Show & Tell: Big News, Carrot Cake, and the Worst Beef Analysis Yet.
Unstacked Digest for the week of May 13-19
Welcome to another edition of Show & Tell where I tell you the nine things I loved from the week and the one thing I hated, plus round up everything else going on around these parts. The first half of Show & Tell is free to all. The adoration and hateration are for paid subscribers only.
This week ahead is sure to be a busy one. First, The Stacks has a brand new website. New look, same content, same URL. You can still get the show notes for each episode, find our partner deals, and track all our book club picks. Plus, now it is easier to search the whole website, find my upcoming events and podcast and media appearances. I am obsessed. If you have any issues accessing the new site be sure to clear your cookies.
Also, you’re the first to know, coming your way this week is my first ever Nonfiction Summer Reading Guide. Friend of the pod
said I needed to make one since everyone else who releases these type of lists do exclusively or mostly fiction, and I can’t say no to a nonfiction guide. It’ll be here really soon for all paid subscribers, so if you want 30+ nonfiction book recommendations be sure to upgrade now.The third thing is the bonus episode of The Stacks Unabridged for May is so so good. It’ll be here on Friday. It is also for paid subs only, so that gives you yet another reason to join Unstacked for $5 a month or $50 a year.
OK, now keep reading for the nine things I loved this week and the one thing I hated. The thing I hated this week, I hated a lot. I can’t stop thinking about how much I hated it. It was so so so bad, and the people who made it really thought the did a thing. They did not. So embarrassing for them.
This Week on Unstacked
Here’s my round-up from last week including the Tom Brady roast and the Pulitzer Prize awards.
I dare you to read this RTKB with Aisha Abdel Gawad without falling in love with her. I certainly couldn’t. Now her book Between Two Moons is at the top of my TBR.
Books I Read This Week
I Shouldn't Be Telling You This: (But I'm Going to Anyway) by Chelsea Devantez
I got to read an early draft of this book for my friend Chelsea Devantez and was asked to share my thoughts and notes. It was a great honor for me, and now over a year later it is wonderful to read the finished product. This book is both funny and actually vulnerable, a rare feat in a celebrity memoir.
Coming Home by Brittney Griner and Michelle Burford
I was really surprised by how much I liked this book. I am very much on record saying that I thought it might be too much too soon, and in fact Griner found a way to tell her story without being exploited or giving too much, and still letting her readers in. There is a lot of story to tell, and while some parts feel a little like she is trying to teach her readers what racism or homophobia is, I liked it.
Fave of the week!
Housekeeping
The Stacks website got a major facelift. Check it out it. Oh, and if you’re having any issues clear your cookies.
One of my favorite books so far this year is Another Word for Love by Carvell Wallace, so I was thrilled to talk with Carvell about their book, their process, and the WNBA.
Nine Things I Love…
Book Talk
Minnesota’s legislature has approved a bill that would prohibit book banning in public schools and libraries. I love this for them. Hopefully this becomes the playbook in other states.
Pop Culture
I am a basic bitch and I am watching this new season of Bridgerton, and I like it. I am only two episodes in, and have mostly been doing other things while watching, but I’m liking it. I really like fluff TV. I can’t read fluff, but I can fully indulge in cotton candy TV. I also fully understand how fucked it is that this entire season is based on the premise that Penelope is chubby and therefore totally undesirable. It feels pretty shallow, especially since we, the audience, know she is the most interesting person on the entire show. I hope Shonda and them can find a way to do right by her and the audience.