Tag: narrated by author

Cover for Kinky History by Esme Louise James

Review: Kinky History: A Rollicking Journey through Our Sexual Past, Present, and Future by Esmé Louise James 

September 13, 2024

After following James’ Kinky History videos on Instagram, I knew I needed to read this book. She always presents the kinky facts from history in a fun and easy to understand manner. This book is just a longer version of that.  James uses a mixture of history, science, and personal anecdote to tell the history … More Review: Kinky History: A Rollicking Journey through Our Sexual Past, Present, and Future by Esmé Louise James 

Cover for The Wrath to Come by Sarah Churchwell

Review: The Wrath to Come: Gone with the Wind and the Lies America Tells by Sarah Churchwell

June 10, 2024

The Wrath to Come shows how one of the most popular stories of all time, Gone With the Wind, can be used to explain the current division in the United States. Churchwell explains how the history of mythmaking has influenced America’s politics and how Gone with the Wind influenced that mythmaking.  “The United States is, … More Review: The Wrath to Come: Gone with the Wind and the Lies America Tells by Sarah Churchwell

Cover for The Escape Artist by Jonathan Freedland

Review: The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World by Jonathan Freedland

May 18, 2023

Trigger Warnings: graphic death; genocide; torture; physical abuse; starvation; PTSD; survivor’s guilt; infanticide; cheating; alcohol use; paranoia; abusive relationship; suicide of a child; cancer;  “Information is necessary, to be sure, but it is never sufficient. Information must also be believed…Only when information is combined with belief does it become knowledge, and only knowledge leads to … More Review: The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World by Jonathan Freedland

Cover for Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall

Review: Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall

March 15, 2022

Trigger Warnings: Discussions of racism, domestic abuse, sexual abuse,  miscarriages, abortions, gun violence, police violence, harassment, fatphobia, eating disorders, food insecurities PTSD, suicide, victim blaming, mental illness, human trafficking, femicide, cultural appropriation, teacher discrimination and bullying.  “One of the biggest issues with mainstream feminist writing has been the way the idea of what constitutes a … More Review: Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall

Cover for How the Word is Passed by Clint Smith

Review: How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith

February 14, 2022

“The history of slavery is the history of the United States. It was not peripheral to our founding; it was central to it. It is not irrelevant to our contemporary society; it created it. This history is in our soil, it is in our policies, and it must, too, be in our memories.” Clint Smith … More Review: How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith

Cover for All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson

Review: All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson

November 30, 2021

Trigger Warnings: sexual assault, racism, homophobia, death of a friend, physical violence. This is a series of personal essays about journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson. They explore his childhood, adolescence, and college years in New Jersey and Virginia.  This was a very moving memoir about George’s life. He describes his past trauma and … More Review: All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson

Cover for The Ravenmaster: My Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London by Christopher Skaife

Review: The Ravenmaster: My Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London by Christopher Skaife

September 4, 2021

Until a few years ago, I didn’t realize that the Tower of London had ravens or that there was a whole rumor that the city would fall if the ravens left. Christopher Skaife takes us through the history of the position of Ravenmaster and what it means to be a Ravenmaster.  As an American, I … More Review: The Ravenmaster: My Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London by Christopher Skaife