Good afternoon everyone,

Throughout the pandemic I have been quite determined not to talk about the pandemic, on the principle that Fem Fri should be a delightful reprieve always from what is going on in reality. This is still not a newsletter about the pandemic but it is a newsletter of books you might like to read if you catch - or indeed currently have - the coronavirus, covid-19.

Greenwich Park - Katherine Faulkner

One from my all-time favourite genre of rich people being awful to each other, this is a supremely easy read that also rewards familiarity with south east London. It's like Katherine Faulkner knew I was going to get covid and wrote this book especially for that moment. Maybe it's for you as well!

The Chosen and the Beautiful - Nghi Vo

Rereading things is a particular pleasure when you are ill because you know what's going to happen so you can just enjoy the words drifting past you in a comforting way. But why not try some fiction that combines the best of knowing what is going to happen with the best of surprises? Nghi Vo's The Chosen and the Beautiful is The Great Gatsby but Jordan Baker is (a) the main character and (b) a queer Vietnamese adoptee and also there is magic. It's great. Also endorsed by the F. Scott Fitzgerald Review, if that sort of thing matters to you!

Why Not Me? - Mindy Kaling

For the fans of non fiction, Mindy Kaling is a highly appealing person and this book is not a difficult read. There's also some really smashing career advice in this (don't think about your job while you have covid) that I have applied with a decent level of success.

The Arm Of The Starfish - Madeleine L'Engle

Back to the pleasures of rereading, maybe you read this book when you were a younger adult? If so, it definitely bears another read, and if not, it's an easy read albeit one with some moral problems that you might want to think about when you are getting better rather than when you are IN IT.

The Space Between Worlds - Micaiah Johnson

I don't read a ton of science fiction, but I got this on a book subscription and absolutely love it. A crisply built world, so pleasingly written, and just enough moral problem. Again, I'm endorsing this one for during recovery as there is a lot of stuff about bodies that might not hit right when your own body is feeling weird.

Enjoy, team, let me know if you read any of these and if yes which is your favourite <3

A xx.