My Pride & Summer TBR (And a Big Announcement!)

First and foremost, Happy Pride Month, friends!

Pride Month is always something of a mixed bag for me. As fun and joyful as Pride can be, I am not always welcome in queer spaces as a bisexual and demisexual woman, especially since I am partnered with a man. Because of this, I am very selective about what Pride events I attend, and most of the time they are organized by fellow bi+ or ace-spec people. It’s alienating and at times hurtful to feel like I’m not “enough” for my own people, but biphobia and ace-spec erasure can’t dampen my pride in who I am and of all that our community is capable of. So in case you need the affirmation today:

You are, in fact, queer enough.
​You do not have to perform queerness.
​You do not owe anyone a receipt of your intimate relationships.
You owe no one a pronoun or a presentation.
You do not have to justify making queer art.
No one has the right to police your queerness.
You (and your loves) belong at Pride as much as anyone else. And if small-minded people won’t open their space to you, I hope you find a way to create a space for yourself — because you absolutely deserve it.

via GIPHY

Now that that’s out of the way, I have A Very Big Announcement:

I am now a graduate student! I am completing a 13-month online intensive MA program in Creative Writing with a concentration in Publishing at Western Colorado University. So far my professors, advisors, and cohorts have all been wonderfully supportive, welcoming, and kind, and we have some very exciting projects we’ll be working on this summer and into the fall term. Graduate school has been on my radar for years, and I am thrilled to be starting this new chapter (no pun intended) of my life and writing career. This is one more step towards achieving my biggest dreams, and I'm quite proud of myself for getting this far. I will be sharing updates all along the way, so stay tuned!

​(Below is a photo of my acceptance letter. It makes me very, very happy. I even put a sparkly filter on it like it's 2015.) 

Alright, time for what you really came for! Here's what I've got on my reading list for the rest of Pride Month and for the summer!

Tales From Beyond the Rainbow
​Pete Jordi Wood

This is a collection of queer faerie tales and folktales from around the world adapted for modern readers. Faerie tales and folklore are kind of my thing; I love faerie tale retellings, and I love learning about folkloric traditions from all over the world (every time I visit someplace new I have to do at least a little exploration into the local folklore). These types of stories are also where I draw the most inspiration for my own work. Finding a collection of queer faerie tales at BookWoman was like stumbling upon a little mini treasure chest.

One thing that really has me excited to read this book is that the queer stories within are actual folktales that feature queer characters, not retellings of well-known stories told with a queer spin. Thank the gods, because it’s about damn time that the queer storytellers of yore had their day in the sun! Pete Jordi Wood says in his author’s note that he took some license to adapt the stories for a younger audience, so it’s not a collection specifically geared to adult readers. That’s okay, though – I'm confident that it will be a delightful read!

(As an aside, isn't this the most cheerful and inviting book cover you've ever seen?)

Sour Cherry
Natalia Theodoridou

​This one is a queer adult retelling of a classic faerie tale, and one of the most disturbing in the Western canon: Bluebeard.

If you're unfamiliar with the story of Bluebeard, here's the nutshell version: it is a French faerie tale of a young woman who marries a wealthy man, who warns her to never open the door to a particular room in his mansion. Naturally, she takes a peek anyway, and discovers the corpses of all of her husband's previous wives in various states of decay, revealing him to be a serial killer. Depending on which version you read, the story has a few different endings.

One of the reviews for Sour Cherry recommended it for fans of Angela Carter, who is one of my all-time favorite authors and one of my biggest influences. Carter also wrote a retelling of Bluebeard in her short story collection The Bloody Chamber (see my post 10 Book Recs For World Goth Day to learn more about that). The rather flattering comparison (IMO) immediately sold me on Sour Cherry. We'll see how well it holds up!

It Came From The Closet: Queer Reflections On Horror
Edited by Joe Vallese

It Came From The Closet has been on my TBR for a while and I am so excited to finally get a copy! It’s a collection of nonfiction essays by queer and transgender writers reflecting on the horror films that had the greatest influence on them, as well as the horror genre as a whole.

My undergraduate Gothic literature professor once said that what frightens a culture is also what defines a culture, and I think there’s a lot of truth to that. Although horror films have slowly become more mainstream in the last several years (The VVitch, Get Out, Midsommar, Sinners), horror remains a taboo and somewhat maligned genre, and not just because of its visceral nature; more than any other genre, horror offers a mirror we can hold up to have an honest look at the things that are flawed or broken in society by confronting the things that scare us. Unfortunately, in the world we live in, queer and trans people are in many ways still perceived as the threatening Other, especially right now in the United States where we’re seeing a huge political pushback on LGBTQ rights. Many queer people see ourselves in characters that are portrayed as monstrous or threatening, when sometimes they really are just misunderstood. This is a topic I could write about forever, but for right now, I'm curious to hear what other queer authors have to say about it.

Frog and Toad: Storybook Favorites
Arnold Lobel

​No Pride month reading list is complete without our favorite gay amphibians.

Arnold Lobel was one of the most iconic children's author and illustrator of the twentieth century. Though he boasted a number of credits (Owl At Home, Fables, and others), the Frog and Toad series is probably his most beloved work. Generations of readers have cherished the warm, vaudevillian friendship between the adventurous, outgoing Frog and homebody Toad since the first book was published in 1970, but what you may not know is that Lobel was a closeted gay man who tragically passed from AIDS complications in 1987. Lobel came out to his family four years after the first book was published; he said that he saw the characters as the two sides of his own personality, and while he never publicly commented on the subject during his lifetime, his daughter Adrianne Lobel has said that the queer subtext between Frog and Toad is undeniable; in a 2016 interview with The New Yorker, she said: "[Frog and Toad] are of the same sex, and they love each other."

Frog and Toad were certainly among my own childhood fictional friends, and the omnibus edition sits proudly on my bookshelf right between The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh and Beatrix Potter: The Complete Tales. I have a fierce love of classic children’s books, and I believe that preserving quality children’s literature – which seems to be in short supply these days – is critical to preserve future of books and literacy. Plus, it's nice to take a mental break from adulting and get lost in the soft and safe worlds of queer amphibians and talking stuffed animals and cozy rabbit burrows once in a while.

Upcoming Summer Reads:

This is my illustrated copy of the centennial edition – one of my post prized possessions. I made that lovely personalized bookmark the first time I attended the Texas Book Festival, many moons ago.

The Secret Garden
Frances Hodgson Burnett

​The Secret Garden is my all-time favorite book. (I actually have a tattoo of the little robin sitting on top of the key!) I love this book because it’s a story of broken children learning how to heal themselves by putting their hands in the soil, and caring for something bigger than them. I try to re-read it at least once a year, but this time, I am also reading for a special project for my graduate program. (It’s top secret – a little like the garden itself.)

The Glittering Edge
Alyssa Villaire

The Glittering Edge is the most recent addition to my Fairyloot subscription library. The theme for the month is Hexed Hearts, and the story involves witches, curses, and three very different teenagers and a cat trying to overcome a bitter rivalry and save their town. (It's also an aesthetically gorgeous tome.)

The Sirens
Emilia Hart

​This one seems to have been making the rounds lately. I picked up my copy during Austin Indie Bookstore weekend in April of this year; it’s from Lark and Owl, which is a beautiful little indie bookshop in Georgetown, Texas – you should totally check them out if you’re in the area.

This is historical fiction mixed with what appears to be an Alice Hoffman style of magical realism (another of my favorite authors and influences). It interweaves the stories of three Australian women across time (2019, 1999, and 1800). I love books with multiple POV, and I really love multiple POV with diverging yet overlapping timelines. Make it a period piece and throw a little magic into the mix, and I’m in.

Shark Heart
Emily Habeck

​This has been sitting on my summer TBR since February. It is the story of a newlywed woman whose husband is slowly turning into a great white shark. There’s also a chick pregnant with twin birds (no pun intended). It’s a magical realist story about finding joy amidst grief and building a meaningful life after trauma. I'm very fond of stories that involve some kind of physical transformation or metamorphosis, and Shark Heart has a very fascinating premise. I’m intrigued to see what the author does with it.

Shark Heart is another book that picked up from one of our Austin-area indie book businesses. Next Chapter Books and Bookmobile is a traveling bookstore in Leander, Texas. The owner is delightful and frequently hosts fun pop-up events in the Leander and Cedar Park areas. If you like your books with a side of cupcakes or cocktails, you should pay them a visit.

The Southern Book Club’s Guide To Slaying Vampires
Grady Hendrix

Okay, confession time: this is the first Grady Hendrix novel that I’m reading (though I do have a copy of The Final Girl Support Group that I plan to read before the end of the year).

​I’ve heard mixed things about Grady Hendrix; some readers really seem to like him, some think his books are terrible. I saw a comment on Reddit that said his audience is “Target Moms looking for something kinda edgy and relatable to read while the kids nap.” (I say that Target Moms deserve good books, too!)

​Love him or hate him, both camps seem to agree that he has a very distinct writing style – the kind that you either enjoy or you don’t – so I suppose it's my turn to find out which camp I’m in. I’m intrigued by the premise of a true crime fan in a book club who meets a mysterious stranger who may or may not be a child killer, and as a bonus, it’s set in the early 90s. I am a Millennial, which means that I am nostalgic as hell for all things 80s and 90s, so anytime I can read a book from or set in that time period, it’s always a treat.

Dark Roux
Toby LeBlanc

Toby LeBlanc is a Texas/Louisiana author whom I met at a reading where we both shared our work a few months ago. He was kind enough to sign this copy for me. This is a Southern Gothic tale also set in the 90s about a Cajun family struggling with their individual and collective identities and how they try to navigate an uncertain future in the swamps of the Pelican State. I love Southern Gothic, and being a Texan, Louisiana is right next door. Gotta support our neighbors!

Say Uncle
Ryan C. Bradley

Another local horror author in the Austin-area writing scene I am privileged to be acquainted with is Ryan C. Bradley. Ryan published Say Uncle this spring. It's the story of a boy, his very unusual uncle, and a very unusual book.

Also: it’s kind of unsettling that books set in the 2000s are now considered historical fiction. I’m old, man.

The Blonde Dies First
Joelle Wellington

Oh, my – I found this little gem at Half Price Books and it’s basically everything I could want in a summer horror novel. Twin sisters and their friends attempting to have The Best Summer Ever, who fuck around and find out why we don’t play with Ouija boards, and are now being hunted by a demon, maybe, whose slasher-movie style murder methods are uncannily human. To make matters worse, the protagonist deduces with her horror movie knowledge that she’s up first on the chopping block, and her lifelong girl-crush is the Final Girl. I haven’t even started this yet and I already want to see it adapted into a movie.

Merpeople: A Human History
Vaughn Scribner

​This is a nonfiction exploration into the world of humanity’s fascination with mermaids and other finfolk throughout the centuries. Vaughn Scribner traces the history of these mythic creatures by examining everything from film to philosophy and myth to modern science. I figured it would be a fun read for summertime. I won’t be making a trip to the beach this summer, unfortunately, but reading poolside is good enough for me.

The Saturday Night Ghost Club
Craig Davidson

​Last but not least, we have another nostalgic read set in the 80s. The Saturday Night Ghost Club centers on a group of misfit kids who spend their summer investigating local ghost stories and spooky legends, with chaos quickly ensuing. (It's giving Stranger Things-lite energy.) It looks like it’ll be a really fun, quick read that’ll get me in my nostalgia feels.

And that’s it! Let’s see how many of these I can actually knock out by the end of the summer. Even though I am an avid, lifelong reader, (and I precocious one – I could read chapter books by the time I left kindergarten), I’ve never been a fast reader. I wish I could be one of those people who blows through 20+ books a month, but the fact of the matter is that my brain needs time to savor and absorb what I'm reading. I don’t think that I’ll ever be a speed reader, but improving my overall reading speed is a skill that I’ve been working on during the last year. My goal is to read 100 books by the end of 2025, so…let’s see what happens!

​What are you reading this summer? What books are you most excited about? Drop a line and let me know!