Cozy Winter Reads & Links!
Get in, we're eating toxic masculinity and yummy pasta.
First up: It’s ’s birthday today!!! Happy 38 years of Corinne! She’s our newsletter producer, my podcast co-host and pal who introduced the BT community (well, me anyway) to power lifting, brought us Underwear Science, and never forget, the solar face shield. We couldn’t do Burnt Toast without you! xx
Friday Thread: What Are You Reading?
I could do a book-related Friday Thread every week because I love, love, love getting and giving book recs. But I sit on myself to make sure it doesn’t get too repetitive around here, and then lo and behold, we have somehow not done a book chat since last summer?! This cannot stand.
I feel like my 2024 reading is getting off to a slow-ish start. Maybe because my winter attention span is oriented more towards puzzles and Bridgerton? I’m also a big believer in not finishing a book you aren’t loving (you will read more, big picture, with this method) but that means I’ve picked up and put down quite a few lately.
So I’m looking for some great sink-into big novel recs (think Great Circle! think This Time Tomorrow!), but am having fun with feminist romance ofc in the meantime. Julie Murphy & Sierra Simone’s Christmas Notch series is a total delight and yes, I know the holidays are over, but we are for sure still deep in cozy, sexy winter read mode. So: Queer positive, fat positive (book 1 has a fat heroine, book 2 has a fat male love interest), plus fun with the Hallmark holiday movie making machine. I also adored On the Plus Side by Jenny L. Howe (come see us celebrate the book on January 27th, rsvps now required!) and just went back and read her first book, The Make-Up Test, also great.
For non-fiction, of course I can’t stop talking about Unshrinking (if you missed Kate Manne on the pod, here you go) and I also want you to immediately preorder This American Ex-Wife by Lyz Lenz and Dear Sister by Michelle Horton. On deck for this weekend’s read, I have Dolls Of Our Lives: Why We Can’t Quit American Girl by Mary Mahoney & Allison Horrocks. I already love their podcast (and have booked them for this pod, stay tuned!!) And then, Hot Tub Book Club is reading You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi, which I’ve heard amazing things about forever.
Your turn! What are you reading and loving right now?
This can obviously include audiobooks and even non-books (any great articles or new favorite newsletter writers to shout out?). Let’s put book titles IN ALL CAPS — an old publishing biz trick that makes for much easier scrolling.