Wishes for My TBR Pile #16: It’s Been a While

Wishes for My TBR Pile is a monthly post where I list and sometimes discuss the books I’ve discovered and would like to get.

Because of my spotty blogging back in May, I haven’t had a chance to do one of these posts. I believe the last one I did was in April. Well, here I am with a long one to make up for lost time. The following are books I discovered in the past few months that I’d really like to get but probably won’t until I get a Barnes & Noble coupon. By the way, I’m convinced that the mailman is taking my coupons. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten one and I’m sure he thinks I order too many books so he’s depriving me of coupons. Meanie mailman!

Rasputin: A Short Life by Frances Welch

I discovered this book over on The Literary Sisters and immediately added it to my Goodreads TBR. Rasputin, the eccentric healer who relieved Alexei Romanov’s hemophilia symptoms, is one of my favorite historical figures. I’m fascinated by the mysticism surrounding him as well as the rumors, or maybe all that’s said about him did happen. I’d really like to get and read this book. Such a great cover design too.

Emperor of the Eight Islands by Lian Hearn

I keep seeing this book on display whenever I visit Barnes & Noble and whenever I see it, I want to buy it. Emperor of the Eight Islands is the first installment in a 4-book fantasy series set in medieval Japan. I’m not sure what the story is about but there are hints of political intrigue in its descriptions and that caught my attention. Plus, the cover is beautiful. The entire series will be published this year. I believe the second book is already out.

Diane Arbus: Portrait of a Photographer by Arthur Lubow

Diane Arbus is another intriguing person I’d like to learn more about. I first heard of her when I watched the 2006 movie “Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus” starring Nicole Kidman, Robert Downey Jr., and Ty Burrell. She is known for taking photographs of people not usually accepted by society such as those with disabilities.

lost in language & sound: or how i found my way to the arts by Ntozake Shange

Of all Shange’s work, I’ve only seen and read for colored girls. I’d like to try more of her work, especially her novels. lost in language & sound is an essay collection that “reflects on what it means to be an artist, a woman, and a woman of color.” I discovered it on Les Reveries de Rowena that has a wonderful review of it up that convinced me to place the book on my TBR list.

Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, Vol. 1 by Amy Reeder and Brandon Montclare, illus. by Natacha Bustos

I forgot where I heard about this comic, probably on Book Riot, but I really want to read it. It’s about a super-genius girl who befriends a dinosaur (…well I think they’re friends). I’m excited about it because the story sounds like it will be crazy and the protagonist is Black. Yeahie! 😀

The Fog Diver by Joel Ross

This is a middle-grade steampunk novel. I don’t know what it’s about, but I love the title because I’ve always fantasized about diving in fluffy clouds whenever I’m in a plane. I went skydiving before but the day was clear. I guess my bucket list item will be to dive in a cloud.

Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

I’d love to read this memoir by Jahren, who is a scientist. She talks about her childhood as well as her profession, relationships, and motherhood. Apart from reading about what motivated her to be a scientist, I was also drawn to her friendship with her best friend and lab partner, Bill. Slate Audiobook Club has a wonderful discussion on the book that convinced me to give it a shot.

The Romanovs: 1613-1918 by Simon Sebag Montefiore

I’ve wanted to read this book since I first heard of it. It was published this year and it chronicles the Romanovs’ rule of Russia. I find Russian history quite interesting and I like how Montefiore goes about writing this tome. And tome it is indeed! I went to the bookstore to see how big the book is and daaaammmnnn!!! It’s large but I enjoyed reading its prologue. I think I’ll rent it from my library and if I love it, I’ll buy it.

All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation by Rebecca Traister

I forgot where I first heard of this one but I believe the topic is becoming more popular these days and it’s one I’m interested in ever since hearing of Kate Bolick’s Spinster.

Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley

I heard about this one on the Book Riot YouTube channel, 6 Short Books That Blew Me Away. It seems to be a story about a woman selling books and that’s enough to make me want to read it because I’d love to own a bookshop or just work in a bookstore. The book was originally published in 1917.

Behind the Canvas by Alexander Vance

It’s another middle-grade fantasy novel. This one is about a girl who can hop into paintings. I love that idea because whenever I visit museums, I often wish I could go into the paintings and experience what I see there, sometimes.

1602: Witch Hunter Angela, #1 by Marguerite Bennett and Kieron Gillen, illus. by Stephanie Hans and Marguerite Bennett

This was recommended to me by one of the many Book Riot posts I’ve read and gosh! I really, really want to read it. It’s fantasy. It’s about witch hunts but what I really care about is the artwork. I love the covers of the issues. I wonder if the style is the same inside.

Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi

I placed this book on my Goodreads TBR after reading a review of it in The Washington Post, which I recommend. From the article:

“So many prominent Americans, many of whom we celebrate for their progressive ideas and activism, many of whom had very good intentions, subscribed to assimilationist thinking that has also served up racist beliefs about Black inferiority,” Kendi writes. They did so by promoting freedom but forgetting equality; by placing the burden of combating racism on black shoulders, not white ones; by implicitly accepting notions of inferiority, no matter how righteous their indignation; by conflating anti-racist claims and racist fears in an effort to claim a moralizing middle ground.”

Blackass by A. Igoni Barrett

The novel is about a Black man in Nigeria who goes to sleep one night and wakes up to find that he’s white everywhere except his ass. Lol! That cracks me up but I’m sure the story will touch on some heavy topics. I’d love to read it. I first heard about it from this Book Riot post on small press books.

Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time by James Gurney

I’ve heard such great things about his illustrations over the years that I’d really like to get his book. I think I read it once back in the day but my memory is foggy.

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