Book cover of The Society of Shame

Book description

“If you liked Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, read The Society of Shame by Jane Roper.” —The Washington Post

In this timely and witty combination of So You've Been Publicly Shamed and Where'd You Go, Bernadette? a viral photo of a politician's wife's “feminine hygiene malfunction” catapults her to…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked The Society of Shame as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Period books can be fun, and this one is the definition of fun while also pounding in the message that it’s okay to have a period, and we really shouldn’t be ashamed of having them. Sassy and smart, with a quirky cast of characters, it goes down as easy as a beach read.

I found myself cheering for all of the characters and utterly riveted by the plot. Roper leaves you thinking about shame, stigma, and the power of social media without even realizing what you’re thinking.

This is a hilarious, ingenious satire about our crazy internet culture.

I belly-laughed all the way through it. But what makes it a world above a lot of popular funny books is that it is about something. Under the laughs there is a serious depiction of how unthinking we have become in our herd reactions to whatever goes viral. It’s insane. And there is a very real mother/daughter relationship at the core of the novel which gives it soul.

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Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

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