AUDACIOUS BOOKCLUB HAPPENINGS
Our April book club selection is Lessons for Survival by Emily Raboteau. We will be in conversation with Emily on April 30th at 8 pm EST/5 pm PST. Registration is now open. I hope you can join us!
THE NEWSLETTER WEEK IN REVIEW
PERSONAL PROFESSIONAL NEWS
I appeared on Ali Velshi’s MSNBC show to talk about Hunger.
In this week’s Work Friend, managing a politically passionate employee, talking about compensation, remote work etiquette, and what to do when feeling trapped at work. If you have a burning professional query, please do reach out to workfriend@nytimes.com.
Merle Hoffman will be visiting the Rutgers campus on April 2nd. At 4 pm, she is hosting a writing workshop and that evening, she will give a reading from her new book, Choices: A Post-Roe Abortion Rights Manifesto. Both events are free and open to the public. Do make it if you can!
On April 15th, Soho Rep will be hosting their fun annual Spring Fete, which is the theater's most important fundraiser of the year. I am on their board and would love to see you there!
June 7-9, I will be participating in The Loft’s 50th anniversary weekend, with intensive classes, a conversation with me and three Roxane Gay Books authors, and agent/editor consultations and pitches. Minneapolis is quite lovely in June.
My essay series, Roxane Gay Presents, with Everand has launched. First up: Julia Turshen with Built For This: The Quiet Strength of Powerlifting. The second essay in this series is: You Are a Teen Mom: Instructions by Randa Jarrar. You can learn more about Randa in this video. The third essay in this series is My Year of Psychedelics: Lessons on Better Living by Gabrielle Bellot.
Megan Pillow and I wrote a little book about power called Do The Work: A Guide About Power and Creating Change. It will be out in June of this year. Pre-order, now!
READING MATERIAL
First thing’s first. Beyoncé released her new album, Cowboy Carter, and it’s phenomenal—layered, interesting, depth and breadth, truly, a masterpiece. She’s on the cover of W. And here is a reading list, compiled by the fine folks at Autostraddle. And an interesting look at Black cowgirl culture.
Related: a profile of Linda Martell.
In Baltimore, the Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed after a cargo ship, that had lost power, ran into it. Now, it’s a clusterfuck. And the mayor has words for all the absolute idiots (racist idiots at that), who are calling him a DEI mayor.
Brandon Taylor spent two years reading Zola and wrote about it for The London Review of Books.
Another review of Blake Butler’s Molly. And a review of Kara Swisher’s Burn Book.
Alas… a young woman wrote a pretty terrible (from a craft perspective) essay about the benefits of marrying an older man. Look… do you, young ones. But a ten year age difference is not really that big a deal. He was like 30 when they met, not 50. Really, this is about marrying a wealthy man, while also being privileged oneself. Just say it like it is! And I will also say there is one thing the essay does accurately discuss—women finding themselves “raising” men instead of focusing on themselves. That’s a real chore. Couldn’t be me. Long story short: this is yet another argument for becoming a lesbian. You’re welcome.
A deep dive into what fuels transphobic conspiracy theories.
A profile of pastry chef Caroline Schiff.
A look at the legacy of Cecilia Gentili.
Marriage equality in Thailand!
NBC hired election denier Ronna McDaniel as a pundit and, as you might expect, the journalists over there were not at all pleased and now McDaniel has been fired. Why the major networks continue to engage in reputation laundering is beyond me.
This was a well-written but very boring story (through no fault of the writer, to be clear), about a man who is a controlling asshole and bad, cheating boyfriend. I don’t always understand the science of profiling. I can think of a hundred more interesting people off the top of my head. Alas.
Euphoria’s third season is STRUGGLING. I don’t get the sense it will ever be made.
Leslie Jamison offers a memoir by way of five pieces of art.
If you’re into agonizing races that are nearly unfinishable, Jasmin Parris is the first women to finish the Barkley Marathons. Congrats, I guess! But also, why???
In Indianapolis, a mass shooting.
Diddy is STILL in big trouble. His homes in L.A. and Miami were raided by law enforcement. It’s just a mess and his reckoning is nigh.
Crystal Mason, who was sentenced to five years in prison in Texas over a voting error, has been acquitted.
The University of Utah women’s basketball team had to move hotels after racist harassment in Couer d’Alene, Idaho.
Tressie looks at what college students are really concerned about.
Making a family after divorce.
Ramy Yousef hosted Saturday Night Live and did an excellent job. His opening monologue was particularly good.
The Nuyorican Poets Café is getting a much-needed remodel.
Writers: a word of advice…. never do THIS. It is wonderful when people check our books out from the library. However you come to my work, I’m all for it.
A profile of Kim Mulkey who seems to be exactly what you think her to be.
John Fetterman seems to be losing his top communication staffers en masse. Wonder why… (I don’t really wonder why.)
A former president, selling tacky shit. And in South Africa, a former president is barred from elections because of his misdeeds. Must be nice, a country that has standards.
RIP Louis Gossett Jr., an actor and a gentleman.
Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to twenty-five years in prison.
An Alabama town is suing for their right to vote. Fuckery in Tennessee.
Eric Adams appeared on The Breakfast Club and made an ass of himself, per usual. And Rikers Island is still a hellhole and, of course, Adams is not doing a thing about it.
Young women in NYC are reporting that there’s a man walking around punching them in the face.
Another day, another law enforcement officer who is a sex criminal.
A bunch of Boeing executives are stepping down because they made a lot of terrible mistakes.
Biden is bringing back some protections for endangered species. Maybe next he’ll focus on protections for humans.
I do enjoy Easter jokes.
Maybe Europeans could do something about racism in footballsoccer….
Last but not least, a dip into the archive:
To the author who seemed ticked that people were using library copies to read his book, when my funds were limited, I used the library a lot and if I loved a book would stretch to purchase a copy to keep. As my income grew, I purchased more of my reading material and was happy to financially support authors, but keeping people reading is the most important thing.
The Audacious Roundup should be forever subtitled: "more arguments for becoming a lesbian".