How to Read Now
By: Elaine Castillo
4.03
Format: 340 pages, Hardcover
How to Read Now explores the politics and ethics of reading, and insists that we are capable of som…
Want to Read $ 9.99"When artists bemoan the rise of political correctness in our cultural discourse, what they’re really bemoaning is the rise of this unexpected reader. They’re bemoaning the arrival of someone who does not read them the way they expect—often demand—to be read; often someone who has been framed in their work and in their lives as an object, not as a subject."-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
"When white readers claim to be made uncomfortable—as many I heard from claimed—by the presence of something like untranslated words in fiction, what they’re really saying is: I have always been the expected reader. A reader like this is used to the practice of reading being one that may performatively challenge them, much the way a safari guides a tourist through the “wilderness"-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
"I realize now that being an unexpected reader has turned out to be the most valuable gift of my intellectual life. The fact that I was an unexpected reader—an interloper, in so many worlds—meant that I was very rarely in any assumed complicity with a writer or the world she created. It meant that I was almost always lost, and always foreign, and always had to make my way through with the only tool I had: continuing to read."-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
"[T]he idea that some of us can simply opt out of politics—the idea that politics is something one chooses as a vocation, rather than something we have whether we choose it or not; something that encompasses the inevitable material realities that shape every atom of our lives: where we live, how we work, our relationship to justice—is a fantasy of epic proportions. This kind of nonpolitical storytelling—and the stunted readership it demands—asks us to uphold the lie that certain bodies, certain characters, certain stories, remain depoliticized, neutral, and universal."-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
If you liked the memoir plot in How to Read Now by Elaine Castillo , here is a list of 12 books like this:
1. Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination
By: Toni Morrison
4.32
Format: 104 pages, Paperback
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Beloved and Jazz now gives us a learned, stylish, and immensel… read more
Want to Read $ 11.99Similar categories in Toni Morrison's Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- feminism
- nonfiction
- essays
- writing
- literary criticism
"What solicited my attention was whether the cultural associations of jazz were as important to Cardinal’s “possession"-Toni Morrison, Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination
"...Being simply illustrations, of how each of us reads, becomes engaged in and watches what is being read all at the same time."-Toni Morrison, Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination
"Der Afrikanismus ist das Vehikel, durch das sich das amerikanische Ich als nicht versklavt, sondern frei erfährt, als nicht abstoßend, sondern begehrenswert, nicht hilflos, sondern priviligiert und m…"-Toni Morrison, Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination
2. Nature Poem
By: Tommy Pico
3.89
Format: 310 pages, Paperback
Nature Poemfollows Teebs--a young, queer, American Indian (or NDN) poet--who can't bring himself to… read more
Want to ReadSimilar categories in Tommy Pico's Nature Poem book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- audiobook
3. Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma
By: Claire Dederer
3.79
Format: 257 pages, Hardcover
From the author of the New York Times best seller Poser and the acclaimed memoir Love and Trouble, … read more
Want to Read $ 4.99Similar categories in Claire Dederer's Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- history
- memoir
- feminism
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
"Biography used to be something you sought out, yearned for, actively pursued. Now it falls on your head all day long."-Claire Dederer, Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma
4. Immediacy: Or, The Style of Too Late Capitalism
By: Anna Kornbluh
4.08
Format: 240 pages, Paperback
Why speed, flow, and direct expression now dominate cultural style Contemporary cultural style boo… read more
Want to Read $ 7.99Similar categories in Anna Kornbluh's Immediacy: Or, The Style of Too Late Capitalism book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- nonfiction
- history
5. Creep: Accusations and Confessions
By: Myriam Gurba
4.37
Format: 331 pages, Kindle Edition
A ruthless and razor-sharp essay collection that tackles the pervasive, creeping oppression and tox… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Myriam Gurba's Creep: Accusations and Confessions book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- memoir
- feminism
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
"Embedded within these systems of family, friendship, and community, these creepy men may appear harmless, their evil obscured by a benign collective presence, a fog of sorts. This softness swaddles a…"-Myriam Gurba, Creep: Accusations and Confessions
6. Against Technoableism: Rethinking Who Needs Improvement
By: Ashley Shew
4.30
Format: 160 pages, Hardcover
A manifesto exploding what we think we know about disability, and arguing that disabled people are … read more
Want to Read $ 7.92Similar categories in Ashley Shew's Against Technoableism: Rethinking Who Needs Improvement book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
7. Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World
By: Naomi Klein
4.22
Format: 416 pages, Hardcover
What if you woke up one morning and found you’d acquired another self―a double who was almost you a… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Naomi Klein's Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- history
- memoir
- feminism
- nonfiction
- audiobook
"Our role here on earth is not simply to maximize the advantage in our lives. It’s to maximize (protect, regenerate) all of life. We are here not just to make sure we as individuals survive, but to ma…"-Naomi Klein, Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World
"A state of shock is what happens to us- individually or as a society- when we experience a sudden and unprecedented event for which we do not yet have adequate explanation. At its essence, a shock is…"-Naomi Klein, Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World
8. Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock
By: Jenny Odell
3.61
Format: 400 pages, Hardcover
In her first book, How to Do Nothing, Jenny Odell wrote about the importance of disconnecting from … read more
Want to Read $ 8.99Similar categories in Jenny Odell's Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
"Most living entities and systems on this planet obviously do not live by the Western human clock (though some, like the crows who memorize a city's daily garbage truck route, do of course adapt to th…"-Jenny Odell, Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock
9. Martyr!
By: Kaveh Akbar
4.24
Format: 352 pages, Hardcover
Kaveh Akbar’s Martyr! is a paean to how we spend our lives seeking meaning—in faith, art, ourselves… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Kaveh Akbar's Martyr! book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- audiobook
10. The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On
By: Franny Choi
3.99
Format: 144 pages, Hardcover
From acclaimed poet Franny Choi comes a poetry collection for the ends of worlds--past, present, an… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Franny Choi's The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- audiobook
"I have last year's ashes in my throat, stories stuffed so full of morals they bleed sugar."-Franny Choi, The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On
"How can I explain the things and things and things I did wrong? I was never any good at telling the difference between what wanted me and what wanted me gone"-Franny Choi, The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On
11. The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality
By: Amanda Montell
3.54
Format: 272 pages, Hardcover
From the bestselling author of Cultish and host of the podcast Sounds Like a Cult, a delicious blen… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Amanda Montell's The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- nonfiction
- memoir
- essays
- audiobook
"While magical thinking is an age-old quirk, overthinking feels distinct to the modern era—a product of our innate superstitions clashing with information overload, mass loneliness, and a capitalistic…"-Amanda Montell, The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality
"Information transmission research suggests that folks with higher anxiety are quicker to engage with, and slower to disengage from, negative information; so "as a trait and state," anxiety itself per…"-Amanda Montell, The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality
12. Hijab Butch Blues
By: Lamya H.
4.48
Format: 284 pages, Hardcover
A queer hijabi Muslim immigrant survives her coming-of-age by drawing strength and hope from storie… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Lamya H.'s Hijab Butch Blues book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- feminism
- nonfiction
- memoir
- audiobook
"Sort of?"-Lamya H., Hijab Butch Blues
"Queer indispensability?"-Lamya H., Hijab Butch Blues
"I feel tired. Or reckless. Or maybe brave."-Lamya H., Hijab Butch Blues
"I want to figure her out, this girl, and I want to know everything about her."-Lamya H., Hijab Butch Blues
13. Opinions: A Decade of Arguments, Criticism, and Minding Other People's Business
By: Roxane Gay
4.01
Format: 320 pages, Hardcover
From beloved and bestselling author Roxane Gay, “a strikingly fresh cultural critic” (Washington Po… read more
Want to Read $ 12.99Similar categories in Roxane Gay's Opinions: A Decade of Arguments, Criticism, and Minding Other People's Business book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- memoir
- feminism
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
14. Rivermouth: A Chronicle of Language, Faith, and Migration
By: Alejandra Oliva
4.25
Format: 320 pages, None
The Undocumented Americans meets Tell Me How It Ends in this chronicle about translation, storytell… read more
Want to Read $ 13.99Similar categories in Alejandra Oliva's Rivermouth: A Chronicle of Language, Faith, and Migration book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- nonfiction
- history
- memoir
- audiobook
15. Ordinary Notes
By: Christina Sharpe
4.55
Format: 392 pages, Hardcover
A singular achievement, Ordinary Notes explores profound questions about loss and the shapes of Bla… read more
Want to Read $ 16.99Similar categories in Christina Sharpe's Ordinary Notes book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- history
- memoir
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
16. How to Read Now
By: Elaine Castillo
4.03
Format: 340 pages, Hardcover
How to Read Now explores the politics and ethics of reading, and insists that we are capable of som… read more
Want to Read $ 9.99Similar categories in Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- audiobook
- race
- history
- memoir
- feminism
- nonfiction
- essays
- writing
- books about books
- literary criticism
"When artists bemoan the rise of political correctness in our cultural discourse, what they’re really bemoaning is the rise of this unexpected reader. They’re bemoaning the arrival of someone who does…"-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
"When white readers claim to be made uncomfortable—as many I heard from claimed—by the presence of something like untranslated words in fiction, what they’re really saying is: I have always been the e…"-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
"I realize now that being an unexpected reader has turned out to be the most valuable gift of my intellectual life. The fact that I was an unexpected reader—an interloper, in so many worlds—meant that…"-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
"[T]he idea that some of us can simply opt out of politics—the idea that politics is something one chooses as a vocation, rather than something we have whether we choose it or not; something that enco…"-Elaine Castillo, How to Read Now
17. You Get What You Pay For: Essays
By: Morgan Parker
4.18
Format: 224 pages, Hardcover
The award-winning author of Magical Negro traces the trauma and beauty of existing as a Black woman… read more
Want to Read $ 13.99Similar categories in Morgan Parker's You Get What You Pay For: Essays book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- memoir
- feminism
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
18. Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions: A Novel in Interlocking Stories
By: Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi
3.99
Format: 238 pages, Hardcover
6 hrs. 10 min. Nigerian author Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi makes her American debut with this dazzling… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi's Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions: A Novel in Interlocking Stories book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- audiobook
19. The Great White Bard: How to Love Shakespeare While Talking About Race
By: Farah Karim-Cooper
4.07
Format: 328 pages, Hardcover
As we witness monuments of white Western history fall, many are asking how is Shakespeare still rel… read more
Want to Read $ 16.99Similar categories in Farah Karim-Cooper's The Great White Bard: How to Love Shakespeare While Talking About Race book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- audiobook
- race
- history
- nonfiction
- essays
- literary criticism
20. Lessons for Survival: Mothering Against "The Apocalypse"
By: Emily Raboteau
4.15
Format: 304 pages, Hardcover
Award-winning author and critic Emily Raboteau uses the lens of motherhood to craft a powerfully mo… read more
Want to Read $ 14.99Similar categories in Emily Raboteau's Lessons for Survival: Mothering Against "The Apocalypse" book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- race
- memoir
- nonfiction
- essays
- audiobook
21. Imagination: A Manifesto
By: Ruha Benjamin
4.20
Format: 192 pages, Hardcover
In this revelatory work, Ruha Benjamin calls on us to take imagination seriously as a site of strug… read more
Want to Read $ 9.11Similar categories in Ruha Benjamin's Imagination: A Manifesto book and Elaine Castillo's How to Read Now
- nonfiction
- history
- memoir
- essays
