Book of the Week ‘Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow’ by Gabrielle Zevin

Reviewed by our own Catalina

‘I picked this up for its beautiful cover and the story did not disappoint!

The blurb says’ This is not a romance, but it is about love’ and about love it truly is. I really enjoyed reading a book that did not attempt to set the characters through all kinds of challenges and struggles, only to reunite them in a romance story.

Videogames are a big part of this book, but that did not alienate me from the story. We follow Sadie and Sam, two gaming nerds that are crafting exciting virtual worlds and growing their game design company. Their professional ascend is paralleled by troublesome personal circumstances that are constantly testing their friendship and love for each other.

My politically obsessed mind could not help but notice Zevin’s subtle hints to wider issues around gun control, gender, and racial structural injustices that even in a seemingly ‘neutral’ industry make themselves visible.

Through Sadie’s story, she reflects on what it means to be a woman in a sphere dominated by men: ‘she often had to put herself into a male point of view to even understand a game at all’.

Through Sam’s story, she hints at the occasional identity crises of families with an immigrant background: ‘as any mixed-race person will tell you - to be half of two things is to be whole of nothing.’

Overall, I loved loved this book and quite enjoyed being immersed in Sadie’s and Sam’s virtual world development. I also adored how Zevin managed to capture the characters’ personal growth as they navigate their twenties and learn to become more patient, empathetic, and kind to each other.’

Thanks for a great review!

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‘Nightcrawling’ by Leila Mottley
Wonderfully reviewed by our own Catalina

‘Leila Mottley asserts herself as an incredible writer with this debut novel covering the harsh realities of what it means to be a poor black woman in America.

Mottley's prose is as beautiful as it is enraging. Inspired by a true story, Mottley sets out to shed light on what happens when black poverty meets white power.

Kiara and her brother are barely making ends meet in East Oakland with no family nor a safety net to fall back on. But while her brother Marcus is chasing his dream to become a rapper, Kiara must stay grounded to pay the piling bills and the increasing rent. On top of that, she feels responsible for the 9-year-old boy next door who has been abandoned by his mother. Desperate and vulnerable, she turns to sex work to avoid starvation and soon falls prey to cruel police brutality and sexual violence.

Mottley's storytelling has kept me engaged and enraged the whole way, mainly because the events described are far from fiction - racism, chauvinism, and abuse are chronic to institutional power. If police brutality against black men has made the headlines, black women's stories of encountering sexual exploitation by law enforcers remain untold.

Mottley sheds an important light on these stories - and on the subject of adultification of black girls.’

A highly recommended read!

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‘Joan’ by Katherine J. Chen
Reviewed by our own Jenny :)

‘I absolutely, completely and utterly adored this book. It was immersive and richly descriptive from the very beginning, with incredible character development. The book brought Joan of Arc’s short existence to life, humanising her as both a powerful, strong and determined, yet deeply relatable and troubled young woman.

Treated scornfully by her violent and hyper-masculine father since her early childhood, Joan sets out from her small village of Domrémy to make her mark in the world and to defend France against their enemy, the ever-encroaching English.

Facing ridicule and not being taken seriously as a capable warrior as a young woman, Joan is constantly having to prove her mettle and her worth in a world and society crafted and shaped for men to succeed, to rule and to subjugate. Though she is eventually respected and celebrated as France’s saviour in her victorious battles, Joan is quickly cast aside as a disappointment as soon as the first defeat comes.

This was a great read, and one which frustratingly highlights the still very real matter of women always having to do more to be seen as equal to their male counterparts.’

Happy Reading!

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‘Carrie Soto is Back’ by Taylor Jenkins Reid, bestselling author of ‘The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo’, ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ and ‘Malibu Rising’.

‘Carrie Soto is back! She is the best tennis player in the world, and she knows it. Her 20 Grand Slam titles, a record that seemed safe at the time of retirement, is now up for grabs. So Carrie returns to the tour at the age of 37 with her dad as her coach, and we are led back through her journey from childhood to champion.

Carrie is an interesting person. By no means charming or friendly, she is here to win and yet, somehow, you find yourself cheering for her and her unique story.

The story is linear as we follow the year of the four Grand Slam tournaments, and as a reader you get to spend a lot of time on the courts.

The premise of the book is both timely and interesting – especially with the US Open retirement of Serena Williams happening in real time, and I found myself turning pages quickly and really wondering how Carrie would succeed?

It’s one woman, one claim…game, set, match for this book.

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