James by Percival Everett My rating: 5 of 5 stars A fascinating take on the story of Huckleberry Finn taken from the slave Jim's perspective. James knows how to read and write. He and other slaves use a distinct dialect around white people for their protection. The ending is complex and still something I'm wrestling with, but Everett is one of our greatest living authors who is unafraid to challenge his readers or their beliefs. Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki My rating: 4 of 5 stars I cannot summarize this book any better than this quick summary: "Shizuka Satomi made a deal with the to escape damnation, she must entice seven other violin prodigies to trade their souls for success. She has already delivered six. When Katrina Nguyen, a young transgender runaway, catches Shizuka's ear with her wild talent, Shizuka can almost feel the curse lifting. She's found her final candidate. But in a donut shop off a bustling highway in the San Gabriel Valley, Shizuka meets Lan Tran, retired starship captain, interstellar refugee, and mother of four. As the lives of these three women become entangled by chance and fate, a story of magic, identity, curses, and hope begins, and a family worth crossing the universe for is found." This fun whirlwind of a book, science fiction, LGBQ+ identity, Faustian bargains and southern California - work very well under this skilled author's hand. The way Aoki writes about music is brilliant. There were a few spots where I felt like it was a little overlong, but I still loved it. View all my reviews