What Happened to Nina, by Dervla McTiernan: This was extremely hard to put down at night – very propulsive. I thought the style – from the multiple perspectives to the short chapters to the spare prose – served the story well, although I was frustrated by the ending.
Some People Need Killing, by Patricia Evangelista: A must read – I didn’t know enough about Duterte or his regime in the Philipines, and Evangelista both crafts a strong work of journalism AND includes linguistic digressions that I am the exact audience for. Really devastating.
Big Swiss, by Jen Beagin: I was screaming in shock and hilarity half of the time I was reading this. I should note that I don’t read romance or “spicy” books so the sex scenes were A LOT to digest, but how great this was. Unbelievably funny and also sad, with truly unique characters.
Without You, There is No Us, by Suki Kim: I loved this memoir/journalism of a woman who taught English in North Korea for six months by posing as a missionary. The book is a case of great subject matter + great writing, a combination rarer than it should be. It was somewhat jarring to read this and then…
Nuclear War, by Annie Jacobsen: This is nonfiction but explores a hypothetical scenario in which North Korea initiates nuclear war by attacking Washington DC. It was both terrifying and hokey (which, unfortunately, didn’t make it less terrifying), and I probably shouldn’t have read it, but…I’m not good at self care? I kept thinking about Without You, There is No Us as I read.
