for lovers of literature and culture
A first novel by an unknown writer, it remained on the bestseller list for sixteen weeks, won the National Book Award for fiction, and established Ralph Ellison as one of the key writers of the century. The nameless narrator of the novel describes growing up in a black community in the South, attending a Negro […]
I wanted to cover this book last week for Juneteenth but it is a behemoth of information. So, I’ll share it today. Some Americans insist that we’re living in a post-racial society. But racist thought is not just alive and well in America — it is more sophisticated and more insidious than ever. And as […]
Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best novels of all time, Slaughterhouse-Five, an American classic, is one of the world’s great antiwar books. Centering on the infamous firebombing of Dresden, Billy Pilgrim’s odyssey through time reflects the mythic journey of our own fractured lives as we search for meaning in what […]
When Margo Roth Spiegelman beckons Quentin Jacobsen in the middle of the night – dressed like a ninja and plotting an ingenious campaign of revenge – he follows her. Margo’s always planned extravagantly, and, until now, she’s always planned solo. After a lifetime of loving Margo from afar, things are finally looking up for Q… […]
In early 2000, Adnan Syed was convicted and sentenced to life plus thirty years for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee, a high school senior in Baltimore, Maryland. Syed has maintained his innocence, and Rabia Chaudry, a family friend, has always believed him. By 2013, after almost all appeals had been exhausted, Rabia […]
We’re getting better at recognizing diversity in literature (and other areas of culture) but we still have a long way to go. To steer some attention in the right direction – especially during Pride Month, here are some great reads to include in your TBR. 1. Out East: Memoir of a Montauk Summer by John […]
I feel it is important to share an update on this book. I posted a review in April of this year and, because I can not edit a published post (or am just not tech savvy enough to figure out how), I want am posting an update as a separate post. However, that update is […]
Four mothers, four daughters, four families whose histories shift with the four winds depending on who’s “saying” the stories. In 1949 four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, begin meeting to eat dim sum, play mahjong, and talk. United in shared unspeakable loss and hope, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club. Rather than […]
Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor. This haunting novel about the dilemma of passivity vs. passion marks the stunning debut of a provocative new voice in contemporary fiction: The Perks of Being a Wallflower. This is […]
Beloved is one of the few stories that shook me. Maybe it’s because of the heightened awareness I have right now on the struggles and emotions tearing through our communities. But these aren’t new. The social issues being brought to the American attention have been woven in our culture for a very, very long time. […]
H O L L Y + O A T E S 