Note to witchy authors: I am friends with Kate Harding, newly installed as the events doyenne at Evanston's Bookends and Beginnings. If you want to talk to her about doing something for your book she said it's cool to reach out to her at Kate@bookendsandbeginnings.com. Tell her I sent you!
This isn't a book but an article. The Little Mermaid has made mermaids hype again and there's a new show on Netflix about people who work as human mermaids. I remember reading this article by Virginia way back in 2013 in the NYT Mag and thinking "I want to know the lady who wrote this; this is so cool."
okay, it’s amazing that VSS wrote that piece! I randomly mentioned the Weeki Wachee mermaids to my spouse over the weekend, in a “of course we’re all aware of this cultural phenomenon” way, & was shocked when he had no idea what I was talking about it. chances are I sent that article to him a decade ago & he failed my extremely long-burn test to see if he read it
May 25, 2023·edited May 25, 2023Liked by Claire Zulkey
Thank you for this! My book is BRAVE NEW HOME: OUR FUTURE IN SMARTER, SIMPLER, HAPPIER HOUSING. It's about the history of single-family homes and much-needed alternatives to single-family living. The intro actually starts w/ the struggle of being a first-time mother in a house by myself-- housing really impacts families and how they access social supports. I love Evil Witches and Claire's work here building an online community was one of the inspirations to start my own Substack, First and Foremost.
Thanks for this heads-up, I cannot wait to read these (Fat Talk is so good!) My book is How to Choose Your Baby’s Last Name: A Handbook for New Parents. I’m really bad at marketing it (the book has been out for a few years!) so I really appreciate this opportunity!
I interviewed more than 200 people for the book and asked them to tell me how they went about choosing their baby’s last name, so in the book you get to hear all these cool stories about what other people have done, and then I outline the 6 Last Name Options that hardly anyone (except witches, I’m sure!) knows are out there, and which, as far as I know, I’m the first/only one to have formalized into a Proper List – I mention this a) obviously, to brag, but also b) because this book is exactly what I needed when I was naming my kids and there was literally NO info out there as to what is legal and/or even possible when two people with different last names have a baby! And if someone had just told me: ‘You literally have 6 choices!’ it would have made it so much easier. And also if I could just have seen/known what other people had done it would have given me so much more confidence about speaking up about my true feelings to my partner/parents/mother-in-law etc, so I hope this book helps any others who are in that boat by knowing they’re not alone and that these can be really hard and emotion-heavy chats.
I also really wanted to show that there is no ‘one size fits all’ option when it comes to last names, and that no matter what you choose it’s ultimately about the conversation you have around the last name and what meaning it holds for you that is the most valuable thing.
Love these recs, so many I want to check out! I'm reading Matrix, by Lauren Groff. V witchy. I also just finished an advance of Amanda Montei's (Mad Moms) Touched Out: Motherhood, Misogyny, and Consent, and it is witchy AF an pretty life-changing. Also, this line makes me really want to write a book about ADHD or parenting, b/c I so understand this reaction "but I am never in the mood to start it because I think it will make me feel guilty and/or have to feel like I need to tell my husband stuff I learned from it."
The title “Touched Out” is so great. I had a feeling you would feel me on the resource thing. Nowadays I’m thinking things must be pretty overall chill at home if I’m not desperation-reading this book in hopes of Answers.
I have two ADHD books that I've been meaning to read, but avoid for the same reason. I opted for the audio versions because I thought maybe I'd listen while doing chores? But I still haven't listened to them yet.
There are so many good dumb celebrity memoirs to listen to first. Maybe by the time you get to them they will invent a new ADHD medicine that is good for all kids, is cheap and readily available.
Good morning! I don't have a book but I write a substack, it is 5% sincere and 95% fancy garbage (e.g. sticker books I bought, funny Garfields I found on etsy, some musings on the movie Demolition Man)
I haven't read the book but I'm in a video chat with two of my highschool friends (also moms) & VSS's NPR interview sparked some really great discussion. Her work is so important & necessary.
Hello, fellow witches! I thought I'd share my upcoming debut, FOR GIRLS WHO WALK THROUGH FIRE, which is witchy in all the ways. It was pitched as THE CRAFT meets PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN and is about a group of girls who meet in a sexual assault support group and decide to take matters into their own hands by forming a coven and getting revenge on their unrepentant assailants. It's YA but I believe it will have a strong appeal for adults as well. You can read the full book blurb (and pre-order it!) here (it's out 9/26/23): https://www.unionsquareandco.com/9781454948872/for-girls-who-walk-through-fire-by-kim-derose/
And thank you for all these amazing recs in the post and the comments! My to-read stack just grew quite a bit bigger.
May 25, 2023·edited May 25, 2023Liked by Claire Zulkey
Thanks, Claire, for the chance to promote more witchcraft!
My book, SKEPTICISM’S PICTURES: FIGURING DESCARTES’S NATURAL PHILOSOPHY_, dropped this week! It’s an academic book, but the gist is that the philosopher René Descartes made a whole bunch of pictures that transformed physics in the 17th century, and this book is a cultural history of those images and how people freaked out and got excited about them. (It’s expensive, but if your local library would like to purchase it, they can get 30% off with the code NR23 here: https://www.psupress.org/books/titles/978-0-271-09482-3.html)
That said, it was way more fun for me to write this meditation on the model minority myth/identity, academic originality, and writing about a super-canonical dead white dude. https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/what-i-was-doing-when-i-was-writing-about-descartes/ It really helped me see how much my mind has changed and how much I’ve grown since embarking on the book project!
Also, just general gratitude, Claire, for this great space. When I’m beleaguered about all the vicissitudes of working and thinking as a parent, I love getting to ask, what would a witch do?
Yay congrats Melissa!! What an achievement. I’ll update the list with this after I get everyone in my house where they are supposed to be (away from me!)
May 25, 2023·edited May 25, 2023Liked by Claire Zulkey
I am currently reading More: Life on the Edge of Adventure and Motherhood by Majka Burhardt. This book is amazing and Majka is definitely witchy. She is an ice climber, founder of a non-profit, and this book is her audio and journal notes from pregnancy and postpartum. I love this style of writing…it’s like reading someone’s diary and sharing their deepest thoughts. Really powerful for me as a toddler Mama and feel like other witches might like it too.
Since you asked, I might as well issue a reminder that I have a career-advice book called IS THIS WORKING? https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Is-This-Working/Courtney-C-W-Guerra/9781440598494 Makes a great college graduation gift! Although apparently my spouse's dep't chair--a fantastic writer who's nearing retirement--randomly started reading it the other day & told him she found it really helpful. (That she enjoyed it is one of the greatest compliments I've ever received.) So that's a point in favor of it being relevant to many ages & stages of life.
Thank you for the shout out and happy to be in such great company! Looking forward to checking out many of these books and I am getting most of my reading done via audio these days but maybe can get more print reading in this summer? That's probably wishful thinking.
May 26, 2023·edited May 26, 2023Liked by Claire Zulkey
Thank you for mention Growing Up in Public in such great company with some witchy books I love and others I need to read! We were still fighting about the cover when I made the galleys (myself). If you want to chat more about kids and tech away from all the moral panic, I'm also on Substack doing my thing.
This is another reco I got from a reader via email:
"Can I recommend Up to Speed: The Groundbreaking Science of Women Athletes by Christine Yu? I interviewed her on my podcast and she was delightful- and the book is so relevant to women athletes and anyone whose daughter plays sports or who coaches girls"
Note to witchy authors: I am friends with Kate Harding, newly installed as the events doyenne at Evanston's Bookends and Beginnings. If you want to talk to her about doing something for your book she said it's cool to reach out to her at Kate@bookendsandbeginnings.com. Tell her I sent you!
This isn't a book but an article. The Little Mermaid has made mermaids hype again and there's a new show on Netflix about people who work as human mermaids. I remember reading this article by Virginia way back in 2013 in the NYT Mag and thinking "I want to know the lady who wrote this; this is so cool."
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/07/magazine/the-last-mermaid-show.html
okay, it’s amazing that VSS wrote that piece! I randomly mentioned the Weeki Wachee mermaids to my spouse over the weekend, in a “of course we’re all aware of this cultural phenomenon” way, & was shocked when he had no idea what I was talking about it. chances are I sent that article to him a decade ago & he failed my extremely long-burn test to see if he read it
Thank you for this! My book is BRAVE NEW HOME: OUR FUTURE IN SMARTER, SIMPLER, HAPPIER HOUSING. It's about the history of single-family homes and much-needed alternatives to single-family living. The intro actually starts w/ the struggle of being a first-time mother in a house by myself-- housing really impacts families and how they access social supports. I love Evil Witches and Claire's work here building an online community was one of the inspirations to start my own Substack, First and Foremost.
Thank you Diana! I’m going to update this post to include it in the body copy (this issue is for subscribers today—everyone tomorrow.)
Thanks for this heads-up, I cannot wait to read these (Fat Talk is so good!) My book is How to Choose Your Baby’s Last Name: A Handbook for New Parents. I’m really bad at marketing it (the book has been out for a few years!) so I really appreciate this opportunity!
I interviewed more than 200 people for the book and asked them to tell me how they went about choosing their baby’s last name, so in the book you get to hear all these cool stories about what other people have done, and then I outline the 6 Last Name Options that hardly anyone (except witches, I’m sure!) knows are out there, and which, as far as I know, I’m the first/only one to have formalized into a Proper List – I mention this a) obviously, to brag, but also b) because this book is exactly what I needed when I was naming my kids and there was literally NO info out there as to what is legal and/or even possible when two people with different last names have a baby! And if someone had just told me: ‘You literally have 6 choices!’ it would have made it so much easier. And also if I could just have seen/known what other people had done it would have given me so much more confidence about speaking up about my true feelings to my partner/parents/mother-in-law etc, so I hope this book helps any others who are in that boat by knowing they’re not alone and that these can be really hard and emotion-heavy chats.
I also really wanted to show that there is no ‘one size fits all’ option when it comes to last names, and that no matter what you choose it’s ultimately about the conversation you have around the last name and what meaning it holds for you that is the most valuable thing.
https://www.amazon.com/Choose-Your-Babys-Last-Name/dp/0648730409
Thanks again for all you do, Claire!
Thank you Lorelai, what a genius premise for a book. Including it in the list now.
Thanks so much Claire! 🥹❤️
Love these recs, so many I want to check out! I'm reading Matrix, by Lauren Groff. V witchy. I also just finished an advance of Amanda Montei's (Mad Moms) Touched Out: Motherhood, Misogyny, and Consent, and it is witchy AF an pretty life-changing. Also, this line makes me really want to write a book about ADHD or parenting, b/c I so understand this reaction "but I am never in the mood to start it because I think it will make me feel guilty and/or have to feel like I need to tell my husband stuff I learned from it."
The title “Touched Out” is so great. I had a feeling you would feel me on the resource thing. Nowadays I’m thinking things must be pretty overall chill at home if I’m not desperation-reading this book in hopes of Answers.
yes maybe that's a good thing! but im also curious about why we cant give people advice without making them feel like shit. it's a problem.
Omg I feel like this about so many parenting books that I want to read but somehow don't ever want to read!
Just distill it into an essence and inject it into my brain directly
I have two ADHD books that I've been meaning to read, but avoid for the same reason. I opted for the audio versions because I thought maybe I'd listen while doing chores? But I still haven't listened to them yet.
There are so many good dumb celebrity memoirs to listen to first. Maybe by the time you get to them they will invent a new ADHD medicine that is good for all kids, is cheap and readily available.
Good morning! I don't have a book but I write a substack, it is 5% sincere and 95% fancy garbage (e.g. sticker books I bought, funny Garfields I found on etsy, some musings on the movie Demolition Man)
I would love to be friends with witches on Goodreads if you're on there! https://www.goodreads.com/90sinmyheart
Books I read lately that haven't been mentioned:
Predator: A Memoir, a Movie, an Obsession by Ander Monson (warning written by man but still good)
We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman (warning very sad)
SO much romance, including quite a few about literal witches? Witches are IN! Right now I'm reading "
A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon" and if I could find a way to leave work to go home and read it, I would
Just another vote here for Fat Talk! I finished it the other day and it was as perfect and necessary as I suspected.
I haven't read the book but I'm in a video chat with two of my highschool friends (also moms) & VSS's NPR interview sparked some really great discussion. Her work is so important & necessary.
Damn, a lot of you have published real actual books! Kudos friends!!!!!
Hello, fellow witches! I thought I'd share my upcoming debut, FOR GIRLS WHO WALK THROUGH FIRE, which is witchy in all the ways. It was pitched as THE CRAFT meets PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN and is about a group of girls who meet in a sexual assault support group and decide to take matters into their own hands by forming a coven and getting revenge on their unrepentant assailants. It's YA but I believe it will have a strong appeal for adults as well. You can read the full book blurb (and pre-order it!) here (it's out 9/26/23): https://www.unionsquareandco.com/9781454948872/for-girls-who-walk-through-fire-by-kim-derose/
And thank you for all these amazing recs in the post and the comments! My to-read stack just grew quite a bit bigger.
Thanks Kim, congrats!
Kim, I'm updating this post with your book and I'm going to send out a little re-ping in tomorrorw's issue!
Oh wow, thank you, Claire! That's amazing.
Thanks, Claire, for the chance to promote more witchcraft!
My book, SKEPTICISM’S PICTURES: FIGURING DESCARTES’S NATURAL PHILOSOPHY_, dropped this week! It’s an academic book, but the gist is that the philosopher René Descartes made a whole bunch of pictures that transformed physics in the 17th century, and this book is a cultural history of those images and how people freaked out and got excited about them. (It’s expensive, but if your local library would like to purchase it, they can get 30% off with the code NR23 here: https://www.psupress.org/books/titles/978-0-271-09482-3.html)
That said, it was way more fun for me to write this meditation on the model minority myth/identity, academic originality, and writing about a super-canonical dead white dude. https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/what-i-was-doing-when-i-was-writing-about-descartes/ It really helped me see how much my mind has changed and how much I’ve grown since embarking on the book project!
Also, just general gratitude, Claire, for this great space. When I’m beleaguered about all the vicissitudes of working and thinking as a parent, I love getting to ask, what would a witch do?
Yay congrats Melissa!! What an achievement. I’ll update the list with this after I get everyone in my house where they are supposed to be (away from me!)
Thank you so much. And lol, yes, be gone everyone in your house!
Melissa I just found your bio. Your work is so cool!!! Way to go on being awesome.
Thanks so much, Claire!!
I am currently reading More: Life on the Edge of Adventure and Motherhood by Majka Burhardt. This book is amazing and Majka is definitely witchy. She is an ice climber, founder of a non-profit, and this book is her audio and journal notes from pregnancy and postpartum. I love this style of writing…it’s like reading someone’s diary and sharing their deepest thoughts. Really powerful for me as a toddler Mama and feel like other witches might like it too.
Since you asked, I might as well issue a reminder that I have a career-advice book called IS THIS WORKING? https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Is-This-Working/Courtney-C-W-Guerra/9781440598494 Makes a great college graduation gift! Although apparently my spouse's dep't chair--a fantastic writer who's nearing retirement--randomly started reading it the other day & told him she found it really helpful. (That she enjoyed it is one of the greatest compliments I've ever received.) So that's a point in favor of it being relevant to many ages & stages of life.
Including it in the roundup now: thanks C!
Thank you for the shout out and happy to be in such great company! Looking forward to checking out many of these books and I am getting most of my reading done via audio these days but maybe can get more print reading in this summer? That's probably wishful thinking.
ADORE this round-up (and thank you for including me!)
Thank you for mention Growing Up in Public in such great company with some witchy books I love and others I need to read! We were still fighting about the cover when I made the galleys (myself). If you want to chat more about kids and tech away from all the moral panic, I'm also on Substack doing my thing.
This is another reco I got from a reader via email:
"Can I recommend Up to Speed: The Groundbreaking Science of Women Athletes by Christine Yu? I interviewed her on my podcast and she was delightful- and the book is so relevant to women athletes and anyone whose daughter plays sports or who coaches girls"
https://a.co/d/51aZVGc