We’ve reached the end of November! It’s hard to believe that we’ve already reached the final month of 2024, and yet here we are. Even with all the chaos of Thanksgiving and then falling victim to a migraine the next day, I managed to read another two books this past week. I heard about the Ten Before the End challenge while reading The Butcher Game, which I talked about last week, so that’s when I started counting down. After these two titles, I have six more books to go to complete the challenge. I’m confident I’ll be able to.

1. Windfall – Shawna Barnett

CW: Domestic Violence, Torture, Faked Pregnancy, Threat of SA

I’ve been really excited to get to this one. I ordered it from Midnight Meadow Publishing after hearing about them on TikTok. They’re a small, queer-owned independent publishing company, and based on everything I’ve heard about them, I’m really happy to support them with a purchase. The topic of this book is right up my special interest alley as I’ve talked about before. When my order arrived, my books were packaged up so beautifully that I really wished I had thought to take a picture instead of immediately going into eager gremlin mode. They came with stickers and bookmarks and sticky tabs, all wrapped in tissue paper and sealed with wax. The covers are also gorgeous, with a lovely velvety feel.

The narrative is a fun adventure. The characters are enjoyable to spend time with, and the love the author has for them is clear. The cast of the pirate crew was notably diverse, which would be historically accurate if the narrative were set in our world instead of a fantasy realm. There was even some solid asexual representation (as one of the primary love interests no less). All of this kept me reading when I encountered aspects that I was less fond of.

For the record, I’m not a huge fan of pregnancy tropes in my reading, but this book leaned into it hard. I was also less than impressed with the realism of some of the battles. On top of that, there were a few times where a character’s reaction didn’t make sense. I ended up re-reading several pages thinking I must have missed something, but I didn’t. My best guess is that the author wanted to force the plot forward. I managed to suspend my disbelief in those moments, and I’m glad I did. I do plan to read the next book too; it’s already on my shelf.

2. The Martian Chronicles – Ray Bradbury

CW: Racism, Genocide, Slurs, Lynching

In case anyone needs a reminder that reading is an inherently political activity, this is indeed the Ray Bradbury who penned Fahrenheit 451. I loved reading that book in high school, and was similarly enraptured by The Illustrated Man. This one’s been sitting in my TBR pile for a long time. It’s a very small book. It doesn’t take very long to read, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to get through. It’s definitely a satirical work, and Bradbury masterfully interspliced humor to break up some of the bleaker aspects, but it takes on very dark concepts. It highlights catastrophic effects of colonialism, industrialism, classism, and bigotry, along with damages caused by me-first individualism – specifically the variety rampant in US culture.

The book is a series of short stories and passages originally published as a collection in 1950, although some pieces were published in magazines in the preceding years. In spite of its age, the contents of its pages are astoundingly relevant to our current day. The events of the stories take place between the years 1999 and 2026, so it’s frighteningly easy to compare to what’s happening in our lived reality. Granted, there were a couple predictions that Bradbury did not make, such as the advancements of communication technology or the progression of civil rights. The inaccuracies ended up feeling like very minor details because the rest still rang uncomfortably true.

Between all the moments of heartbreak, there is that satirical humor. There is also true, deeply moving beauty. This is undoubtedly a worthwhile read. For how long ago it was released and how far away it takes place, you may find you dislike how familiar it feels. You’ll recognize people and behaviors and wish you didn’t. It would be nice to believe we’ve come further than that.

It’s the End of November, Now For December!

With the end of November now behind us, I’m looking forward to December. I’ve got a lot of books waiting for me in my TBR pile, and a whole bunch more on my holiday wish list. I’m also planning to make heavier use of my local library. There were a few very appealing titles that I noticed last time. The Fox Wife turned out to be an excellent choice, but now I’ll have to go back for the others too. Last night I read the first chapter of How to be Eaten by Maria Adelmann. So far I’m really liking it.

As always, I want to hear from you! What have you been reading lately? Are you having fun with it? Have you read any of these titles, and if so, what did you think of them? Tell me everything, and follow along for more!