Chapter #17: Reading Moments That Just Feel Good

It's the little things...

Feeling My Shelf is a bi-weekly newsletter about books, life, and well, life with books. Grab your favorite caffeinated beverage and get comfy. First up, some recent reads. 

Bring It On: The Complete Story of the Cheerleading Movie That Changed, Like, Everything by Kase Wickman

This book’s the poo, so take a big whiff. It’s an inside look at the iconic cheerleading movie, originally titled “Cheer Fever,” covering the ups and downs of getting it made—an uphill battle that featured a revolving door of directors, executives confident that it wouldn’t make money (because apparently teen girls didn’t go to movies??), and a competing cheer movie that actors were fighting to be in instead (aka Sugar and Spice). A bit repetitive at times, but overall a fun oral history and a great analysis of Bring It On’s cultural significance.

Mirror Girls by Kelly McWilliams

A very moody, historical following biracial twins—one light skinned and one dark skinned—separated not long after their birth. The former lives a life of privilege in a small, segregated southern town passing as a white woman. The latter, lives in Harlem with their grandmother, who’s dying wish to return to the small town brings the twins together for the first time. What follows are secrets, curses, and ghosts. I enjoyed the magical realism and how both sisters forged their own paths, leaving behind the mistakes of their ancestors and finding joy amidst suffering.

Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’s like to work behind the scenes at Saturday Night Live, insert this book. (At least, I think so. I’ve never worked at SNL, but this is exactly what I imagine it’d be like.) It follows a sketch writer at a popular late-night comedy show who’s sworn off love but soon finds herself smitten with a musician who hosts one week. This book was divided into three parts: The first a day-by-day look at how a weekly comedy show comes to life, where the leads meet. The second, a collection of emails between them. And the last, brings the leads back together. It wasn’t as haha funny as I expected, but there was a lot of heart and wit.

Remember when I said one of my intentions for the year was to appreciate the little things?

Sometimes we get so caught up in our day-to-day lives that we forget to actually enjoy living. Big events snatch all the attention, garnering robust celebrations, finding a spot on our Instagram feed (not stories), and resulting in a slew of “so happy for you” text messages. But what about those in between moments when maybe our real life is actually happening?

The in between moments that bring us joy, foster community, and keep us from feeling empty until the next big promotion, graduation, move, etc. happens.

With 2023 in full swing and the hustle of quarter one in the rearview mirror, I’m ready to bask in the glow of said small, in-between moments. The moments that never fail to make me smile. That keep me going when I’m capital O, over it—ready to shave my head, sell my belongings, and move to a deserted island. Obviously, for me, some most of those moments involve books/are book adjacent. Because when it comes to reading there are so many little things to appreciate like…

… when you finally emerge from a reading slump

… when you get to the best part of the book

… when a book is so good you finish it in less than 24 hours

… when you get ahead of your reading goal

… when you read a book in a new genre and love it

… when the bookstore isn’t too crowded

… when you spend hours browsing the stacks

… when a book you kept hearing about on TikTok is worth the hype

… when you’re surrounded by other bookworms (ahem, like at a book festival)

… when your TBR list starts shrinking

… when you find even more books to add to your TBR list, shrinking be damned

… when you find the perfect reading spot in a coffee shop and stay there for hours sipping caffeine, the low hum of people chatting in the background

… when someone loves a book you recommended

… when you love a book that someone recommended to you

… when you find the perfect bookmark—that’s not a receipt or a scrap piece of paper

… when you manage to keep up with said bookmark

… when you learn that a book you love is being adapted for TV or film

… when a book is so beautiful (and relatable) it moves you to tears

… when a book is so good you read it again…and again

… when you get so lost in a book, you look over at the clock and realize its now 3 a.m.

What’s a little moment that feels good to you (reading or otherwise)?

A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham, a dark psychological thriller set in a small Louisiana town about the daughter of a serial killer and the copycat killer who has emerged 20 years later. It’s the second book I’ve read by Willingham, and after reading so many romance novels over the last few weeks, it was time for something a bit darker.

The power (and risks) of therapy on reality TV. Welcome to my crib. It’s rented. And it’s a moneymaker (gift link). Is therapy-speak making us selfish? 12 books every woman in her 30s should read. This book club connects incarcerated fathers to the outside world. Can cookbooks teach us to waste less food? “Are You There, Judy Blume? It’s Me, Kelly Fremon Craig.” 'Disenfranchised grief' is the type of loss we don't talk about enough. The Black inventors behind 7 everyday kitchen tools. Sober women and the fear of becoming boring.