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Hello, people of the club! <insert airhorn here> Tis I, Vanessa Diaz. Remember me?! It’s been years since I helmed this here newsletter, and I can’t tell you how pleased I’ve been with everything Erica brought to it when she took over. She’s off on some well-deserved time off right now so I’m back in my old virtual stomping grounds.
Today, I’d love to share three of the books I’d pick for a juicy book club discussion from my recent reading. I have a novel told in two timelines featuring wicked women, a blend of personal essays and cultural criticism on magical realism, and a novel about the darkness lurking beneath a Black utopia in California. I’ve also got some links to share, including a reading list for Juneteenth.
But first: some snackage.
Nibbles and Sips: Salads That Don’t Suck
As soon as summer approaches out here on the west coast, I begin to look at my stove and oven with aggressive millennial stank face. When it comes to feeding myself, I reach for either things I can whip up in the ol’ air fryer or cold, low-prep foods. As such I’ve slowly amassed a collection of delicious, interesting salad recipes that aren’t just a pile of sad, soggy iceberg lettuce with some julienned carrots that nobody wants or asked for.
My latest obsession for tasty cold food ideas is an account on TikTok called Violet Cooks. Creator Violet Witchel makes such tasty, nutrient-dense food that I legit get excited to eat both of the hot and cold varieties, but her latest series dedicated to dense bean salads is going to be something I reach for all summer long. I have made and salivated over this chimichurri steak salad and this sun-dried tomato one, too. You can whip up a giant batch of these and serve them in wraps for book club. Subscribe to Violet’s Substack for full recipes, or check her out on Instagram and TikTok.
Book Club Picks
I didn’t intend for all of my book club picks to have such gorgeous covers, but what a happy coincidence. These are all books I’ve devoured or am currently working on, books where I knew a quarter of the way in that they’d be great for some book club chatter.
All Access Members: Scroll down for some bonus discussion questions for each read!
Malas by Marcela Fuentes
In the 1950s, young wife and mother Pilar has just moved to La Cienega, Texas when she’s cursed by an old woman claiming that Pilar stole her husband. In 1994, 14-year-old Lulu is begrudgingly preparing for the quinceañera she doesn’t want when her beloved grandmother dies. Pilar is the glamorous stranger who crashes the funeral and soon forms an unlikely kinship with Lulu, a bond that will force Pilar to confront her past and Lulu to embrace her future. This is a love letter to Tejano culture that takes readers from dusty rodeos to family gatherings to a Selena concert.
Magical/Realism: Essays on Music, Memory, Fantasy, and Borders by Vanessa Angélica Villarreal
I admit I first added this book to my TBR thinking it was going to be straight “academic” examination of magical realism (I had not read the description), but it’s a beautiful blend of memoir and cultural criticism.
The author, Vanessa Angélica Villarreal, a poet and artist, felt called to Mexico when she became a mother, eager to reconnect with her ancestry. Unfortunately, her return from that journey wasn’t a pleasant one but one marked by loss. This book is an exploration of the role of fantasy and magic in our collective lives and the author’s personal journey. She uses pop culture (The Neverending Story, Game of Thrones, The Witcher, Nirvana, Selena) as well as personal anecdotes to ask: “What does the constant state of loss after colonization, enslavement, and dispossession do to the collective imagination?”
One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon
Nicola Yoon’s first adult novel is being described as The Stepford Wives meets Get Out, to which I say: sign me up! Jasmyn and King Williams are a Black couple who move to Liberty, a planned Black utopia in California. It all seems great at first, but while King fits right in immediately, Jasmyn does not. She came to Liberty in search of a community centered on social justice and activism, but Liberty’s inhabitants are less interested in social justice and more with bougie “self-care” at the town’s fancy wellness center. As you might expect, Jasmyn soon uncovers a secret that reveals darkness beneath the town’s seemingly perfect facade.
Suggestion Section
Book Club Picks For June 2024, From Mocha Girls Read to GMA Book Club (Book Riot)
Silent Book Clubs Are Here and Introvert-Friendly (POPSUGAR)
Related to the above: I saw a local book club (Prose Before Bros Bookclub, A++ name) is hosting a silent book club happy hour at a bakery that I’ve been meaning to try here in Portland. If you’re in Portland, OR, it’s at Flour Bloom, here are the deets!
Oprah Announces Her 106th Book Club Pick (OprahDaily.com)
You probably already know that our usual In the Club host, Erica Ezeifedi, also writes In Reading Color, our weekly newsletter focusing on literature by and about people of color. Since today is Juneteenth, I thought I’d share Erica’s post from last week sharing a Juneteenth reading list that would make for excellent book club reading.
**Below is a discussion guide for All Access subscribers**
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