As we enter week whatever-it-is of who-knows-how-many-more of isolation, it pays to stock up on some brilliant new books. Samantha Irby is back with a collection of hilarious essays in Wow, No Thank You. and F*ck That’s Hot! is Billy Law’s recipe book and definitely not for the faint-hearted.
Kate Nelson outlines the practical path to quitting plastics, The Dragons and the Snakes is a deep dive into the precarious place of modern America in geopolitics and The Dickens Boy offers an original perspective on the literary colossus from Tom Keneally. Let’s check out the list.
Wow, No Thank You., F*ck That’s Hot, I Quit Plastics, The Dragons and the Snakes and The Dickens Boy are among the finest new reads for your weekend.
Wow, No Thank You. by Samantha Irby
Gone are the days of burning the candle at both ends and getting away with it. Irby discusses self-love, life away from the city and the reality of approaching forty with typical humour and brutal honesty. More at Faber & Faber.
F*ck That’s Hot!: 60 Recipes to Up the Heat in the Kitchen by Billy Law
Prefer the mild side of life? You might want to skip to the next paragraph. Law’s cookbook celebrates the spiciest dishes the world has to offer, just the tonic to see you through the cold winter ahead. Via Smith Street Books.
I Quit Plastics: 60+ Lifestyle Recipes to Cut Waste, Live Clean and Change the World by Kate Nelson
A recipe book of a different kind is revealed in I Quit Plastics, but a very important one. It’s a dilemma: how can we cut down our use of this ubiquitous, disposable material that’s choking the environment. Kate Nelson shows us how. See Pantera for more.
The Dragons and the Snakes: How the Rest Learned to Fight the West by David Kilcullen
After slaying the Soviet dragon, the U.S. unwitting set free a host of poisonous snakes. Kilcullen explores how the opponents of the West have evolved in the 21st-century and the repercussions for the ensuing decades. Visit Scribe for more. 
The Dickens Boy by Tom Keneally
The Australian literary icon, Tom Keneally reimagines the colonial history of the sons of Charles Dickens. Sent to the antipodes so as not to tarnish the reputation of their famous father, Edward and Alfred Dickens embark on an unlikely adventure. See Penguin for more. 
