Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry

5/5 stars

What's it about? On the Day of the Dead in 1938, former British consul Geoffrey Firmin embarks on the last bender of his life upon the return of his ex-wife Yvonne to their home in Quauhnahuac, Mexico. A masterpiece.

How’d I find it? The Lost Avenue Book Club picked this read.

Who will enjoy this book? For another book about someone’s last day alive, check out A Simple Man by Christopher Isherwood.

What stood out? Geoffrey’s hopeless self-destruction hangs over the novel as he drinks himself into oblivion to forget his personal grief and the world’s descent into violence, the specter of World War II already on the horizon. Among the many achievements of the book is its precision in place and time; this work could have no other title. Under the Volcano is rife with symbolism, the depth of which I only grasped after reading the letter, included in my edition, from Lowry to his publisher defending the manuscript’s structure and length. Lowry had a reason for everything: the number of chapters, the Joycean ride that is chapter 11, and even the opening of the book, which takes place a year after the story’s events.

Which line made me feel something? I wouldn’t dare rob you of the book’s prettiest passages, so I’ll focus on its humor instead. Take this quip from Geoffrey to a bartender: “I love hell. I can’t wait to get back there. In fact I’m running. I’m almost back there already.”

The Renunciations by Donika Kelly

4/5 stars

What's it about? Donika Kelly finds courage and healing in an examination of the links between childhood abuse and the wreckage of a soured marriage. Powerful and devastating.

How’d I find it? Always a fan of the work put out by Graywolf Press, I read whatever Kelly publishes since discovering her debut collection Bestiary.

Who will enjoy this book? Those who appreciated In the Dream House, Carmen Maria Machado’s haunting memoir / essay collection, might admire how Kelly uses mythology to address similar themes.

What stood out? The way in which Kelly summons archetypes brings resilience to the personal tragedy of this collection; she is a storyteller, an interpreter, an oracle. The poems titled “Dear—” that appear in both the past and present sections contain line for line the book’s most stunning verse.

Which line made me feel something? From “Sanctuary”: “I call this the difficulty of the nonbeliever, / of waking, every morning, without a god. / How to understand, then, what deserves rescue / and what deserves to suffer.”

On Earth As It Is Beneath by Ana Paula Maia, translated by Padma Viswanathan

2/5 stars

How’d I find it? My quest for contemporary Portuguese literature continues! When I learned this was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize, I put a hold on a copy from Multnomah County Library.

Why not 3 or more stars? In an isolated penal colony, the rules change when a warden loses his humanity. A book of few surprises in language or plot until the final pages, when a supernatural flourish vanishes as suddenly as it appears.

The Living and the Rest by José Eduardo Agualusa, translated by Daniel Hahn

2/5 stars

How’d I find it? In preparation for a trip to Portugal, I’ve been seeking out contemporary fiction in the language. I don’t remember how I became aware of this title, but I borrowed a copy from Multnomah County Library.

Why not 3 or more stars? Writers convene on the Ilha de Moçambique for a conference, then find themselves cut off from the rest of the world during a storm that seems to annihilate everything beyond the island. This strange, open-ended book embraces metafiction and thoughts on the creative process while navigating its apocalyptic subplot. While dreamy, its mysteries aren’t cohesive, and the disjointed ideas don’t quite add up to a satisfying read.

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

4/5 stars

What's it about? I can do no better than Steinbeck himself in the book’s opening line: “Cannery Row in Monterey in California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream.” A snapshot of a neighborhood, its humanity, its dramas.

How’d I find it? This novel was part of the preparation for a family trip to Monterey. Yes, we made sure to walk past the building that inspired Doc’s lab. My particular copy came from Powell’s.

Who will enjoy this book? For another read that focuses on a single community and its lovable yet flawed inhabitants, try Local Souls by Allan Gurganus.

What stood out? I will never get over how deeply Steinbeck writes characters, how he depicts desperation and misery with a smirk. Cannery Row is as brilliant and vivid as any of his other work, but steeped in winsome levity. The frog hunt with Mack and the boys offers sure entertainment.

Which line made me feel something? Just imagine hosting Steinbeck: “These are not parties at all but acts and demonstrations, about as spontaneous as peristalsis and as interesting as its end product.”

Death of the First Idea by Rickey Laurentiis

4/5 stars

What's it about? In her second collection, Laurentiis shares her journey of self-discovery and self-love in a world hostile to Black and trans bodies. A book that pulls from the masters and makes it new.

How’d I find it? I borrowed a physical copy and audiobook from Multnomah County Library. The audiobook, performed by the poet herself, adds an extra dimension that you’ll want to experience.

Who will enjoy this book? If you liked Wound from the Mouth of a Wound by torrin a. greathouse, check out Death of the First Idea.

What stood out? Laurentiis wrote the hell out of this book, an experiment in form and heady mix of myth, history, and culture. She packs every poem with so much meaning that you have to read them over and over to soak in them properly, even my favorite, the brief “Tiresiad: Auspices, I (Origins)”. The notes at the end testify to the amount of inspiration and craft behind the collection.

Which line made me feel something? From “A Tricky Seminar”: “How your fingers move / To build such attitudes, turning a moaning of the wind / Into a man, making what is a tease of grass at the heel / Into terror, now pleasure, then back to grass again.” Rickey, what is the grass?

Tilt by Emma Pattee

3/5 stars

What's it about? When the Big One hits Portland, Annie happens to be nine months pregnant and grumpily shopping in Ikea. As she makes her way across the destroyed city searching for her husband, Annie examines her life’s joys and disappointments and vows to make a change.

How’d I find it? A coworker recommended this local read, and I picked up a copy for our staff library.

Who will enjoy this book? I read in a review of this book that Death Valley by Melissa Broder is an excellent readalike. I agree.

What stood out? Who doesn’t love a disaster story? Following Annie during an earthquake through the city where I live made for an exciting read and sparked thought spirals about escape plans. Tilt is told through Annie addressing her unborn child, a choice that propels Annie’s personal reckoning amidst the horror around her.

Which line made me feel something? Reality TV in the zeitgeist always makes me feel something. Take the last text Annie gets from her mother: “Just tired now, gonna watch The Bachelor”. Story of my life.

My Murder by Katie Williams

3/5 stars

What's it about? Lou returns to her life as a mother, wife, and professional hugger, chosen to be resurrected as a clone after being murdered by serial killer Edward Early. As Lou struggles to connect with her life, she learns through a support group for Early’s victims that her murder may actually be unsolved.

How’d I find it? After enjoying Tell the Machine Goodnight so much, I had to pick up more of Williams’ books.

Who will enjoy this book? This had the feel of Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones for adults. Or Black Mirror in novel form.

What stood out? The vaguely near future of My Murder contains novelties that are an apt setting for a government human replication program: real life avatars called “skins” that can disguise one’s identity, intensely real VR games (one that allows players to experience the murders or murdering, for example), self-driving vehicles. This reality is eerily close to ours, which makes the ethical implications of a society that continues to harm women all the more visceral.

Which line made me feel something? This bit of text from the chapter “Unhappiness:” “The fear was shapeless, so I gave it shapes. It was a lake, and I was under its water. It was a floor, and I was under its boards. It was a mouth, and I was under its tongue.”

An Apprenticeship or the Book of Pleasures by Clarice Lispector, translated by Stefan Tobler

3/5 stars

What's it about? Lóri, a reclusive teacher, undergoes a transformation to embrace life and love under the tutelage of philosophy professor Ulisses. An introspective, romantic awakening.

How’d I find it? I recently went to Portugal and have been amassing works originally written in Portuguese to keep the vacation going. This book was a recent pick by Catherine Lacey’s Irregular Book Club.

Who will enjoy this book? If you enjoyed the feel of The Lover by Marguerite Duras or the 2009 film An Education, you might like this one.

What stood out? This being my first taste of Lispector’s work, I admit that I struggled to spend so many pages in the company of tedious Lóri. She may be on a journey to find joy, but this reader was rooting for her to shed some gender binaries. Why are we listening to Ulisses? That said, the writing is outstanding, and I understand why people worship at the altar of Lispector. I shall try another!

Which line made me feel something? “The heart must present itself alone to the Nothing and alone beat out in silence its palpitations in the shadows. You can only sense your own heart in your ears. When it presents itself completely naked, it’s not even communication, it’s submission. For we were only made for the little silence, not for the silence of the stars.”

The Dark Dark by Samantha Hunt

3/5 stars

What's it about? In these haunting and witty tales, Samantha Hunt plays with the unexplainable: a woman transforming into a doe at night, falling in love with a weapon, and unwieldy clones as procreation.

How’d I find it? Every year, I place on my TBR the selections in Electric Lit’s 15 Best Short Story Collections, and at long last, I’m getting around to this pick from 2017.

Who will enjoy this book? If you liked Marie-Helene Bertino’s 2025 collection Exit Zero, you’ll want to read The Dark Dark.

What stood out? Standouts for me were the first and last stories, “The Story Of” and “The Story of Of,” in which a woman struggling with infertility replicates herself and faces the repercussions. The structure and playfulness were utterly charming, and the stories manage to deliver without the need to explain their magic. I also enjoyed the frantic mother in “A Love Story,” who made me giggle multiple times. For example…

Which line made me feel something? “It can be hard to tell with men, whether they are actually here or not. Especially a man with a smartphone.”