Nessie develops a loving and inclusive relationship with her aunties. And how connections can become strained due to misunderstanding and intolerance. If you thrive on stories with strong relationships, this graphic novel is for you!

Reviewer’s say: “Lai’s cinematic juxtapositions and dreamlike fugues give visual structure to a breakup story that’s heavy on processing, sharpening its edges. Lai also skillfully captures the ways family dynamics and histories play out in romantic relationships, and how heavy those legacies can land. The result is a poignant and mature rumination on how people change, and change each other, proving Lai a talent well worth watching” (Publisher’s Weekly).

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The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner
Fiction

What it’s about: Caroline is taking her 10 year anniversary trip to London alone after finding out her husband has been cheating on her. While out with a tour group in the River Thames, she discovers a glass vial, etched only with the likeness of a bear. After doing some digging at the library, she learns more about the vial and discovers even more about herself.

What sets it apart: This is not only the story of modern-day Caroline. There are 3 narratives happening simultaneously. Caroline, yes, but also Nella, an apothecary shop owner living in 18th-century London, who dispenses poisons to women, looking to harm the oppressive men in their lives. And also Eliza, a 12-year old girl, sent to retrieve poison from Nella. All three of their lives become tangled in this suspenseful tale of revenge.

You might also like: The Necklace by Claire McMillian or The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor.

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