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Kendra Winchester is a Contributing Editor for Book Riot where she writes about audiobooks and disability literature. She is also the Founder of Read Appalachia, which celebrates Appalachian literature and writing. Previously, Kendra co-founded and served as Executive Director for Reading Women, a podcast that gained an international following over its six-season run. In her off hours, you can find her writing on her Substack, Winchester Ave, and posting photos of her Corgis on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester.
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Summer Reading: Sure, some of us love a thriller to read on the beach or romance to dive into by the pool, but where are my true crime girlies? Where are the book lovers who adore essays that take us on a deep dive into the beauty industry? Well, today’s newsletter is for you. Plus, we have even more Riot Recs.
But first, bookish goods!
Bookish Goods
Cook Bookends by Knob Creek Metal Arts
Here’s one for all of my cookbook fans! These adorable bookends are perfect for anyone’s cookbook collection. $68
New Releases
Carrie Carolyn Coco: My Friend, Her Murder, and an Obsession with the Unthinkable by Sarah Gerard
After her friend Carolyn Bush is brutally murdered in the fall of 2016, writer Sarah Gerard becomes obsessed with trying to understand how this could happen. Gerard conducts hundreds of hours of interviews, scours legal documents, and reads a seemingly endless number of news articles to try to find answers. Eventually, she uncovers some shocking truth about her friend’s life.
True Story Newsletter
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Die Hot with a Vengeance: Essays on Vanity by Sable Yong
Die Hot with a Vengeance examines the beauty industry and its overwhelming demands. Sable Yong delves into the often strange world of beauty standards and how, even after all this time, society keeps insisting that beauty is defined by the beholder.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
Golem Girl by Riva Lehrer
As someone with a disability, I love reading other disabled people’s stories and seeing how each is its own unique creation. In Golem Girl, Riva Lehrer shares how she was born with spina bifida. At the time she was born, there was very little support for parents with disabled children, and Lehrer internalized a lot of the ableism that she saw around her. But when she discovers a group of artists who use their work to express the deepest parts of themselves, Lehrer finds a new medium to work through her feelings around her identity.
You Get What You Pay For by Morgan Parker
Literary powerhouse Morgan Parker is out with a new collection of essays that examine Parker’s feelings of alienation in just about every part of her life. She describes living with depression and a deep sense of loneliness. Her experience with disability impacts every aspect of her life. She shares stories of her white therapist, who proved unhelpful in Parker’s experiences as a Black woman with mental illness. In other essays, she expands from ideas of the personal, giving her readers a bigger picture of Black life in America. Morgan Parker is truly a gem of a writer and one with a unique perspective always worth reading.
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