Summer Road Trip TBR

Now that we're well into July, it's time for my family's semi-annual road trip to San Francisco and thus another road trip TBR! We're only going for a week and, as usual, I'm definitely bringing too much reading material.

Spinster: Making a Life of One's Own - Kate Bolick (Broadway Books, 2015)
It's been a while since I last read any feminism-inspired literature, so when I saw this eye-catching title on the Blogging for Books website I had to request a copy. As an examination of the social and historical evolution that has led to the current record high for unmarried women, I'm hoping Spinster will combine clever analysis with the quirky sense of humor suggested by the title.

Where We Go When All We Were Is Gone - Sequoia Nagamatsu (Black Lawrence Press, 2016)
Described as a collection of "fabulist and genre-bending stories inspired by Japanese folklore, historical events, and pop culture," this is a brand new release I immediately preordered when I discovered it way back in March. If this doesn't already sound like something I will love and devour, I have already flipped through a few times and am really intrigued by the variety of structure through which all the stories are told.

The Cat Who Walked A Thousand Miles - Kij Johnson (Tor.com, 2009)
It's no secret that I love Kij Johnson's historical Japanese novel Fudoki and I have high hopes for this novella as well. All of the reviews I have seen so far have been overwhelmingly positive and I really cannot get into the mystical Japan that Johnson writes so well.

Of course, bringing my Kindle means I will also have access to the dozens of unread books living on the device already, plus the wonders of Amazon's ebook marketplace. What can I say? I just like to have options!

If you have read any of the above-mentioned reads and would like to share your thoughts with me, that is always greatly appreciated. And until I get back from my trip, happy reading!

Road Trip Reads

I went on a very brief and rather impromptu road trip this weekend for a family event up in San Francisco. It's about an eight to ten hour drive on a good day, which means that I pack quite a few different things to keep me entertained. I made a video about this a few years ago but today I thought I'd share what I'm bringing with me this time.

First of all, the books! I am only going to be gone three days but, given that I can be quite the indecisive reader, I brought two of the books I recently took out of the library (and my Kindle). That might seem like overkill, especially once I talk about the rest of what I'm bringing, but that's just how I roll.

I'm also bringing along my computer because I have quite a few videos filmed that need editing. If I can find a good internet connection along the way, I won't hesitate to upload! And last but certainly not least, I've packed the seriously long outline and rough draft of my current writing project. Hopefully being stuck in the car will inspire me to make some progress!

Back to the Bay [Spring Break 2015]

Last week, I was lucky enough to head back to San Francisco for the majority of my spring break. It was a really relaxed trip during which I got to see my best friend for the first time since moving to SoCal in August and tried to spend as much time with family as possible. I was really surprised to find myself reflecting a lot over the course of the trip as well. I got to visit a lot of places throughout the city that played a really big role in my life as an undergrad living away from home for the first time, and the whole trip just really made me realize how much I've grown in the past four and a half years.

I didn't end up taking that many pictures, but I did happen to vlog bits and pieces of the trip!