Sarah Viren Book Recommendations & Book Mentions
This list consists of recommendations or mentions of books spotted in media, social media accounts, podcasts or other public websites.
Sarah Viren on XContributor @NYTMag. Creative writing prof @ASU. Author of MINE and TO NAME THE BIGGER LIE (June 2023). Queer. Mom. Runner. Weirdo. Views are views.

Devil
King@PorterSqBoston Just finished @Gilbert_King’s Devil in the Grove, which I read immediately after finishing his podcast Bone Valley. Both were frustrating stories to learn more about, but ones told with impressive rigor and care.
Paperback, 2019
$12.47Member price:$11.22 + Free shipping10% off
Maurice
E. M. Forster"Unfortunately, complaints that an LGBTQ+ artist’s work is too queer, or not queer enough, or focuses on the wrong kind of queerness, are all still common." Love this essay by @OWolfgangSmith on Maurice and queer joy and community. https://t.co/q7WeiaJTvh
Paperback, 2005
$15.95Member price:$7.97 + Free shipping50% off your first book
The Allegory of the Cave
PlatoSome bright news among all the darkness: my second book will be published by @ScribnerBooks. It’s a very loose and much queerer version of Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave.” https://t.co/5ftD5HqHuc
Paperback, 2018
$3.50Member price:$3.50 + Free shipping0% off(Limited Discount Book)
The Keeper: Soccer, Me, and the Law That Changed Women's Lives
Kelcey ErvickSuper fun and inspiring to see @KelceyErvick talk at ASU today about her new graphic memoir The Keeper about women’s soccer and Title IX and goalies (a position she shared with both Nabokov and Camus!). https://t.co/hJvEkCUthi
Paperback, 2022
$29.00Member price:$14.50 + Free shipping50% off your first book
Thinking Sexy: Unlocking the Secrets of Sensual Desire
Amanda Lowe2 key experiences made me the queer person I am today: one I’ve detailed in my book (out June 13!), but the other was reading Gayle Rubin’s “Thinking Sex” in college, @NewCollegeofFL. If you read anything for PRIDE month, read this essay. https://t.co/5O9aC8jPoi
Paperback, 2005
$18.95Member price:$9.48 + Free shipping50% off your first book
The Dailys: The Frog and The Parrot
C. D. GibbsMy latest from the NYTimes Mag is up at The Daily today, read by my favorite audio narrator @justjuliawhelan https://t.co/lsi1uuEgHP
Paperback, 2021
$6.90Member price:$3.45 + Free shipping50% off your first book
Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America
Gilbert King@margosteines Recent NF favorites of mine were Solito by @jzsalvipoet and Easy Beauty by @CCooperJones — also Devil in the Grove, which I read after listening to @Gilbert_King’s excellent podcast Bone Valley.
Paperback, 2013
$19.99Member price:$9.99 + Free shipping50% off your first book
Heavy: An American Memoir
Kiese Laymon@salesses I agree with a lot of the recaps here, but I’m surprised more people aren’t saying Kiese Laymon’s Heavy. Another one I love (and love to teach) is Lacy Johnson’s The Other Side.
Paperback, 2019
$18.00Member price:$9.00 + Free shipping50% off your first book
Bottoms Up and the Devil Laughs: A Journey Through the Deep State
Kerry HowleyBottoms Up and the Devil Laughs: A Journey Through the Deep State by the always remarkable @KerryHowley https://t.co/alfsqH6jIH
Paperback, 2024
$18.00Member price:$9.00 + Free shipping50% off your first book
To Name the Bigger Lie: A Memoir in Two Stories
Sarah VirenThanks to the @nytimes for including TO NAME THE BIGGER LIE in this list of 9 books to read in June, along with a memoir by @TheElliotPage and a new novel (yay!) by Lorrie Moore! @ScribnerBooks https://t.co/QTKCAqNcEB
Out of stock