Category: Memoirs

Adult Fiction, Events, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ+, Memoirs, Nonfiction, Thriller

Author Day @ Harrison Public Library

Michelle

 I went to Author Day at Harrison Library and it was awesome! I got to reconnect with one of my favorite author friends, Lisa Montanaro after having been to her book signing in May for her debut novel Everything We Thought Was True, meet a fellow bookstagrammer, Jen (@electric_bookaloo) and catch up with an old friend. I even won a raffle! 

BOOKS & AUTHORS PICTURED
Jessica Anya Blau – Shopgirls
V.S. Kemanis
Lisa Montanaro – Everything We Thought Was True
Cleyvis Natera – The Grand Paloma Resort
Cherry Lou Sy – Love Can’t Feed You
Liv Constantine – Don’t Open Your Eyes 
Amity Gage – Heartwood
Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau – The French Honeymoon
Clémence Michallon – Our Last Resort
Mariah Fredericks 
Alyson Richman – The Missing Pages
Lauren Willig – The Girl From Greenwich Street 
John Beyer – Live A Little Better
Susan Shapiro Barash – Estranged (author not pictured)

Lisa Montanaro & Me
Events, LGBTQ+, Memoirs, Nonfiction

Elizabeth Gilbert at The Strand

Michelle

I was lucky enough to see Elizabeth (Liz) Gilbert on her very first stop on her book tour for her new memoir, All the Way to the River. I was also lucky enough to have read the book on Netgalley before the talk as well. The book signing/talk took place at Cooper Union in New York City, which was a much bigger venue than the Strand’s Rare Book Room, where they usually hold their events.

I traveled down to the City alone, and met three other women who were also attending the talk who I sat near. The books were already signed by Liz and there were so many people there, so none of the books were personalized. She basically talked the whole time, and then took questions from the audience who lined up behind a microphone.

I am so happy that I was able to see Elizabeth Gilbert do her talk. The book is about her relationship with her best friend turned lover, Rayya Elias, and their codependent relationship with each other, their drug and love addictions, as well as Rayya’s ultimate death due to pancreatic and liver cancer. It wasn’t an easy read, but definitely worth it, I think, and a very important addition to Gilbert’s story.

I haven’t read all of her books (yet) but I plan on being an Elizabeth Gilbert completest (meaning will read all her works, eventually).

Cooper Union

Adult Fiction, Humor, LGBTQ+, Memoirs, Monthly Wrap-Ups, Mystery, Nonfiction, Romance, Short Stories

Monthly Wrap-Up: July 2025

Michelle

I read 10 books in July. I’m looking forward to another great reading month in August.

My favorite books read in July were: Girls Like Girls by Hayley Kiyoko, When We Go Missing by April Henry and The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff.

These are all the books I read in July:

📖 Girls Like Girls by Hayley Kiyoko
📖 When We Go Missing by April Henry
📖 25 Alive by James Patterson
📖 With A Vengeance by Riley Sager
📖 The Murder Game by Carrie Doyle
📖 The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk
📖 Show Me Where the Hurt Is by Hayden Casey
📖 The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff
📖 Easy Crafts For the Insane: A Mostly Funny Memoir of Mental Illness & Making Things by Kelly Williams Brown
📖 Don’t Open Your Eyes by Liv Constantine

Adult Fiction, Art, Books, Events, LGBTQ+, Memoirs, Mystery, Swag

Barnes & Noble Pride Festival @ Union Square, NYC

Michelle

I went to two out of three days of Barnes & Noble Union Square’s Pride Festival this year! 

On Sunday afternoon they had a panel of authors called “Let Me Be Perfectly Queer” moderated by author TJ Alexander and featuring authors Christina Li (The Manor of Dreams) Debbie Millman (Love Letter To A Garden) Jesse James Rose (Sorry I Keep Crying During Sex) and Prabal Gurung (Walk Like A Girl). 

It was a lovely and powerful conversation! They gave out free swag like bookmarks, pins and body art and I even got a reserved seat! There was also a cute Heartstopper backdrop for lots of photo ops!

Of course I got to Barnes & Noble early to browse and scored some other books as well! Besides the books from the events, I’m most excited to read the art books I bought. 

Here are the books I got signed on Sunday at the event:

Here is the swag I got on Sunday:

Here are the other books I scored while there Sunday:

Monday night was another panel called “GYA.” It consisted of queer YA books. The authors in attendance were Zikiya Jamal (If We Were A Movie) Alice Lin (Love Points to You), Page Powars (And They Were Roommates), Brian Selznick (Run Away With Me), K. Wroten (Everyone Sux But You). It was moderated by David Levithan.  

The second night was just as magical as the first with all kinds of incredible questions answered and audience engagement. We even got to take photos with each author as we got their books signed! The staff at Barnes & Noble Union Square is amazing; kudos to them for keeping everything flowing so smoothly. 

I had so much fun on both nights and came home exhausted! I am SO excited to read ALL the awesome books I bought 🌈📚💜

Memoirs, Nonfiction

Tell Me Everything by Erika Krouse

Michelle

Ages 18+

This book is part memoir and part true crime, and hooked me right from the beginning. Krouse has one of those faces; the kind of face that makes people – complete strangers – come right out and tell her their darkest secrets. She has no idea why, and doesn’t know what to do about it, until the day she meets Grayson, a lawyer who also tells her a secret…and then asks her to work for him as a private investigator. Her first case is a big one, and she’s determined to crack it wide open.    

Memoirs, Nonfiction

Corrections In Ink by Keri Blakinger

Michelle

Ages 18+

Perfect for fans of Orange Is the New Black (the book or the show), Corrections In Ink is Blakinger’s memoir about her experience as a competitive figure skater and her time in prison. Once she stopped skating, she got into all kinds of trouble, and finally got arrested by the cops for it, ultimately spending time behind bars for two years. Upon her release, Blakinger became a reporter and dedicated her career to exposing the flaws in our prison system. 

Memoirs

Educated by Tara Westover

Michelle

Ages 18+

educated

Tara Westover was seventeen years old before she ever set foot in a classroom. Raised by survivalist parents, she was never allowed to go to school, and didn’t consider herself homeschooled either. She wasn’t allowed to go to the hospital even for the severest of injuries. Then, Tara took it upon herself to teach herself enough grammar and math to be accepted into Brigham Young University, where she learned for the first time about the Holocaust and the Civil Rights Movement. She then went on to Harvard and Cambridge, ultimately earning her PhD.

 

Memoirs

Obsessed: A Memoir of My Life with OCD by Allison Britz

Michelle

Grades 9 – 12

obsesse

Allison Britz’s life was just like that of any other teen in her town, until everything changes forever after she has a dream that convinces her she has brain cancer and that she has to do everything in her power to cure it. First she starts avoiding the cracks in the sidewalk and counting all of her steps loudly as she walks. Things quickly spin out of control until the once popular Allison finds herself an outcast. Her family realizes she needs help, and she starts to see a doctor to help her with controlling her OCD.