Ultra Quick Lit: What I’ve Been Reading Lately

The Antidote by Karen Russell

The Dust Bowl viewed through a speculative lens. It’s the story of what we remember, what we forget, the price paid for losing a memory, and who has the right to decide which ones we’re allowed to keep.

The Life She Was Given by Ellen Marie Wiseman

A dual POV novel about a girl whose mother sells her to the circus (for real) and the sister who, decades later, unearths the story. This is a sad one, but it’s uplifting too.

Dear Writer: Pep Talks and Practical Advice for the Creative Life by Maggie Smith

I love how generous, practical, and poetry-centric this book for writers is. Read it for both encouragement and direction in your own work.

The Supper Club Saints by Claire Swinarski

A young woman striving to be a perfect mother returns home from “the Mommune” where she’s lived the last two years. This book came out within weeks of that other mom influencer book so many of us have read this year.

Is It All in Your Head? True Stories of Imaginary Illness by Suzanne O’Sullivan

“When words are not available our bodies sometimes speak for us — and we have to listen.” A neurologist writes about psychosomatic illness with compassion and insight. I bought this with a Kindle credit and found it fascinating.

What have you read lately?