In a world where it seems like everything is moving a mile a minute, it’s easy to let reading fall by the wayside. When that happens, it’s hard to know how to get yourself out of a slump.
When I find myself in a rut, I look for books that pull me in and don’t let me go. I want characters I can laugh with, cry with and who make me want to reach through the pages and shake them when they make bad decisions. I want plots that leave me guessing and thinking to myself, “Just one more page” as I wonder what happens next. Finally, I want books that ask a lot of questions and leave it up to the reader to provide answers.
This month’s Words on the Street column includes a variety of genres, including science fiction, poetry and horror. Some of the books are funny, some are existential and some are just plain creepy. The common thread that unites these titles is that they are engaging from start to finish and they will help build momentum to get you back into reading.
If you need a story about connection and friendship in unlikely places
“The Correspondent” by Virginia Evans
Told through letters, emails and other forms of correspondence, this novel follows Sybil Van Antwerp, a divorced 70-year-old lawyer. Sybil communicates with just about anyone who will answer her, and her pen pals range from her sister-in-law-turned-best-friend to well-known authors like Joan Didion. Through her messages, we discover so much about Sybil, including the confident way she approaches life. We also learn about moments from her past she is not proud of.
Sybil is a character who sticks with you. We see her sassy, stubborn side when a university president refuses to let her audit a class she wants to take. But she is also incredibly caring, as we see when a high school student reaches out to write a report on her and Sybil shows the student how to communicate through letters, too. Sybil is a character who feels human, and we see her evolve through the relationships she develops through her letters, especially the ones that transcend the page.
If you need a ghost story that keeps you guessing
“Japanese Gothic” by Kylie Lee Baker
Across different timelines, an exiled samurai and a modern-day college student overlap in the same house, joined by a door in their two rooms that allows them to visit each other — but only sometimes. Sen, the samurai, lives in Japan in 1877, a time when samurais were no longer allowed. She fears her father, who has recently returned from a failed rebellion and is threatening to kill the rest of the family.
Nearly 150 years later, Lee Turner arrives at the house surrounded by sword ferns and hidden in the woods in the rural Kagoshima Prefecture. Lee joins his father in Japan after killing his college roommate — but he doesn’t remember why, or how. When their timelines converge, both Lee and Sen realize how much they need each other. But working together, they determine, may come at a cost.
This dual-timeline horror novel keeps you on the edge of your seat. Lee and Sen can only communicate with each other sometimes, and they study the conditions of their surroundings to determine what strengthens and weakens the connection between their two worlds. There’s an added layer of suspense with the addition of Japanese folklore throughout. Sen and Lee’s story ties into the legend of Urashima Tarō, a fisherman who is generously rewarded after returning an enchanted turtle to the sea. In the legend and the book, all discover secrets they never could have imagined.
If you’re looking for a funny and realistic romance novel
“Phoebe Berman’s Gonna Lose It” by Brooke Averick
Phoebe Berman seems to have it all: her dream teaching job, a group of great friends, plus a large collection of romance novels she can lose herself in. However, there’s one problem: Phoebe is turning 30 in a few weeks and is devastated that she’s still a virgin. Her impending birthday inspires her to create a plan to have sex, which she calls her “Guide to Losing My Virginity.” Phoebe’s attempted meet-cutes vary from asking a stranger to pet their dog to accidentally rear-ending someone in the hopes that the driver is a cute man. As she begins her checklist, her love life goes from nonexistent to thriving, from pursuing no men to juggling three different men. As we get to know each man, and Phoebe herself, we’re left wondering who Phoebe, forever a hopeless romantic, will pick.
Phoebe is a character who struggles with anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder, or OCD. Years earlier, that anxiety helped cause a mishap during her first kiss, leading her to struggle to pursue anyone romantically. Her OCD is why she relies so heavily on making lists, like her guide. It helps temporarily relieve her anxiety and allows her to find comfort in a familiar routine. We watch Phoebe gain confidence as she strives to complete her checklist and put herself out there. This book is also super funny. The concept of Phoebe creating the list and the specific scenarios she finds herself in are hilarious and over the top in the best way.
If you need a short read that will stay with you
“A Short Stay in Hell” by Steven L. Peck
This novella follows Soren Johansson who, despite being a devout Mormon, finds himself in hell. The hell chosen for him is a library where he is tasked to find the story of his life within the infinite shelves of books. But instead of words, these books mostly contain random characters and letters that form an incomprehensible language, making the task, and escaping hell, seem impossible. While Soren finds temporary solace through the people he meets, he quickly comes to the conclusion that hell is worse than he even imagined. While the library rules that are posted all around him in his version of hell remind him to not give up hope in finding a way out, he quickly realizes escape is not something that will come easily, if at all.
This book is one of the most interesting I’ve ever read. It provides a thought-provoking commentary on religion, as Soren and the other residents of hell arrive there because they don’t follow Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest monotheistic religions practiced and the one that rules the afterlife. The nature of human relationships is also commented on through Soren’s experiences. Soren is devastated that he will never see his family again, but it’s almost more devastating for him to lose contact with those he meets in hell. While losing his family feels final, the uncertainty of whether or not he’ll find his new friends within the infinite walls and levels of the library reminds Soren, and readers, that he truly is alone.
If you need a book with strong characters and even stronger historical ties
“Kindred” by Octavia E. Butler
Dana, a young Black woman, is celebrating her 26th birthday and moving into her new Southern California house with her husband when she is suddenly transported from the late 1970s into early 19th-century Maryland. There, she saves a young white boy from drowning, only to learn that he is actually her great-great-grandfather. It’s then that Dana realizes she was not transported accidentally. As she time travels again and again, Dana realizes she’s been brought back to protect the boy, Rufus, to ensure her lineage is safe. But, as her visits grow longer and more frequent, Dana sees just how dangerous it is to be a young Black woman during the antebellum period.
Octavia E. Butler is a prolific author and was the first Black female science fiction author to achieve national acclaim. Her ability to craft characters who are courageous and headstrong is evident in Dana, who is determined to not just protect Rufus, but help him overcome issues he faces in adulthood. She also spares no detail when showing us what pre-Civil War America was like for Black people, both enslaved and freed.
If you need a book that’s filled with heart and dark humor
“The Road to Tender Hearts” by Annie Hartnett
PJ Halliday is a 63-year-old divorced lottery winner who feels lost and down on his luck as his reckless spending habits drain his bank account. It’s not until he discovers that Michelle Cobb, his old high school flame, has been widowed that he is filled with a sense of purpose. He plans to travel from his hometown of Pondville, Massachusetts, to the Tender Hearts retirement community in Arizona and profess his love for Michelle. He makes the journey with Luna and Ollie, his great-niece and great-nephew who are newly orphaned and under his care, and Sophie, his emotionally distant daughter. Oh, and we can’t forget Pancakes, the cat who can predict when people will die.
This book made me laugh and cry, sometimes simultaneously. Every character is incredibly endearing, and Pancakes’ internal dialogue as he wonders about this ragtag group’s choices is especially funny. The book also deals a lot with grief. Luna and Ollie, who are 10 and 9, lost both parents on the same day and must navigate their complicated feelings. PJ and Sophie also mourn a shared loss, which led to their distance.
If you need essays that burst with joy
“The Book of Delights” by Ross Gay
On his 42nd birthday, Youngstown native Ross Gay decided he would write about something that delighted him every day. This project lasted until his 43rd birthday and resulted in 102 essays, ranging from a paragraph to a few pages. The topics he wrote about varied from freshly ground coffee to high fives with strangers to caring for his garden. His essays don’t ignore heavier topics, like bigotry and toxic masculinity, but they show how uniting against problems can help create a more joyful existence. They also remind us that we’re not alone.
This book reminds us to savor the good every day. Gay’s writing is descriptive and easily brings you to the moments in his life that filled him with joy. For example, when drafting his book at a coffee shop, he describes a young girl who shared encouraging words, emphasizing her small Doc Martens and her Def Leppard shirt. We’re immediately transported to the coffee shop and feel like we’re watching the interaction take place. His enthusiasm is palpable, and each essay makes you feel lighter, even the heavier ones.
If you need to read about friendship, first love and adolescence from a fearless speaker
“Velvet Hounds” by Aimee Seu
This semi-autobiographical collection of poems published by the University of Akron Press is a reckoning with the self, exploring the speaker’s pansexual and multiracial identity. We follow the speaker, who spares no detail of her life, from adolescence to adulthood. We watch her discover partying, struggle with her self-image, develop an eating disorder and question her religious upbringing as a Christian fundamentalist.
Aimee Seu’s work is explosive, using images that are unique and multidimensional. Some are harsh, like when she describes her tumultuous, flawed family as “a Cadillac engulfed in flames.” Other times, Seu’s writing is soft, like in “7 A.M. Philly, 31°F,” when she describes an old partner she has returned to. She writes, “So now, my old & new love, / if you’ll see me through // car door windows in the snow, / I will learn to love the cold.” These contrasts are found throughout Seu’s entire collection, and they highlight just how complex growing up is.
