I forgot to tell you this thing.

Guys, I read a Book. It has a capital B, because it was really good. And long, and written with serious-brained readers in mind (you can just tell, get me?).

So I’m sure many of you have read it, because it got rather a lot of press this year, but here you go:

THE ORPHAN MASTER’S SON by Adam Johnson. It’s about things I don’t usually read about: North Korea, and soldiers, and psychological testing; and it’s about things I always read about: families and redemption and overcoming despair and Finding The Way. The psychology of it was incredible to me — the State Mentality (that’s not a real thing, probably — just my way of describing what happens when the government convinces people to feel and think and believe what It wants Them to feel and think and believe). ‘Twas a little language-y, but not overwhelmingly so (to me, but keep in mind: soldiers) and adult-theme-y, but really? So good.

I also read nonfiction. Twice in the last 3 months, which is a HUGE percentage of my reading in the last 3 months.

IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS is about the American ambassador in Berlin during Hitler’s rise. And his daughter, an adult woman of the 40s who was, shall we say, very comfortable with her femininity and knew How To Use It. (*ahem*). And his wife, who, bless her heart, was not so much up for this European adventure as she thought she might be. And how it’s possible to be inside the very middle of something and not recognize it for what it is. Fascinating.

And THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS,

which reads very much like a novel — excellent voice, excellent story — about HeLa cells (long science-y explanations aside, the first human cells that labs could grow “forever” outside a human body), the woman they came from, the literal billions of dollars the biomedical industry has made through them, and the family who saw no money or even information about them or about their mother (and can’t afford health insurance).

And now… what are you reading? Anything impressing you?