Tag: book recommendations

Trans Rights Readathon

The trans rights readathon is a week-long challenge where readers are called upon to read/uplift books featuring trans/nonbinary/2spirit/etc. characters OR by authors fitting those categories. More here! It starts today (March 17th). If you’re looking for recommendations, here are a few (mostly historical romances) I have read over the years (or am currently reading) that fit those categories, organized by era. (Note that when a book is the first in a series, I’ve only mentioned the first one.)

Ancient
Sword Dance, by AJ Demas. Yes, I majored in philosophy as an undergrad.

Nineteenth Century
A Gentleman’s Gentleman, by TJ Alexander. A sort of regency fantasia.
A Bloomy Head, by J. Winifred Butterworth. Come for the gender, stay for the murder.
The Scandalous Letters of V and J, by Felicia Davin. Post-Revolutionary France gender magic!

Twentieth Century
Widdershins and Unhallowed, by Jordan L. Hawk. Two great series set in Widdershins, MA, a weird, creepy, perfect place. I also deeply love the reclaiming of Lovecraftian horror for queerness! Lovecraft would have hated it, which is reason enough.
Oh! You Pretty Things, by Jane Hadley. Set in Minneapolis in 1970; Arthur is gonna be so happy when he finally hears the word “nonbinary” in ten years.

Twenty-First Century
Rules for Ghosting, by Shelly Jay Shore. I wrote about this recently, but it’s so sweet and so Jewish, I love it.

Not romance honorable mention:
Tiger Honor, by Yoon Ha Lee. YA. This is the middle book in a trilogy, but my 8yo read it first. They appreciated the nonbinary main character and also the space battles.
The Affair of the Mysterious Letter, by Alexis Hall. Not gonna lie, this is probably my favorite of Hall’s books. It is Sherlock Holmes meets HP Lovecraft, and you should read it. This is such a weird, fun book.

Em ơi! #354: The First Tragedy of the 21st Century

Stay Classy, DPRK

File under DS932 .L86 2011, for History of Asia—Korea—Democratic People’s Republic, 1948-—General Works.

Considering how obsessed I have been with North Korea over the past couple of years, I am a little surprised that I haven’t drawn any comics about Kim Jong-il before. I did find this one about Kim Il-sung I drew about three years ago:

Juche

File this one under DS932 .L86 2009.


If you’re looking for a good book on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or North Korea as it’s typically known here in the West, I recommend:

Martin, Bradley K. Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader: North Korea and the Kim Dynasty. N.P.: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2006.
–At over 800 pages, an exhaustive look at the Kim personality cult.

Myers, B. R. The Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves – And Why it Matters. New York: Melville House, 2010.
–In many ways a refutation of everything Martin claims, this book is both short and immensely readable.

Church, James. A Corpse in the Koryo. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2006.
–A brilliant little pot-boiler of a mystery written by a guy who gives Raymond Chandler a run for his money. Allegedly very accurate with regards to DPRK society.

As a warning, a lot of defector memoirs have, uh, cannibalism. A lot of it.

I’m leaving on vacation tomorrow (Thursday) and won’t be back until the beginning of 2012, so have a good Saturnalia without me. I’m off to spend Hanukkah in Santa Monica (well, New Orleans and points south, but that doesn’t rhyme).

While we’re talking about books, here’s what I’m reading:

  1.   Potocki, Jan. The Manuscript Found in Saragossa. New York: Penguin, 1996.
  2.   Winichakul, Thongchai. Siam Mapped: A History of the Geo-body of a Nation. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1997.
  3.   Mattson, Ingrid. The Story of the Qur’an: Its History and Place in Muslim Life. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2008.

(All links provided for ease of reference only; I am not receiving any kick-backs from Amazon.)

I feel very diverse. What are you reading this winter, anything good? If you have recommendations, feel free to leave them. I do so love hearing about what people are reading.