A Peek at Peak Picks – May 2024

We are adding ten titles to Peak Picks in May!

In fiction, Miranda July returns with an irreverently sexy, hilarious, and surprising novel about a woman upending her life in All Fours; Diane Richards debuts with a magnificent work of “biographical fiction” that reimagines the turbulent early years of Ella Fitzgerald, arguably the greatest singer in the twentieth century, in Ella; Natalie Sue debuts with a funny and heartwarming office comedy where an admin worker accidentally gains access to her colleagues’ private emails and DMs and decides to use it to save her job in I Hope This Finds You Well; Stuart Turton (The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle) delivers an inventive, high-concept murder mystery in the genre-bending The Last Murder At the End of the World; and Kalaine Bradley debuts with a time travel romance, a spy thriller, and an ingenious exploration of the nature of power and the potential for love to change it all in The Ministry of Time.

In nonfiction, Aimee Nezhukumatathil (World of Wonders) presents a lyrical book of short essays about food, offering a banquet of tastes, smells, memories, associations, and marvelous curiosities from nature in Bite By Bite: Nourishments and Jamborees; Basketball icon and Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner shares her raw and revelatory account of her unfathomable detainment in Russia and her journey home in Coming Home; Dr. Karen Tang presents an inclusive and essential new resource for reproductive health – including period problems, pelvic pain, menopause, fertility, sexual health, vaginal and urinary conditions, and overall wellbeing for women and those assigned female at birth – in It’s Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know about Your Reproductive Health (But Were Never Told); Award-winning Atlantic staff writer Zoë Schlanger delivers a groundbreaking work of popular science that probes the hidden world of the plant kingdom and reveals the astonishing capabilities of the green life all around us in The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth; and Kathleen Hanna presents an electric, searing memoir by the original rebel girl and legendary front woman of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre in Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk.

~posted by Frank B. All descriptions were provided by publishers. ​

Celebrating Seattle Reads and ‘Parable of the Sower’ With Performances, Panels and a Party

The Library’s annual Seattle Reads program usually culminates with several days of events featuring the selected author and book.

This year, our citywide book club is celebrating the 2024 selection, Octavia Butler’s “Parable of the Sower,” with more than two months of performances, panels and discussions that will be held in collaboration with community organizations from late April through June.

“Because Octavia Butler was a writer with both deep local roots and global influence, we had a unique opportunity to explore her work with community partners across the city,” said Stesha Brandon, Literature & Humanities program manager for The Seattle Public Library. “We invite everyone to discuss, learn, discover and celebrate ‘Parable of the Sower’ – there is something for everyone, including a birthday party for Octavia on June 22.”

The author, who passed away in 2006 in Lake Forest Park, would have been 77 this year. The selection of ‘Parable of the Sower,’ which begins in the year 2024, is the first time that Seattle Reads has chosen a work of science fiction and the first time that the Library has chosen an author after their passing. It is also only the second time an author with Seattle-area ties has been selected.

Seattle Reads 2024 is presented in partnership with the African-American Writers’ Alliance, ARTE NOIR, Clarion West, Elliott Bay Book Company, Langston Seattle, loving room: diaspora books + salon, Sistah Scifi, Third Place Books and Wa Na Wari. Below are program highlights, which take place in a variety of locations around Seattle.

Performances, panels, parties

“DREAM TEMPLE (for Octavia).” Through May 22. King Street Station. Artists Mia Imani Harrison and Mayola Tikaka used the writings of Octavia Butler to create a gathering space for Black folx to be heard and to hear each other at King Street Station. Presented by the Office of Arts and Culture, DREAM TEMPLE aims to counteract the exhaustion and stress carried intergenerationally by creating a portal of healing and imagining.

Seattle Reads Launch Party and Panel Discussion. From 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 1. Central Library, Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium. Join The Seattle Public Library Foundation in kicking off Seattle Reads with a panel discussion about why “Parable of the Sower” still resonates in 2024 and a preview of community-led programs to come. Panelists include Jazmyn Scott, executive director of ARTE NOIR; Brooke Bosley, design researcher in education technology; and Kristina Clark, owner and curator of LOVING ROOM: diaspora books + salon. Registration is required.

Messy Women in Fiction

At the risk of “treating complex women in literature as a ‘trope,'” I must admit there are few archetypes I love more than a messy woman. Getting to witness female characters act badly, make wild decisions, and generally buck expectations can be a liberatory reading experience. Check out some of my favorite examples of messy women in recent fiction!

The book that inspired this whole post was Jen Beagin’s Big Swiss. Greta works as a transcriptionist for a sex therapist in Hudson Valley, New York, where she lives in a dilapidated Dutch farmhouse with her friend and a swarm of bees. She develops a fascination with the voice of one of the clients of the therapist, whom she nicknames “Big Swiss.” When Greta recognizes that voice in the wild, she embarks on a series of terrible choices, all designed to get closer to the woman. Most of the other characters on this list are in their twenties, so it’s nice to see Greta, a forty-something, portrayed with such weird nuance. Impossible to put down, both grotesque and laugh-out-loud funny, Big Swiss is a refutation of the standard trauma narrative and a perfect vehicle for unethical, bizarre voyeurism.

Cook the Books

When you finish a novel that includes a strong food theme, you may want to make a dish that continues those yummy good book feelings. Or maybe you’re part of (or want to start) a combo book club/potluck. Some of the books below already include recipes, but here are some suggestions to go even further, pairing novels and cookbooks.

Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake by Alexis J. Hall
+ The Great British Baking Show: Kitchen Classics

A passionate baker, Rosaline Palmer jumps at the chance to compete on the reality TV baking competition Bake Expectations, hoping to realize her dreams and also attain a more secure future for herself and her 8-year-old daughter. In addition to the regular pressures of the baking tent, Rosaline finds herself attracted to two very different fellow contestants: charming architect Alain, and gentle electrician Harry.

Living in the Time of Drought(s)

With the 8th hottest winter on record since 1895, the Washington State Department of Ecology declared a state-wide drought this week. Though there are limited exceptions for Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett metro areas, thoughtful consideration of your household’s water consumption can only help our local water ecologies. Below are some resources to help you consider how you can reduce your water usage, conserve rainfall, and create water-conscious gardens.

If you live in the Seattle area, Seattle Public Utilities and Saving Water Partnership have a good starting guide for what you can do in your home, from getting a rebate to replace older, less water efficient toilets to free gardening classes for planting drought-resistant gardens. Laura Allen, cofounder of Greywater Action, offers even more ideas in her book The Water-wise Home. Though some projects may seem daunting, clear instructions provide solid guidance for those just beginning as well as those ready to fully revolutionize how water is used in their home.