I had a great time talking with Max Booth III on the Ghoulish Podcast about — what else? — The Hungry Earth and weird fungi facts! Ghoulish is as much a comedy podcast as a horror one, so prepare (hopefully?) to laugh.
You can listen to it on the Ghoulish website, YouTube, or wherever you enjoy listening to podcasts!
The Splendid City by Karen Heuler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Whimsical, satiric, and bursting with imagination, THE SPLENDID CITY is the novel we’ve all been waiting for from Karen Heuler, one that takes all the ingredients she’s honed over decades of publishing quality literary and fantasy fiction and distills it into a perfect nugget of a novel. I’ve long thought Heuler deserved a larger audience, and this funny, accessible novel should be what finally draws them in. Also, as a cat owner, I felt a lot of this deep in my soul!
First, I’m thrilled to announce that The Hungry Earth is included in Rich Duncan of Ink Heist‘s “Favorite Reads of 2021”! Here’s a snippet of what he has to say:
The Hungry Earth, the first book in a series focusing on Medical Examiner Laura Powell, is a pulse-pounding Horror novel with a terrifyingly plausible premise and puts a fresh spin on familiar tropes. This was simply a BLAST to read!
You can check out the rest of his review, and the full list of books, over at Ink Heist.
Second, I’m equally thrilled that The Hungry Earth is also on Jason’s Weird Reads’ “Top 10 Reads of 2021” over on YouTube. You can check out the video here.
Jews Don’t Count by David Baddiel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This remarkable, difficult, important, sometimes hilarious and often heartbreaking book is a must-read for anyone who, like me, wonders why so many of our progressive friends, who frequently and vocally challenge and condemn racism and discrimination, tend to remain silent about antisemitism. The answer Baddiel puts forth is that for many progressives, antisemitism is viewed as a “lesser” form of bigotry, one not as important or relevant as the others. But why would anyone think that? Therein lies one of the most difficult truths Baddiel lays bare: that the antisemitic trope that Jews are wealthy and powerful has been adopted by the progressive movement. In other words, that Jews are seen as oppressors, not the oppressed — this despite 5,000 years of oppression, exile, having our property and belongings taken from us, and of course multiple instances of attempted genocide.
Also fascinating and resonant to me is Baddiel’s thesis that antisemitism isn’t about Judaism but about Jewishness; not a form of religious discrimination, but a form of racism, where even if being Jewish isn’t technically a race, it is viewed by antisemites as one. As he famously puts it, “Telling them I’m an atheist wouldn’t have gotten me a ticket out of Auschwitz.”
Baddiel has written a powerful, important book that I will no doubt find myself returning to again and again. I wish everyone would read it so that maybe one day Jews will count.
