Despite two fire assignments this month, I did find time to finish a handful of books.
Pizza Hut, where’s my personal pan pizza?
(As a reminder: I always track my reading on Goodreads.)
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Out of the Sierra: A Story of Rarámuri Resistance by Victoria Blanco
Recommend
This was my book club’s pick for June, and I really loved it. It details the challenges faced by the modern indigenous Rarámuri people of Mexico’s Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range. It follows the journey of Martina and her family as drought and food scarcity causes them to abandon their mountain home and relocate to a Rarámuri refuge settlement in Chihuahua. This book was incredibly informative — and also heartbreaking. I learned a lot about Rarámuri traditions and culture, and found myself empathizing with Martina as she struggled to raise her children to maintain Rarámuri values in a capitalist society where so much was out of her control. This should be required reading for anyone living on native lands as it’s such a valuable indigenous perspective.
Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka
Recommend
Ansel Packer is living out the final hours of his life on death row. Through the eyes of three women — a mother, a sister, a detective — the story of Ansel Packer’s life is told. The pacing and plot of this book were well done, but I will say that while the writing started out strong, by the end of it, I found myself glazing over some of the overly-flowery language trying to get back to the plot. However, this book was captivating and hooked me in.
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Recommend
I was sobbing at the end of this book, which left me a gooey puddle of mush on the floor. “Atmosphere” is set in the 1980’s at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, and centers on Joan as she falls in love with her career, her life, the stars, and another astronaut. I will say that this leaned more into love story and less into science fiction, so adjust your expectations accordingly.
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