These random anniversaries have a way of slapping me in the face with the extremely twisty road that is my life, and this anniversary is perhaps slappier than most. Over the course of this particular journal–a smart spring-green affair that was a gift from one of my favourite people–I went from running through the streets of London to buying extremely mislabelled “vegan” food in the night markets of Taipei to a narrow escape from a burgeoning plague in Tokyo to an actual pandemic in Toronto, where I have now been locked up in my apartment for the last three months using my sewing skills to craft masks for all my friends and family, only scurrying out for groceries and beer. It is honestly overwhelming to step back and take a real look at how life used to be and how it is now, especially because my science brain is only too well aware that the normalcy of the Before Times is probably never coming back.
And that’s a good thing in a lot of ways! The plague is certainly laying bare all the ways capitalism has failed us, and so many people suddenly have nothing to do but reassess the way we live in this world and discover the need to burn it all to the ground and rebuild a society that supports all of us, especially the most vulnerable among us, instead of a bunch of venture capitalists and tech bros and the general class of rich white people. Plus, we’re all expert handwashers now! And we have a new fashion possibility in the face mask.
My brain managed to battle a lot more books over the course of this journal, despite the fact that this one was written over a shorter period (fifteen months versus the sixteen of the last journal), and that’s really because I instituted a strict reading policy for myself. I used to do a lot of my reading in bits and pieces, over meals or on a quick break from work, and I found myself really missing the days when I was younger and less imposed upon by deadlines, when I would just read for hours on end. It’s a different, more satisfying experience to really sit with a book, and I felt like I needed to get back to that, especially given how my focus has been shattered by the internet and endless scrolling like I expect Twitter to have the key to eternal life if I just scroll long enough.
Now I sit myself down on my yellow sofa and read for at least an hour straight every day, regardless of how impending my deadlines are. And my mental health is so much better for it! When I come up again for air, I feel like myself, reinvigorated by the story I just injected into my veins. Losing myself in a story is the reason I fell in love with books in the first place, after all. When the world is constantly on fire, a book is a good place to get your head back on straight. So as is the custom in these pages, I present to you the list of books that have gotten my head on straight over the period of this latest journal. Take a look. Maybe the book that’s going to save you is right here.
The Raven Tower: Ann Leckie
The Wicked + the Divine V5-9: Kieron Gillen/Jamie McKelvie
Ai to Noroi V2-3: Fumi Fumiko
Karasu ni Hitoe wa Niawanai: Abe Chisato
The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O: Neal Stephenson/Nicole Galland
Amazoness Kiss V1: Ishitsuyo Natsuko
Bikacho Shinshi Kaikoroku V1&2: Anno Moyoco
The Song of Achilles: Madeline MIller
The Black Monday Murders V2: Jonathan Hickman/Tomm Coker
Sensei no Shiroi Uso V5-8: Torikai Akane
Giovanni’s Room: James Baldwin
Kuragehime V16-17: Higashimura Akiko
Ingasei no Beze V2: Aniya Yuiji
Yuria-sensei no Aki Ito V3: Irie Kiwa
Tomie: Junji Ito, trans. Naomi Kokubo
Junji Ito’s Cat Diary-Yon & Mu: Junji Ito
Yukoku no Rasputin V1: Junji Ito/Nagasaki Takashi
This Little Art: Kate Briggs
Yokai Kyoshitsu: Junji Ito
Tasogare Takako V1-5: Irie Kiwa
Ii ne! Hikari Genji-kun V2-3: est em
Uzumaki: Junji Ito, trans. Yuji Oniki
The Death Stench Creeps-Gryo V1-2: Junji Ito, trans. Yuji Oniki
Fragments of Horror: Junji Ito, trans. Jocelyne Allen
Shiver: Junji Ito, trans. Jocelyne Allen
Frankenstein: Junji Ito, trans. Jocelyne Allen
Smashed: Junji Ito, trans. Jocelyne Allen
Tomie V1-2: Ito Junji
The Drifting Classroom V1-2: Kazuo Umezu, trans. Yuji Oniki
The Bird King: G. Willow Wilson
P.E.O.W.: Jane Mai
Cat-eyed Boy V1: Kazuo Umezu, trans. JN Productions
Stay Home-The Ugly Truth About Space Travel: Don Moyer
Neko Shoten: Sasakumako
Fundari Kettari: Fumi Fumiko
Sanju Mariko V9-11: Ozawa Yuki
Tongari Boshi no Atelier V5-6: Shirahama Kamome
Nagi no Oitoma V1-6: Konari Misato
Double V1: Noda Ayako
Karasu wa Aruji o Erabanai: Abe Chisato
Kageki Shojo! Season 0: Saiki Kumiko
Uchi no Inu ga Koneko Hiroimashita V1: Tatsuyama Sayuri
Ashita Shinu ni wa V1: Kari Sumiko
1122 V5-6: Watanabe Peko
Veranda wa Nankofuraku no La France: Erisawa Seiko
Yobidashi Hajime V1: Nakamura Asumiko
Hitori de Nomerumon!: Kanari Misato
Saturn Return V1-2: Torikai Akane
Tonari Ni: basso
Kin no Karasu: Abe Chisato
Isola V1: Brenden Fletcher/Karl Kerschl
Chlorine Gardens: Keiler Roberts
Black Leopard, Red Wolf: Marlon James
The Invisible Library: Genevieve Cogman
Total Eclipse of the Eternal Heart: Syundei, trans. Amber Tamosaitis
Colorful: Mori Eto
Hitori Hitoneko V1: Uozumi Ami
Absolute Power-Tales of Queer Villainy!: Ed. Erica Friedman
The Black Tides of Heaven: JY Yang
Picnic in the Storm: Yukiko Motoya, trans. Asa Yoneda
Kageki Shojo! V7-9: Saiki Kumiko
Metamorphose no Engawa V3: Kaori Tsurutani
Last Winter, We Parted: Fuminori Nakamura, trans. Allison Markin Powell
Paper Girls V5-6: Brian K. Vaughn/Cliff Chiang
The Tiger Flu: Larissa Lai
Manga: Ed. Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere/Matsuba Ryoko
Yamashita Tomoko no Ohanashibon: Yamashita Tomoko
Kukan no Karasu: Abe Chisato
Grass: Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, trans. Janet Hong
Understanding Comics: Scott McCloud
Velocity Weapon: Megan E. O’Keefe
Shinzo: Okuda Akiko
The City of Brass: S.A. Chakraborty
The Kingdom of Copper: S.A. Chakraborty
The Little House: Kyoko Nakajima, trans. Ginny Tapley Takemori
The Translation of Love: Lynne Kutsukake
Tamayorihime: Abe Chisato
Zenryaku Zenshin no Kimi: Torikai Akane
Yume Miru Teikoku Toshokan: Nakajima Kyoko
Circe: Madeline Miller
Seri: Moriizumi Takehito
The Solid Form of Language: Robert Bringhurst
The Red Threads of Fortune: JY Yang
Watashi no Uchu V1-2: Noda Ayako
A Man Called Ove: Fredrik Backman, trans. Henning Koch
Ijuin Hayato-shi no Fuon Naranu Nichijo V1-3: est em
Tokyo Ueno Station: Yu Miri, trans. Morgan Giles
Osaka Kanjo Kekkai Toshi V2: Shirai Yumiko
Iyasaka no Karasu: Abe Chisato
The Descent of Monsters: JY Yang
The Ascent to Godhood: JY Yang
Ippai no Kohi Kara: Yamakawa Naoto
Clean Room V1: Gail Simone/Jon Davis-Hunt
The Beauty: Aliya Whiteley
Chikyu Seijin: Murata Sayaka
Mejirobana no Saku V1: Nakamura Asumiko
Otona ni Natte mo: Shimura Takako
Gekkan Shojo Nozaki-kun V11: Tsubaki Izumi
Veil V1-2: Kotteri
Hatsugen: Abe Chisato
In the Dream House: Carmen Maria Machado
Taianbutsumetsu V1: Ishikawa Chika
Creepy Cat-Watashi to Neko no Kimyona Seikatsu: Cotton Valent
Kaguyaden V1-4: Saito Chiho
Beastars V1: Itagaki Paru
Karasuhyakka: Abe Chisato
Amedama: Tanabe Seia
Karasu ni Hitoe wa Niawanai V1-3: Abe Chisato/Matsuzaki Natsumi
One Room Angel: Harada
Lala no Kekkon V1-2: Tamekou
Ruki-san: Takano Fumiko
Akachan Honbucho V3: Takeuchi Sachiko
Our Dining Table: Mita Ori, trans. Amber Tamosaitis
Kowloon Generic Romance V1: Mayuzuki Jun
Tedaremonra V1: Nakano Shizuka
The Three-Body Problem: Cixin Liu, trans. Ken Liu
The Dark Forest: Cixin Liu, trans. Joel Martinsen
LP Life Partner V1: Ozawa Yuki
Death’s End: Cixin Liu, trans. Ken Liu
Lullaby For Girl: Matsuzaki Natsumi
Monstress V4: Marjorie Liu/Sana Takeda
I Married My Best Friend to Shut My Parents Up: Kodama Naoko, trans. Amber Tamosaitis
Uchi no Shisho wa Shippo ga nai V1-2: TNSK
Sorairo Magatama: Ogiwara Noriko
Sempai wa Joshikosei: Arai Niboshiko
Dragon Sword and Wind Child: Noriko Ogiwara, trans. Cathy Hirano
Tsukumogami Ponpon: Nakada Ikumi
Record of a Night Too Brief: Hiromi Kawakami, trans. Lucy North
Women & Power: Mary Beard
Blank Canvas-My so-called Artist’s Journey: Akiko Higashimura, trans. Jenny McKeon
Spring Garden: Tomoka Shibasaki, trans. Polly Barton
Upgrade Soul: Ezra Clayton Daniels
Ms Ice Sandwich: Mieko Kawakami, trans. Lousie Heal Kawai
Gideon the Ninth: Tamsyn Muir
On Writing: Stephen King
Everywhere I went, My Sketchbook Was Sure to Go: Drewscape
Elle qui se laissait dévorer: 61chi, trans. Alice Touch
Sometimes in the City: 61chi
Omajinai: Nishi Kanako
An Excess Male: Maggie Shen King
Vaesen: Johan Egerkrans, trans. Susan Beard
Fall or, Dodge in Hell: Neal Stephenson
The High School Life of a Fudanshi V1: Atami Michinoku, trans. Ryan Peterson
Onna Tomodachi V1-3: Ichijo Yukari
Jusai Made ni Yonda Hon: Various
Hey, Amateur!: Ed. Shelly Bond
Hosekidori: Tokizawa Akiko
Kiriko ni Tsuite: Nishi Kanako
An Unkindness of Ghosts: Rivers Solomon
When I Arrived at the Castle: Emily Carroll
Shinjuku Lucky Hole V1-2: Kumota Haruko
Girl Town: Carolyn Nowak
All Systems Red: Martha Wells
Artificial Condition: Martha Wells
Year of the Rabbit: Tian Veasna
Watashi wa Neko Stalker: Asao Harumin
Docile: K.M. Szpara
The City We Became: N.K. Jemisin
Totsukuni no Shojo V7-9: Nagabe
Uncomfortably Happily: Yeon-Sik Hong, trans. Hellen Jo
Nymph: Kyo Machiko
A-ko-san no Koibioto V6: Kondoh Akino
Romance Bofuiki V1: Torikai Akane
Brain Vs. Book 
If you enjoy Martha Wells now, maybe the Raksura books will also be up your alley? Although Murderbot is her only scifi series, really. My favourite book of hers is Wheel of the Infinite, with a lead of an over 40 year old incredible sorceress, who has been made a scapegoat for all the ills of her country and how she finds out what the truth is. And also gets a younger love interest who appreciates her for who she is. Hee.
Thanks for the recs! These sound like the kind of fantasy books I like. I’ll put them on the list for my next order from the SFF book shop!
Wohoo. I think it was you whose post introduced me to est em years ago, so if you should chance to enjoy a rec of mine that would be serendipity ^^.
The Raksura books feel fantasy to me, but they could just as well be true alien scifi from the worldbuilding (one of Martha Well’s great strengths), I love them for the characters and their interaction, however.
A homegrown Canadian fantasy author I love is Michelle Sagara aka Michelle West. She lives in Toronto ^^.
Yay to trading recs and finding new books! Thanks for the homegrown author, too! I love seeing the talent closer to home. And she works at the bookstore where I get my scifi and fantasy!
2nd post attempt in case it did not just get shoved into moderation because of the links:
MSW is GREAT for found and built families, she always has a network of people/beings working towards turning off the big bad. The Essalieyan series has multiple viewpoints (and is epic and often female-centered fantasy saga on a scope of Wheel of Time or LotR, I so wish someone would animate or create a truthful series of movies from it). I discovered those books because of the beautiful Jody Lee covers for DAW (she was used for a lot of female written fantasy at DAW at the time, and so I often had a look at those books because of that – led me to Mercedes Lackey and Jo Clayton as well, for example)
It’s a huge saga, the first duology are her oldest books, The Sun Sword arc is probably best known.
Goodreads=>/series/130836-essalieyan
The Elantra series (those two are my favourite of hers) has a chosen one (literally) who can see no advantage at all in that and actually had some horrible things happen to her, and grew up in the equivalent of slums.
When we meet her, tho, she has grown up and made a turn for the better as the equivalent of a beat cop in her metropolis fantasy city populated by all kinds of magical races. And then her past comes to call and she starts to unravel the mystery and her feelings about her role. And accumulating friends and frenemies to help her deal with the outcome.
This started more recently, but has also gone epic, what Jo Walton would call a ‘chunk series’.
https://www.goodreads.com/series/40454-chronicles-of-elantra
Your first attempt did get lost somewhere (I didn’t see it in moderation though?), so thanks for reposting! This is all great info, and I really need to order some books and do a whole lot of reading. Thanks for opening up a whole new world of fantasy for me!
Well, you opened up a world of quite unusual manga to me, so tit for tat is fair, heee XD
Oh and MSW works part time at Bakka Phoenix in Toronto, so you could possibly eventually when public contact is doable again have a conversation with her ^^. I believe Tanya Huff works or used to work there, too – lots of DAW authors in that bookshop XD.
If you do see her, tell her Hello from me, I was fortunate enough to meet her at Loncon3 in 2014 ^^
When I’m able to shop in store again, I’ll see if she’s around. And I will give her your regards!
Thank you ^^ – andI won’t complain if it isn’t doable, no worries ^^