Hey #bookstagram! It’s been awhile. I’ve been focusing on my mental health but don’t worry I’ve been here enjoying all the amazing things so many of you have been doing in spite of it all. I have still been reading (the past two weeks though not so much) but this book right here is nothing short of genius.

Sula is one of the best books I have ever read. I know we get that a lot around here, but come on. It’s Toni Morrison at her finest, hard to argue with me here. I think about this book a few times a week. It’s a slim novel at just under 200 pages but it packs a SOLID punch. Although short, I savored every word of this book. I found myself putting it down frequently and just sitting with the characters. I wanted to enjoy it, so it took me a solid week to get through. I’m sad I didn’t read it sooner, but at the same time I think I read it at the perfect moment in my life. It’s definitely one I will come back to as I get older. There are so many interesting questions about feminism, sex, and what it is to be a woman, especially a Black woman. It was tragic, but also sometimes downright funny. But my favorite part of reading this, is that you get to bear witness to an artist creating something so spectacular. The whole time reading it you can feel Morrison just know that she is absolutely creating a masterpiece. It’s an honor and privilege to engage with her work. Have you read this? If not, I hope it’s on your TBR now! #bookstagram #ToniMorrison #ReadBlackWomen #Sula #bookstagrammer

#libraryhaul for the week to honor and celebrate #latinxheritagemonth. I’m hoping to finish The Dragon republic tonight (SO GOOD) so I can dig into one of these next. Thanks to #bookstagram and the #latinxbookstagramtour for putting these on my TBR. Have you read these yet? Let me know what you think! #readdiversebooks #readdiversely #decolonizeyourbookshelf #supportlatinxwriters #cantoras #imnotyourperfectmexicandaughter

To call Smaller and Smaller Circles a murder mystery thriller, doesn’t seem quite right. It was so much more than that. This book was about the poison of power and greed, and the victims that get left in its wake. It’s about poverty and trauma. It’s about Manila, the Philippines, the Catholic Church, and just so much more.

Ultimately the thing I respect the most about this book is that it does not fall into a typical trap of “Who done it?” without the slightest acknowledgment of the victims. The young boys here are given their humanity and the reader is constantly reminded that they had lives, had moms, had families. There is one chapter in particular that had me crying and will haunt me for awhile.

I read this as a buddy read with @enjoyjournaling @nerdtasticnoms and @tamisbookcorner and kept forgetting to post it since things have been kind of insane with distance learning, motherhood, our crumbling democracy, etc. But I want other people to read this, because its definitely not something I would have ever picked up on my own, but its well worth your time. I can’t say I enjoyed it given the dark subject matter, but it made me think a lot so I hope you check it out. #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #readfilipinobooks #filipinobookstagrammer #readaroundtheworld#alwaysreading #losangelesreaders #readdiversely #mysterybooks