♡ On hiatus for Ramadan ♡
♡ Currently suspending my library holds as I am unable to focus my time and energy on reading right now, and I would not like to do any books a disservice by picking them up with disingenuous intentions ♡

♡ If I Must Die: Poetry and Prose by Refaat Alareer • written by a late Palestinian professor and author



♡ One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad • nonfiction • written by an Egyptian-Canadian journalist

♡ The Eyes of Gaza by Plestia Alaqad • nonfiction, memoir • written by a young Palestinian woman

♡ The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez • epic fantasy



♡ Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum, translated by Shanna Tan • contemporary fiction

♡ What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher • horror, gothic • inspired by Edgar Allan Poe

♡ Molka by Monika Kim • horror • expected publication: April 2026



♡ The Girl with a Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean • fantasy • expected publication: May 2026

♡ The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson • mystery, epic fantasy • first book in a series

♡ The Will of the Many by James Islington • epic fantasy, dark academia • first book in a series

♡ A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark • fantasy, mystery, historical

♡ The Sword of Kaigen by M.L. Wang • high fantasy • standalone



♡ The Six Deaths of the Saint by Alix E. Harrow • fantasy, short story

♡ The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin • high fantasy, science fiction



♡ The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Steven Graham Jones • horror, fantasy, historical

♡ Fox by Joyce Carol Oates • mystery, thriller, literary • blurbed by Gillian Flynn (author of Gone Girl)

♡ Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka • crime, thriller, literary

♡ A Danger to the Minds of Young Girls: Margaret C. Anderson, Book Bans, and the Fight to Modernize Literature by Adam Morgan • nonfiction, biography, historical • the true story of a pioneering woman who pushed the social and literary boundaries of her time



♡ Jane Austen's Bookshelf: A Rare Book Collector's Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend by Rebecca Romney • nonfiction • an exploration of once-influential, now-forgotten female authors and a bid to revive their work

My 2026 Bookish Bingo

1/25 (free space)

"Over our life span, the right answer will keep changing" (Bo-Reum).



Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop, written by Hwang Bo-Reum and translated from Korean by Shanna Tan, is a contemplative slice-of-life story about people's stories intertwining, ending, and beginning again.

It follows Yeongju, the woman who sheds her past life to pursue her dream of owning a bookshop, and the people she meets along the way: among them, a man whose carefully-constructed academic life didn't lead him to the career path he planned; a woman whose hard work was only rewarded with the same carrot being dangled further and further ahead of her; and a business owner whose marriage grew to resemble unfortunate tales she heard when she was young.

As everyone stumbles along, friendships blossom, habits form and falter, and the bookshop becomes the backdrop for a variety of lived storylines. Despite the frequent philosophical musings held within, the writing style of this book is simple, making it accessible for a wider audience.

Overall, it's a good read for reminding yourself that it's okay to slow down, change your mind, and live differently than others in a society that often pressures you to work more and change less to keep others happy.