Do you have a minute? There is someone I want you to meet.

This is Christina.

Can I tell you about her?

We knew we could never replace Yaya. That goes without saying, but still I must say it. Yaya taught us how to love, and she would want us to put that love to use.

We told ourselves we would know when it was time.

Then we saw this video, and we just knew.

Vintage Pet Rescue is a shelter in Rhode Island that specializes in senior and special needs dogs. Early in May they took in three chihuahuas with neurological abnormalities rescued from a truly horrific hoarding situation. They gave the girls much needed medical care, love, and attention, and named them for three queens of pop: Avril, Britney, and Christina.

Like I said, we just knew.

We made the calls, we filled out an application, we hoped and hoped and hoped.

I figured it was reasonable to buy just one new dog toy (as you can imagine, we have many), so Christina would feel special.

We prepared a dog bed in the back seat and drove to Rhode Island to meet Dunkin’s new sister.

Turns out Christina loves butt scritches and she climbed right into my lap to show me how it’s done.

Rebecca took this in the back seat as we drove home from the shelter. Christina was ready to be home.

Now here’s the part that really gets me. We weren’t sure how long it would take Dunkin to accept a new sister into his home. He and Yaya had something special, and we wanted him to have a companion, but we knew the transition would take time.

This is where our Dunkin, our neurotic, scared, nervous little Dunkin surprised us. He immediately knew what to do. He greeted Christina gently. He gave her a little sniff and then went about his business. I don’t know that anyone has ever cried over a butt sniff, but let me tell you I sure did.

Listen, I am no expert in dog psychology. The urge to project my emotions on to these little beings is strong. That said, it is so clear to me that Dunkin is giving Christina the grace and patience that Yaya gave him.

I can’t help but feel Yaya in all of it.

Plus, Dunkin just likes to get bossed around by a small, powerful lady.

Christina is somewhere between 1 and 2 years old.She is tiny, but mighty. A puppy who has been through hell. Somehow, she is trusting and open and ready to see what else the world has to offer. She is tiny, but mighty. We are grateful to be her family.

Thank you for caring for our little family through these last hard weeks. I’ve said it before, but the way you held Yaya, and held us, is something I will never forget.

This world is unbearable, and yet.

There is more to the story.

I promise I’ll talk about books next week. When I’m not staring into Dunkin and Christina’s eyes, I’m reading the new Maggie O’Farrell!

More on all of it soon.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

give Dunkin & Christina a treat

My name is Rosamond and I read a great book.

This is a running joke in my family because it’s how my sister and I always started our book reports in 4th and 5th grade. Obviously, these book reports were a very big deal so that phrase was heard in our house A LOT.

I’ve been reading good books one after the other ever since 4th grade book reports and I just read a real stunner. If I were in 4th grade I would pull out the poster board and make an absolute banger presentation.

Instead, I am just going to tell you about it!!

The book: Etna by Paul Yoon

What you need to know: This book doesn’t come out until August 4th. I am a real b for mooning about this book that you can’t get your hands on for another two months…. but don’t forget that pre-orders really do matter! They make a difference for authors and indicate to bookstores that we should order more stock of a particular title. Plus remember that you can put books on hold at your local library before they come out. I used to do this all the time before I worked in a bookstore and it was such a dopamine hit to be the first on the hold list of a hot new release. All of that is to say that if this book sounds up your alley, go ahead and put your name on the list at your bookstore or local library! It’s a win win I promise.

What else you need to know: This is a book about war. It is also a book about a dog. It is not an easy read in any sense. It is about the realities of combat and is violent and harrowing in parts. I think it is worth your time, but of course you must take care of yourself first.

Okay. I am just going to give you the little publisher one-liner on this to start because I think it gets to the heart of it.

Beloved author and winner of The Story Prize, Paul Yoon, is back with the unforgettable story of a working dog, Etna, who, after a devastating war, embarks on an odyssey in the hopes of returning home.

What this blurb doesn’t tell you, though, is that this novel is told Etna’s voice. Here’s my little blurb that I wrote to submit this title to be an Indie Next pick:

Written in the voice of a dog returning home from war, Etna is an instant classic that employs spare, piercing prose to devastating effect. Paul Yoon draws on classic tales of war and homecoming to tell a story of survival that is wholly new, truly surprising, and impossibly lovely.

How did I do?? (Compliments only, please)

For each of this slim novel’s 208 pages the reader is in Etna’s head as he makes his unlikely journey home. I don’t know that I have read a novel with an Animal narrator since I read Animal Farm in High School, and I was not entirely sure this would be for me.

First of all, I just lost my first dog, the dog of my heart, the dog that taught me what loving a dog is like.

Was I really going to pick up a book told in the voice of a dog? We all know what happens to dogs in books…. I am not telling you what happens in this book, but I think we can agree that dogs don’t always fare well in literature, and us dog lovers have trust issues for a reason. There is a reason that doesthedogdie.com exists and let’s just say I have availed myself of that resource. We stopped watching the new season of Beef for obvious reasons….

All of that is to say, it was a little mad for me to pick up this book at this time in my life.

But, I want to spend time with art that takes dogs seriously. I want to read books that treat dogs as the center of the story, not a plot device for suspense or pathos.

So against all good sense, I picked up a dog novel, and I am so, so glad I did.

Not since The Swimmers, has a slim novel caught me so entirely in its net. You could read Etna in a single sitting and, if at all possible, this is what I would recommend. I’ll never know how he did it, but Paul Yoon uses the exact right number of words. There is space on each page. There is room for the reader to sit with the horror and beauty that Etna encounters.

A novel in the voice of a trained military dog could easily be either trite or gratuitously violent and overwrought. Instead, Paul Yoon feeds the reader deceptively simple prose that exposes the inhumanity of war and the impossible goodness of dogs.

But this is not a novel with a simple or pedantic agenda - humans are bad, dogs are good - rather it is a novel that tells a story of one good dog in an aching world. Paul Yoon moves Etna (and the reader) through terror and devastation. Each carefully chosen word is a testament to Yoon’s care for Etna and for his reader.

I crave books that tell the truth about grief, about love, about dogs, and, of course, about us humans. This is that book.

I don’t want to say any more because I want you to have as pure a reading experience as possible. I want you to let this books surprise you the way it surprised me.

In the end, this book left me in tears. Tears of sadness, yes, at our unending capacity for destruction and the inevitability of loss. And, yes, tears of gratitude to live in a world that is as lovely as it is horrible.

In the end, I thought this book was lovely.

How Paul Yoon wrote a novel of war that is also undeniably lovely I will never know.

But then again, what is more lovely than a dog?

Etna made me feel that winning the trust of a dog is like winning the lottery a hundred times over.

I hope you read Etna if you’re up for it. If you do, I hope you talk about it with me.

If you’ve read this far thank you for listening to my book report. I know we’re not in 4th grade anymore, but I would get an A, right? right??

TELL ME: What is your favorite dog in literature? I used to think I couldn’t read books about dogs, but I think I may have been wrong. What I need is to read books that take dogs seriously. Tell me what I should read next!

Leave a comment

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

get Dunkin a treat

Come on in, sit down, can I get you anything? A potato, perhaps?

May has been a cruel month for our little family. And yet, and yet, and yet, we never felt alone for one moment. We felt loved and cared for every step of the way, and that, of course, is thanks to so many of you. Thank you doesn’t feel like enough. Thank you for loving Yaya, thank you for loving us.

May was impossible, and yet here we are. Here are a few of the books and glimmers that got me through.

Favorite Reads(s)

The world must have known I needed a win, because despite it all I read some real winners this month. Whistler by Ann Patchett? As good as I hoped if not better. The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson? An out and out masterpiece that’s intellectually rigorous and full of heart.

And if you thought I took a break from romance for the month… think again!! I am pleased to report that I read my favorite romance in recent memory not written by Rachel Reid. My in-person book club selected After Hours at Dooryard Books by Cat Sebastian to read in May, and what a blessing.

Set in a dusty, chaotic used and rare bookshop in Greenwich Village in the 1960s, this novel had everything I’m looking for in a romance. It’s a celebration of queer history and resistance. It’s cozy. The stakes were high, but not too high. The writing is gorgeous. I ate it all up with a spoon at a time when I was desperate for pleasure and distraction, and I am so grateful.

One Bright Glimmer

what is a glimmer?

If glimmers are small moments when our biology is in a place of connection or regulation, which cues our nervous system to feel safe or calm, then the most surefire glimmer in my life lately is sitting on the couch, re-watching Heated Rivalry with Dunkin snuggled next to me. Regulation, indeed.

We miss our girl, though.

Book I’m Looking Forward To

June is a huge month for new books and, of course, new gay books. Around here we believe in reading queer lit all year long, but I’m always curious to see what titles publishers will spotlight during pride month.

Charity & Sylvia is the story of a real life openly lesbian couple who survived and thrived in 19th century Vermont told in the form a graphic novel by the brilliant Tillie Walden.

I love gorgeous graphic novels. I love lesbians. I love Vermont. I’m in!!

Biggest Surprise

Yaya was our whole world. In her final days, our world became small enough to fit inside her tiny body. Imagine our surprise, then, to lift our heads above that fog and see that Yaya was loved and seen beyond anything we could have expected.

Above is a tribute to Yaya made by local author, Broadside customer turned friend who is, as you can see, a generous and talented artist. Another deeply gifted and creative friend created a cento poem and little book for Yaya made from my own words and photos. Oh and she’s already appearing in fiction!

To see our girl, and our wild love for her, reflected back to us, well it’s something I will never ever forget.

Thank you for your words of love and support, for checking in on Dunkin, for reminding us that there is more to the story.

I’m Still Learning

It’s so tempting to say “we are okay.” It’s so, so tempting to try to reassure the world and therefore myself that we are, in fact, okay. The truth is we aren’t okay. Yaya was our family and our grief is bigger than the sky. We aren’t okay and that’s okay. We will miss Yaya forever. She was a gift and our sadness is a gift. Thank you for making room for it.

I’m glad you’re here.

I love you.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

get Dunkin a treat

Just a Dunkin butt to kick things off.

We’re doing okay. Some days are easier than others, but we’re moving through them all as best we can. We miss Yaya everyday, of course. We miss her and we’re noticing all the things we still love about this world.

You know what I love? Reading. You know what I really love? Summer reading.

I’m not a big summer girl, but I love the concept of a summer reading plan. Call it nostalgia for the days of the summer reading challenge at my local public library or the thrill of three open months to read whatever I want, but it runs deep.

I especially love Summer Reading season on the bookish internet. I love seeing how my favorite readers tap into all the nostalgia and pleasure of the summer reading season. Two readers I admire and love to follow, and , are dropping their reading guides this Friday. I am ready and waiting. These guides are a highlight of the season for me, and this year especially I am grateful for the opportunity to nerd out.

In the spirit of nerding out and clinging to books I love and books I hope to read, I made a little summer reading guide of my own.

Below you will find 18 total book recommendations: 6 new releases I am excited about, 6 backlist titles I stand by, and 6 books on my own personal TBR for summer.

I hope this inspires you to make your own summer reading challenge, whatever that looks like for you. Even if three months of uninterrupted reading time is not realistic anymore (ha!) I hope we can each tap into that particular kind of pleasure reading that comes on long summer afternoons. And you know what? Buy yourself a personal pan pizza. You earned it!

Summer Reading: Six New Releases

Fat Swim by Emma Copley Eisenberg // I was lucky enough to read this one before it came out and I am obsessed. I have such a crush on this book. Sometimes I find short stories intimidating or unreachable, but these stories are fascinating and accessible. Summer is a season that makes it hard to ignore your body, and this collection is all about the beauty and pain of living in a body. Plus, is just rad.

Whistler by Ann Patchett (out June 2nd) // Ann doesn’t need my help, but too bad she’s gonna get it. You should read this book. Whether you are an Ann Stan (we should make merch) or brand new to her work, you should read this book. She knows what the heck she is doing.

The Emilys by Heather Abel (out June 16th) // This novel by a local-to-me western mass author is about a mysterious ailment that strikes women in a small New England town making them unable to leave their homes. Get it?? The Emilys?? Like the poet?? I am compelled.

Long Island Girls by Gabrielle Korn (out June 23rd) // I mostly know Gabrielle Korn because of her dog, Norma (Thank you for bringing Norma to my attention!). That said, I am very interested in this queer, coming-of-age novel set against the indie music scene of the early 2000s.

Etna by Paul Yoon (out August 4th) // Yes, this is a novel about a dog. Yes, that makes me nervous. But also I think dogs are worthy of great literature so I might be brave and read this book.

Take What You Can by Naima Coster (out August 4th) // I’ll be so honest that I mostly want to read this novel because of the cover. I mean just look at that cover. I love it so much. But also, that blurb by friend of Rosamond Reads, ? We trust her implicitly so we shall be reading this.

Summer Reading: Six Backlist Books I Recommend

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson // This middle grade novel in verse is a modern classic if you ask me. Want to tap into the joy of summer reading as a young reader? Read a truly excellent middle grade novel. There is a new audio version narrated by a full cast and I cannot wait to listen and revisit this wonder.

I’ll Have What He’s Having by Adib Khorram // I think you should read romance this summer! This one features two impossibly loveable main characters, lots of spice, good wine, Iranian food, and a midwest setting. I’m smiling just thinking about it.

An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera // Lesbian historical romance! I don’t think you need to know anything else, but please know that the writing, plotting, and spice in this book is truly top tier. Yes, I want to read lesbian historical romance, but really I want to read good lesbian historical romance, and this is it.

Indigo by Beverly Jenkins // Remember when I said you should read romance this summer? I was not kidding! This is a classic of the genre for a reason. We read it for The Stacks Book Club this year and you know what’s really fun? Reading romance with community. Read this book with a friend and then giggle and/or swoon together. You will have fun, I promise.

Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Milay by Nancy Mitford // I will admit that it’s been years since I read this book, but I love a chunky biography of a writer and this is one of the best. I think summer is for fast paced fiction and big biographies. A big biography of a complicated artist? I’m getting excited just thinking about it. Another one I love? Carson McCullers: A Life by Mary Dearborn. A biography I have my eye on because it comes out in paperback this summer? Baldwin: A Love Story by Nicholas Boggs.

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward // This is an all-timer for me. A great American novel if there ever was one. In case you haven’t read it, now is the time. This is a deep summer novel. Jesmyn Ward has a new essay collection out and it would pair beautifully with a re-read of her best novel.

Summer Reading: My TBR!

Nothing makes me more hopeful than a list of books I want to read, so here are six books on my personal TBR this summer. Some are new releases that I have access to early (brag brag brag!). Fear and Fury is clearly evidence of the influence. And if there’s one thing I want to read more of it’s lesbian basketball romance.

Sophie Standing There by Meg Mason (out September 8th)

Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage by Heather Ann Thompson

The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman by Deesha Philyaw (out September 29th)

Land by Maggie O’Farrell (out June 2nd)

A Gentleman’s Gentleman by TJ Alexander

Love and Sportsball by Meka James

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

get Dunkin a treat

Tell me: what is at the top of your summer reading list? I want to know!

May this season bring you exactly what you need especially if that’s just a little quiet time to read.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

First, thank you so much for your generous and kind response to last week’s news about our dear Yaya. We loved her beyond measure and it’s really something to see how many others loved her too, even from afar. She was a little star, but of course you knew this.

Life without Yaya still doesn’t feel real, but we are carrying on as best we can. Dunkin is being as brave as anyone and is carrying us all on his little back.

Somehow, we are still here. We’re drinking our coffee and noticing the birds. We’re watching basketball and going for walks. We’re crying in those transition moments where the empty dog bed on the couch hits us anew. We’re kissing the top of Dunkin’s heavy little head. We’re trying.

Somehow, too, I am reading. The world must have known I needed some reading wins because I finished two absolutely remarkable books. Can I tell you about them?

Remember when I wrote about the books I’m embarrassed I haven’t read yet? I read one! The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson is a modern classic for a reason and I’m so glad I finally made the time to read it. My Mom and I read it together and it’s been a highlight of my year. If you are like me and thick non-fiction is intimidating to you, you have nothing to fear in this masterful work of narrative nonfiction. Somehow Wilkerson gives the reader a rich, detailed history of the Great Migration woven into the stories of three different individuals who migrated to the north between 1937 and 1953. I was gripped from beginning to end and finished in awe of what Wilkerson accomplishes in these 640 pages. I listened to much of the book on audio and the narration by Robin Miles is excellent. Just an unforgettable reading experience.

Remember when I wrote about my most highly anticipated reads of 2026? I read one! It’s been a tough few days around here and getting lost in Ann Patchett’s new novel, Whistler (out June 2nd), was a solace and a gift. I went in knowing basically nothing beyond the name of the author on the front and Ann did not let me down.

Actually, before I cracked that spine I checked with a dear bookselling friend who had already read it to ask my one pressing question: does anything bad happen to that horse? The answer was no so I went in ready to be swept away, and I was not disappointed.

Ann Patchett is just a master of her craft. This is a small book about family, memory, and storytelling. I love a little book with little characters trying to figure out how to live a good life and this is just the best of the best. You really don’t need to know much else. There is a website where booksellers can leave reviews of upcoming releases and, as you can imagine, there are dozens and dozens of eloquent, smart reviews explaining why this book is so masterful. My addition? “Goddamn she is good.”

For me, this was absolutely a case of the right book in the right time. I needed to get lost in a good story. I needed to think a little about grief and death and love. I needed to be reminded that there is still some good out there. This book did all of that. I won’t tell you anything more but please know that there is a cameo from Ann Patchett’s beloved dog Sparky. Ann gets it.

We’re still here. We’re doing the best we possibly can. We miss Yaya endlessly.

We feel held and loved and seen by so many who loved her too.

Thank you for being here.

I love you.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

get Dunkin a treat

Saying goodbye to Yaya is without a doubt the hardest thing we’ve ever had to to do. Her health declined rapidly in her final days. Every part of us wanted to do everything we could to keep her here, but she told us it was time to go, and we listened.

An impossibly kind and gentle vet came to our home so Yaya could cross the rainbow bridge from the comfort of her couch throne. We kissed her tiny head and whispered in her ear. It was agony. It was exactly the death she deserved.

My Mom came to be with us and keep Dunkin company. She gave him the chance to say goodbye to his sister, too. My tears will blur my vision if I say any more about that, but just know he was her brave, devoted brother to the very end.

It’s the one thing we knew for certain would happen some day and yet it is absolutely unfathomable. I am shocked by it. I know it makes no sense, but I am shocked she is gone.

If I could I would write plays and sonnets and epic novels for Yaya. She deserves a whole canon.

For now, all I can say is she was our anchor, our morning, noon, and night, our family.

I wrote this for Yaya back in October 2023, and I’m so glad I did because I can’t find the words now, but here they are.

Can you do me a favor? For Yaya, today, can you love the world? Maybe take a nap, that would be ideal. Eat some cheese for sure. Whatever the human equivalent is of barking furiously at your neighbor’s cat make sure you do that. Love your body. Love your people. Go at your own pace. Pursue pleasure. Be right here, right now, in this day if you possibly can.

The greatest surprise, though I don’t think Yaya was surprised at all, is how many people Yaya touched through this newsletter and through my instagram. It’s hard to explain what it means to have the wonder of our girl reflected back to us in the words of love and comfort from Yaya’s many fans all across the country.

Thank you for loving Yaya. When she had surgery at the end of last year, we were buoyed by the love and good wishes and support of her friends near and far. I’ll never forget it.

Thank you for keeping us company through this grief. Thank you for taking our little family seriously. We aren’t okay right now, but I know we will be. Your words of love and support have meant everything to us.

I’m glad you’re here.

I love you.

Love,

Rosamond (& Yaya)

We are going through it over here. Our girl, Yaya, is doing poorly, and it feels like our world world is collapsed into her tiny eight-pound body.

There aren’t any words that make it better, but Mary Oliver still knows what to say. Today, all I have to offer is this little poem from Dog Songs.

Little Dog’s Rhapsody in the Night

by Mary Oliver

He puts his cheek against mine
and makes small, expressive sounds. 
And when I'm awake or awake enough 

he turns upside down, his four paws 
      in the air 
and his eyes, dark and fervent. 

"Tell me you love me," he says. 

"Tell me again." 

Could there be a sweeter arrangement? Over and over 
he gets to ask.
I get to tell. 

There is no sweeter arrangement.

We love you.

Be good to yourself today, and give a dog a treat if you can.

Love,

Rosamond

First things first, here’s Yaya:

Now that you’ve paid the Yaya tax, let’s talk books. I’m back with more book recommendations because there’s always room for more books, right? right???

Below are two more of the recommendation requests I received through my instagram and my suggestions. Got a suggestion for these readers in need? Leave them in the comments! Share the love!

“Poetry that makes me love the world again”

I feel this so deeply. When the world feels hard to love poetry so often offers a window into something more. Not to be like, have you read Mary Oliver, but, have you read Mary Oliver??

Really, though, if you know and love the poetry of Mary Oliver, may I recommend the audiobook, Wild & Precious: A Celebration of Mary Oliver? It’s an audiobook original that features Mary Oliver reading her own work and various artists and writers from Ross Gay to Samin Nosrat to Carmen Maria Machado reflecting on Mary Oliver’s impact on their own lives and work. I’m a pretty serious Mary Oliver fan (ha!) and I learned so much from this audiobook. More than anything, it’s a portrait of an artist who taught herself to love the world.

If you’ve only engaged with Mary Oliver’s work through singular poems here and there I do recommend reading a collection cover to cover. My favorite? Dream Work.

Speaking of Mary, did you see the trailer for the upcoming PBS documentary about her? As the kids say, I am sat. I am seated. I am ready. I am listening.

Here are two more quick poetry recs for you:

You Better Be Lightning by Andrea Gibson - If you’re not familiar with the work of the late poet Andrea Gibson, there is no better time to engage with their remarkable body of work. I had the privilege of seeing them perform live about ten years ago in Boston and it changed my understanding of poetry can be and do. Read these poems then listen to Andrea read them alongside you.

Come See Me in the Good Light, the documentary about the end of Andrea Gibson’s helped me love this world.

Falling Back in Love with Being Human by Kai Cheng Thom - It’s right there in the title! This collection of letters and missives and poems is a a guide for drawing your own map to follow through the harsh realities of this world. It’s small enough to tuck in your tote bag and just knowing it’s there makes me feel more equipped to face whatever is ahead.

“A page-turner that’s joyful, but not naive”

I love the specificity of this request! I’m like damn that’s what I want to read too…

My first answer is going to be really annoying because it’s not out for many months, but I promise it’s worth the wait.

Yes, I am talking about American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee (out September 29th). If you followed along with me to the annual Booksellers’ Conference this year then you might remember that all of us booksellers went absolutely feral to get our hands on the advanced copies of Min Jin Lee’s first novel in nine years.

I am so pleased to tell you that the hype is absolutely real and this book is worth all of it and more. Can a 656 page novel really be a page turner? Normally, no. In Min Jin Lee’s hands? Yes. Unequivocally yes. I don’t know how she did it, but she had me ripping through these pages like there was no tomorrow.

The characters in this novel face deep hardship, betrayal, and grief, but there is an undercurrent throughout the novel that is undeniably joyful. Min Jin Lee has something to say about education and family and money and, quite simply, what makes a good life The skill and love with which she tells this story is always joyful and never naive. It’s a marvel. I can’t wait for you to read it.

While you wait for September, there’s another buzzy 2026 release that I think falls right in that “joyful, but not naive” sweet spot: Kin by Tayari Jones.

I know this book has been everywhere and doesn’t need me to hype it up, but I promise this novel is worth your time. Like American Hagwon, when I say that Kin is joyful, I do not mean that there is not hardship, but that there is great joy in reading a work of fiction so masterful in its storytelling and clear in its purpose. Both Tayari Jones and Min Jin Lee write with great care for their characters and, I think, for their readers. This makes for an unforgettable reading experience.

And one more joyful-but-not-naive rec for the road: have you tried Woodworking by Emily St. James?

This 2025 debut about a closeted trans teacher and her trans student in contemporary South Dakota is funnier and more joyful than it has any right to be. Yes, there are moments of deep pain in which the reality of the dangers trans folks face in rural, middle America is laid bare. And yet, Emily St. James writes these flawed, deeply human characters with such heart and humor, the reader is buoyed the whole way through.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got for you. Thank you for playing and letting me hone my bookselling skills! Don’t forget to leave your suggestions for these readers in the comments.

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Remember: you do not have to be good.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

One of the best and trickiest parts of being a bookseller is fielding book recommendation requests in real time. There is truly no greater pleasure than hand selling a book you love to a customer that needs it. That’s what it’s all about.

Sadly for me, nine times out of ten when a customer asks me to recommend a book I immediately forget every book I’ve ever read. Usually this passes and I can recover, but when in doubt I guess I can just recommend Heated Rivalry?

Because I suffer from performance anxiety, I love to ask for book recommendation requests on my instagram. This gives me time to remember books that are not gay hockey smut. But, also, have you tried gay hockey smut?

Anyway, below are some of the requests I received and my recommendations. Books are medicine to me, so I take this responsibility very seriously. Thank you for trusting me, and I hope you find just the book you need.

“Something to break my reading slump!”

The reading slump is the scourge of every reader! She comes for all of us from time to time. When I find myself in a slump I tend to reach for short reads that can quickly give me the dopamine hit of finishing a book or re-reads of old favorites.

Sometimes you’ve got to go back to basics. Do you remember a book you loved in fifth grade? Go back and read it! The books we read when we were 11 or 12 are so foundational and you might be surprised by what you find when you return to your early loves.

Really this is my way of saying you should read Holes by Louis Sachar and Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis. I am telling you my experience reading these two novels rivals any contemporary “adult” fiction. These books are just good. They are fast-paced, full of plot and big ideas about how to live a good life. Like I said, back to basics.

My next recommendation for slump-breaking books would be anything from the new romance imprint 831 Stories. The person who made this request is a big-time romance expert so she already knows this, but for everyone else, it’s worth paying attention to what 831 is doing in the romance publishing market. They specialize in novella-length romance novels that you will instantly recognize by their signature cover style.

I read Big Fan by Alexandra Romanoff last year and I had a great time. Plus, this year they’ve got a sapphic WNBA romance out so you know I’ve got my eye on that.

“Something great on audio and simple enough to listen to while sick”

Oh no! I’m so sorry you are sick. Listening to audiobooks is one of the best things you can do when you’re sick if you ask me. There is something so soothing about just lying back and letting someone read to you.

I know this is somewhat of a niche recommendation, but I just listened to The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop on audio and it was such a pleasure. Kelly Bishop narrates her own memoir, of course, and it’s everything you hope it would be. And you know what would pair well with that? Have I told You This Already? by Lauren Graham. Again, maybe niche, but if you enjoy listening to smart, funny women tell you about their lives, Kelly and Lauren will nurse you through your illness.

On the off chance that you are not a Gilmore Girls fan (it’s okay I’m very open minded), then I would recommend anything by R. Eric Thomas, who narrates his two wonderful essay collections on audio and is one of the funniest writers working today.

“Medical vibes! I just finished Small Rain and Five Days at Memorial”

Oh, I love this. Small Rain is a simply astonishing novel that is also remarkable and deeply compelling on audio.

I think the logical next step in your reading life is to dig into the work of Tracy Kidder, particularly Mountains Beyond Mountains and Rough Sleepers. Each of these works of narrative nonfiction tells the story of an exceptional physician and their work outside of the four walls of a hospital. Mountains Beyond Mountains is an account of the work of Dr. Paul Farmer who founded Partners in Health and committed his life to fighting infectious disease in Haiti. Rough Sleepers tells the story of Dr. Jim O’Connell and his work serving unhoused patients in Boston.

Tracy Kidder, who died just a few weeks ago, was one of the greatest nonfiction writers of our time, a legend of the field, and a local hero here in Western Massachusetts. He was a dear friend of Broadside and supported us since the publication of The Soul of a New Machine in 1980.

I will always remember Tracy Kidder as deeply humble and truly kind. If you haven’t yet read his work, you are in for a literary treat and a journey of the mind and heart.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got for you today. I didn’t have time to get to all the recommendation requests I received so stay tuned for more next week!

In the comments, tell us you’re favorite books for breaking reading slumps or for audiobook listening while sick. Or if you’ve got recommendations for books with medical vibes, don’t gatekeep! Drop those titles in the comments!

Leave a comment

In the mean time, if you’ve read this far you must now pay the Yaya tax and admire her shocking beauty.

We love you.

We’re glad you’re here.

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Love,

Rosamond

Hey! You’re here. Thank you.

How are you holding up? It’s all….. a lot. It feels a little silly to tap out a newsletter about books and reading with all that is going on around us. But when has that ever not been the case? And yet here we are. Here you are. And we still need books. I need books, that is for sure.

Do you know those signs that people put in their lawns that say “In this house we believe…” and list out basic core progressive values? They are everywhere in my little town. Like anything you stick on a lawn sign or a bumper sticker the message starts to feel like cheap virtue signaling, but nonetheless I love the idea of stating simply and plainly what you believe. Corny as it may be, I like the idea of creating a list of your values and making them visible.

With this mission in mind, I thought I would create a list of my reading values. I spend a truly insane amount of time thinking about books, talking about books, and, of course, actually reading books. If you’ve read this newsletter for any amount of time you know it’s more than a hobby for me.

So what are the principles that anchor this way of life?

I feel a little silly just listing out “rules” but I really do believe in these and they serve me well so I want to share them with you.

I’m going to channel my inner Fran Lebowitz and just tell you what I believe.

But you know the real trick of it? I made it all up! So, please, in the comments tell me your made up rules for reading.

Reading is a morally neutral hobby

This is not exactly a hot take, but I think it’s worth saying. Reading is morally neutral. Reading in your free time no more makes you a good person than watching Love Island on a constant loop makes you a bad person.

Do I think reading can build empathy and help a person look outside themselves? Of course! Do I think helping young people build a practice of reading for pleasure can set them up for success in life? Duh!

For me, reading is a cornerstone of a life well lived. That said, I realize that many, many people do not spend their precious free time this way and it’s possible to live a rich, meaningful life without ever cracking a book spine.

So take the pressure off!! Read if you want to. Read one book, read ten books, read one hundred books. It’s what you do with what books give you that actually matters.

The number of books you read doesn’t actually matter to anyone besides you and you get to decide how much it matters to you.

For those of us who read for pleasure, it can be so easy to turn reading into just another mountain to climb. Just another box to check on the self-actualization to do list. Once again, I have to refer to my queen Fran Lebowitz.

I love reading challenges like The Stacks Mega Reading Challenge because it connects me with a community of readers and forces me to read outside of my comfort zone. Plus I live for the dopamine hit of hitting goals I set for myself.

The number of books you read really only has meaning in the context of your own life! So if you want to read more books that’s a fun and laudable goal, but don’t forget that it’s also very personal and probably no one cares about or is judging your “numbers.”

I love using Storygraph to track my progress toward my reading goals. It’s instant dopamine and gives me a sense of control in a world that feels out of control. But I also really try to remember that I made this mountain up.

Read for pleasure sometimes, read to learn sometimes, and always leave room for overlap between the two.

Once again, this seems obvious, but it’s worth repeating, right? Reading for pleasure is essential to my well-being. When I discovered romance novels I was shocked to learn we are allowed to have this much fun. But as I continued to read in the romance genre, with the help of my romance fairy godmother Grace, I quickly learned that these books are much more than just “pleasure reading.” Romance novels are a container in which I have read about grief, neurodivergence, consent, recovery, class inequality and more, more, more. And that’s all before I read Heated Rivalry….

I wrote about reading for pleasure vs. reading for a better world immediately after the 2024 election and it’s a principle that has served me well in the time since. We can do both and sometimes (shocker!) the binary between the two is not set in stone.

Ask people what they are reading.

Every Friday on my instagram I ask my followers what they are reading and share some responses in my stories. It’s a simple tradition that I absolutely love. I know this seems obvious, but if you know someone who is a reader: ask them what they are reading. Reading is wonderfully solitary, but it’s so much richer when you can talk about it with someone else. So just ask!

Build your own canon.

I think many of us feel reading shame (boo!) because we are taught that reading only really counts if you read certain capital B Books. The canon etc.. etc..

But if there is one thing I believe in as a reader and a bookseller it’s building your own canon. Pretend you are in charge (spoiler: you are!) and pick the books you would place at the center of your own life.

You already know mine, but I still put them together here because just seeing those books together makes my heart pitter patter and reminds me why the practice of reading is one I will cling to for my whole life if I can.

Yes, I finished The Long Game. No, I’m not ready to talk about it yet, but when I am it’s over for you fools.

Even if you are like me and you think about books constantly, I think there is so much value in returning to your own canon, reminding yourself of the books that built you and continue to shape your world.

Okay I think that’s enough pontificating for one day! Tell me in the comments. What are you YOUR rules for reading?? Let’s make them up together.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

I don’t know about you, but over here we are absolutely army crawling toward spring. I am trying my hardest to keep my eyes open for glimmers in the midst of these in-the-middle days. Mostly those glimmers look like kisses on the top of tiny chihuahua heads, opening the windows for the first time, a light jacket, iced coffee (always, always iced coffee), and - duh - books.

I want to tell you about the five books I read in March. I paired each book with a little good thing/glimmer that’s keeping me afloat.

Common Goal by Rachel Reid

When I said books are keeping me afloat what I mostly meant was gay hockey smut by Rachel Reid is keeping me afloat. If you know, you absolutely know, and if you don’t know well might I recommend you dabble a toe??

Common Goal is book 4 in the Game Changers series which I am currently devouring like a family size bag of smart food popcorn. Absolutely delicious. This one was not my favorite in the Rachel Reid universe but I can’t pretend I wasn’t invested.

I’m pairing this sports romance with one of my favorite sports moments in recent memory: the opening match of Boston’s brand new NWSL team the Boston Legacy.

If there is one thing I love it’s being a fan and I could not be more excited to be a fan of a women’s soccer team in my home state. I watched from my couch and felt real genuine hope and excitement.

I loved what my favorite sports journalist, Frankie De La Cretaz had to say about what this moment means for those of us who have spent years waiting for women’s sports to get this kind of investment and attention.

Role Model by Rachel Reid

Oops, then I just read the next one in the series because - and I cannot emphasize this enough - these books are very good. I wrote about this one a little bit here. I loved it, I loved it, I loved it.

My knowledge of hockey comes only from these smutty little books but that hasn’t stopped me from putting the PWHL on because, as previously stated, I love being a fan and if there is one thing I’m a fan of it’s women doing basically anything you know what I mean? Plus, did you know PWHL games are all free on youtube??

No spoilers but it’s very entertaining and very gay.

The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop

It’s extremely bad for my reputation as the biggest Gilmore Girls fan you know that it took me over a year to read my hero Kelly Bishop’s memoir. Let this be a reminder that the right books will wait for you and it’s never to late to read that book you’ve been meaning to read forever! Anyways, this is not about me this is about Kelly and, impossibly, reading her book made me love and admire her even more.

I listened to this one on audio narrated by Kelly herself and it was pure delight. I loved walking home on the bike path and thinking to myself, no one knows Kelly Bishop is speaking her life story right into my ears.

Don’t meet your heroes, but you can listen to them narrate their memoirs as you walk home in the waning March light.

Paradise by Toni Morrison

It was Toni Morrison month in the The Stacks book club and we tackled Paradise. Each year, invites an author/scholar/reader to discuss a Morrison novel with her on the podcast and this month she and Namwali Serpell talked Paradise, a challenging, strange, rich, tangle of a novel. This is my second time reading this book and it’s one that demands multiple re-reads and a community of thinkers to read alongside. I am so lucky to have that community in The Stacks.

Much of this novel still feels beyond my grasp, but I am learning to be comfortable reading through that confusion and immersing myself in Morrison’s exquisite imagery and prose. What sticks with me most from this novel is the group of women living in what is called “the convent” - a kind of makeshift home for cast-off, wayward, troubled women who shave their heads and sharpen their incisor teeth. If you are compelled by this, read on and then listen to Traci and Namwali’s rich discussion. It’s like going back to English class except way, way better.

Speaking of The Stacks, was really on one in March. Each of the guests (T Kira Madden! Tayari Jones!) was exceptional and the conversations and insights kept me thinking and reading all month long.

Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

I remembered I have free will and I make the rules so I just read it again.

You see that happy, content face Yaya is making in the above photo? What made you feel that way this week? Tell me please. And tell Yaya she is a good girl. Obviously.

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

Hey! You’re here. Thank you.

I was up earlier than usual today because our dear anxious Dunkin has a regular check up at the vet this morning which requires some special preparation when you have a brain like Dunkin’s. In our case it means stuffing a potent cocktail of calming drugs into his favorite food in the world … old pizza crust.

There is definitely a metaphor about pizza crust and medicine and mental health care and being up on a cold, March morning waiting for my little dog to give me a fecal sample for his vet visit and noticing the way the sky is perfect orange pink right around the edges. I’m too sleepy to fully land the metaphor, but I’m glad I’m here and I’m glad you are too.

Somehow it’s already the end of March, so here are some books and glimmers that kept me afloat this month.

Favorite Read

Role Model by Rachel Reid

One day I’ll finish a book that is not in Rachel Reid’s brilliant Game Changers series but today is not that day. I’m down bad. The last time I was this committed to reading every word of a series of books in the order they were written was probably The Series of Unfortunate Events in the fourth grade. Like I said, I’m down for the count. In Role Model we have a grumpy, closeted hockey player with a strong moral compass (you’ll see!) who falls for the social media manager for his new team who happens to smell like apples (you’ll see!!) and is good with puppies and processing emotions. I love these guys!

One Bright Glimmer

what is a glimmer?

This weekend, Rebecca’s chamber music trio performed in a “growhearsal” at the Northampton Community Music Center. They call it a growhearsal because many of the musicians are beginners and calling it a recital or a performance comes with too many connotations of pressure and evaluation. Rather, a growhearsal values learning, trying something new and making mistakes. It’s as good as it sounds. I’m biased, but anytime I get to hear my favorite musician perform is the brightest glimmer of all.

Book I’m Looking Forward To:

Nasty Work: Resist Systems, Explore Desire, and Liberate Yourself by Ericka Hart // Out April 14th

I’m thinking that this new book by sex educator Ericka Hart might be a perfect non-fiction pairing with the Game Changers series. According to the publisher, Nasty Work blends eye-opening research with powerful, poignant personal narrative that disrupts everything you thought you knew about sex and society, offering a liberatory framework that makes pleasure accessible for all. Sign me up!!

Biggest Surprise

If you are tired of hearing me moon about the power of these smutty hockey books, then please by all means skip this bit, but I need to tell you what it’s like to be a bookseller in this timeline. There was the older gentleman who came up to the counter and said why don’t you have …. and I immediately tensed because that’s never a good start. But he continued .. why don’t you have any books by Rachel Reid? Well turns out this man read about Heated Rivalry in the New York Times and he wanted to see for himself what the fuss is all about. He didn’t know we had a romance section and it was my absolute pleasure to direct him there. Would you believe me if I told you he bought the first two and came back for the next two in the series. I don’t know if I would believe it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. Or the gentleman who came in and bought the series and told me they were the first books he would read in decades. When I watched the show, I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing … that’s my experience. Or the harried Mom who had two toddlers hanging off of her when she bought The Long Game. I said Oh I love these books and she said The Cottage is my happy place. Or the man who brought back his copy of The Long Game because there was a printing error and fifty pages were missing in the middle (homophobic!) and I gasped like someone killed a puppy. I was so happy to be able to give him a fresh copy with every single page in tact. He immediately took his book mark out of the old copy and put it into the new copy so he wouldn’t lose his place.

Five years ago Broadside didn’t even have a romance section.

I could list dozens of reasons why March 2026 is a burdensome timeline to exist within. You know the reasons. Rachel Reid has given me a dozen reasons why I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

The faces the dogs make when they realize I’m still talking about the gay hockey books.

Wish Dunkin and me luck at the vet today and pray for our collective nervous system.

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Tell me your glimmers and your favorite March reads in the comments.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

Yaya is here too and for what it’s worth she thinks you are doing a really good job. In fact, she thinks you should probably ease up on yourself today.

We are just days away from the first day of Spring and I don’t know about you, but I am ready to feel just a little sun on my skin, to drink an obscene amount of iced coffee, and maybe, just maybe, read a book outside?? Can you imagine?? I can. I’m manifesting it for all of us.

With dreamy spring reading in mind, I’ve created a little seasonal to-be-read (tbr) list for myself. Whenever the world feels like too much, when the overwhelm starts to feel like it’s reaching above my shoulders, I make a list of books. I mean this quite literally. Sometimes I write down the titles on a little scrap of paper. If that’s not possible I just repeat the titles in my head like a prayer. There are still so many books to read. There are stories I haven’t yet encountered and thus whole ways of being and seeing waiting for me to discover them.

So really, more than a tbr, this is a list that grounds me and reminds of the goodness that’s still ahead. And that’s what I hope spring can be, too. A reminder of the goodness that’s still here.

Here’s my little list of intentions. Will I read them all? I’d be surprised! But I’m going to keep planning and hoping and making my little lists.

On Witness and Respair by Jesmyn Ward // Jesmyn Ward is an auto-read author for me. I’d read the phonebook if she wrote it. This is a collection of old and new essays and for months I’ve been misreading the title as “Witness and Repair.” But no, that word, Respair, meaning fresh hope after despair, is new to me and I can’t wait to read my favorite writer explore it in these essays. Out May 19th.

The Duke by Anna Cowan // I am desparate for some sapphic romance novels in my reading life and this one caught my attention. Here’s the publisher blurb: A sapphic regency romance about the duke who fears nothing... until the woman she never forgot walks through the door and brings her to her knees. Yeah, sign me the fuck up. Also my pal and bookseller extraordinaire said I should read this one and I do what Nicole tells me to. Out April 28th.

Night Owl by Aimee Nezhukumatathil // It’s always a good time to incorporate poetry into your reading life, but something about reading poems in spring hits different. I loved Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s earlier collection World of Wonders, and I had the joy of hearing her read at Smith College a few years back - as joyful and laughter-filled a poetry reading as I can ever remember. In her new collection, she explores “the transformative powers of the night” and I will follow her there.

The Long Game by Rachel Reid // I think Rachel Reid is a genius. I really, really do. I know that many romance readers have known this for a long time, but I’m so happy to be here now. Being a reader and a bookseller in the era of Heated Rivalry is a surprising and deep, deep joy. I’ve been saving the second Shane & Ilya book because shocker I really am quite sensitive and I don’t know if my teeny heart can take it. I hear there is a dog in this one?? God help me.

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn // So many readers I admire love this YA fantasy series about a reinvents the King Arthur legend with a young, Black girl as the heroine. I’ve got the craving to dig into a series like this and it feels like the right time to finally dig into this series.

The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson // Speaking of books that readers I admire love! This is a book I am embarrassed I have not yet read, but who has time to wallow in embarrassment?? I mean, I can usually make the time to be honest, but not anymore! My Mom and I are going to read this one together this Spring and that’s really the buddy read of my dreams.

I will read as many of these books as I possibly can, but just making this list has been the dopamine hit I needed. If you’re just that kind of nerd maybe make a list of your own! And, of course, tell me about your spring reading intentions in the comments.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Here in Western Massachusetts we are coming off two days of perfect early spring weather. You know that feeling when it gets above sixty degrees for the first time in the season? And you realize that you have a body that needs sunlight like any other living being? Yeah - that feeling - we are in the thick of it and it’s glorious.

I love this little respite between seasons. I love that everyone in New England knows we still probably have a handful of cold, icy, mushy days ahead of us and we’re choosing to be hopeful anyway. I love that my aim this season, as always, is to drink as much iced coffee and read as many books as I possibly can. Who is with me?

Speaking of books, here are some baby book reviews of the books I read in February.

For each of the five books I read this month I’m going to tell you why I picked it up and then sort it into one of three categories: books that yes you absolutely should read no matter what (go read them already), books that maybe you might like with some key qualifiers, and books that if you picked them up I would gently shake my head and say, just no.

Admittedly, there aren’t any just no books this month because let’s be honest I know what I like. But I hold out hope that one of these days I am going to enter my critic era and really lay it on you.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Why? The bookish internet in which I dwell was all aflutter about the new Wuthering Heights adaptation so you know I had to get on that nerdy bandwagon.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? Maybe, if you have a smart, fun community to read alongside or at least a friend who shares an affinity for dark, weird, frankly fucked up books. For me, the joy of this reading experience came from reading alongside my bestie who organized a whole book club discussion and delighted in the intricacies of the text and the uproar over the adaptation. I loved it all.

Pool House by Mary H.K. Choi

Why? This is one of my most anticipated reads of 2026! One of my goals this year is to read more new releases before they come out and Mary H.K. Choi’s adult debut (out June 9th) has been on my radar for months now.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? Maybe, if you want a summer read that does more. I think publishers do a disservice to books they market as “summer reading” because it’s too easy to lump them all together as one-note, escapist, plot heavy novels. This is not that. This book takes on class anxiety, a deeply strained mother-daughter relationship, suicide, racism in Hollywood, and much more. It’s an ambitious book, full of heart and hurt. These characters and the weight they carry has stayed with me.

Dominion by Addie E. Citchens

Why? This debut novel has been high on my TBR every since Addie E. Citchens was a guest on The Stacks Pod back in August. I challenge you to listen to this conversation between Addie E. Citchens and and not immediately seek out a copy of Dominion. Plus, I will always, always read fiction set in the Mississippi Delta.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? YES. This book deals with rape and rape culture within the context of a church community in a small, Mississippi town. Please check the content warnings and be careful with yourself. That said, I think this is a piercing, surprising read that I would recommend to almost anyone. These days, so many novels are too long or take on too much. This novel is perfectly paced, darkly funny, and full of rich, unforgettable female characters. Sometimes with fiction I think it’s better to go in knowing almost nothing. Just know that you are in the hands of a skilled and capable storyteller and Addie E. Citchens will not let you go unchanged.

Fat Swim by Emma Copley Eisenberg

Why? Another of my most anticipated reads of 2026! Plus writes one of the best bookish newsletters on the internet.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? YES. You guys, I have such a crush on this book. It is so smart and interesting and weird and gay as anything. These are loosely connected short stories that center fat bodies and queerness and sex and Kiese Laymon is right - I was shaken. I read the first story on the plane sandwiched between two strangers on the way to bookseller camp and I truly felt my heart beating faster because I could tell I was dipping my toe into something brilliant. Again, with great fiction I don’t want to tell you much, but whether you are a reader of short stories or not, please know that this book will reach out and grab you. I’m endlessly glad it exists.

Tough Guy by Rachel Reid

Why? Because I am a proud participant in the mass psychosis that is gay hockey smut, obviously.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? Maybe, if you are already bought in to what Rachel Reid is serving. I’m in. I’m seated. This is no Heated Rivalry but I was invested in these two guys and their sweet love story. I loved the depiction of chronic anxiety in this one. Plus, the hockey player’s comfort book is Anne of Green Gables and he brings it on planes with him because just being near it makes him feel better. So, yeah, I’m into it.

Tell me: what was the best book you read in February?

Eleven days into March and I’m reading a real banger let me tell you.

Thank goodness for books, thank goodness for you.

I love you,

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

I was absent from your inbox last week, but I promise I had a good reason! I was living it up in beautiful Pittsburgh for the American Booksellers Association’s annual conference known as Winter Institute if you’re fancy and just a good ass time if you’re me.

Every time I have the opportunity to attend one of these conferences I feel unbelievably lucky. A gathering of booksellers from all over the country? Learning from fellow booksellers, meeting authors, getting a sneak peak at all the books hitting the market this year? Yes please!!

If any of this sounds at all fun to you then you are my people (but we knew this!) and come along for a little review of my time at bookseller camp.

My time in Pittsburgh started with a bookstore tour aka don’t tempt me with a good time. Essentially, hoards of booksellers load up on these big buses and ride all around the city stopping at various independent bookstores along the way.

Our first stop was Stay Gold Books, a small community bookstore just outside the city limits of Pittsburgh with one of the loveliest storefronts I’ve ever seen.

Next stop was White Whale Books, a gorgeous general interest bookstore and coffeeshop/bar that was just voted the Friendliest Small Business in Pennsylvania! It’s so clear to see why. If you are ever anywhere near Pittsburgh, you’ve got to stop by White Whale. It was simply dreamy.

We also visited Sparks Books, a new woman-owned children’s bookstore, and Mystery Lovers Bookshop, a specialty mystery bookstore that’s been around for over 30 years! The more I learn about what it means to keep a small bookstore alive, the more certain I am that every bookstore from the teeny, dusty old ones to the shiny new ones is a shot in the dark, a lighthouse that’s defying all odds.

I’ve been to three of these conferences now and three bookstore tours and every store I’ve visited is completely singular. Bookstores are as unique and weird and loveable as we are and isn’t that something?

Day two of the conference started with a bang by which I mean a keynote address from the one and only LeVar Burton. Can you imagine?? I could not. I could not imagine it until I heard that voice singing the Reading Rainbow song along with 500+ booksellers. There were many tears. Some of the tears were mine.

The days of the conference are full of education sessions on everything from how bookstores are resisting ICE occupations in their communities to how to hand sell middle grade novels to young readers to the basic economics of publishing to sales presentations from publishers.

There is so much to learn and see and take in and I did my best, but I won’t lie I was a particularly big fan of the Silent Reading Room.

I know a silent reading room hates to see me coming.

I was excited for LeVar Burton, of course, but I was really jazzed about the day three opening address - a panel on historical fiction featuring authors Xochitl Gonzalez, Marlon James, Min Jin Lee, and Colson Whitehead, all of whom have new novels coming this year. Someone call Bad Bunny because this is my Super Bowl. It’s always a pleasure to hear authors speak about their work, and to be in a room with these authors in this moment felt like a true privilege.

The finale of day three is something called the “author reception” which sounds fairly tame, but I assure you is a simply bonkers phenomenon that you have to see to believe. Authors are set up at tables around the perimeter of a giant room. Booksellers line up at the doors of the room and are given maps of which authors are at which tables. At the appointed time, the doors are opened and the booksellers surge in to meet their favorite authors and receive signed advance copies (ARCs) of their upcoming titles. Again, maybe that sounds tame but when you’ve got a limited number of advance copies of Min Jin Lee’s first novel in over ten years things can get a little chippy. As I overheard one bookseller say, “It’s giving hunger games.” It’s giving hunger games except everyone is very polite and nerdy.

Like literally everyone else, I was desperate for a Min Jin Lee ARC so I scurried over to her table armed with a totebag, a nametag, and social anxiety. It’s a happy ending because I got the book and Min Jin Lee told me she liked my dimples?! A big win for the dimple community.

I enjoy these conferences for the spectacle, for the opportunity to visit bookstores, for the reminder that yes, this is a real job and many, many people are doing it too. It’s the people, of course, that make it all worthwhile. You’re telling me I get to be a bookseller and make bookseller friends? Unreal.

Here I am with my friend Elisa who is a bookseller at The Bookstore Plus in Lake Placid, NY. This year, Elisa was a reader for the Indies Introduce Panel, a select group of booksellers that read tons of new releases by debut authors and select several titles to feature and present to the entire conference. This means that Elisa presented to over 500 booksellers and she absolutely killed it. I’m tell you, my fellow booksellers are some of the coolest, bravest people you could ever meet.

It sometimes feels like a fluke that I find myself in these settings with these brilliant people, but I’m here and I’m just trying to hold it all in my heart and my giant totebag.

Pittsburgh was so dreamy and I hope to go back and see more of the city one day. For now, though, I had two little dogs waiting for me and it was time to go home.

I’ve got dogs to snuggle and books to read and I hope I never take that for granted.

If you’ve read this far you are a real one. Tell me: if you were to attend a bookselling conference what ARCs (advanced reader copies!) would you throw an elbow or swing a tote bag to get your hands on? This is metaphorical, of course, I know you’re all very gentle, peaceful people, but never underestimate a nerd you know what I mean?

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Between the (gay) Olympics and Heated Rivalry fan edits and the little chihuahua I met yesterday named Ellie (best bookstore customer), I’m starting to think we might, might be okay.

Whenever I get a little too complimentary about another dog I have to tell Yaya that she is still my best girl. She already knows, but you can’t be too careful.

Sometimes it can be hard to see the good things. Here are five wonders that are keeping me going through this good, grey month.

Tell me your good things in the comments if you like.

Leave a comment

On Valentine’s day, Rebecca and I went to a matinee showing of Wuthering Heights and I’m so sorry to the haters, but it was a blast. Call me smooth-brained (lol but actually), but I had fun. Was it anything like the book? Of course not! Was the theater laughing and gasping and squealing and generally having a merry old time? Yes!

We were sitting next to an English major who was basically having heart palpitations (not in a good way) and behind a group of women who weren’t even trying to contain their giddiness over all this nonsense on the moors (especially when the nonsense involved Heathcliff in the rain - it almost always involved Heathcliff in the rain). You know what? I loved them all. I love when people love things. I love that people love this 179 year old book so profoundly they are in a blind rage over an adaptation they think falls short. I love that a director could love a book so much she could make a film adaptation of her absurd teenage fantasy of said book even if she knows it will get some knickers majorly in a twist. I love what my friend had to say about all this. I loved talking it all through in a book club discussion organized by my brilliant bestie . I love imagining what Emily Brontë would think about all of us getting hot and bothered over her novel 179 years on. I think she’d get a kick out of it, but really what do I know?

Also, at the movies we got popcorn and crisp diet cokes and I don’t know if that’s not all I really need for a good time.

Our girl Yaya is thriving, but like any 15 year old chihuahua she’s got a few quirks. She gets quite restless at bedtime and paces in tiny circles. We do everything we can to keep her comfortable, but sometimes it’s hard to know what she’s trying to tell us.

Want to know the only thing that really helps her settle down? Warning it’s very tender….

Turns out what she really wants is to be cuddled up next to her little, big brother. Once she’s next to Dunkin’s stinky, good self she goes right to sleep. I don’t really know what to do with this goodness, but I thought you should know.

I’ve been reading less this year and I think it’s okay. I know this sounds absurd to anyone who doesn’t work the in the book industry or spend too much time in the bookish corners of the internet. Reading is essential to my job and it’s also my favorite hobby and a profound source of joy and purpose and meaning in my life. With all that in mind it’s easy to fall into the trap that more is more is more.

But you know what? I’ve read seven books so far this year. I would characterize five of those as knock-out, five star reads. I’m slowing down and I’m teaching myself that’s not a bad thing. This is really just a note to myself, but if it’s helpful or relatable to you at all, please take it with you! This is supposed to be fun and we are all making it up as we go, so go at your own pace.

Speaking of book joy, do you have a moment to hear about the joy of being a bookseller in the era of Heated Rivalry?

Some day I’ll tell you about the older gentleman who came in and asked do you have those hockey books? He’d read all about them and couldn’t wait to read them for himself. Or the harried Mom who bought The Long Game so of course I was like gotta love the cottage lol and she looked me in the eyes so earnestly and said, it’s my happy place. So like, yeah, don’t panic people are still buying books and books are still changing lives. I shall continue to report from the front lines!!

And last but not least, I leave you with these two legends. Almost nothing makes sense these days, but coming across these two in the middle of a doom scroll stopped me in my tracks.

Not to be gross, but there is still some goodness out there if you know to look for it.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

I hope you are staying as warm and as cozy as ever you possibly can these days. It’s February and the world is the world, this country is this country, our government is our government, but I’ve been reveling in the art and artists that make my world go round.

Bad Bunny? Sublime. Heated Rivalry? To quote this substack, I am a woman possessed. New music from MUNA my favorite band in the world? I can breathe again. Kristen Stewart bought this movie theater? I can’t explain it but this is very important to me.

I need some time to just lie on the floor and think about all the art (gay shit) and artists (gay people) that I love.

Don’t even get me started on the Olympics.

Sadly, I do live under capitalism (bummer) so I can’t just sit on my couch and make Dunkin and Yaya rewatch Heated Rivalry with me for eternity. Luckily, I am a bookseller and I love my job most days. Speaking of bookselling, I put out the call on instagram for any questions about bookselling for a little series I like to call Ask a Bookseller.

Thank you for letting me yap! Tell me about your favorite bookstore/bookseller in the comments.

Leave a comment

Does Broadside host fun community events in addition to selling amazing books?

We try! The truth is that the work of stocking and selling books takes up most of the time and capacity of our small staff/small store, but we host author events whenever we can particularly with local authors. It’s always such a pleasure to see our little store packed full of readers and customers. I feel self-conscious of our small space and uncomfortable folding chairs, but time and again I am reminded of the power of gathering and supporting books and authors. It’s so special. Earlier this month we hosted local author Howard Bryant to read from and talk about his new book, Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America. Howard went from an appearance on Morning Joe to little Broadside for a book launch event and it was such a treat and an honor to host him. Connecting with authors and holding space for them to connect with readers is a sacred responsibility and pure pleasure for any bookseller.

Do distributors/publishers prioritize sending stock to big booksellers over indies?

I’ve been a bookseller for six years now and I am still learning the ins and outs of the distribution process and learning new ways that Amaz*n has it’s knee on the neck of small booksellers and publishers and distributors. So the short answer is yes. Anecdotally, I know that we are frequently scrambling and struggling to get a popular book (hello The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny) and it seems to be endlessly available on Amaz*n. That’s the bad news. The good news is that independent booksellers are a powerful community and we wield our influence however we can. The creation of bookshop.org and Libro.fm both give me hope that we still have tools in our toolbox to fight back. This is where consumer choices really do matter. I know you know this, but when you choose to buy a book locally it’s a small but meaningful piece of evidence that consumers still care about little shops like ours. I’ll be attending the annual American Booksellers Association conference in Pittsburgh in just a few weeks so hopefully I will learn new and better ways to answer this question soon!

What is one thing you wished everyone knew about bookselling?

It’s very glamourous and steady and well-paid. JUST KIDDING!! No but in all seriousness, and I don’t know how to say this without sounding trite, but I want people to know that booksellers really do love books. We love books and we love what happens when the right person finds the right book. It’s that simple and that impossible and complex. Before I worked in a small business, I knew that shopping locally was a good thing to do, that supporting a little stores felt good. Now that I’ve seen behind the scenes I think I just want people to know that it feels good because it makes a measurable difference. As consumers we can tell when our purchases are making a quantifiable difference to the bottom line. You know the feeling. Chase that feeling! There’s so much that’s hard about existing in this system as we know it today. I know I am preaching to the choir here, but choosing to spend your money where it really counts is actually never a small thing. Whether it’s a book or a cup of coffee or a hat or Heated Rivalry merch, spend your money with real people. It’s a dopamine rush for a reason.

AI could never explain or predict the legions of lesbians fighting to buy these books about their gay hockey boyfriends, you know what I mean?

Anyways, thank you for letting me yap. I hope you find what you need today. And if what you need is in an indie bookstore?? All the better!

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

We made it through January and for that I personally think you deserve a gold star. Seriously, go get yourself a treat already.

I read five books in January and not to be gross, but I was really intentional about what I picked up and I’m so happy how with how my reading month turned out.

I figured it’s as good a time as any to bring back my favorite game: yes, maybe, just no. For each of the five books I’ve read this month I’m going to tell you why I picked it up and then sort it into one of three categories: books that yes you absolutely should read no matter what (go read them already), books that maybe you might like with some key qualifiers, and books that if you picked them up I would gently shake my head and say, just no.

There aren’t any just no books this month which is a win for my reading life but don’t worry I’m sure I’ll have the chance to play the role of the critic as this year goes on.

These are loosely in the order of least favorite to most beloved, but I read some real bangers this month so don’t hold me to it.

Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves by Sophie Gilbert

Why? The Stacks Book Club of course!! One thing about me is I’m going to be reading the Stacks book club pick. Unless it’s something I’ve read recently, I basically never miss a month and yes that’s a brag.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? Maybe, if you are interested in the ways pop culture seeps into our psyches, particularly pop culture’s impact on girls and women in the nineties and early aughts. I love a book that takes pop culture seriously and this book certainly does that. If you want to listen to two very smart people talk about this, you’ve got to listen to and Christiana Mbakwe Medina discuss this one on The Stacks. Being a girl is no joke and this book makes some interesting arguments about why growing up as a girl in the nineties and early aughts was particularly bruising.

Whidbey by T Kira Madden

Why? I want to read more buzzy 2026 books this year, and I’ve followed T Kira Madden for years so her debut novel felt like a good place to start my reading year. I also wanted to start my reading year with a queer book so this one just checked all my boxes.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? Maybe, just be prepared for a book about some of the toughest topics albeit written by an author who writes with a singular care for and solidarity with victims of abuse. This is a book about sexual abuse of minors and pedophilia. It is about the victims and the perpetrators of these crimes and culpability and revenge. It is not an easy read, but it is deeply worthwhile. I’m not the first to say this, of course, but I think there is great value in reading books that make us uncomfortable. I think T Kira Madden is the kind of writer I trust to carry the reader into these murky waters though she provides no easy answers or exit ramps. The writing is masterful and I was gripped from beginning to end. As readers we must take care of ourselves, so I would recommend this with the note that it is a rich and rewarding reading experience that demands a lot from it’s reader. In the advanced reading copy I read there is a short, but profound content warning that I so appreciated and I hope sets an example for authors and publishers moving forward. Whidbey comes out March 10th!

Kin by Tayari Jones

Why? Remember my goal to read more exciting new releases? It doesn’t get much more exciting than a new novel from powerhouse Tayari Jones.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? YES. Unequivocally yes!! This is the kind of novel that reminds me why I love reading novels in the first place. From the first five pages I could tell I was in good hands and I just disappeared into this deceptively simple, deeply compelling narrative. With good fiction like this, I think it’s best to go in knowing almost nothing so I’m not going to give you too many plot details beyond that this is a female friendship novel for the ages. I was head over heels for these characters from the jump and when I wasn’t reading this book I was thinking about it. said in her review that it’s a novel about choices and that’s exactly right. It’s about the choices our two heroines make in their lives and it’s brilliant in it’s simplicity. Tayari Jones doesn’t do any high flying tricks on the page because she doesn’t have to and that’s a real flex. If you tend to avoid buzzy books I totally get that but please don’t skip this one. It is very much worth your time. Kin comes out February 24th.

Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

Why? More like WHY NOT??? Mom and Dad if you are reading this (and I know you are - love you!!) you can skip this because I can’t talk about these books with you.

Okay, everyone else, if you have any interest at all in smutty gay romance then yeah believe the hype. I don’t know what Rachel Reid is putting in these things, but it is really doing it for me. I love Ilya and Shane so deeply and I love the way the world loves them even more.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? YES. Smarter people than me can tell you why Heated Rivalry matters so much and I would turn you in particular to two of my favorite writers: and Laura Sackton whose pieces on Heated Rivalry made me teary with delight.

I love these gay hockey boys!!! I am surprised by this joy!!

I didn’t know we’d get pure pleasure like this is in 2026, but you can catch me rejoicing in it as much as the next gay hockey romance loving lesbian.

Small Rain by Garth Greenwell

Why? This was the January pick for my in-person book club and also a book that my friend Laura (of Heated Rivalry and queer syntax fame!) loves deeply.

Yes, Maybe, Just No? YES. I wrote about my love for this book last week. Novels by poets, am I right??? I think you should read this one. I think you should read it on audio if that’s enjoyable or accessible to you.

Please tell me in the comments if you’ve read or plan to read any of these books! Also tell me if you read any Yes or Just No books this month.

Remember what I said up top about getting yourself a treat? I’m so for real. Leave a comment on this post and then go get a treat already!

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Hey! You’re here. Thank you.

I don’t have to tell you that these days are heavy. It’s scary. No book or poem or substack can solve this. I do know that people are taking action. People are showing up for each other. I’m scared, but I’m in awe of the courage of my neighbors, my community, and especially my colleagues in bookselling. I hope I can live up to it.

I hope that you are giving money where you can, paying attention when you can, and, of course, taking care of yourself where and how you can. I don’t have anything new to say, but may there never be any doubt where I stand.

This is not normal and it doesn’t have to be this way. I am beyond grateful to the leaders and friends and neighbors who remind me of this truth every day. If it helps, here’s a book and a movie that made this month feel just a little more possible.

Favorite Read

Small Rain by Garth Greenwell

I read some real stunners this month and I’m going to tell you about all of them next week, but if I had to pick one to tell you about right now it has to be Small Rain by Garth Greenwell. My friend Laura has been an evangelist for this book since it first came out, and it is no surprise at all that she was right. I love a novel by a poet and this one bowled me over. I think it’s best to go in to this one knowing very little. It’s about a poet who has a health crisis and is hospitalized in July 2020. It’s about the body and the mind and nothing less than how to live a good life. What I really want to tell you is that this book is remarkable in every form. I listened to much of it on audio and it is one of the best audiobooks I have ever encountered. Sometimes I can only judge a book based on how I feel when I read its last word and this one left me stunned and hopeful, looking out the window, feeling glad to be here.

One Bright Glimmer

what is a glimmer?

On Saturday evening, just before the storm, Rebecca and I went out into the cold to see Come See Me in the Good Light, the new documentary about the poet Andrea Gibson, which was screening in town as a fundraiser for the local non-profit Translate Gender. Before the film began the poet and singer Mary Lambert spoke about her friendship with Andrea and what it means to be a friend and a person and an artist at a time like this. I listened to this song by Mary Lambert approximately 1289798734 times when I was coming out to myself. I listened to this poem by Andrea Gibson approximately 13897549287 times to get through some of my most impossible days. I don’t know that I would be this person with this life were it not for Andrea Gibson and Mary Lambert.

Come See Me in the Good Light is streaming on Apple TV and if you have the chance, I do think you should see it. I try not to overuse the term life-changing because when I say it, I really want to mean it. I mean it here. This film was life-changing.

And so we went home in the frigid cold. Well, we stopped at Taco Bell first because crying makes you hungry. Over our crunch wrap supremes we talked about why the movie hit the way it did. Rebecca said this and she is so right: the film is many things, but it’s also just a story about a queer couple who love their dogs and it did something to me to see that up on the big screen.

That’s all I have for you today: a book and a movie I loved and just the hope that you will carry on as best you know how. I’m trying, too.

Be gentle with yourself if you can.

If you’d like, tell me your glimmers in the comments.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

Hey! You’re here. Thank you.

It’s full capital W Winter around here and we are cold, but we are doing our best.

I want to write a jaunty little newsletter about books to beat the winter blues, but I think we all know it’s hard to “beat” the winter blues with everything going on right now. I can’t pretend that books are enough when ICE is targeting our neighbors and killing with impunity.

I know you are seeing the same videos I am, the evil people in power lying to our faces and the remarkable courage and persistence of the folks on the ground in Minneapolis and across the country. Books alone can’t counterbalance the horror or equal the courage of the protestors on the front lines.

And yet. It’s winter and I’m cold and we’re doing the best we can. I am going to share a little stack of books that I think might make worthy winter companions if that kind of thing is a comfort.

This newsletter was fully inspired by this reel I saw of bookstore owner and author Emma Straub sharing a stack of winter reading recommendations.

Emma is a legend and Books are Magic is a haven. I aspire to this level of bookselling skill and style.

If you were to walk in to Broadside and ask me for some recommendations to chase away the winter sadness, this is the little stack I would give you. Well, first I would panic and forget every book I ever read, but then I would remember and give you these wonders.

We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman

I am a Catherine Newman stan and We All Want Impossible Things is my favorite of her books. No one asked me, but I much prefer the original cover. Either way, what’s inside is that rare and remarkable thing: a funny novel about death. Set in late winter in a small New England town this book rings so true. I remember exactly where I was when I read it for the first time in one perfect sitting. You could read this one any time of year, but I think it was made for dark winter days just like these.

How to Write an Autobiographical Novel by Alexander Chee

This pick is completely inspired by my two dear friends, Emma and Laura, who recently read and re-read this modern classic. It feels like a disservice to call this one a back-to-school book, but I mean it as the highest praise. Whether we like it or not, January can be a kind of new beginning and what better way to mark a new beginning than this masterpiece from a wonderful teacher. Chee covers so much ground in this collection, but if you are a reader, a lover of story, a believer in words, you will find something to guide you forward.

Lost & Found by Kathryn Schulz

This is an evergreen recommendation for me. If you’ve been around me at all over the years, I’m sure you’ve heard me recommend it, but it’s too good and important to pass up the opportunity. here The subtitle of this memoir - “Reflections on Grief, Gratitude, and Happiness” - might give you the wrong idea even though this book is of course a reflection on those things. This is not your average self-help memoir hybrid. Schulz struggles and questions and rejoices right there on the page and it is a wonder to witness. I know it feels like winter will last forever, and this is the book to read when you start to lose sight of the good things ahead.

An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera

The winter blues you say? May I prescribe some sapphic historical romance?? It might not fix all your problems but it’s worth a try if you ask me.

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

I read this one right at the end of the last year, and it was such a weird, strangely cozy book to snuggle up with at the end of one year and the beginning of another. This book is singular and I think it’s better to know almost nothing going in. I want to read more fantasy, particularly this time of year, but I’m intimidated by big, long tomes. This is a slim, cerebral, surprising novel that works your mind and your heart. Not to be a cliche, but I can so imagine snuggling up with a cup of coffee and reading this book beginning to end as the snow falls gently outside.

Dunkin can imagine this too and actually he would like to go snuggle on the couch right now.

Thank you for letting me practice my bookselling skills. I hope you find a book this week that is just the company you need. I hope you keep fighting the power. Maybe we can’t beat the winter blues, but we can keep each other company while we’re here.

I love you.

I’m glad you’re here.

Love,

Rosamond

If you enjoyed this particular newsletter, but a paid subscription isn’t possible:

buy yaya & dunkin a treat

Rosamond Reads is a reader-supported publication. If you have five dollars a month to spare, a paid subscription would mean the world to me and help me continue to commit to writing this newsletter every week. If not, maybe consider sharing this with someone who might enjoy it? Thank you forever and ever.

Subscribe now