Character Reads: What’s On Steph and Her Family’s Nightstand?
Author Eliana Ramage shares the books she’d recommend to characters she loves.
Steph: Saving Five by Amanda Nguyen
I hate to say it, but I think there’s no way Steph is reading fiction. I just can’t see it! She probably only reads at the gym, so she can kill two birds with one stone. Lucky for her there’s Saving Five, the powerful and true story of a woman surviving sexual assault, becoming an activist, and then—just as she’d always hoped—making it to space.
Kayla: Big Chief by Jon Hickey
Kayla may be a busy mom slash activist slash social media influencer, but she reads. Maybe audiobooks, on the go? I think she’d be banging down Hickey’s door to help promote this book. Once she got him to sit down with her for an Instagram Live, she’d start by asking what it means for the novel’s tribal president to “look the part”—then she’d want to talk about ambition, power, and belonging.
Della: Rainbow Rainbow by Lydia Conklin
Della has a hard time coming out, and she grew up without models for what queer coming-of-age or queer adulthood could even look like. But she’s a reader! As a kind of “you’re-gay-now” gift, I’d present her with this tender and hilarious collection of short stories featuring queer, trans, and gender-nonconforming characters seeking love and belonging. I’d bookmark the stories “Laramie Time” and “Pioneer.”
Felicia: Oye by Melissa Mogollon
Felicia desperately needs to read Oye! Her own voice is partly inspired by that of Luciana, the strong-willed, queer, spunky, and hilarious baby of a large Colombian American family. When her beloved grandmother gets sick and moves into her bedroom, Luciana is thrown into adulthood and must rise to the occasion. Felicia would read this book on her phone.
