Dear Reader,

Welcome to the sophomore edition of Kritikal Reading. 

Lately, I’ve been on something of a reading binge. I’ve read around 70 books since May. I don’t usually talk about my reading in numbers (unless it’s the beautiful StoryGraph visuals I share on socials), because I don’t like to think of reading — and books — as something I need to achieve a specific “benchmark” of. And yet.

I promise it wasn’t an intentional marathon, but I was just drawn to books as I found myself on bed rest for weeks at a time. I wanted books to escape into, books that were a breeze to read, books with witty dialogues and strong characters. Do you know which genre checks all these boxes? We’re getting there.

Lo and behold, soon enough, I had read through a lot of contemporary books, and most of them were romance books, a genre that I had last explored in depth in probably 2015. Spoiler: I was in for a treat!

I delved into the world of contemporary romance novels, YA romance, and summer romance. I read sub-genres I had never considered before: cowboy romances, sports romance series, workplace romance standalones, and even dabbled in dark romance. There were definitely a lot of NSFW stories, lots of tropes and micro-tropes. (A trope is a narrative device that readers recognise as a repetitive theme; for example, in romance, you will find something called “enemies-to-lovers” as a trope where people who start out hating each other fall in love…you get the drift?)

And while I was reading the ratio of five romance books for each literary fiction or thriller I read, I inevitably got drawn into a passive literary skirmish. How some people (read: literary snobs) are so dismissive of the romance genre. How love stories are considered inferior just because. They call it a “guilty pleasure.” As if no one is allowed to derive unironic pleasure from these stories. As if a happy ending is beneath them. As if talking about love is somehow a lesser pursuit. As if poets for ages haven’t spent years trying to describe the very emotion in words. They call them formulaic and predictable, forgetting that maybe, maybe, that is the whole point!

I was fortunate enough to read books featuring strong, talented, and capable female main characters, and I loved immersing myself in the little worlds the authors created across their series books. By far, my most favourite discovery was The Windy City series by Liz Tomforde, with Play Along coming out on top.

That’s my unconditional recommendation this week.

What’s Lit this week?

In this section, I gather all the fun, juicy, and news-y updates related to books and publishing.

Tip: Bookmark/Star this email if you want to return to it later in the week (or in life!)  

• While we wait for the Booker Longlist Announcement on July 29

I love watching the excitement build as the Booker longlist announcement draws near. There’s a kind of collective energy in the book community this time of year — palpable, buzzing, and a little chaotic in the best way.

As the date creeps closer, you see more readers posting predictions, sharing wish lists, and rallying behind their favourites. It’s one of my favourite literary rituals: we all take our chances, put forward the books we hope will make it, and then wait to see which titles actually do — which ones we now have the perfect excuse to finally pick up.

The longlist becomes a launchpad for months of conversation, discovery, and, of course, more predictions as we move toward the shortlist. It’s like literary fantasy football, only with more obscure metaphors and fewer penalties.

After the International Booker win from my country (Heart Lamp: Selected Stories by Banu Mushtaq, translated from Kannada by Deepa Bhasthi), the excitement for the Booker is even more.

Here are my candidates (more of a wishlist than predictions) for this year’s longlist:

• Our Evenings by Alan Hollinghurst

• Juice by Tim Winton

• Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami

• Audition by Katie Kitamura

• Universality by Natasha Brown

• Ripeness by Sarah Moss

• Helm by Sarah Hall

• Nesting by Roisín O'Donnell

• We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown

• Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

• The Book of Records by Madeleine Thien

• Saraswati by Gurnaik Johal

• Theft by Abdulrazak Gurnah

• Gliff by Ali Smith

• Edenglassie by Melissa Lucashenko

• TonyInterruptor by Nicola Barker

• Sleep by Honor Jones

• Stag Dance by Torrey Peters

• The Names by Florence Knapp

• The Lamb by Lucy Rose

• The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong

I have only read three of these books, so if any others get longlisted, it will be the perfect excuse to move them to the top of my TBR. Cannot wait to see the longlist and report back on how many from my wishlist landed there.

• A Book Stall as a sign of life 

In the Gaza strip, amid heartbreaking destruction, is a book stall keeping reading alive, The Electronic Intifada reports. Palestine has a rich literary culture, and the rows and rows of Arabic and English novels, poetry, philosophy, faith and self-help books are a testimony to that.

I loved this part from the article: “The hunger for food is temporary. But the hunger for reading is eternal.“ Check it out:

• JCB Prize for Literature bites the dust

Talking of literary prizes, India’s equivalent to the Booker, the JCB Prize for Literature has suddenly vanished from the scene. It was launched in 2018, awarding one novelist Rs 25 lakh, (and if there was a translator, Rs 10 lakh) each year.

Then the literary community in India noticed that there had been no announcement this year.

Scroll reports on its ambiguous end.

The Catch-22 of Reading

In my last edition of Kritikal Reading, I implored you to read widely. I sat with the thought once again because of the sheer variety of books I have tapped into lately.

When you decide what to read next, or add books to your to-read list, think about two extremes:

One, look at book titles and premises that align with prior books you have read and loved. I love a book with an ambitious female character; I will be naturally drawn to pick those up from the shelf. It’s tried-and-tested waters: a trope I love, a character I relate to, a setting I like, a city I want to escape into…you get the drift. If you have learnt something about your reading preferences from your previous experiences, use it to your advantage, maximise your reading pleasure. If you loved Normal People by Sally Rooney, you will love Talking at Night by Claire Daverley. But if you didn’t feel like Rooney’s writing was up your alley, then Daverley won’t please you either.

Two, on the flip side: the whole point of reading is to stretch your empathy muscles. You cannot limit yourself to one book type and expect to inculcate a sense of open-mindedness that exposure to literature ought to bring. I am not asking you to pick up a tome — a 700-page classic like Anna Karenina, or an enormous poetry compendium — but now and then, surprise yourself by picking a book that is unlike anything you have ever read before. You think cannibalism is gross? Pick up Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica anyway. Don’t like reading about grief? Pick up The Burrow by Melanie Cheng or Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner anyway.

Bookings of the week

This is the section where I discuss my book escapades and adventures from the week. 

• Hybrid Reading

Here’s something new for you to try: Verse Poetry. I recently read Jungle Nama by Amitav Ghosh — a verse adaptation of a Sundarbans folktale, richly illustrated by Salman Toor. I reviewed it for Kitaab (read below).

It’s a fascinating blend of poetry and visual art, but what stood out most was how it uses folklore to reflect on climate justice. At its heart, Jungle Nama is a reminder that traditional tales often carry the wisdom we need — about balance, consequences, and how to live in harmony with nature.

• Judge a book by its title

I love finding a book with a weird little name while browsing at a bookstore or on the many corners of the internet. Earlier this year, I read a book called “We Could Be Rats” by Emily Austin, which turned out to be a 5-star read. A couple of years ago, I took a similar bet on a book titled “I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki” by Baek Se-hee.

In her therapy memoir, author Baek Se-hee makes no pretence or exaggeration. She hopes to share her conversations with her therapist in a vulnerable account of what it means to know yourself better. I am usually very sceptical of therapy memoirs. Everyone’s mental health journey is different, and I don’t like seeing experiences narrated as absolute truths. Your therapy journey might have been very different from mine — this should dismiss neither of our experiences as invalid, but if you pick up such a book in a vulnerable state of mind (for example, when you’ve hit a rough patch in therapy), it can be a slippery slope. Thankfully, this book does none of that.

This might be the book that overcame my scepticism of therapy memoirs.

• My new favourite thing about books

Lately, I’ve noticed something fun in newer books — authors have started including playlists at the beginning of their stories. At first, I brushed it off as just a gimmick. However, I then became really invested in the Windy City series, and that changed everything.

The playlists were so thoughtfully curated — each song fit the characters, the vibe, the emotional beats of the plot so well that I found myself pausing mid-read just to listen along. It drew me deeper into the story in ways I hadn’t expected. That’s when I started seeking out more books that included playlists, and honestly? Authors are so good at this.

Now I can’t hear Mariah Carey’s Obsessed without thinking about Play Along by Liz Tomforde. I’ve started forming these strong, joyful song-book associations, and it’s become one of my favourite parts of reading newer titles — like an emotional soundtrack layered onto the story.

Coming Up Next

I am creating a section (work-in-progress) where you can ask me for specific book recommendations. Think of it as an advice column, but for reading. I will test it on my friends (my adorable beta testers for all hijinks I pull off) first, then launch it.

Soon you’ll be able to get some curated recommendations. How does that sound? 

In the meantime, stay connected with me on my Instagram. More fun updates to follow!

Thank you for signing up for Kritikal Reading! It’s a pun! On my name! 

A small introduction: I am Kritika. I have been writing and talking about books online since 2013 (when personal blogspot blogs were a thing; I am ancient!) Professionally, I am a freelance content marketer for tech companies and nonprofits. 

I’m as hooked on coffee as I am on books. I’m doubling down on my book advocacy because I firmly believe that “I’m not a reader” is a temporary phase; you just haven’t found your perfect book. Kinda like love? I hope I can introduce some people to their book-lomls.