So You've Finally: Read and Watched The Handmaid's Tale

Trying to get back into the swing of doing recommendation lists again. We'll see how long this lasts.
This time, I've got a list for fans of The Handmaid's Tale. This book has been everywhere lately, thanks to the TV show, our current crappy political situation here in the US, and even it being on the Great American Read List.
I confess, I haven't seen the TV show. because I don't have a Hulu subscription. I have however read (and highly recommend) the book. Here are just some recommendations for people who...not sure if enjoyed is the right word here, as the book is scary as hell (or at least I found it scary as hell). Liked, I guess? Note: you're not going to see the usual suspects like 1984 or Fahrenheit 451 etc. Because more then likely, you've either already read those, or you've been recommended them a million times already.

Some other older sci-fi recommendations:

Earthseed series by Octavia Butler

Hainish Cycle series by Ursula K. Le Guin

Some more recently published recommendations:

Chaos Walking series by Patrick Ness

The Power by Naomi Alderman

Vivian Apple duology by Katie Coyle

Red Clocks by Leni Zumas

American War by Omar El Akkad

The Chemical Garden Trilogy by Lauren DeStefano

Bitch Planet graphic novel series by Kelley Sue DeConnick

Some non-fiction dealing with the subjects brought up in the book/show:

Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women by Susan Faludi

Enlightened Sexism: The Seductive Message That Feminism's Work is Done by Susan J. Douglas

So You've Finally: Got caught up on Game of Thrones

So you've finally got caught up on Game of Thrones. You've read all of the Song of Ice and Fire books and you've realized you probably have quite a long wait before you get new content from both the show and the books. Well, here are some things that I think GoT fans might be interested in reading next:

You're curious about reading more from George R. R. Martin

Dreamsongs series by George R. R. Martin

Martin has written a ton of short stories. Some in the Game of Thrones universe, some not. Dreamsongs collects a whole bunch of those short stories into one collection. So far there are three books.







You loved the warrior women in the series and kind of wished the series focused only on them:

The Conqueror's Saga by Kiersten White

If you want more women fighting and taking names, I recommend this alternate history series where Vlad the Impaler was actually a female. It's as awesome as it sounds.







You. Want. Dragons.

Temeraire series by Naomi Novik

Looking for a long dragon series to sink your teeth into? I recommend this alternate history series where dragons were involved in the Napoleon wars. Have not personally read this myself, but I've heard great things and it sounds perfect for dragon fans.






More dark fantasy please:

First Law series by Joe Abercrombie

If you want your fantasy to be grimdark, this is definitely one to go too.









You like Jon Snow, okay?:

Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb

From the looks of things, all Robin Hobb's books will be good for Game of Thrones fans. But if you're particularly invested in Jon Snow, this trilogy looks like it'll do the trick.







You're in it for Tyrion:

Gentleman Bastard series by Scott Lynch

I have not personally read this series yet (look, I have a huge TBR list okay?) but from the sound of things, Tyrion would get on well with the characters of these books.







You just want another fantasy epic to sink your teeth into while you wait for more Game of Thrones:

The Riyria Revelations series by Michael J. Sullivan

From the sound of things this series has all the plots and twists of Game of Thrones and also has that really long story thing going on.








As much as you liked Game of Thrones, you would have liked a) more women, and b) more humor:

Rat Queens graphic novel series by Kurtis J. Wiebe

If you want more snark and humor with your fantasy as well as more awesome women, I recommend this comic series from Image about a group of female mercenaries in a fantasy world.

So You've Finally Read: The Hate U Give

Yes, I'm finally getting back to these. This week, I'm doing The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. This book has been everywhere (for damn good reason too!) and it just recently might have bumped up on your radar thanks to that author who tried to cheat her way onto the NYT best seller list.
If that got your attention, and you picked this up and you read it and loved it...here are some more books to look into afterwards:

Some fiction to read next:

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendon Kelly

I personally have not gotten to this one yet, but I have heard really good things (and its been nominated for a bunch of awards). It sounds like it'd be a good one to dive into if you want more books that make you think about current race relations.

Another one to read after this: The Boy in the Black Suit also by Jason Reynolds

This Side of Home by Renee Watson

This one deals with gentrification more then police violence, but from what I've heard it does go into cultural identity a bit like The Hate U Give touches on a bit.

Another one to read after: Piecing Me Together also by Renee Watson




Some Non-Fiction related books to read so you don't become a Hailey:

On Intersectionality: The Essential Writings of Kimberle Crenshaw by Kimberle Crenshaw

Hailey was pretty much a textbook example of White Feminist. To avoid that, I recommend reading up on intersectionality and why it's important. I'd start with Crenshaw.

One to read after: Feminism is for Everybody by bell hooks

You Can't Touch My Hair: and Other Things I Still Have to Explain by Phoebe Robinson

Robinson tackles everything from black hair to race in this hilarious memoir that I highly recommend.

One to read after: Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America by Michael Eric Dyson

Dyson speaks directly to White Americans and deftly explains how yes, actually we do live in a racist world still. And even better, gives us tips on how to be better allies at the end.





Some Non-Fiction related books that touch more on some topics brought up:

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

If you have seen all the news footage featuring this month's cop who killed a black person and walked free, read this book and somehow still think the system is perfectly fair and totally not racist, read this book. If you still think that after reading this and all the stats in it...I don't think anyone can help you.

The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks About Race by various authors, edited by Jesmyn Ward

A fantastic essay collection from last year that touches on a lot of topics mentioned in The Hate U Give.

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Coates talks to his son about race relations in this powerful memoir. Good one to read if you were confused about Starr talking about how Khalil wasn't following the rules of being pulled over by the police.

So You've Finally: Read Heartless

So you've finally gotten around to Heartless by Marissa Meyer (hey, me too!) and you loved it. Here's what to read next. For the record, this list assumes you have read Meyer's series Lunar Chronicles already. If you have not read it, then that is a great place to start. Same with the source material book: Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carrol

You want more Alice in Wonderland retellings/reimagings:

The Looking Glass Wars Trilogy by Frank Beddor

Older Alice in Wonderland trilogy that imagines that in fact, Alice was a princess in Wonderland who cam to our world to escape bloodshed and then as a grown teen, goes back to take back wonderland. In other words: what I wish Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland could have been.

Splintered series by A. G. Howard

I won't lie: this series has its issues, but this version of Wonderland is so imaginative that I sort of forgive the sigh-worthy tropes that abound in this series. The love triangle was also one of the few that doesn't force one guy under the bus in favor of another so that was a nice change. I still think they should have just ended in OT3...but alas, this is YA.

Did Lewis Carroll write anything else? (the answer is yes):

Jabberwocky and Other Nonsense: Collected Poems by Lewis Carroll

Along with Alice in Wonderland, Carroll wrote several poems, one of which whose titles you may recognize from Heartless...






You want to know more about Lewis Carroll:

Lewis Carroll: A Biography by Morten N. Cohen

or

The Mystery of Lewis Carroll: Discovering the Whimsical, Thoughtful, and Sometimes Lonely Man Who Created Alice in Wonderland by Jenny Woolf


Random things you may be interested in:

Alice, I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin

Great historical fiction book about the real girl who inspired the character of Alice. Also gives some good insight into Lewis Carroll.

Beware the Little White Rabbit by various authors

Short story collection that has several stories that give various nods to Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Verse: The Lost Rhymes of Wonderland by J. T. Holden

Poetry book that reimagines Alice in Wonderland

Twelve Impossible Things Before Breakfast by Jane Yolen

Short story collection that has at least one story referencing Alice in Wonderland.

The Search for Wondla series by Tony Diterlizzi

Middle-gradeish series that sort of borrows from Wonderland with beautiful illustrations throughout the book from the guy who illustrated The Spiderwick Chronicles series.

So You've Finally: Caught the Beauty and the Beast Excitement Bug

Perhaps seeing the clip of the Gaston song convinced you, perhaps you were always on board, however it happened, you're eagerly awaiting Disney's Beauty and the Beast and you want some reading material to tide you over until it comes out. Here you go:

You want to read the source material:

Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont

Considered the original story, it is only around fifty pages or so, so if you want to read the source material it shouldn't take you that long.

Beauty and the Beast: Classic Tales About Animal Brides and Grooms From Around the World

If you're looking for where the author of Beauty and the Beast may have gotten some of their inspiration from, this book is the collection for you.






You want books based around the actual movie, thanks:

Beauty and the Beast: Lost in a Book by Jennifer Donnelly

This book takes place during the movie timeline where Belle finds an enchanted book in the Beast's library.

Beauty and the Beast novelization by Elizabeth Rudnick

This is probably cheating, but the novelization of the movie is already out for those who just can't wait until it hits theaters.

The Beast Within by Serena Valentino

Based around the animated movie, this is the tale told from the Beast's POV.

Twisted Tales 3: As Old As Time by Liz Braswell

This is part of a series of books that takes the well known Disney tales and puts a spin on them. In this one, we get Beauty and the Beast, but if Belle's mother had been the one to curse the beast.






You're all about those Beauty and the Beast retellings:

Beauty: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast by Robin McKinley

This is my personal favorite retelling of Beauty and the Beast ever. I highly recommend it (and McKinley's second Beauty and the Beast retelling: Rose Daughter).

Beast by Donna Jo Napoli

A retelling of Beauty and the Beast from the Beast's POV.

Beastly by Alex Flinn

I confess, this is...not my favorite of the Beauty and the Beast retellings out there. It's a contemporary take on it and...it's fine. I'm just not as fond of it as most people seem to be.

Once Upon a Time-Belle: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast by Cameron Dokey

Part of a popular series of retellings. There is also a book in this series that combined Beauty and the Beast and Last of the Mohicans if you want a really different take on the tale...

So You've Finally: Gotten to Your Black History Month Reading Pt 2

Last week, I did a recommendation list for Black History month that was mostly just classics published up to the 1980s. Now, here's a list for more modern books to read for Black History month and beyond that.
Note: I am not putting The Color Purple, Beloved, or The Autobiography of Malcolm X on here. Not because those books aren't good (they are, go read them) but because probably at this point everyone knows those books and putting them on this list would probably be redundant.

The Women of Brewster Place by Gloria Naylor

If you've already read The Color Purple, try this novel, written the same year Color Purple came out.

Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur

If you've likewise, already read the Autobiography of Malcolm X, check out this book written by a Black Panther activist during the eighties.

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

If you're into essays and feminism, absolutely check out this collection written in the 80s but no less relevant.

Easy Rawlins series by Walter Mosley

If you're looking for some mystery to add to your Black History month reading, check out this series started in the 90s about a man in the 40s solving mysteries in LA.

Push by Saphire

You might remember this book due to the movie of the same name that gave us the ever delightful Gabourey Sidebe.

Fences by August Wilson

You've no doubt heard of Fences thanks to it being nominated for several oscars.

Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson

For sci-fans, check out this old school dystopian from the nineties (and then look into Hopkinson's other work)

Feminism is For Everybody by bell hooks

I have recommended this one before but seriously: read it. Especially those who think feminism doesn't need to be intersectional.

The Book of Negros by Lawrence Hil

If you're looking for a book to read after you've read Homegoing or Roots, check out this award winner from 2007.

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Honestly, you probably already know about this book if you're in the book world at all. But in case you don't....

So You've Finally: Decided to Give the New Star Wars Canon a Try

Maybe you were a fan of the old books and unsure of the new material. Maybe you just discovered there was more material then just the Star Wars movies/TV shows. Either way, if you've decided to finally look into the new Star Wars expanded universe, here are my recommends to start with:

If you are an original trilogy fan:

Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp

Interested in learning more about what Vader's time before Luke showed up was like? Try this novel, about the Emperor and Vader getting stranded on a planet together.

Tarkin by James Luceno

If you were ever interested in the dude who got offed by Vader that one time, here's an entire book looking at his life and how he came to be part of the Empire.

Lost Stars by Claudia Gray

If you want to know more about life under Empire rule, I highly recommend this book by Claudia Gray, who I think has captured Star Wars the best in her novels.

Star Wars New Canon Graphic Novels

For original trilogy fans, I highly recommend this series, which takes place between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back.







If you actually are really into Clone Wars and Rebels:

A New Dawn by John Jackson Miller

If you love Kanan, this book is for you. It goes into what Kanan got up too after the Jedi fell and before the start of Rebels.

Ahsoka by E. K. Johnston

Love Ahsoka? Me too. I highly recommend this book that shows what she got up too after we see her in Clone Wars and before we see her Rebels.

Kanan: First Blood graphic novel

For those who are curious about what Kanan's Padawan years were like.








If you really loved The Force Awakens:

Bloodline by Claudia Gray

Yes my friends, a Princess Leia centered book. It is fabulous and gives great plausibility for how the First Order were able to arise again after everyone lived through the Empire.

Poe Dameron graphic novel series

Yes, Poe has his own graphic novel series. Dreams do come true.








You just saw Rogue One:

Rogue One: Catalyst by James Luceno

Sadly, I have still not seen Rogue One, and probably won't till it comes to DVD/Blu-Ray. So I have not yet read this one. I've heard good things about it though.