Authors and Artists

Summer 2023

Books

Becca Rea-Tucker ’15, Harper Wave, October 2022

The creator of the popular Instagram account @thesweetfeminist has written a one-of-a-kind self-care cookbook and guide to baking your way through your emotions. Rea-Tucker has never shied away from adorning her baked goods with her opinions, including her belief that all feelings are valid and deserve to be fully experienced. Baking by Feel offers 65 beautifully photographed recipes and a unique guide to identifying and processing emotions — in the kitchen.

Charles Peppers ’22, Todd C. Peppers, and Russ Ford; University of Virginia Press, March 2023

The Rev. Russ Ford, who served as the head chaplain on Virginia’s death row for 18 years, raged against the inequities of the death penalty while ministering to 28 men condemned to die in the 1980s and 1990s. His unusual ministry makes this memoir a unique and compelling read. Revealing the cruelties of the state-sanctioned violence, Crossing the River Styx serves as a cautionary tale for those who still support capital punishment.

 

Randye Jones, McFarland, June 2023

This work catalogs commercially produced recordings of Negro spirituals composed for solo concert vocalists. More than 5,000 tracks are listed. The featured recordings enhance the study of concert spiritual performance in studio, concert, worship service, and competition settings. This guide extends beyond simply providing historical context and encourages the use of the recordings themselves. Jones manages media collections for the Grinnell College Libraries.

Grant Faulkner ’87, University of New Mexico Press, February 2023

With elegant prose, deep readings of other writers, and scaffolded writing exercises, The Art of Brevity takes the reader on an exploration of compact storytelling, guiding readers to heighten their awareness of not only what appears on the page but also what doesn’t. Faulkner is the executive director of National Novel Writing Month, co-founder of the literary journal 100 Word Story, and co-founder of the Flash Fiction Collective.

Ken Krimstein ’80, Bloomsbury Publishing, November 2021

New Yorker cartoonist Krimstein’s new graphic nonfiction book is based on never-before-published autobiographies of six Eastern European Jewish teens on the brink of World Ware II. When I Grow Up shows their beautifully illustrated, heart-wrenching stories, full of humor, yearning, ambition, and all the angst of the teenage years. When I Grow Up was selected as a Best Book of the Year by both NPR and the Washington Post.

Claire Forrest ’13, Scholastic Press, May 2023

Where You See Yourself combines an unforgettable coming-of-age tale and much-needed disability representation in this story about a girl who is determined to follow her dreams. Where You See Yourself is based on Forrest’s lived experience as a wheelchair user who has cerebral palsy. As an undergraduate at Grinnell, she was a consultant for the offices of Disability Services and Admission, working to address concerns of incoming college students with disabilities and their families.

Spring 2023

Books

Meryl Cook Feldman ’88, Harmony Press, March 2022

When a rabbi warns that her ex has been brainwashed into a cult, Feldman is pulled into the mystical world of religious Judaism in a way her atheist self would never have expected. She finds herself in Israel on a rescue mission to bring him home. Feldman must come face to face with her heritage and her own beliefs about God and the universe while struggling with her hope of building a life together with the man who she has always believed to be her soulmate.

Andrew Nelson ’00 and Rob Curran, Vanderbilt University Press, 2022

Based on five years of collaborative research between anthropologist Nelson and journalist Curran, Journey chronicles the plight of African and South Asian migrants moving through Latin America toward the United States. Journeyprovides an engrossing, sometimes surreal, narrative-driven critique of how state-level immigration policy fails extracontinental migrants. Nelson is associate professor of anthropology at the University of North Texas.

Mark Miller ’76, Agate, January 2023

A resource for all nearing retirement age who are feeling anxious about their preparedness, especially in an economy rattled by both a pandemic and alarming levels of inflation. Retirement Reboot walks readers through core decisions to improve their retirement outcomes. Miller is a leading expert on retirement and aging. Alongside regular contributions toThe New York Times “Retiring” column, he also writes monthly national columns on retirement for ReutersMorningstar, and Wealth Management.

Peter Lavelle ’02, Columbia University Press, March 2020

During a critical juncture in Chinese history, an unprecedented conjunction of natural disasters, domestic rebellions, and  foreign incursions created profound turmoil. The imperial government responded by introducing policies to bolster its power. In the process, officials launched campaigns for development of the empire’s lands, waters, and minerals. Lavelle offers a unique approach to understanding the dynamic relationship among social crises, colonialism, and the natural world. Lavelle is associate professor of history at the University of Connecticut.