Waikiki Reads

I read four books while on vacation, definitely a nice cross-section of my reading tastes (just missing the YA). And here now are those four books.

Golden Girls Forever (by Jim Colucci) 

I found out this book existed right before the trip, and serendipitous the library had it available.  A nonfiction book about The Golden Girls: what better book to read on my first airplane ride since 2019? It's full of great information and tidbits about the show, and I accompanied the book with many YouTube searches for particular scenes and moments. The closest this gets to drama is that Bea Arthur wasn't super friendly or warm to a lot of people. I still love the hell out of her though. 

Project Hail Mary (by Andy Weir)

I adore The Martian and after Artemis I thought it was the one and only truly magical book Andy Weir would ever write. But this goes back to the "lone dude in outer space doing hard science" well and thus scratches the identical itch as The Martian. Again the lead is basically Mark Watney (except he doesn't curse) but Weir adds in a first contact storyline that is both inventive and plausible. Absolutely loved this!

One Last Stop (by Casey McQuiston)

Oh, my heart. A romcom from the author of Red, White, and Royal Blue and it's perfection. The lead character is curvy and bisexual. (Some of the best bisexual representation I've ever read.)  The love interest is a hot butch woman. There's a sci fi twist. There's a ragtag group of friends. I cried at the end. And McQuiston is non-binary so this qualifies as "a romance by a trans or nonbinary author." A delightful book!

No One Is Talking About This (by Patricia Lockwood) 

Read for Camp ToB. This is a book in two parts: the first is an exploration of the internet (called "the portal") and full of true moments about what it's like to be "extremely online" in the era of Trump (called "the dictator"). The book then takes a turn in the second half and grapples with the intrusion of real life (and the heartbreaking impact of draconian "pro-life" politics) in an incredibly moving way.  This isn't an easy read, in the end, but it is an astonishing and remarkably subtle work. 

All four of these books were terrific, several being among my favorite reads of the year.