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A New York Tate of Mind
A New York Tate of Mind
In which this reader and explorer reviews books, muses on literary (and other) matters, and shares some of her adventures.
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My 1-5 rating system:
1 = I did not like it and would not recommend it.
2= It was fine. Read it if the subject matter interests you.
3 = I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
4 = I really liked it, and think you should read it!
5 = One of the best books I've read.
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Review: Chain-Gang All Stars
4/5 stars Chain-Gang All Stars , by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah (2023) Trigger Warnings: Graphic violence, Imprisonment and enslavement,...
tatedecaro
May 133 min read
Review: Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man)
4/5 stars Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) , by Jesse Sutanto (2025) Another cozy murder mystery with your favorite old...
tatedecaro
Apr 162 min read
Review: Black Star
4/5 stars Black Star , by Kwame Alexander (2024) TW: Racism, KKK activity, reference to a lynching This is a sequel to The Door of No...
tatedecaro
Feb 52 min read
Review: Falling Back in Love with Being Human
5/5 stars Falling Back in Love with Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls , by Kai Cheng Thom (2023) "from the depths of my rage and...
tatedecaro
Nov 15, 20243 min read
Review: What the River Knows
1/5 stars What the River Knows , by Isabel Ibañez (2023) TW: Normalized alcoholism I feel like I can't really top the GoodReads review I...
tatedecaro
Aug 15, 20244 min read
Review: Witch of Wild Things
3/5 stars Witch of Wild Things , by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland (2023) A fun little book of magical realism. Sage Flores has a special gift...
tatedecaro
Aug 8, 20242 min read
Review: The Book of Delights
4/5 stars The Book of Delights, by Ross Gay (2019) It IS a delight, this book! Ross Gay's essays remind us to look around each day and...
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Jul 13, 20242 min read
Review: Even Though I Knew the End
4/5 stars Even Though I Knew the End, by C.L. Polk (2022) At barely over 100 pages, this was a quick read, but Polk manages to create an...
tatedecaro
Jun 27, 20242 min read
Review: The Door of No Return
5/5 The Door of No Return, by Kwame Alexander (2022) TW: Violence, descriptions of the slave trade, mention of rape “Black history began...
tatedecaro
Jun 5, 20242 min read
Review: Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
4/5 stars Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers, by Jesse Sutanto (2023) “People always say that your wedding day is the happiest...
tatedecaro
May 29, 20242 min read
Review: We Are Not Like Them
3/5 stars We Are Not Like Them, by Christine Pride & Jo Piazza (2021) Christine Pride, a Black editor, and Jo Piazza, a white author,...
tatedecaro
Apr 15, 20242 min read
Review: When We Were Sisters
3/5 stars When We Were Sisters, by Fatimah Asghar (2022) Asghar is a poet, and this book reflects that, as it is written in short bursts...
tatedecaro
Apr 11, 20242 min read
Review: Night Wherever We Go
4/5 stars Night Wherever We Go, by Tracey Rose Peyton (2023) (I'm running way behind on posts, so you may get three notifications in...
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Apr 11, 20242 min read
Review: The Sun Is Also a Star
2/5 stars The Sun Is Also a Star, by Nicola Yoon First off, here is a video about how the book beautiful cover art was created: Book...
tatedecaro
Nov 23, 20232 min read
Review: Night of the Living Rez
3/5 stars Night of the Living Rez, by Morgan Talty (2022) TW: Drug & alcohol abuse These 12 interconnected stories follow a modern-day...
tatedecaro
Nov 22, 20231 min read
Review: Barracoon
5/5 stars Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo," by Zora Neale Hurston (2018) Barracoon tells the story of Olualo Kossula, also...
tatedecaro
Jul 24, 20233 min read
Review: Mexican Gothic
2/5 stars Mexican Gothic, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (2020) TW: Allusions to sexual assault, incest, suicide, cannibalism, murder...
tatedecaro
Jul 13, 20232 min read
Review: How High We Go in the Dark
2/5 stars How High We Go in the Dark, by Sequoia Nagamatsu (2022) I saw this compared favorably to Emily St. John's Station Eleven, which...
tatedecaro
Jun 28, 20233 min read
Review: Olga Dies Dreaming
4/5 stars Olga Dies Dreaming , by Xóchitl González (2022) TW: Mention of suicide and rape (not graphic), drug use, hurricane damage Olga...
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May 24, 20232 min read
Review: The Last White Man
2/5 stars The Last White Man, by Mohsin Hamid I'm having a really hard time writing about this one. I finished it almost 2 weeks ago and...
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May 2, 20234 min read
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