Rachel Baack

Summary: In under 250 pages, author Robert P. Jones illuminates the close relationship between white Christianity and white supremacy in the United States, both historically and presently. He describes the ways in which white Christians have not only tolerated but actively participated in racist speech and action throughout American history, the ways in which white Christian theology developed and still exists in ways that allow and even encourage white supremacy, and the present reality that white Christian identity in American is independently correlated with an increase in racist attitudes (and vice versa). He goes on to call his readers to do the necessary work of reckoning with the past and present of white Christian racism and of pursuing racial justice, providing some examples of churches and communities that have begun that work.

While white American Christians are the imagined audience for the book, I think it would be certainly accessible and likely interesting to a much broader audience, including anyone who has ever observed and wondered at the paradoxical connection between white Christianity and racism in the United States.

Summary: In this retelling of Cinderella, recent fashion graduate Cindy finds herself in a design slump. She sees a perfect opportunity to promote her work and maybe get her groove back when a slot opens up on Before Midnight, a Bachelor-esque dating show that her stepmother (not evil, just a bit of a workaholic) happens to produce. The problem, however, is that Cindy may be a little more into the show’s “suitor” than she’d expected she’d be.

My favorite thing about this retelling is that Cindy gets to have a positive, supportive relationship with her stepfamily. The ending didn’t totally live up to my expectations, but it was still pretty cute.

This Pulitzer-prize winning collection is both straightforward (hence the title) and melancholic in its tone, addressing topics that run the gamut from addiction to death and loss to the depths and horrors of love and back again. The sonnets are untitled, but my favorites from this collection are on pages 7, 35, 38, 57, 66, and 105.

In this exploration of the human mind, David McRaney uncovers some of the truths about the ways we behave, think, and regularly fool ourselves. This book is a great introduction to some fascinating psychological phenomena for those who have not had extensive exposure to the field.

The tone of the book was interesting in that (at least as I perceived it) it seemed to be intentionally informative and communicative of a hope that the contents of the book would ultimately be helpful to readers’ lives, but there also seemed to be an underlying enjoyment of the discomfort readers would likely feel upon learning some of the difficult truths being presented.

This Pulitzer Prize winning collection by Marie Howe is achingly beautiful. Especially compelling to me were her expression of love for and grief over the loss of her brother, as well as her exploration of faith. My favorite poems in the collection were “The Singularity,” “Gretel from a Sudden Clearing,” “The Attic,” “The Grave,” “One of the Last Days,” “The Star Market,” the third untitled poem from “Poems from the Life of Mary,” “Magdelene—The Seven Devils,” “The Affliction,” and “Magdalene on Gethsemane.”

This collection is incredible. It expresses honestly the deep grief and anger that accompany tragedy and injustice while acknowledging the persistence of hope and love. My favorite poems in this collection are “Variations on a Last Chance,” “To Be Self-Evident,” “On Translation,” “Letter to June Jordan in September,” “Tantoura Redux,” “Gloria,” and “Zaghareed.”

This graphic novel depicts nine under-told stories from Black history—those of Henry “Box” Brown, Harry “Bucky” Lew, Richard Potter, Theophilus Thomson, the residents of Malaga Island, the students and teachers of the Noyes Academy, Marshall “Major” Taylor, Spottswood Rice, and Bass Reeves—in a way that honors the legacies of those stories’ subjects and will connect with a modern-day audience of all ages.

John Warner, a writing professor and—obviously—a writer himself, makes a case for writing and reading as inherently human activities that we not only should not but simply cannot outsource to generative AI. He argues that any “reading” or “writing” activity that an LLM can do is not the real or meaningful work of reading or writing. Warner encourages his readers not to fear AI but to rethink what it really means to write and what relationship we should cultivate (or not) with generative AI as a result of that consideration.

Summary: Invited by Dr. Montague, a philosopher wishing to investigate the nature of the supernatural, Eleanor arrives at Hill House, known by the residents of the nearest town to be the site of supernatural disturbances of an undefined nature. Eleanor, herself chosen as a guest of Hill House because of a supernatural event that happened in her childhood home, is joined, in addition to Dr. Montague, by Luke, who is to be next to inherit the house, and Theodora, who seems to have some degree of extrasensory perception. In spite of the ominous air about the house and early indicators that something is in fact amiss, the four guests make one another’s acquaintance and begin their stay in a spirit of something akin to camaraderie that provides a degree of comfort. It is not long, however, before things begin to change in ways the foursome never could have expected.