What We're Reading: March 2025

Those familiar with DiMeo's podcast of the same name knows that he tells very short vignettes of historical happenings, but usually looks at them from an unusual angle. Instead of straight facts, he'll wonder how people or animals in a situation felt, or explore how they found themselves in this one very specific moment in time that perhaps changed history. He'll look for the stories of the people on the sidelines of history - who may not be famous, but who are just as important to the story. The stories of the animals (like the MGM lion, or the animals that were sent into space before we sent humans there), always get to me the most - sometimes it's hard to listen. The audiobook is performed by a full cast, including Ryan Reynolds, Hrishikesh Hirway, Roman Mars, Kai Ryssdal and DiMeo himself. The Memory Palace will get readers (or listeners) to look at stories they already know from a different and deeper perspective. Recommended for fans of 99% Invisible and The Anthropocene Reviewed. - Stephanie P. (Library Headquarters)

Humans have exhausted Terra's resources and are steadily colonizing other planets to exploit them for their needs. On the heavily-wooded planet called Athshe, a military logging colony of humans has enslaved some of the native Athsheans, who are smaller humanoids and totally non-violent. Selver, an Athshean whose wife was killed by the charismatic and self-important human Captain Davidson, leads a raid on one of the logging camps, killing all 200 of the human inhabitants of the camp. When the humans on Athshe realize that the native Athsheans (derogatorily called "creechies") are capable of violence, they release the slaves, to Davidson's ire. As Selver's story spreads through word-of-mouth to millions of Athsheans, Davidson radicalizes loggers and uses them to burn Athshean towns. In a dramatic battle, Selver leads another raid with thousands of Athsheans to the main human colony city, Centralville, where they kill all of the women who had been trafficked to the planet, and capture most of the human males in the "creechie pens" where the Athshean slaves had been kept. In the final showdown between Selver and Davidson, Selver explains that, although Davidson has introduced the concept of murder to his people, he will not murder Davidson. Like the planet Athshe, the native Athsheans have been fundamentally changed by the presence of humans, and they cannot return to a time where needless death is a complete unknown. This novella is short, shocking, and deeply impactful. Le Guin's themes of anti-colonialism and environmentalism are stark, and the character of Captain Davidson in particular is a clear criticism of right-wing conservative maleness. The native Athsheans embody values like introspection, equality, and mutual respect, while the human characters appear particularly violent and needlessly wasteful in comparison. This is not a subtle story, but fans of Isaac Asimov and Le Guin's other works will appreciate this novella. - Ashley F. (Edgewater Library)

Any Avatar: The Last Airbender fan will appreciate this look into Avatar Roku's early life. Fans of the original show will already know quite a bit about Roku, which is both a blessing and a curse. Ribay does a decent job navigating those challenges. Interestingly, this book also contains Sozin's point of view. It was absolutely fascinating reading about the early life of the warmongering Fire Lord from the original show. This book is fast paced, adventurous, and like the previous Avatar novels, quite dark. If you like Avatar, you will likely enjoy this book as well. - Abigail W. (Discoveries: The Library at the Mall)

De Leon is an anthropologist and professor who spent years researching in Mexico, getting to know human smugglers and spotlighting their job. Why do they do it? How do they it? How does the job affect them? The must have relationships to cartels and gangs? We often look down upon these men, the violence and drugs that surround them, but De Leon looks at the humanity of it all and gives us an in-depth look into the individuals he has friended as we learn their stories. If you have an interest in learning about the behind-the-scenes stories of illegal border crossing or why these immigrants risk their lives to start over, or just human stories in general, there’s a lot to learn from the stories De Leon shares. - Cortney G. (Odenton Library)

This cute graphic novel is a queer retelling of Jane Austen's Emma. Ellie has a happy life and wants to forever be together with her cousin Charlotte and friend George, short for Georgiana. She has no interest in a marriage that will end the closeness they share. Charlotte, however, has to marry for financial stability, but struggles to find someone who will see her as a person and who has not made a fortune from the *** trade. George is slowly coming to terms with how different they are from their peers, and while they are glad to run their family's estate, they have complicated feelings around the joy of adopting a more masculine role and how that means they and their loved ones will be perceived. I've seen more queer historical books lately, but I Shall Never Fall In Love stands out as one that feels steeped in history. In the back, there are pages of notes of all the details, from fashion to politics, that are based in research. But, that accuracy doesn't make finding joy seem helpless. I really liked this book, and would recommend it especially to anyone who enjoyed Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa. - Maddie Y. (Odenton Library)