Book 2 of 2025

Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner

4.5 stars

I've been in a bit of a reading rut lately, but this grabbed me from the first page. At first glance, it seems like a fairly boilerplate spy novel: an American woman living under an assumed name infiltrates an anarchist commune in France to frame them for anti-industrial agitation. But it very quickly gets more bizarre, with emails from a mysterious primitivist who idolizes Neanderthals and the narrator's anonymous bosses demanding more and more of her.

The prose and philosophical sections were definitely the high points for me. I would have preferred if the narrator's characterization felt a bit more in depth, but it's still very memorable and disorienting, kind of like if Piranesi were a spy thriller. Plus some genuinely insightful and sometimes funny critiques of leftist infighting.

@bookstodon #Bookstodon #Books #Reading #AmReading #CreationLake #SpyThriller #BookReview

Book 3 of 2025

The Stars Too Fondly by Emily Hamilton

3 stars

A very trope-y, fluffy sapphic sci fi romance with queer found family as its emotional core. There were parts of this I really loved, and some that fell flat or were too cliche for me. Unfortunately I end up comparing every book in this genre, cozy queer sci fi, with Becky Chambers, unfairly and almost always unfavorably. There was some very meaningful representation for me, though, because one of the protagonists being a bisexual woman who has experienced biphobia because she's been in long-term relationships with men.

I appreciated that Hamilton included an acknowledgment of the copyeditors, designers, and marketing and sales staff who worked on the book. I hope this will become a more common practice.

@bookstodon #Bookstodon #Books #AmReading #Reading #BookReviews #SciFi #QueerSciFi

Book 4 of 2025

Little, Big by John Crowley (reread)

5 stars

This has been my favorite book for many years now, and I've reread it several times. Yet I still feel a delightful shiver of surprise every time the ending unfolds, as I'm discovering and rediscovering new facets on each reread. Crowley must be my favorite prose stylist ever; so many of his turns of phrase just end up rattling around in my head for days. The sections set in the near future during a more advanced stage of American decay hit especially hard in these current times.

The 40th anniversary edition is stunning and well worth the six year wait. It's hard to believe that Peter Milton's stunning art wasn't designed specifically for the book, since it fits so many of the themes and scenes so perfectly.

@bookstodon #Bookstodon #Books #Reading #AmReading #BookReview

Book 5 of 2025

Fruiting Bodies by Kathryn Harlan

5 stars

This is one of the best short story collections I've ever read. Unsettling and tender and double-edged in the best possible way, with climate change and sapphic love always looming large or small in the background. I'm still thinking about several of the stories days later, mulling over the resonances and ambiguities and lovely organic metaphors.

My favorites were "Take Only What Belongs To You," "Fiddler, Fool Pair" and "Endangered Animals."

@bookstodon #Bookstodon #Books #Reading #AmReading #BookReviews

Book 6 of 2025

All Fours by Miranda July

3 stars

This is one of the strangest books I've ever read. There were some graphic passages that felt gratuitous - not inherently, I'm not a prude, just that I could tell July was snickering as she wrote it, patting herself on the back for being subversive.

On the other hand, I was utterly engrossed even though I found the characters unlikeable and unrelatable. It's an extremely cleverly constructed novel, very skillfully written. There are some truly beautiful, thought-provoking moments about marriage and motherhood and menopause and the creative process.

It's pretty batshit insane on a fundamental level, and I don't think it really needs to be. So it's a well-earned 3 stars, but a bit of a headscratcher for me.

@bookstodon #Bookstodon #Books #BookReview #AmReading #Reading