What Alyssa Read In February
February was a fantastic reading month for me, and I hope it was for all of you, too! After reading 5 books, I realized every book I had read was by a Black author. At that point I decided to make that the theme for the month and only read books by Black authors! It was fun and also pretty easy for me because I already had a good number in my reading queue on Libby.
I ended the month reading 9 books in total! I did up the speed on my audiobook platform, which I do think has increased the number of books I’m able to read each month (and yes, I’m still able to absorb the information).
Below are all the books I read and my thoughts on each!
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I devoured this historical fiction. The story follows two young Black woman: one is a teen trying to get a scholarship and out of her current circumstances when she finds herself pregnant, and the other is a college student who has fallen in love with a fellow student. The one teen is sent to a home for pregnant women to have the baby and then give it up for adoption. Set in the 1950s, the story explores colorism, societal issues faced by Black women at this time, the harrowing history of interracial relationships, pregnancy and miscarriage and a lot of other heavy topics. Check out the trigger warnings, but I’d strongly recommend this book to anyone who loves historical fiction and strong female characters.
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This book was phenomenal and made me wonder why we all aren’t talking about it. Exit West begins with two adults meeting in an unnamed country on the brink of civil war. They are in constant danger, and the only way out of their country is through these magical doors that you can enter and arrive somewhere else in the world. This is a relatively short read that spans decades over the course of these two individual's’ lives. It explores issues around borders, what refugees face daily, and loyalty to those you love. I thought this book was brilliant!
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I’m that person who always forgets to request holds for holiday books early enough, so they all end up coming through in January and February. This is exactly what happened with The Most Wonderful Time, a holiday book featuring two main characters: a white woman named Chelsea and a Black woman named Ramona. The two end up swapping homes for a week, leaving Chelsea heading to Chicago and Ramona in Malibu. Most of the holiday books I’ve read in the past tend to be very cheesy and cookie cutter - and I am not complaining, that’s why I read them! This book, though, had so much more depth and explored Ramona’s experience with race in a predominantly white, wealthy neighborhood in Malibu in depth, making that a key aspect of the story for both characters. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a holiday romance that’s more about self-discovery rather than just falling in love.
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This was one of THE cutest YA romances I’ve read in a bit! For those unfamiliar, this book technically follows SEVEN DAYS IN JUNE by Tia Williams. In that book, a single mother to a teen reconnects with her high school love. This book follows the teen from the first book, so we get Audre’s perspective as she falls in love for the first time with the new kid at school that everyone thinks they have figured out - just a zen, surfer bro with no care in the world. Audre, a responsible, never does anything wrong type kid, ends up teaming up with Bash to complete a list of challenges throughout the summer designed to get her out of her shell so she can write a self-help book that will get her into college. This book was adorable, funny and so incredibly sweet. Fair warning: If you read Seven Days In June, you will be a bit frustrated with Eva, but don’t let that stop you.
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Y’all may remember during Covid-19 the story that came out about a white woman in Central Park who called the cops on a Black man who was birding and wanted her to leash her dog. That man was Christian Cooper, an avid bird watcher, a comic enthusiast and the author of this phenomenal memoir. The book does touch on the incident that occurs to him, but it’s much more a look at Christian’s life growing up as a queer Black boy who loved birds and nature and nerd culture. He takes us through his childhood to his self-discovery in travels throughout the world to that fateful day, when he survived a potentially dangerous situation - on the same day that George Floyd’s life was taken from him. I devoured this book on audio, which Christian reads. I’d strongly recommend to anyone who enjoys a well-written memoir!
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Another memoir from last month! This is Jesmyn Ward’s memoir about her small town in Mississippi where, over the course of 4 years, she lost 5 men who were dear to her, including her brother. Throughout the book she tells the stories of their lives, while also exploring the history of racism and economic struggle that ultimately led to each of their deaths. This is another phenomenally written memoir. I strongly recommend anything Jesmyn Ward writes. Her books are gems everyone should try to collect.
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I am late to the hype on this one, and boy oh boy does it truly live up to the hype it’s received. I thought this book was an absolute masterpiece. Told through multi-pov, the story explores a world where the prison industrial complex has been gameified. Prisoners are allowed to sign up to compete in fight-to-the-death matches for three years straight. If they win every match in those three years, they can win their freedom. Peppered in with footnotes that share real stats and stories from the actual prison industrial complex today, this story is a scathing look at the justice system, mob mentality and the human penchant for brutality. Mark my words, this will end up being one of my top books of the year. Everyone should give it a shot. Fair warning - there are a lot of interconnecting POVs throughout the story. Writing down characters and a few notes helped me keep everything straight.
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I am once again reminded that Toni Morrison was truly a master of her craft. LOVE follows the death of Bill Cosey, a wealthy hotel owner, and the women who loved him and took care of him during his life. Throughout the course of the book you slowly get the backstory of why the two women left in the hotel after Cosey’s death are at odds. You also get the introduction of a new young women, who goes to the house to work for one of the women, but ends up affecting their lives drastically. Though this is satire, make no mistake, this book explores heavy themes of rape, pedophilia, and racism.
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This was a fun and quick slasher thriller that had me on the edge of my seat by the end of it! The story is set at a fake summer camp that was created after a slasher movie was filmed at the location. A businessman kept the props and opened up an experience which allowed participants to relive the horror movie themselves each night. Our main character is Charity Curtis, who runs the camp and is prepping for their final event of the summer when things begin to get weird and go very, very wrong. This book did not go the way I expected and the ending was phenomenally done. Definitely a great read for anyone who’s interested in a fun thriller!
Need other recommendations? Ask me for some ideas!