Hello my bookworms!
It’s been a while since I threw in my own book recommendations! I hope you’ve enjoyed the recommendations from my wonderful guest stars Nathan, Sarah, Caitlin, Leslie, Donny, and Richelle over the past few months. Richelle calls in at the end of this column to showcase a book and author she’s coming to town for UCSB Arts & Lectures next week!
In other exciting SB book news, UCSB reads has announced its selection for 2025: The Book of Delights: Essays by Ross Gay, described as “a genre-defying collection of short lyrical essays celebrating the small, ordinary wonders of the world around us.” Learn more about UCSB Reads and the 2025 Book of the Year here.
With the spooky season over, we enter the coziest time of fall: this period full of gratitude, spending time with family and friends, and if you’re me, the apple pie I make from scratch with my dad every year. This year I have felt very grateful for the role models around me, the people who show hard work and kindness and how we can all make the world around us a little better.
With that in mind, here are five women whose memoirs I’ve enjoyed this year and who can definitely serve as role models in a variety of ways. Quick Warning: Two of these books contain sexual abuse; one involves repeated abuse of a minor.
Just Add Water: My Swimming Life by Katie Ledecky
I don’t know much about competitive swimming, but I know greatness when I see it, and Katie Ledecky is impossible to deny! With 10 Olympic medals to her name at the time of this book’s publication, plus the four she picked up this summer in Paris, it’s easy to wonder, “How on earth does she do it?” Well, let her tell you.
Just add water is Ledecky’s love letter to her sport, from her childhood swim club mates who cheered her on, all the way to the whole world cheering her on on the biggest stage. Natural talent is only one part of Ledecky’s equation — her hardworking spirit; the support of her large, loving family; and her unwavering love of the water is clearly the key to her success. And despite reaching a level of fame that few of us can relate to, Ledecky remains humble; the book isn’t about the level of success she’s reached as much as it’s about all the little moments and loving influences that helped her get there.
Be Sexy and Don’t Get Murdered: The Definitive How-To Guide by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
I’ve been listening to Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark’s true-crime podcast My favorite murder since I was in college and after finally to pick up his book this summer, I’m so glad I did. We can’t all be Katie Ledecky, but most of us can relate to making questionable decisions, dating the wrong person, dealing with bad influences, trying to stay safe in an uncertain world, and the special hell that is being 13 years old. And even if we survive these experiences, there is no guarantee that we learned anything from it.
Kilgariff and Hardstark, with their characteristic wit and honesty, present the stories of some of their lowest moments – from drug use to alcoholism, divorced parents and rushes with death – balanced with the hope, optimism and humor that brought them to the success they enjoy today. Reading their book (and listening to the stories they’ve told on their podcast) feels like listening to your cool older sisters telling their cautionary tales and making you laugh. Whether in audio or book format, Kilgariff and Hardstark are here to reassure readers that even though we may screw up, we can always learn from our mistakes, and life can always, always get better.
Freedom: My Book of Firsts by Jaycee Dugard
Jaycee Dugard has an incredible story. Kidnapped at the age of 11 on her way to the bus stop and held captive for 18 years by a sex offender and his wife until her rescue in 2009, she needed every bit of hope and strength she had – and she has a lot. Dugard’s first book, A stolen life (2011), is a heartbreaking read that describes her years of captivity. Her second book, Freedom: My Book of Firstspublished after seven years of freedom for Dugard and her two daughters, describes her exploration of life outside captivity.
From her first plane ride to learning to drive, adopting her first puppy, learning to ride, and finding her favorite Starbucks order, Dugard takes us on her journey of discovery with a humble humor and so much wonder and appreciation for the world around her. From surviving his ordeal to adapting to the outside world; founding the JAYC (Just Ask Yourself to Care) Foundation, which serves families and individuals who have also experienced crisis or violence; and helping to rebuild hurricane-damaged homes in a community in Belize, Dugard is inspiring in countless ways. But the way that struck me the most while reading this book was how she maintains appreciation for the people around her, takes nothing for granted, and looks forward to each new opportunity with optimism and hope.
Know My Name by Chanel Miller
You may not know her name, but you may know the name of the man who assaulted her. In 2015, Brock Turner sexually assaulted Chanel Miller behind a trash can on the Stanford campus while she was unconscious. Despite being known throughout the trial as “Emily Doe,” Miller wrote a victim impact statement that went viral (11 million views in four days) and sent shockwaves through the world. It was even read on the floor of the House of Representatives and received an open letter from then-Vice President Joe Biden. In his memoir, Miller sheds his anonymity to tell his story again.
This book really impressed me. Miller’s incredible honesty, creativity, cruelty, vulnerability and even humor do Know My Name an unforgettable read and an unflinching look at modern rape culture and how survivors are treated by the media, the judiciary and the court of public opinion. Miller presents herself as not just Emily Doe, the survivor of sexual assault, but as she is: her own person, a multifaceted human being with dreams, fears, a family, friends, a voice, and so much power.
Do you have a memoir written by a woman that you were inspired by and think I should read? Email me and let me know! Wishing you all a cozy autumn and lots of time to curl up with a book. Happy reading!
-Tessa, allbooked@independent.com
BONUS READ:
Somehow: Thoughts on love by Anne Lamott
Always soulful and funny in her new book, Anne Lamott faces the greatest riddle in human history: love. Going through his lived experiences, Lamott brings stories of hardship, joy and sorrow to the page in his typical thoughtful way. Although this book is a bit too religious for my normal taste, it still approaches life’s complexities of emotions and everyday contradictions with an optimistic view of what could be.
Each episode approaches love in a different way from a different perspective and time in Lamott’s life. And with her usual poetic style, every scene is alive and you are drawn in with her as her life experiences show her new way of loving people and facing what can be a harsh reality. She understands the questions we all ask ourselves about being worthy of love through our own messes, and faces them head on with her own triumphs and failures. Fixed In some way Can’t compare to my favorites Bird for bird and Loud laughI still found the same comfort in being understood by someone I had never met before on the site.
Lamott will be in Santa Barbara at Arlington Theater on November 13presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, to talk about this new book and share more of her experiences that shaped her book and her perspective on love.
—Richelle Boyd
UPCOMING BOOK EVENTS
Below you’ll find some bookish events going on in Santa Barbara. If you are hosting a bookish event in Santa Barbara, be sure to submit the event to our online events calendar.
Stay & Play
Tuesday, November 5 at 9 | 1469 E. Valley Rd.
Story time at Solvang library
Tuesday, November 5, 10:30 | Solvang Library
Baby & I story time
Wednesday, November 6 at 11 | SB Central Library
Read to a dog
Wednesday, November 6, 3:30 p.m. | Carpinteria Community Library
SB reads book discussion: We can be so good by Cat Sebastian
Wednesday, November 6 at 6 p.m. | Faulkner Gallery West, SB Central Library
SB Reads Kärlekskáfé for seniors
Thursday, November 7 at 1 p.m. | 1469 E. Valley Rd.
The Art of Love: A Romance Novel Retrospective exhibition opening
Thursday, November 7 at 5 p.m. | Faulkner Gallery West, SB Central Library
Baby & I story time
Friday, November 8, 10:30 | Goleta Valley Library
SB Reads Romance Author Panel with Alisha Rai, Amy Spalding and Jessica Joyce
Friday 8 November, 17.30 | Faulkner Gallery, SB Central Library
Raíces y Sueños: Bilingual story time
Sunday, November 10 at 11 | SB art museum
Preschool story time
Monday, November 11 at 10 | Carpinteria Community Library
Stay & Play
Tuesday, November 12 at 9 | 1469 E. Valley Rd.
Story time at Solvang library
Tuesday, November 12, 10:30 | Solvang Library
Bilingual songs and stories for children
Tuesday, November 12 at 11 | MLK Jr. Room, Eastside Library
Book talk and signing: Pascale Beale
Tuesday, November 12 at 6 p.m. | Chaucer’s books
SB reads book discussion: Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver
Tuesday, November 12 at 6 p.m. | Faulkner Gallery West, SB Central Library
Wiggly Storytime
Wednesday, November 13, 10:30 | Goleta Valley Library
Story time at Solvang library
Wednesday, November 13, 10:30 | Solvang Library
Baby & I story time
Wednesday, November 13 at 11 | SB Central Library
SB reads book discussion: How to end a love story by Yulin Kuang
Wednesday 13 November, 17:30 | Third Window Brewing Co.
UCSB Arts & Lectures presents Anne Lamott: Thoughts about love
Wednesday, November 13, 19:30 | Arlington Theatre
Wiggly Storytime
Thursday 14 November at 17 | SB Central Library
SB reads book discussion: Romantic comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld
Thursday 14 November, 18.00 | Faulkner Gallery, SB Central Library
Baby & I story time
Friday, November 15, 10:30 | Goleta Valley Library
Book Talk and Signing: Maya Johnson
Sunday 17 November at 14 | Chaucer’s books
Book talk and signing: Afabwaje Kurian
Monday 18 November at 18 | Chaucer’s books
Preschool story time
Monday 18 November at 10 | Carpinteria Community Library
Story time at Solvang library
Tuesday, November 19, 10:30 | Solvang Library
Bilingual songs and stories for children
Tuesday, November 19 at 11 | MLK Jr. Room, Eastside Library
SB SPOTLIGHT
We on Independent get lots of books sent to us by area authors, sometimes too many! It’s practically impossible for us to read and review them all, but just because we’re busy bees doesn’t mean they aren’t worthy of attention. In an effort to not drop the ball entirely, we’ve compiled a list of books here that are either written by a Santa Barbara author, feature someone in our community, or have some other Santa Barbara connection. I encourage you to look through this list. Maybe you’ll find your new favorite read!
The following are the latest titles that have been sent to us.
Rock ‘n’ Pole: A Memoir by Aimee Bushong
If you are a local author and would like us to feature your book in this section, please email allbooked@independent.com with the subject line “Local Author Spotlight.”
Book reviews courtesy of CALIFORNIA REVIEW OF BOOKS*
Thanks to the generous contributions of David Starkey, Brian Tanguay, and their team of reviewers at the California Review of Books, we are able to provide a steady stream of book reviews through our content partnership. Latest reviews on Independent.com include:
Life on the dumpling by Trisha Cole; review by George Yatchisin
Wake forever in a sweet restlessness by Chuck Rosenthal; review by Brian Tanguay
*Currently all are Independent’s book reviews are provided in partnership with the California Review of Books (calirb.com).
