Build Your House Around My Body and other books I read in October
I've read all over the world this October
Hello there,
I had a good reading month and it makes my heart full. I’ve been all over the world this October through reading. I’ve been to Mexico, New York, Prague, Vietnam, Paris, and even outside of Earth! I’ve also added one country to my Let’s Read Asia challenge.
But I am on a writing slump and I think you’ll be able to tell once you read along this post. I took me a long time to write a single book review and I am not 100% satisfied with what I wrote. However, I think the only way to cure a writing slump is to write some more (with breaks of course). Practice, practice, practice!
What I read in October
Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel and translated by Carol and Thomas Christensen
The novel centers on Tita and her forbidden romance with Pedro. As the youngest daughter, Tita is not allowed to marry until her parents die. An old Mexican tradition. Pedro eventually marries another woman and we follow Tita’s life after Pedro’s marriage and her several other heartbreaks. Throughout the novel, we read about Mexican food and culture which are both driving forces behind the story.
Tita is the main cook of the family and prepares most of the meals, whether it's for daily meals or a feast for a celebration. She uses food to express her emotions (often repressed ones) which serves as a medium and transmits a weird reaction to people who eat her cooking. There’s a lot of magical realism elements in this book and all are funny and ridiculous. I enjoyed reading everything despite questioning why and how weird things happen. The touch of magical realism through food made this book a delight to read. Like Water for Chocolate is such a short read but has so many layers. You can read it as a romance book, or a historical novel since this book was set during the Mexican Revolution, or a book about Mexico’s traditional values versus modern moralities. You can read a longer review here.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
I think this is my favorite book of the month. I had such a fun time reading this book. All 600+ pages of it.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon is an epic book that follows the lives of two Jewish cousins, Czech immigrant and artist Joe Kavalier and Brooklyn-born writer Sammy Clay. They become major figures in the comics industry from its early years and into its Golden Age. The book opens in 1939 where Sammy meets Joe who, with the help of his escape master, just smuggled himself out of Nazi-invested Prague and into the home of his cousin and aunt in New York City. Together, they create The Escapist, an anti-fascist superhero born out of Joe and Sammy's aspirations, background, and traits. The book spans several years and covers, well, the adventures of Sammy and Joe together, and individually.
I’d like to say this book is plot-driven but thinking about it now I think it’s more character-driven because although a lot of things happen, the writing is more focused on the character development of Joe and Sammy and their relationship with each other and with other people.
There is so much to untangle with Kavalier & Clay. I am mind blown by Chabon's ability to meld comic books, art, magic, Jewish mysticism, and many more. So much happens in this book and it tackles so many issues that it deserves so many rereading. I am looking forward to many more. Read a lengthier review here.
I Who Had Never Known Men By Jacqueline Harpman and translated by Ros Schwartz
This is a great book but extremely frustrating. It's a quiet dystopian book that builds you up with the world the author has created only to leave you with questions that will never get answered. Nevertheless, I had enjoyed reading this and don't regret the time I spent.
The plot of the book is simple. Thirty-nine women and one girl is imprisoned in a cage underground and are watched over by men guards. The prisoners are provided with basic and modern necessities but they are never touched, spoken to or taken anywhere by the guards. The prisoners have no notion of time. They eat when they are instructed to eat and sleep when they are told to sleep and with absolutely nothing in between. They no idea why they are being kept and they suspect neither are the guards. They have no recollection of how they got there and only have a vague remembrance of their past life.
One day a siren goes off and the guards quickly abandons the place, leaving the gate to the cage unlocked. The prisoners free themselves and as they ascend above ground they quickly realize that they just might be the last people on Earth. If they are on Earth.
Nothing in this book tells us about the world the prisoners inhabit. Nor why they were put in a cage. Or why did the guards suddenly ran off when they heard the siren. The author gives us sparse clues that absolutely leads to nothing. And I know that's not the point of the book. It did give me a little bit of existential crises. Much like life, we have so many questions. Why are we here? What's our purpose here? etc. etc. And like life, we will never get to answer many of those questions.
I don't know what to make of this book other than it is devoid of hope. Much like The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Don't read if you want something uplifting.
Build Your House Around My Body by Violet Kupersmith
This book was a surprise find and I'm glad I found it. I didn't plan to read any ghost story this month despite it being spooky season but here we are. Set in Vietnam, this book is part historical fiction, part folklore, and part supernatural story. The plot is like a puzzle where you need to piece things together. It's a web of backstories too complicated to write a summary about. It goes way way back when the French colonized Vietnam. After reading the book, I draw a web of how the characters were connected. It was a fun little exercise to do and I was amazed how Kupersmith was able to build the entire plot.
The book starts with Winnie, one of the main characters, missing. We then slowly uncover that her disappearance is related to another disappearance a decade ago. We then get to know what Winnie was up to days before she vanishes in Saigon without a trace and the story of the other girl who disappeared a decade ago.
I love the haunted plotline but I also love how this book describes the rich cultural landscape of Vietnam. Kupersmith paints a vivid imagery of both the bustling streets of Ho Chi Minh and the rural landscapes of Vietnam. I feel like I've been to Vietnam without leaving my seat. The novel’s supernatural elements, especially that of ghosts, serves as a metaphor of how the past affect the future and the lasting effects of colonialism.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab
In 1714 France, Addielyn LaRue is forced to marry and stay in her small town forever. She makes a deal with the darkness to free her from this marriage, have nobody to answer to, and to live her life as she pleases in exchange for her soul when she tires of living. The only caveat to this deal though is that Addie is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. The devil is in the details they say. Sure, there is an advantage to this but it also poses several challenges. Even though she can live forever, she can't own a home or settle down in one place because no one will ever remember her "owning" a certain place. She will always be homeless, a thief in the dark, searching for a place to sleep everyday. She can never own anything or have any anchor to something because no one will remember her. That is a tiring life. And so, every year on their anniversary, the darkness visits her if she is ready to give up living. And every year Addie says no. Until one day, 300 years later, she meets a man who remembers.
I love this book even though it's a little bit long. It's plot after plot and it's a light fantasy read. What I got most about this book is the power of stories, what stories get told, and what is remembered. Another thing I love about this book are the art that Addie influences. Some of the chapters are dedicated to a piece of art with a light backstory although the inspiration for the pieces are always unknown. In her 300 years of living, Addie becomes an incidental muse. She has influenced painters, musicians, and other artists with her beauty and the signature seven freckles on her face. Addie has been doing this deliberately though because its the only way for her to be remembered.
This book is a love letter to art - creating it, the stories that inspire it, and the emotions it invokes in us. It is the only thing that has kept Addie for living for 300 years.
Substacks I Loved in October
- ’s October reading of Environmental Activism. Because in her own words what’s scarier than climate change? I’ve added some of the books in this list under my radar.
- ’s 6 lessons she learned during grad school which is also applicable to, well, life.
This post by
where she talks about the books she read in September but also about practice writing, practice for something else more important and real, someday. I love this post so much.5 Reasons You Should Be Reading Books With Other People by
. Applicable even if you are not in a book club or plan to join one. A casual buddy read is fine.- ’s review of Butter by Asako Yuzuki. Butter is a book I want to read as soon as I finish all the other Japanese lit in my TBR. It has such an interesting premise!
What I Want to Read in November
Just look at those pretty covers! I already started Djinn City which I am loving so far. The book is set in Bangladesh where our main character discovers he is half djinn and half human. He also happens to be target of a very popular hunt in the djinn world. I also bought, yet again, two Japanese books (Scattered All Over the Earth and The Housekeeper and the Professor). I have an upcoming trip to Japan soon and want to read more Japanese lit before I leave. The Silence of the Girls is a book I have been wanting to read since 2023.
Questions for you
Have you read any of this books? How did you find it?
For anyone who has read I Who Have Known Men, what are your theories about the world they inhabit?
What is your favorite read for October?
In case you missed this..
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I've read The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon, and it was terrific. Great writing, vivid characters: it's been a few years and some scenes have stayed with me. I also enjoyed Chabon's The Yiddish Policemen's Union.
Thanks for the mention! Looks like October was not universally meh— maybe it’s just me who had an “off” month.