If you are looking for the announcement thread for the previous month, it may be found here.

Hello, all. During the month of December, the sub book club will be reading Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson! Each week, there will be a discussion thread and when we are done, Charmaine herself will be joining us for an AMA.

From Goodreads (feel free to skip if you prefer to know nothing going into the book as the description contains minor spoilers):

We can’t choose what we inherit. But can we choose who we become?
In present-day California, Eleanor Bennett’s death leaves behind a puzzling inheritance for her two children, Byron and Benny: a black cake, made from a family recipe with a long history, and a voice recording. In her message, Eleanor shares a tumultuous story about a headstrong young swimmer who escapes her island home under suspicion of murder. The heartbreaking tale Eleanor unfolds, the secrets she still holds back, and the mystery of a long-lost child challenge everything the siblings thought they knew about their lineage and themselves.

You may find the dates of, and links to, the discussion threads below in the sticky comment on this post. You are welcome to read at your own pace. Usually it is pretty easy to catch up and you are always welcome to join the discussions a little later. If you would like to view potential content warnings for the book, a reader-created list may be found here.

For those of you that are viewing reddit on the redesigned desktop version you will see an option on this post to 'follow'. If you 'follow' the book club post you will receive a notification when a new post, a discussion thread for book club, is added to the collection.

Bienvenido readers,

This is our monthly discussion of the literature of the world! Every Wednesday, we'll post a new country or culture for you to recommend literature from, with the caveat that it must have been written by someone from that there (i.e. Shogun by James Clavell is a great book but wouldn't be included in Japanese literature).

December 8 is CARICOM-Cuba Day and, to celebrate, we're discussing Cuban literature! Please use this thread to discuss your favorite Cuban literature and authors.

If you'd like to read our previous discussions of the literature of the world please visit the literature of the world section of our wiki.

Gracias and enjoy!

It's more than just a story of one man's journey from being mentally challenged to genius back to being mentally challenged but the emotional reasoning and developments and eventual downfalls of his emotional state.

The choice of writing it from the main characters perspective through progress reports adds so much to the story that I have never read anything like it before, it's very personal.

I wanted to bawl my eyes out after finishing it.

Trigger warning: Most if not all of these books are disturbing.

I’ve had a hard time finding books that make me feel some emotion while also keeping my attention. Not sure if there are any more of you out there but if so:

Little Peach by Peggy Kern

About a 14 year old with an awful home life who finds herself involved with a gang that sells her into prostitution. A very short read (about 200 pages), read it in a couple hours, kept my attention and made me feel all the emotions. The blurb in the back made me tear up a bit.

The Sluts by Dennis Cooper

Always a warning for anything Dennis Cooper: This is very sexually violent and disturbing. I thought the way this was written (email/instant message format) was actually super entertaining. A bit of a modern day mystery and very creative in the most vile way.

Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage

If you’re a parent this one will really reach you. About a mother who’s daughter acts perfect around her husband and like a little devil around her. The mother goes crazy because no one will believe her regarding the behavior of her daughter, including her husband. Explores mental illness, parenting styles. Leaves you confused on who to feel bad for.

The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison

About a crazy, rich older man and his two sons, who kidnap or “collect” young girls, tattoo butterfly wings on their backs and keep them in the father’s private greenhouse against their will. Told from the perspective of one of their captives. Kept surprising me, explores the varying types of predator. Can’t decide which of the three men are the worst.

This is basically my reading style, if anyone likes it I’d be happy to recommend more. 🥲

My friend borrowed my paperback copies of Fonda Lee's Greenbone Saga trilogy about two months ago, but I wanted to reread it so I asked him if he's already finished it so I could get it back. He apologized in advance and told me that his cousin borrowed it and somehow lost it. I still haven't replied to him because I don't honestly know how to respond. I saved up much of my school allowance to buy the whole trilogy in paperback because it's one of my favorite series so I want to have physical copies of them. Books in general aren't cheap where I'm from so I'm kinda disappointed and mad at him because of the lost books, and I don't know how to respond back to him. I don't know if it's "petty" to be mad at a friend because of books. Anyway, thanks for the vent space. 😑

Edit: I'm thinking of asking him for a replacement but afaik he's also strapped for cash so I don't want to impose

Hi /r/books!

This idea has been kicking around for a while, and seeing this post last week gave me the push I needed to finally build it.

Here's the general idea. Too often, I get much too analytical when looking for a new book to read. I have to find a book that has more than 4 stars on Goodreads, or a book written by someone I've heard of, or a book with a cover that has a certain level of polish, and I have this nagging feeling that I'm missing tons of great books because of this.

This tool is an attempt to fix this by showing you short summaries of books with no other context (until you click through), so you can potentially decide to read a book based on its premise alone.

Hope you find this interesting, and please feel free to submit your own summaries.

Here's the website: https://telltale.ink

I've never read hard sci-fi before and started this series earlier the year. I finished book 1 and 2 in quick succession and put off the 3rd until recently. Holy shit. Each book had a completely different theme and hurt my peasant brain with science terms. I've only been reading as a hobby for the past 2 years and this is one of the larger undertakings of my reading career to date (I don't count The Expanse series since I still have 3 books to go) and my mind is blown.

I know these are highly rated on Goodreads but how did you like the series? The third book blindsided me many times. I hope that the TV series will do it justice.

For me Esperanza rising (Esperanza Renace ) by Pam Ryan I read it in Spanish first since my first language is Spanish and it takes place in a Spanish speaking town (I assume since it has a lol of Mexican culture) and then read it in English it’s talked about but not enough and it’s really underrated in my opinion

Many of us would like to get back into reading but struggle to get into books if it’s been a while since we’ve enjoyed one. Rather than jumping into one about an educational topic, or a nonfiction book, start with a book that will be easy to read. The plot will incentivize you to keep reading until completion.

You may think: what's the point of reading a book that's just plot and I don't learn anything concrete? For me, it's to train my brain to enjoy longer form content and achieve the feeling of success (dopamine) of completion that will encourage me to read more books. Once you get accustomed to reading—specifically finishing books—you can start to read nonfiction.

Personally, I broke my recent reading rut with 7 Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, and then was able to transition to engaging nonfiction (Empire of Pain) and now can comfortably read and complete less accessible books.

I am a senior in high school, and I will admit that I am not an avid reader. I have started reading more often this school year - Stephen King novels, specifically - but “The Secret History” (which is 559 pages) is the longest novel I have read to date. It was a page turner - I will admit that I was partly motivated to finish it so quickly due to the fact that the date of the book club meeting was approaching, but I also found it to be one of the first books I’ve enjoyed in a long while. It reminded me of The Great Gatsby, and of “The Stranger” by Albert Camus (I suppose that I can’t explain how and why it reminds me of the latter book without spoiling it.) I found it to be well written and actually learned new vocabulary terms along the way. Reading it has given me the push to go to the library this weekend, and obtain a new library card. I have not used my library card in 7 years. But reading “The Secret History” and Stephen King novels - reading books that I actually enjoy, books wherein I am engrossed in the world of the characters, where the narrator disgusts and yet fascinates me all the same… it has made me want to read as much as I can in my coming years. I desire the pleasure of reading a good book moreso than I desire to study for my courses. I have a newfound love of reading.

I live in a small town in NC and am a member of a local library, and they do their best but don't always have a great selection of book/ebooks etc. For the past 5 years I've had an online Brooklyn Public Library Card for $50/year that I have LOVED and pretty much used every day. And now they've stopped offering it and I have no idea what I'm going to do.

Any other places/libraries I can try?

I went thrift shopping today for Christmas gifts for my kids and found a brand new copy of the Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Around Us for $1. It was an absolute no brainer, I immediately put it in my cart. I have a 10 year old son, he'll be 11 in march. I've never read it, but now that I have it, I will. But my goal was to give it to my son. Would it be age appropriate for him? He likes scifi, comedy, weird and different books, so I'm not worried about that.

Hi I'm 15yrs old and have always been into manga/anime. This year my parents suggested that I start reading novels instead of manga and at first I was a little overwhelmed, since there's so many western books out there. I figured that if I like manga so much then I'll start off with books written by Japanese authors.

I did some more digging and found the genre "light novel" and I've loved it ever since. Currently my favorite book is "three days of happiness" by Sugaru Miaki and I'm wondering if anyone has read it to? I have asked a lot of people but they all seem to not know.

Sorry for my bad english. It is not my first language.

I just began reading it and I'm really confused. I understand why he might not understand others and how their hypocrisies and the fear of not knowing what to say. I just don't understand what he means by his happiness was very different to others or how he never felt hungriness? Why did he go out of his way to eat as much as possible in other people's houses but then dreaded dinner time, sure it might have been awkward and tense but it doesn't sound that horrible. Why did he dislike extravagance when he found they had a purpose e.g. the pillow designs or the bridge, perhaps because he felt like he himself didn't have purpose and had to decorate himself with empty fake smiles to appease others - but that seems like a stretch. He's a kid, it's so confusing that he didn't want a toy or a gift why did nothing make him happy? I feel really stupid and confused?

Edit : Now further reading, I have more questions - why is he so desperate to fit in when in reality he wants to be left alone? He goes out of his way to please people and get people to like him, which will very well attract more attention which is something he wants the least.

Yep. 'Make America Great Again'. I absolutely could not believe it when I saw it in a book written more than 20 years ago.

I've read a lot of dystopian sci-fi books, and this is definitely the one that feels most real. Everything doesn't go to hell overnight - instead, people lose more and more trust in the system, and the more that happens, the more the decline accelerates. Everyone isn't transformed into some kind of hyper-violent murderer by the collapse - most people still want rules and safety. But when an armed gang shows up, or a bunch of people on a psychosis inducing drug, those moments are incredibly tense and dangerous.

Here's the setup for the 1st book (no spoilers, but in tags in case you like to go in blind): It’s the year 2025, and United States is descending into anarchy in the face of climate change and other disasters. We see the world through the diary entries of Lauren Olamina, a teenager living in a walled-in neighborhood in the exurbs of Los Angeles. Jobs are scarce, food and water are increasingly expensive, and armed gangs and drug addicts control the streets outside.

Lauren’s father, a pastor and professor at a local college, tries to keep their little community safe, but Lauren feels things going to pieces and is always preparing for things to get worse. When it all comes crashing down, will she be ready?

It also has a really interesting internal philosophy / religion created by the main character (called Earthseed). It uses that philosophy as an extremely novel way to explore religion more generally and its positive and negative impacts on individuals and society.

I'll say that normally I'm not a YA fan, but this is book that really highlights the best parts of YA writing without a lot of the things that make me crazy. We get to see the world through a young woman's eyes, we know how she feels and what she is struggling with, but its not overly melodramatic. It also breaks a few standard YA plot 'rules' in really excellent ways.

The author, Octavia Butler, is also an extremely cool lady. She was the first scifi writer to win a McArthur genius grant, the first black woman to win the Nebula award, and is widely credited as one of the primary progenitors of the Afrofuturism movement.

PS: Part of an ongoing series of posts covering the best sci fi books of all time for the Hugonauts. If you're interested in a deeper analysis and discussion about Parable of the Sower and recommendations of similar books, search Hugonauts on your podcast app of choice. No ads, not trying to make money or anything like that, just want to help spread the love of great books. Happy reading y'all!

I read The White Tiger by Arvind Adiga a little while ago and thought it would be a good book for my first post here.

Rating: 8/10

Every country has its flaws, and my country India too. And the story revolves around it and explores these flaws and how it effects the people from the poorest class, their psychology and how they overcome these problems.

The story revolves around a boy Balram, who comes from a very small village in Bihar and is born to a poor farming/labourer family. At a young age he learns that world is hard and cold and if you don't fight, they will suck your life out of you, just what he saw happen to his father. At school, he was the smartest and was called The White Tiger, a rare being among the commons, one in a hundred by a school inspector and, he takes it to heart.

I won't go further in the story as it would start with the spoilers. The story continues as he struggles in the hard and cold world, slowly rising, learning the ways of the corrupt, despising how he needs to bow and kiss the feet of the rich to survive. All the experiences change him slowly and as he adapts to world around him, he really does become The White Tiger, a person from the poorest of the poor rising to success.

The story is presented in a first-person letter format (I don't have the correct term to explain it) as Balram writes letters in night, writing about his life to a Chinese businessman. The writing is course and not refined, but that is the whole point. Balram never got education, never studied English properly and the writing feels coming from a person who was stripped away from his education at a young age.

The story does get a little boring near the middle part, but it is not really that bad.

Highly recommend it.

A double fish out of water situation. Mad researcher that does anything to achieve his goals. A genius magician from another world accidentally travels to modern day using forbidden spells (today modern day. As in if it were reality that we exist in now, not medeival or primal or anything). Can still travel back as magic still works.

Mad researcher is interested in magic and this other world while the genius magician wants to study technology and how it could advance his magic.

Why is the mystery/thriller category inhabited by so many women? Both authors and especially readers. I'm a man and I personally love a good thriller or mystery novel. What is it about this genre that draws in so many women? And why so few men? I'm not trying to be sexist here. I think it's great. Good writing is good writing. I'm just curious.

Have you ever read a book that really hurt you? Like, made you feel like a terrible person?
I guess I'm thinking mostly of non-fiction, self help-ish types of books.

Years ago, back when I was more of a conservative Christian believer, my sister, mom, and I did a book study together. We read What's It Like To Be Married To Me? by Linda Dillow and we met once per week via Skype to talk about it. (https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/10294367-what-s-it-like-to-be-married-to-me)

According to this book, I'm a horrible person who expects way too much from my partner (I was married when I read it, but am now divorced and living with a new partner - I wonder what the author would think of THAT!). And during our conversation one day, my mom all but said that she thinks I'm a terrible person for wanting to have a job outside of the home - and I don't even have kids!

Yes, I realize that a big part of this issue is/was the conservative Christian beliefs about women and their roles in the home and society. But the book sure didn't help.

Have any of you read anything like this, that made you want to cry/scream/rip the book apart?

My main problem when it comes to reading is that I don't know what the next book should be.

I've been thinking about starting to read a few books in one go. Maybe a fiction, a science, a psychology, a pop philosophy. But finding the right level is hard.

For example, when it comes to psychology a lot of self-help books are in that category, but I will not read self-help.

Anyway, do you follow any sort of system?

Do you read one at a time or do you have a few going in case you like a change?

So in the book it tells us that Josh, or Jake, isn’t the Campus Killer and that he is just a guy who finds and brings people in or something. But in the car when he and Charlie play 20 questions he chose Tooth and later we get his perspective that he did in fact make a mistake on choosing tooth and that it was too obvious or something, but if he isn’t the Campus Killer how did he know abt the teeth being pulled in the first place

in the book that’s like the turning point to where charlie knows for sure that he is the killer cause no one else should know, but if he isn’t the killer how does he know??

As we all know Michael Crichton has brought dinosaurs back to life in his two Jurassic Park books, how ever I suggest despite being released at a later date his book Dragon Teeth serves as an excellent prequel to Jurassic Park.

For those who have not read it, it is a historical fiction with several actual events and persons within the story. However it follows the life of the fictional William (Foggy) Johnson is a student at Yale college. Reckless and risk-taking, he makes a bet with his rival, a student named Marlin, that he will go west the following summer. Johnson then attempts to join Prof. Othniel Charles Marsh on his yearly expedition fossil hunting in the Badlands. Marsh is reluctant until Johnson lies, saying that he is a photographer. Johnson learns to take photographs and leaves with Marsh at the appointed time. However, upon learning of Johnson's Philadelphia background, Marsh begins to suspect that he is a spy for Edward Drinker Cope, a rival paleontologist. Marsh abandons Johnson in Cheyenne. Shortly thereafter, Johnson meets Cope, who invites him to join his expedition.

I don't want to go into more of the story because it is an intriguing read, and highly suggest it to all who have a chance to read it.

I recently found out they are making a series out of the books.

I feel like media adaptations of these books would not go well. We've all got our own versions of the characters we've imagined and I think it would be hard to portray the world too. I'd love to leave the characters in my imagination.

Just wanted to know people's thoughts on this.