Category Archives: existentialism

The Witch’s Trinity by Erika Mailman

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My research has recently lead me to the learn more about the horrendous witch hunts that took place, especially in Europe, circa 1400-1700s and about the book that was used for those persecutions, the Malleus Maleficarum. That research process lead me to read Erika Mailman’s book, The Witch’s Trinity. The book is not my typical genre, but it was an engaging read that helped inform my understanding of that time in history. Here are a few things that stood out:

Mailman’s scene setting in the book was phenomenal. The consistent tone and language throughout was effective. The details of village life and the beliefs of the time were captivating and really helped set the scene for the terrifying witch hunts of that time.

The book takes place in a village that is experiencing famine, and the reader can easily see how the intensity of starvation completely skews people’s ability to think straight, to be reasonable, or to act with justice. I also recently learned that people with anorexia begin to loose their reasoning abilities due to lack of calories, and that lack of reasoning only exacerbates the problem. So too could I see the role of starvation and suffering in the witch hunt accusations.

Next, in reading this book, and having recently reading through the Malleus Maleficarum, I was struck by just how dangerous these books can be, how dangerous it can be to so completely trust a perspective or an interpretation that disadvantages and even outwardly harms certain individuals. As I read, I thought of all of the good people I know who might be accused just because of their differences. In the end, nobody is except from the dangerous mob mentality that can plague human thinking.

The Witch’s Trinity is an engaging, plot driven book that is expertly told by the author. It’s an interesting read for those interested in this place, time, and circumstances.

Dare to Lead by Brené Brown

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I read Dare to Lead by Brené Brown while thinking about how it would/might inform my own scholarship. As it turns out, it was a quite timely read. While reading, I spent a good deal of time anticipating what the counter arguments might be, but I won’t go into all of that here.

My only skepticism is not one of the book or the ideas, but that the author claims to be a 10 out of 10 introvert, and in reading the anecdotes throughout I just think there is no way! Not because of the speaking and busy life–no introverts can do all of that. It was because of moments in the book like when she seems to applaud a company’s move to replace walls with glass and keep doors open, and it is in the way she schedules herself with so much peopling. Even her time blindness is something I see mostly in my extrovert friends. In fact, she reminds me of a few extroverts I know. They like to unwind with a bath daily, and then they call themselves introverts for that quiet time, but in my opinion, they’re still a million miles away.

I’ll end by saying that this book reminds us of our humanity, especially at work, a place and dynamic where negativity can thrive. Most of us spend a lot of our time in work for pay, and this book offers some other ways of interacting within those long spaces.

Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dederer

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Now this was a fascinating book! In Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dederer, Dederer offers monstrous male artists (in every form) and analyzes their audience. As an avid reader, and citizen of the world, I am somewhat interested in the question, especially in the wake of the “me too” movement and subsequent “cancel culture.” Dederer wrestles with the question and avoids simple soundbites and quick solutions.

As a reader, I was interested in our similarities and differences. We both love Woody Allen movies, but she loves Polanski and I can take or leave his work. She has a distaste for Hemingway, and I still think his work is extraordinary. We both love Carver.

However, what was most interesting to me was in the last half of the book, when she turns her lens toward herself: “Am I a Monster?” and “Abandoning Mothers.” As a mother and an intellectual and an author, and, maybe above all else, someone who delights in deep focus, the questions Dederer asks are those that I share.

A question arises, “Do my children matter as much as my writing?” Dederer seems to have a good relationship with her children, seems to have balanced it all in some kind of positive way, but it was not without struggle.

However, for me, this is not the question, but rather an adjacent statement, which is that I matter too. Contemporary motherhood culture has women give of themselves so completely that there is no space for exploration, creation, for the self of the mother/person. To me this is intolerable, and I find myself needing to claw out a space for myself within the rigid expectations of motherhood within my culture, also still while the other thing is true: I love my children and feel deeply grateful for them. Plus, they inspire a greater depth of work in me that I otherwise could have created. And, amid all of these realities, I matter too.

The Siren’s Call by Chris Hayes

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The Siren’s Call by Chris Hayes is about the attention economy and how various forms of media seek to gain and hold our attention for profit. This book is important for anyone engaging with media, especially social media, to read. Because our attention is a means of profit, the smartest, wealthiest, most powerful people put massive amounts of resources into taking our attention from our own purview and giving it to others, who then exploit it for profit. From there, it isn’t hard to delve into deeper philosophical questions about the value of a life lived with an attention that has been ceded to others.

If You Don’t Like This, I Will Die by Lee Tilghman

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When Lee Tilghman’s followers said she was problematic, out of touch, too privileged– that she should be cancelled–she responded with her book, If You Don’t Like This, I Will Die, where she basically says, “Yes, I am, and you don’t even know the half of it.”

What follows is a behind the scenes look at the life of an “influencer.” Most people follow influencers, and Tilghman offers a behind the scenes look at the work, the lifestyle, and the mental sacrifice that can go into that world. Things are definitely not what they seem. Tilghman’s book highlights just how all consuming social media is–from excessive time, to resources, and to our attention too, of course. Posting became her entire life. She saw everything from the perspective of a post, and she worked very hard at it constantly. But she was so focused that she could not enjoy regular life.

Many people say that social media makes people sad because it makes them feel fomo. I do not experience that. However, I do experience the time suck that is synonymous with social media usage.

I paired this reading with Chris Hayes’s The Sirens’ Call, a book about the attention economy, and they work really well together! I recommend!

Rosarita by Anita Desai

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Rosarita by Anita Desai is a book for literary readers who want to spend some more mental energy in the beautiful cities of Mexico. Decades have passed now since I spent a summer traveling through Mexico on a trip with my school, but this book brought back that wonderful sense of travel–the unique sights and sounds that can only be experienced by being in Mexico, as an outsider perhaps. Readers who do not have the same connect to the country will still enjoy the prose, the rich description, and the strange emotional journey of our main character.

The Forever Colony by Victor Villanueva

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I enjoyed The Forever Colony by Victor Villanueva tremendously. The book does the work of reclamation history and offers lovely prose and theory and magical realism. I was reminded of The Lost Journals of Sacajewea by Debra Magpie Earling, which does something similar, imho.

Who Is Government? by Michael Lewis (et al)

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Who Is Government? is a book written by several writer/long form journalists, including Michael Lewis, who take a close look at areas of government that are frequently glossed over in new clips or political commentary. Specifically, individual public workers and their accomplishments are highlighted.

From this book, I learned more about the U.S. government. I was inspired by specific unsung stories of success and ability. For the successes, though, the book also ends on a flat line. The realities of social perception and the cultural roadblocks that literally stand in the way of saving lives are also hard pills to swallow.

Overall, I recommend the book as a reminder of what people are up to every day in their government jobs. Beyond the soundbites and glossy news stories, people are working methodically to improve lives, usually for modest pay and little recognition.

If You’re Seeing This It’s Meant for You by Leigh Stein

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If you’ve found my corner of the internet, then you’ve likely found other odd little corners of the internet too, and that means Leigh Stein in If You’re Seeing This It’s Meant for You is going to sling some references your way that will feel intimate and weird and odd to be known, but also you will feel seen.

It’s a 21st century gothic novel, and definitely outside of my normal wheelhouse, but so far I’m liking everything by Leigh Stein, so to you I’d say, trust the process. This book has great, knowable characters, and the setting is a place where readers will want to spend some time.

In her bio, Stein writes that she “makes fun of the internet,” and she does. But I think her work goes much deeper than that too. There is some great social commentary, and the themes feel like they could sustain a level of inquiry that you find in a college classroom. Yes, I think you could teach this novel!

Audition by Katie Kitamura

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This is the first book I’ve read by Katie Kitamura, and I thought it was great! This is a 2025 release. I rarely read brand new books. In fact, this might be the only 2025 release on my reading list this year.

Audition is a very concept-y book. I assume this is Kitamura’s “thing” because it’s quite unique–this specific type of concept-driven prose, I mean–but can’t say for sure since I haven’t read her other works yet.

The book is, without doubt, very carefully and artfully written. The pacing is like a dictionary, and yet the characters all feel very human and knowable. The book’s takeaways and insights, always shown with subtlety, are profound.