You Always Read the Book First

Want a summer-time story or need a laugh

Hi friends,

Hope your week is off to a good start. Last week, I decided to party like it’s 2013 and joined Instagram – not even because of Threads. If you’re on there, please let me know. I’d love to find more bookish people to hang out with online. Because book people are the best people.

If you missed last week’s Q&A with Kate Myers about her new novel Excavations, you might want to check it out. There’s a chance to win a copy!

And, now, what to read if…

You Always Read the Book First

Last Call by Elon Green

If you’re reading this newsletter, you probably have strong feelings about book-to-screen adaptations. In general, I try to read the book before watching anything. I think it makes the later viewing experience richer. I’m a step ahead for HBO’s latest documentary series, Last Call, which is based on Elon Green’s book of the same name, about the serial murders of gay men in New York in the ‘80s and ‘90s.

For years, the murderer brutally killed the victims he met at gay bars and late-night hookups. As Christopher Bollen wrote in a review for the New York Times, “The most prolific serial killers exploit the vulnerabilities of the social order; the “Last Call Killer” took advantage of gay men’s need for discretion and the endemic homophobia of law enforcement.” Green carefully documents how the culture of the time — where violence against gay men was common and often ignored, or even encouraged, by police — enabled a serial killer to act without drawing attention from law enforcement.

Last Call is a masterclass in the ways true crime can center victims instead of murderers. ( Eve Batey at Best Evidence, who’s seen the entire docuseries, reports it takes a similar approach). Writing with empathy and care, Green shares the details of the victims’ lives, showing us exactly what their families and friends lost with their deaths. It’s a brilliant, devastating read.

Bingo boxes this book checks: debut, award-winner (The Edgar)

You Want Something that Screams Summer

Now is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson*

Few books have ever transported me to a specific time in my life like Now is Not the Time to Panic. Listening to it, I felt like I was a teenager enjoying long summer days again.

Love this cut-paper cover

That’s where the similarities between me and the main characters — Frankie and Zeke — end. While I was a lifeguard, the two of them sparked a panic in their small town of Coalfield, Missouri, when they hung hundreds of posters with the phrase “The edge is a shantytown filled with gold seekers. We are fugitives, and the law is skinny with hunger for us.”

To the two teens, it means everything and nothing. As more and more posters appear, Coalfield residents become convinced it’s part of a sinister plot, and the constant fears have dangerous consequences. The friends never admitted their role in the “Coalfield Panic,” but 20 years later, when a reporter calls Frankie, now a successful author, and asks about it, it forces her to return to that summer.

There’s a reason Now is Not the Time to Panic hit multiple best of 2022 lists. It’s a joy to read (the audiobook narrated by actress Ginnifer Goodwin is a particular treat) and a celebration of art, friendship and summer. Frankie and Zeke are the type of characters who worm their way into my heart and stay there. (Also: Kevin Wilson, on the off-chance you are reading this, I would love Shantytown merch – a print, a t-shirt, a mug?).

Bingo boxes this book checks: Book set in multiple time periods, book set over the summer

You’re Ready to Laugh Out Loud

Quietly Hostile by Samantha Irby*

I recently listened to Quietly Hostile while at the dentist. It worked out great for me — I was happily distracted — and less well for the hygienist — I almost bit her I was laughing so hard.

Quietly Hostile, Irby’s fourth essay collection, is just as funny as her previous work. The installments cover everything from her experiences attempting to adapt her book for TV and working on the “Sex and the City” reboot to her QVC obsession and needy pandemic puppy. Even as she’s transitioned from a part-time blogger to a Hollywood writer, Irby has stayed relatable, sharing the awkward, and sometimes gross, moments that make up a life.

It's a testament to Irby’s talent that I listened to the entire one-hour essay on what changes she would make to the original “Sex and the City” — a show I only have a passing familiarity with. And while it does bring the laughs and scatological humor, Quietly Hostile also includes poignant, sharp reflections on growing up in poverty and Irby’s strained relationship with her family.

Bingo boxes this book checks: Book that makes you laugh

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That’s it for me today friends. Thanks, as always, for reading. And don’t forget to enter the giveaway for a copy of Excavations. I’ll draw winners next weekend, so be sure to comment by Friday.

*I received a free copy of the Now is Not the Time to Panic and Quietly Hostile audiobooks from Libro.fm in exchange for an honest review.

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