October Reads Ranked & November Books on Deck
Deep Dives
Explore related topics with these Wikipedia articles, rewritten for enjoyable reading:
-
OneTaste
2 min read
Linked in the article (11 min read)
-
Marital rape
1 min read
The article mentions Sarah Weinman's book 'Without Consent' about the first major spousal rape trial in 1978. This Wikipedia article provides essential historical and legal context about the criminalization of marital rape, which wasn't fully outlawed in all US states until 1993.
-
National Book Award
11 min read
The article repeatedly references the National Book Award, mentioning both a finalist guest and Bryan Washington's book becoming a finalist before publication. Understanding the history and prestige of this award provides valuable context for readers following contemporary literary culture.
We did it, we made it to the end of October. Wow. We’re so awesome. Today, I’m here rounding up the month. I’ve got a little in case you missed it section of October episodes of The Stacks. I’ve got ten November titles I’m hoping to get to. And then I have the part where I talk shit aka rank all nine of my October reads from least to most favorite. Let’s do this, party people.
The Stacks October Recap
was the perfect way to start the month. I loved chatting with her about her book The Wilderness and literary fiction in general.
John J. Lennon is a prison journalist and author reporting on crime while incarcerated in New York for murder, and on the show this month, I talked with him about his debut book, The Tragedy of True Crime.
National Book Award Finalist Jordan Thomas talks about his season as an elite firefighter in California in his debut, When It All Burns.
If you give me a chance, I will talk your ear off about influencer culture and grief, so talking to Jade Chang about her novel What a Time to Be Alive, which tackles both topics, was a joy.
Another thing I can’t/won’t shut up about is literary awards. For this month’s bonus episode, I got the scoop on judging process from one of this year’s judges, Kiley Reid.
came back for Frankenstein book club and it was the best. I could’ve done hours and hours more on this book. A book banger if I’ve ever read one.
November Books On Deck
November is generally when the new books start to slow down as the readerly world dives into gift-giving season, focusing on what is already on shelves. I usually start to zone out by November, but this year there are a bunch of books I want to get to.
The books are listed here in publishing order, and anything I’ve already read (or started) appears in bold.
Palaver by Bryan Washington (November 4)
This book became a National Book Award finalist before it was published, which feels like a enough for me. It is also by Bryan Washington whose work I love (I’ve read 2/3 of his other books). Here he is being a sweetie debut author on The Stacks back in 2019.Son of the Morning by Akwaeke Emezi (November 4)
Another
This excerpt is provided for preview purposes. Full article content is available on the original publication.