We did it, we made it to the end of October. Wow. We’re so awesome. Today, I’m here rounding up the month. I’ve got a little in case you missed it section of October episodes of The Stacks. I’ve got ten November titles I’m hoping to get to. And then I have the part where I talk shit aka rank all nine of my October reads from least to most favorite. Let’s do this, party people.
The Stacks October Recap
was the perfect way to start the month. I loved chatting with her about her book The Wilderness and literary fiction in general. John J. Lennon is a prison journalist and author reporting on crime while incarcerated in New York for murder, and on the show this month, I talked with him about his debut book, The Tragedy of True Crime.
National Book Award Finalist Jordan Thomas talks about his season as an elite firefighter in California in his debut, When It All Burns.
If you give me a chance, I will talk your ear off about influencer culture and grief, so talking to Jade Chang about her novel What a Time to Be Alive, which tackles both topics, was a joy.
Unabridged: Behind the Booker Prize with Kiley Reid
In this bonus episode, I chat with author Kiley Reid for the inside scoop on the Booker Prize, an annual literary award given to the best fiction book written in English and published in the UK and Ireland. As a 2025 judge—and the author of a 2020 Booker Prize-longlisted book—Kiley offers insider knowledge on everything from what makes a “Booker book” to the process of narrowing down the list from 153 titles to one winner.
Another thing I can’t/won’t shut up about is literary awards. For this month’s bonus episode, I got the scoop on
judging process from one of this year’s judges, Kiley Reid. came back for Frankenstein book club and it was the best. I could’ve done hours and hours more on this book. A book banger if I’ve ever read one.November Books On Deck
November is generally when the new books start to slow down as the readerly world dives into gift-giving season, focusing on what is already on shelves. I usually start to zone out by November, but this year there are a bunch of books I want to get to.
The books are listed here in publishing order, and anything I’ve already read (or started) appears in bold.
Palaver by Bryan Washington (November 4)
This book became a National Book Award finalist before it was published, which feels like a enough for me. It is also by Bryan Washington whose work I love (I’ve read 2/3 of his other books). Here he is being a sweetie debut author on The Stacks back in 2019.Son of the Morning by Akwaeke Emezi (November 4)
Another friend of the pod, Akwaeke Emezi, has a book out. This one, a paranormal romance, was mentioned on their appearance on The Stacks last year, which feels cool, because now it is out in the world for reals.Lightbreakers by Aja Gabel (November 4)
I swear, every book I’m excited about in November isn’t just because the author was a guest of the show, but Aja Gable was, and I can’t deny that. Her follow up to her debut, The Ensemble, is a literary novel about time travel, a marriage, and grief. That trio of descriptors is working for me.Hate: The Uses of a Powerful Emotion by Şeyda Kurt (November 4)
As a self-proclaimed and world-class hater, I am so looking forward to a book about the power behind hating things. We’re giving too much credit to loving shit. Haters1, now is our time.Without Consent: A Landmark Trial and the Decades-Long Struggle to Make Spousal Rape a Crime by Sarah Weinman (November 11)
The first major spousal rape trial was in 1978, and this book chronicles the case and its impact and implications.Something from Nothing: A Cookbook by Alison Roman (November 11)
You know I love a cookbook, and while Alison Roman had a rough 2020, I can’t deny her recipes are damn good. I can’t wait to dig into this book.Front Street: Resistance and Rebirth in the Tent Cities of Techlandia by Biran Barth (November 11)
You know I love a Bay Area book, and this one about homeless encampments in the Bay (Oakland, Cupertino, and San Jose) sounds very much like something genetically modified in a nonfiction lab just for me.Girls Play Dead: Acts of Self-Preservation by Jen Percy (November 11)
I’m going to let the marketing copy speak for the book here, because it is good copy: “Drawing on original reporting, years of conversations with survivors, and her own life story, Percy explores the surprising ways in which responses to sexual violence are shaped by both evolutionary instinct and gendered scripts.”The White Hot by Quiara Alegria Hudes (November 11)
Quiara Alegria Hudes is a Pulitzer-winning playwright, and this is her first novel. It is about mother who skips town on her family and how that decision reverberates for years to come.Empire of Orgasm: Sex, Power, and the Downfall of a Wellness Cult by Ellen Huet (November 18)
Cult book alert!!!! I know nothing about OneTaste but apparently this book will teach me all about the orgasm cult, and I, for one, am ready!
Do you have any November books on your TBR? What should I be adding?
October Reads Ranked
I read an all-timer in October, and that makes me thrilled. I also read a bunch of other really good books. Two books I had never heard of before this month, and then a few duds. There are always a few duds. Duds make the world go round2.
