Felisa C. Staff Picks
Somehow, this memoir about working in the death industry is lighthearted and funny at the same time as it is deep and thoughtful. Caitlin Doughty deftly talks about how we treat death as a culture, and what a "good death" actually means, without shying away from the difficult bits. I blew through this in a day and a half and have not stopped thinking about it since.
I don't know how to sell you on this better than the title, but if you need another push to read this book, here it is. Filled with humorous hijinks and outlandish circumstances, this is also somehow a touching story about sisterhood, family, and finding yourself. A truly unique and memorable read.
This is a collection of linked short stories that contemporize and build off of traditional Japanese ghost stories. But it's also so much more. These women are strange and absurd and idiosyncratic and completely normal. And there are ghosts. Just ladies being ladies.
This reads very much like if Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide) and Wes Anderson had a baby. It's quirky and creative and you never know what this man is going to get himself into next, which is what makes it so fun. Oh, and the explosions too.
This reads more like 7 short stories with varying structures, focusing on different characters, but they mesh beautifully to tell the story of the long-lived effects of the 1980 uprising and massacre in Guangju, South Korea. You can tell Kang was originally a poet by her uniquely artistic writing style. HIGHLY recommend.
Quick question: do you like reading a book and then having it possess the entirety of your thoughts for days? Do you like pain, but it's mixed with happiness, but mixed with grief, but mixed with every other emotion, and you don't actually know how you feel, and now you're having a bit of an emotional crisis? Then this is for you. A quick, easy, and fun read, this book stays with you.
Any book by Hosseini is beautiful and moving and perfect, but especially this one. Hosseini tells the stories of several pairs of siblings, both separated by and connected through time, space, and memory, and in the process, has created one of the most touching and powerful epics about family I've ever read. One of my favorite books ever.
Incredibly fleshed out, morally gray characters; desire, ambition, and betrayal on all sides; honestly, just everything you could ask for from an epic fantasy following a rebellion in 14th century China. And of course, it's also beautifully written.
