Still many gifts to wrap, goodies to bake, package & deliver, finish decorating the tree... and reading for pleasure remains a necessity!   [front hardcover of Fat Girls Dance by Cathleen Meredith showing 3 curvaceous women striking poses; book is arranged atop an open piano with cords displayed]  Fat Girls Dance by Cathleen Meredith  contemporary fiction   2024  Don't wait.  Don't wait to be your authentic self. Don't wait to dance, to love, to pursue your heart's deepest desires... This story of friendship and audacity offers angst, humor, and compelling reasons to live life with unapologetic intention.  Currently reading  [Bad Seed: The Midnight Cries of an Island Girl held over a horizontal bookstack of 4 books - Just Playing House, Magical Meet Cute, Christmas Sweater Weather, The Royals Upstairs]   Pre-Christmas gifts: garlic bread with zero calories! Zero fat! Zero sodium! Zero everything! Typos make it true, right??...

Last weekend's Local Author Expo event sponsored by the Prince Goerge's County Memorial Library System offered too much bookish goodness to list it all, but here's a sampling...  [collage of 7 images; 3 on the right & left and 1 down the center: Lofty Stories author Jamila Romero standing behind her display table, Prince George's County Memorial Library System Local Author Expo 2024 poster, Accountability in the Classroom Author Renee Carr next to her daughter behind their table, Fueled from the Heart: a collection of inspirational poems author Samuel R. Jackson holding a copy of his book while standing behind his table, Positive Vibes Kids author Preston Mitchum, Jr. holding one of his books while standing behind his table, Unseen Victories author Juliet Agocha holding 2 of her books while standing behind her table, I Love My People author Kim Singleton holding her book while standing in front of her table]  [collage of 5 images: Digital Assassins author Danielle S...

Being other-ed [Seen Yet Unseen: A Black Woman Crashes the Tech Fraternity by Bari A. Williams hardcover facing forward next to a stack of 7 books from top to bottom: One and Done, The Book Swap, She Who Knows, Lady Eve's Last Con, How to End a Love Story, Stay, There Should Have Been Eight]  Seen Yet Unseen: A Black Woman Crashes the Tech Fraternity by Bari A. Williams  non-fiction  Blackstone Publishing, May 2024  An introduction, twelve chapters that report and examine, a conclusion, acknowledgments, and extensive notes, together reveal the numerous ways in which excluding Black women from every aspect of the tech industry perpetuates harmful stereotypes (despite feedback supported by legitimate hard data) that are ultimately problematic for everyone, eventually.  Maybe that's the intention.  from Chapter 7: This Is What True Allyship Looks Like  Diversity exhaustion is the feeling of being tired of hearing about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE...

Current reads that offer real and imagined dangers   [two hardcover books: Seen Yet Unseen: A Black Woman Crashes the Tech Fraternity by Bari A. Williams, There Should Have Been Eight by Nalini Singh]  [front cover of a hardcover book: Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble]  Algorithms of Oppression:How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble  non-fiction information technology  NYU Press, 2018  This wonk-erful text is compelling and accessible for non-wonks. The information provided is also disturbing.  On page 29 the author declares her intentions:  ...In the ensuing chapters, I continue to probe results that generated by Google on a variety of keyword combinations relating to racial and gender identity as a way of engaging a commonsense understanding of how power works... By seeing and discussing these intersectional power relations, we have a significant opportunity to transform ...

Currently reading fiction and nonfiction, alternating one J. California Cooper short story with one or two Jessica Valenti chapters.   [one trade paperback book - Homemade Love by J. California Cooper and one hardcover book - Abortion: Our Bodies, Their Lies, and the Truths We Use to Win by Jessica Valenti]  [zoomed in closeup of The Strong Black Woman by Marita Golden] The Strong Black Woman, How a Myth Endangers the Physical and Mental Health of Black Women by Marita Golden   Non-fiction   Mango Publishing, October 12, 2021   https://maritagolden.com/ Our TWWBF2021 interview here:  https://youtu.be/dQ5lIMx66Vo   With a mix of surgical precision, lyrical phrasing, keen observations, testimonies, and profound insights from the author, experts in assorted fields of study, and a broad spectrum of other Black women, The Strong Black Woman challenges and deconstructs pervasive stereotypes superimposed upon them to reveal the inherently ...

Continuing to celebrate Black love, Black joy, Black triumphs over adversity, Black friendship, family, community is one of my coping strategies for processing anxiety. Here are three satisfying reads for encouragement and pleasure.  [front cover art of a trade paperback book: profile view of two adults embracing; only the bottom half of a woman's face is visible]  Courage to Love Again by Kimberly Brown contemporary romance with Christian elements Black Odyssey Media, April 2024 After a series of devastating losses, Pasha Sinclaire is grieving, anxious, and depressed. Enter Callum Ellis, successful entrepreneur and seeming guardian angel. Years of emotional abuse and the undercutting of her sense of self-worth make it hard for Pasha to believe Callum is as decent as he appears to be. She’ll need to continue working on healing herself before she can trust again. Forever friends, family by blood and by choice help her navigate this bumpy path back to her true self. Light-heart...

These characters are forced to choose who to trust to work with them to achieve the best interests of their personal and professional ambitions.  [ 3 trade paperback books: Frenemy Fix-Up by Yarah St. John; a couple standing side-by-side in tree pose, The Design of Us by Sajni Patel; a couple lying on the beach, Errands & Espionage by Sam Tschida; an adult holding binoculars up to their face]  Frenemy Fix-Up by Yahrah St. John Contemporary romance  Harlequin/afterglow books , February 2024   Deadlines. Shay is a small business yogi who works hard to go with the entrepreneurial flow. Colin is a corporate go-getter who thrives under pressure—until that stress jeopardizes his health. When these former high school classmates who quickly remember all of the ways they annoy each other work together to establish Colin’s fundamental work-life balance, both of them recalculate their expectations of what and who they want in their lives. Witty banter combined with re...

From the Great Lakes to the Northern Lights by boats, planes, trains, mass transit, car service, and on foot, these romances take readers on bumpy journeys to finding love around the world.  [ a stack of 3 trade paperback books: Frequent Fliers, Love Requires Chocolate, Second Tide's the Charm]  Second Tide's the Charm by Chandra Blumberg contemporary romance  Canary Street Press, August 2024  Hope and Adrian's future together once seemed guaranteed, until it wasn't.  When circumstances force them back into each other's lives will they get closure and move on separately or have they grown enough as individuals to figure out how to build a happily ever after that works for both of them?  Maligned sharks, an assortment of science nerds, meddling friends, family, tourists, and the cut-throat arenas of academia, research grants, and social media add to the high stakes of their love story.  Love Requires Chocolate (Love in Translation #1) by Ravynn K. Strin...

Thanks to the library my TBR bookstack/list never shrinks! [a stack of 6 books from top to bottom: Second Tide's the Charm, The Next Best Fling, Love Requires Chocolate, Fall into Temptation, A Jungle Bell Mingle, Passions in Death]  [same bookstack as shown above with the addition of Buried Too Deep on the bottom]  [Fall for Him trade paperback book upright next to a stack of 5 books from top to bottom: Frequent Fliers, Second Tide's the Charm, Love Requires Chocolate, Passions in Death, Buried Too Deep]  The Next Best Fling (Librarians in Love #1) by Gabriella Gamez  New Adult romance  Forever, July 2024  Is getting under someone new the best way to get over someone else?  Librarian Marcela and former NFL player Theo find out when they team up to mislead their families and friends in this mega angsty, laugh-aloud romp that also offers readers emotional complexity, tenderness, an incendiary sexy times.  A Jingle Bell Mingle (Christmas Notch #3) b...

[Front cover of A Fire at Romanticon by H.L. Brooks with a design of a lacy pink thong and scattered flower petals; book held up against the backdrop of a framed black and white photo of the Brooklyn Bridge at night]    [ front cover art for A Vampire of a Certain Age by Maria Vale; a city skyline silhouette with a bat's wings spread above it]  [ three trade paperback books: One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin (spine up), A Fire at Romanticon by H.L. Brooks, Fall: A Detective Harriet Foster Thriller by Tracy Clark]  A Fire at Romanticon by H.L. Brooks*  contemporary rom-com  Write Women Publish, September 2024  Peach Kincaid is struggling. Her marriage, her self-image, her secret project and more feel like they're beyond her control until she takes more than one leap of faith. New look, new location, new friends and new opportunities offer her time and space to step into her most authentic self and claim a life that fulfills her in every way. Lots of laug...

Gorgeous covers matched with intriguing blurbs are my weakness!  [3 new books on a display shelf at a public library branch: Lavash at First Sight by Taleen Voskuni, In the Shadow of the Fall by Tobi Ogundira, She Who Knows by Nnedi Okorafor]    [4 new books on 2 shelves of a display at a public library: That Prince is Mine by Jayci Lee, The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava, Troubled Waters by Mary Annaise Heglar, Here for the Wrong Reasons by Annabel Paulsen & Lydia Wang]  Returned some borrowed items and despite my best intentions not to go beyond the returns counter, the new books display lured me close enough to see these enticing titles, which I managed not to bring home with me! Adding them to the top of my TBR list was my compromise. Still reading through last week's bookstack, ebooks on my phone, tablet, and in my email inbox.  Happy reading!  P.S. After a soul-boosting visit with someone who loves me, that person gave me two books. Then ...

No blog post about books last weekend did not equal a suspension of acquiring more books.😏  [front cover of a paperback copy of Ne'er Duke Well by Alexandra Vasti; a man and a woman in 19th-c. garb as they balance precariously in a wooden row boat with a little dog in a city lake setting]  Ne'er Duke Well by Alexandra Vasti  historical romance  St. Martin's Griffin, July 2024  Selina and Peter's love story is a tenderhearted farce of a romp grounded in emotional substance about honoring commitments with love and compassion toward family, friends, and fellow human beings. Mix in precocious children, tenacious animals, and well-intentioned meddlers for a satisfying read filled with lots of grit, affection, and humor along with deeper historical context that's often ignored.  books borrowed two weeks ago [a horizontal book stack from top to bottom: The Diamond and the Duke, Counting on the Cowboy, Body Check, Daydream, Better Left Unsent, Alternate Endings, S...

Aawww. Rain in the weekend forecast? How sad.  [a horizontal stack of 6 books from top to bottom: Undermining Twyla and Frank, Under Your Spell, Four Weekends and a Funeral, Take Me Home, One Last Summer, Just Some Stupid Love Story]   These are my back-up reading options just in case the books I already have aren't enough to last through the long holiday weekend even though my non-reading to-do list of personal and professional tasks is quite substantial.  Currently reading  [a horizontal book stack of 3 paperback books: Isabel and the Rogue; Loyally, Luke; Never Duke Well arranged atop a jar candle with a deep turquoise colored abalone shell attached to the front]  Thank you to everyone who labors to contribute to the economy, society, and humanity!    

Every age is an age of infinite possibilities!  [hardcover copy of I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself: One Woman's Pursuit of Pleasure in Paris by Glynnis MacNicol propped up inside a hat box with a pattern of the Eiffel Tower and "PARIS L'EXPOSITION" around the rim of the top]  I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself: One Woman's Pursuit of Pleasure in Paris by Glynnis MacNicol  non-fiction memoir  Viking/Penguin Life, June 2024  In a world that works hard to shove women over forty into irrelevance and invisibility, this author celebrates life as viewed, lived, experienced to its fullest by one grown woman and other grown women in the present and from the past. The breezy, contemplative narration style invites readers to observe and consider the author's adventurous journey of investigation and confirmation of self through the uninhibited pursuit of all kinds of pleasure. References to other memoirs, movies, art, history, fashion, geography and more parallel, re...