Books that made me cry: either laughing or because I was devastated or both intermittently.
- Island of the Blue Dolphins ruined March break 1996.
- Goddang Handmaid’s Tail (no I’m not going to watch the show, thanks though). Margaret Atwood is so depressing. It comes from living in Ontario. Can relate.
- The Stone Carvers: Jane Urquhart is also depressing. Like, for real, though, why are all female baby boomer writers from Ontario so depressing?
- Me talk pretty one day: The only book that made me laugh more was Shrill, but I read it when I was about 17, and I read Shrill recently, so it would be interesting to see how I feel about it now.
- Shrill, Lindy West (autocorrect changed ‘shrill’ to ‘me’ lol). West quit Twitter because it’s a toxic garbage heap. Mostly she is incredibly brave to tell men they are garbage, because that is a surefire way to get them to start crying, and when men cry, they can get nasty and/or stabby.
- Difficult Women, & every book Roxane Gay writes, including her tweets.
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou. Pretty self-explanatory.
- That part of Amber Spyglass where Lyra has to cross the barren wastes of the after life without Pantalaimon has affected me so much that I remember how to spell “Pantalaimon” first try 15 years later. I cried in the tub for the entire chapter.
- That last Harry Potter book. I don’t know if it still would, though.
- Dave Barry makes me laugh I’m not ashamed. Okay, maybe a little. Okay, like his early stuff is less Tim Taylor, more irreverent American culture spoofing. Seriously though, his books have pulled me through more than one panic attack, and that’s worth something.
Reading is fun and enjoyable.