This month did not go well. I went into June excited for some good books and fun Pride Month reads. And then the first two books of the month happened. Which kind of made the entire month just go sideways for a bit. Thankfully, we are ending strong and I feel like I’m maybe back on track. But there was a pretty big slump in the middle there. I’m honestly surprised I managed to finish as many books as I did because I basically wasn’t reading at all for like two weeks, which is pretty unusual for me.

Books I thought would work for me really didn’t. I was just not excited to read anything at all for most of June, and really wasn’t feeling what I was picking up. So prepare yourselves for some mediocre reviews (and one bad one).

What I Read

Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin

The premise of this book sounded so good – a group of trans women survive in an apocalyptic world by going around hunting feral men and avoiding the murderous bands of TERFs. Sounds fun, right? I was immediately a little grossed out – but figured I could move past it and just avoid reading this while I was eating. But there were a lot of other things I couldn’t ignore. I really tried to give it the benefit of the doubt, because the author is a trans woman and I was excited to read from that perspective, but the amount of misogyny in this book was not okay. By the time we got to the graphic rape scenes (yes, plural), I was over it and kind of skimming.

I think this book should come with basically all the trigger warnings on the first page. I get that it was trying to be shocking and edgy or whatever, but it just felt so gross. In multiple ways. I initially rated this one two stars because I wanted so badly to think this brought at least some value to trans literature. I also didn’t want to contribute to the amount of review bombing this book has gotten from anti-trans reviewers. But the more thought about it, the more I disliked it. The writing wasn’t great, and the messages this book gives are pretty awful. Which is so disappointing since the idea behind it sounded so fun. I’m all for some kick-ass, post-apocalyptic, zombie-esque sci-fi starring trans women, but I think this book is going to make it hard for a version that’s actually good to succeed, which is really sad.

I also want to mention that the author herself seems pretty problematic. After I read this one, I did a little digging after reading this, because I was curious to see not only what other reviewers thought, but what trans readers were saying. I’m not going to go into it here, but ooof, some of the stuff the author says is absolutely not okay. Regardless of my feelings about this book, I won’t be reading her books again. Hard nope on this one.

I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins

Honestly, I don’t have too much to say about this one except that I have no idea why it exists. I picked it up on a whim because Audible recommended it, apparently based on books I’ve liked. And I still don’t understand why. Yes, I like weird books. And yes, this book is weird. But it also kind of doesn’t make sense. I didn’t know what was going on for most of this book, and I really didn’t enjoy it at all. This wasn’t Manhunt-bad by any means, but I just didn’t like it. Not for me, but I can see why people might enjoy it. Maybe.

As a woman, I didn’t really identify with this book at all. Which is weird, because this is supposedly about “womanhood”. Not that I got that after the first chapter, which was entirely about the main character’s dad being in the Manson cult. Also, the main character has the same name as the author, which is weird. Overall, I just didn’t get it and I seriously doubt I’ll remember anything about it in a few months.

The Deep by Rivers Solomon

I was so excited to read my first Rivers Solomon. And I love the idea of this one – it’s about mermaids who are the descendants of pregnant African slaves who were thrown overboard. It’s a lot about generational trauma and the past and what that means for the future. It’s also based on a song by Daveed Diggs, William Huston, and Jonathan Snipes, which I think is cool. But for whatever reason, this one didn’t work for me and I’m a little sad about it. I don’t have anything negative to say, this book was fine, I just didn’t love it.

Orlando by Virginia Woolf

While I obviously went into this month wanting to read a lot of LGBTQ+ books, I also really wanted to work on my classics reading goal. My goal for this year is six, and going into June, I had only read one. So I looked for some LGBTQ+ classics. And I am very glad I managed to pick up a Virginia Woolf book! I had only read A Room of One’s Own and Three Guineas by her, both of which are nonfiction. So I’m happy to have read one of her novels, and I really enjoyed this one.

Orlando is about a wealthy womanizer named Orlando living in Elizabethan England. One day, he wakes up and discovers he has become a woman. He somehow survives through different decades and gets to experience life as a woman throughout the years, up to the twenties, which is when this was published. I thought it was really fun, and a great commentary on gender and gender roles (which Woolf does very well).

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

I have heard SO MANY good things about this book, so I added it to my list as part of the Buzzword Reading Challenge (this month’s prompt was the word “all” in the title). I was also pleased to find out that apparently the main character, Murderbot, was nonbinary (and maybe also asexual?), so it worked for Pride Month reading. And I thought this was just okay. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t dislike it. I don’t think I’ll be continuing with the series. It was good, but didn’t blow me away enough for me to be excited about more. But I can see why people enjoy this series. I just didn’t. See? I told you this was not a great reading month.

Passing by Nella Larsen

I had originally meant to pick up Giovanni’s Room as part of my classics goal this month. But for some reason wasn’t feeling it at the moment. Maybe because the only other classic I had read was also by James Baldwin. But this caught my eye, and the audiobook was free, so I picked it up. And I ended up being very glad I did. This is about two light-skinned Black women in the 1920s, one of whom has worked hard to pass as white, and the other who has embraced her Blackness. (Yes, this was the inspiration behind The Vanishing Half, in case you were wondering.)

I enjoyed this more than I was expecting to. It felt very 1920s classic novel. There were some strong Fitzgerald vibes, but with the bonus of the social commentary being a bit more important. I’d say if you enjoyed Gatsby, you need to read this one. And if you wanted to enjoy Gatsby, but it annoyed you, definitely give this one a shot. It feels like the 1920s novel that managed to stay relevant for a century, and it was wonderful. I didn’t love the ending, but as a whole, this is a great book.

A History of My Brief Body by Billy-Ray Belcourt

Finally, we finished strong with what might be one of my favorite books of the year. This is a memoir written by an Indigenous, gay poet. And it is easily one of the most beautiful things I’ve read in a long time. His prose is so gorgeous – I ended up adding tabs to my favorite lines (and I rarely tab my books). Just a truly beautiful memoir.

I also really enjoyed learning about Belcourt’s experience as a gay NDN in Canada. It was so different than my own experience, and very interesting to read. I love that he told his story in such a beautiful way. I was seriously blown away by this book. It was just so beautiful, and reminded me why I love reading so much. Which, obviously, was something I very much needed this month.

What I’m Currently Reading

Pew by Catherine Lacey

This one got put on pause during my epic slump this month, but I am just now coming back to it. It’s a really fascinating book about a genderless person who one day is found sleeping on the pew inside a church. I am just starting to get into their interactions with the townspeople and I’m curious to see how it plays out. So far, really enjoying this one!

A Psalm for the Wild-Born by Becky Chambers

I picked the audiobook of this one up on a whim the other day. I’ve been seeing this around for a while, and for some reason was under the impression that it was middle-grade. Really not sure why, because it is definitely not. Honestly, I don’t fully know what’s going on yet, but it’s weird and I like it so far.

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

As of my writing this, I am only a few pages into this book, but I’m excited to read a bit more before the month is over. I’ve heard really great things about it, and I am in desperate need of a good book.

What I Watched

The Staircase

You probably know by now that I am a little obsessed with true crime. I watched the original documentary back in mid-2020 with everyone else when we were bored in quarantine. And while I didn’t love it, the cast in this HBO version definitely got me. And it was pretty good. I enjoyed it. Obviously, the acting is great. Worth watching if you’re a true crime fan.

God’s Favorite Idiot

I hadn’t heard anything about this new Netflix show until I came across it while trying to find something to watch the other day. And obviously I had to watch a comedy starring Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone. And this was super fun. I thoroughly enjoyed it and binged it in a single day. Only to find out that it ends on a cliffhanger and I have to wait for season two.

Blog Highlights

New(ish) LGBTQ+ Releases to Add to Your TBR for Pride Month

This month was obviously Pride Month, so I’ve been gearing my reading around that. And I thought it might be fun to take a look at some new LGBTQ+ books that I’m interested in. It was kind of nice to remind myself at some of the new releases I want to read, and I hope this post gave you some new books to check out, too.

And that is it for June! Hopefully July is a better reading month, because I desperately need to catch up on my goals. We are going into the second half of 2022 – what even is time anymore? – and I really don’t want to be scrambling to meet my goals come December.

What was your favorite book in June? Are there any new books you’ve loved that I should maybe add to my summer reading list?

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