Recommended Reads for Societal Justice

And why supporting indie publishers is essential

All year we’ve been cycling through rage, sadness, fear, and frustration, and many of us felt those emotions heighten yet again after the House passage of H.R.1 here in the States—a bill that completely targets the most vulnerable in all our communities, guts essential care, and creates an uncharted future.

Books not only provide a source of comfort during difficult times, but can inspire, motivate, and shape our response. We’ve written at length about this in the past, as well as shared reading recommendations for those hoping to learn more about various issues, like climate justice, the wealth gap, and state-sanctioned violence.

Incredibly well timed, Haymarket Books, one of our favorite independent publishers (more on that below) announced their summer sale with 40% off all books. A nonprofit, they aim “to publish books that contribute to struggles for social and economic justice.” Among their authors, they count Angela Davis, Naomi Klein, Rebecca Solnit, Howard Zinn, and many more. (This newsletter is by no means sponsored, and we don’t make a commission off any links we share—we just truly love all Haymarket does, and their books have inspired us time and time again.) Also, when you buy their physical book, most often you also receive the DRM-free ebook. That’s accessibility in motion.

If, like us, you are craving reads that help us take strategic action, we’ve rounded up some of our favorites from Haymarket, as well as the books that made it into our own cart during the sale. Not only do we encourage you to read these stories, but to sit with them, share them, and follow the authors on social media and beyond. They are some of the most prolific thinkers and organizers of our time, and we are grateful to have an accessible way to learn more about their work. Can’t buy them? That’s understandable! Instead, request them from your library and show these essential institutions some support.

Our favorite Haymarket reads

• We Do This ‘Til We Free Us: Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice by Mariame Kaba: What if social transformation and liberation isn’t about waiting for someone else to come along and save us? What if ordinary people have the power to collectively free ourselves? In this collection of essays and interviews, Mariame Kaba reflects on the deep work of abolition and transformative political struggle.

• Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care by Kelly Hayes and Mariame Kaba: The book is an assemblage of co-authored reflections, interviews and questions that are intended to aid and empower activists and organizers as they attempt to map their own journeys through the work of justice-making.

  • And check out the accompanying workbook, which you can also order from Haymarket, or download as a PDF for free!

• Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement by Angela Y. Davis: In these collected essays, interviews, and speeches, world-renowned activist and scholar Angela Y. Davis illuminates the connections between struggles against state violence and oppression throughout history and around the world.

Books that have been on our TBR lists for far too long that we ordered from the sale

• Perfect Victims: And the Politics of Appeal by Mohammed El-Kurd: Rather than asking the oppressed to perform a perfect victimhood, El-Kurd asks friends and foes alike to look Palestinians in the eye, forgoing both deference and condemnation. How we see Palestine reveals how we see each other; how we see everything else.

• It’s Not That Radical: Climate Action to Transform Our World by Mikaela Loach: For too long, representations of climate action in the mainstream media have been white-washed, green-washed and diluted to be made compatible with capitalism. Loach addresses head-on the issues at the root of the climate crisis.

• How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective, edited by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor: The Combahee River Collective, a path-breaking group of radical Black feminists, was one of the most important organizations to develop out of the antiracist and women’s liberation movements of the 1960s and 70s. In this collection of essays and interviews, founding members of the organization and contemporary activists reflect on the legacy of its contributions to Black feminism and its impact on today’s struggles.

• Abolition. Feminism. Now. By Angela Y. Davis, Gina Dent, Erica R. Meiners, and Beth E. Richie: In this collaborative work, leading scholar-activists surface the often unrecognized genealogies of queer, anti-capitalist, internationalist, grassroots, and women-of-color-led feminist movements, struggles, and organizations that have helped to define abolition and feminism in the twenty-first century.

• Unbuild Walls: Why Immigrant Justice Needs Abolition by Silky Shah: Unbuild Walls dives into US immigration policy and its relationship to mass incarceration. Incorporating historical and legal analyses, Shah’s personal experience as an organizer, as well as stories of people, campaigns, organizations, and localities that have resisted detention and deportation, Shah assesses the movement’s strategies, challenges, successes, and shortcomings.

• No Is Not Enough: Resisting Trump's Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need by Naomi Klein: Trump is not an aberration but a logical extension of the worst, most dangerous trends of the past half-century. It is not enough, Klein shares, to merely resist, to say “no.” Our historical moment demands more: a credible and inspiring “yes,” a roadmap to reclaiming the populist ground from those who would divide us—one that sets a bold course for winning the fair and caring world we want and need.

• Hope in the Dark: Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities by Rebecca Solnit: Hope in the Dark was written to counter the despair of radicals at a moment when they were focused on their losses and had turned their back to the victories behind them—and the unimaginable changes soon to come. In it, she makes a radical case for hope as a commitment to act in a world whose future remains uncertain and unknowable.

Are you ordering from the sale? Let us know what you grab in the comments!

---

Other books we are reading (or hoping to read) this month

✅Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum, translated by Shanna Tan

✅The Weatherhouse by Nan Shepherd

✅I’ll Tell You When I’m Home by Hala Alyan

✅🎧A Witch’s Guide to Magical Inkeeping by Sangu Mandanna

✅🎧Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan

🗓️Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton

🗓️Hot Girls With Balls by Benedict Nguyễn

Note: For books we have completed, we’ll only include here ones we recommend.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

---

Books new to our TBR

• Gliff by Ali Smith

• Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings

---

The 2025 ad astra Readership Challenge: “Read a book from a new-to-you indie publisher”

As readers, one of the most conscious ways for us to consume stories is by paying attention to the publishers behind the books we read. Not only does this benefit our own reading—knowing which publishers tend to produce our favorite books—but makes us more conscious consumers. We are more aware of problems within the industry, who they are impacting, and which companies are taking action.

Before we get into why small publishers are so important, a bit of background on the publishing ecosystem. In the States, the publishing world is dominated by what’s known as the “Big Five”: Penguin Random House, Hachette, HarperCollins, Simon and Schuster, and Macmillan. Other large publishers include Scholastic and Bloomsbury, but they aren’t as vast as these five—and Penguin Random House (PRH) is by far the largest. For scale, here’s a very helpful map. You’ll also see on this map the various imprints of the Big Five—aka subdivisions of their publishing company. You can locate the publisher of a book on a book’s spine or front matter page. If you’re still not sure, a quick search online can confirm.

Small presses, or independent publishers, are just that: independently-owned publishing companies. Over the past few decades, the Big Five have bought small press after small press, growing their power. In fact, many of the imprints named on the map linked above started as independent presses. But this is a problem in the publishing world; just as large corporations, like Amazon, continue to acquire other companies, they cut out competition and make the landscape that much harder for small businesses to thrive. But indie presses are essential in the publishing world. They often don’t gatekeep in the same way big presses do, making the industry more accessible for debut authors or authors without connections (especially systemically/historically excluded authors from BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and/or disabled communities) to be published.

That’s not to say indie publishers aren’t without their own downsides: they can’t offer the advances bigger publishers do, or the marketing and publicity power. But these indies are often mission driven, or even nonprofits (like Haymarket). Earlier this year, the Trump administration canceled grants issued by the National Endowment for the Arts, which impacted many independent publishers, as well as literary magazines and organizations. The defunding of the NEA has received a lot less attention in the literary world than IMLS cuts, for example. But the issues go hand-in-hand: the attempt to restrict access to essential information.

Indie publishers need our support. Try new indies, and see which ones you love. Seek their books out from the library or your indie bookstore, order them online, follow them on social media, and spread the word about their great reads.

Not sure where to get started? In addition to Haymarket, some of our favorite indies include Catapult/Counterpoint/Softskull, Seven Stories Press, Arsenal Pulp Press, and Interlink.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

About the challenge

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

Folks who complete all the prompts by EOY will be entered to win a $100 gift card to their indie bookstore of choice. Those who finish at least six of the prompts will receive an exclusive ad astra sticker. In December, we'll share a submission link to complete as proof of participation. (Our downloadable tracker will be helpful for this!)

Want to participate? Join our Broadcast Channel on Instagram, follow our newsletter, and get your friends to join!

---

Other publishing updates

• Barnes and Noble is not a community-focused bookstore. We can’t talk about divesting from Amazon without also talking about divestment from B&N.

• It’s Disability Pride Month, and the publishing industry has a long way to go in terms of equity and disability justice.

• Libraries really need our help, and we have until July 25th to press for IMLS funding (Carmen of @TomesAndTextiles has a great video if you want to learn more). Take action.

  • We’ve mentioned this before, but following Kelly Jensen’s Literary Activism newsletter is a great way to stay in the know about ways to support libraries, fight book bans, and beyond. We encourage you to read her recent post on saving the IMLS and the upcoming budget discussions for federal agencies.

---

Thanks so much for taking the time to read! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share with friends, and consider subscribing if you have not yet already. Also, in case you missed it, we have prints! Learn more and place an order here.

We’ll be back in a few weeks with the latest publishing updates.

Xx,

ad astra

Are publishers committed to DEI?

A look at their progress on promises made in 2020

Introduction

Five years ago, in the midst of Black Lives Matter protests and the pandemic, publishing houses of all sizes made long overdue promises and commitments regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion. Whether then or now, during our current political environment, are publishers continuing to uphold these promises? What progress, if any, have they made in creating a more equitable industry?

“We stand with our colleagues, authors, and the many citizens both within the world of publishing and the greater population who have mobilized in the cause of social justice and in proclaiming that yes, Black Lives Matter,” wrote Jonathan Karp, CEO of Simon & Schuster, in June 2020. Since its conception, the Black Lives Matter movement has resulted in racist and otherwise derogatory harassment of everyday people and activists, and seeing the largest publishers, like Simon & Schuster reply in this way was not only long overdue and surprising, but also questionable. Why now, after BLM has been around for years? After centuries of racism being deeply entrenched in our society and publishing efforts? But, more importantly, what were publishers going to do to turn these words into actions and foundations of change?

We’ve been curious about their promises ever since, watching as some resulted in progress and others proved to be empty statements. And in the past two years, amidst heightened book bans, attacks on trans rights, the genocide of Gazans, new legislation, and administration changes, many—but not all—have once again proven that corporations will always be soulless, capitalist-driven entities.

In this newsletter, we’re looking at where publishing companies have fallen short, and where they’ve created change for the better—because focusing on the good, as we mentioned last month, is important. We’re also sharing ways readers can continue to hold publishers accountable.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

---

A Deeper Look

Note: For this newsletter, we’re pulling on a few articles from The New York Times and PEN America. We do not endorse either of these organizations, due to their problematic reporting around trans rights and Palestine. We encourage you to read more about these failures: “The New York Times’ Bias Continues to Endanger Transgender People,” “Coverage of Gaza War in the New York Times and Other Major Newspapers Heavily Favored Israel, Analysis Shows,” and “Down with PEN America.”

“Each of the Big Five publicly voiced support for Black Lives Matter and articulated new company principles about racial equity and justice. PRH promised to ‘stand against racism and violence toward the Black community’ and to ‘commit to listening—to our readers, to our authors, and to our teams—as we work toward becoming part of the change.’ HarperCollins Publishers pledged to ‘stand with all of our colleagues, authors, readers, and partners who experience racism and oppression.’ Hachette declared that it would ‘support Black writers, readers and people of color by sharing their stories and experiences in many of the books we publish.’ Macmillan released a statement against racism, canceled internal meetings for a day in June to allow for discussions, added Juneteenth as a company-wide holiday, and offered a double matching program for donations to racial justice causes that led to over $400,000 being donated to groups including the Black Lives Matter Global Network. Simon & Schuster announced that it was ‘committed to working with our employees, authors and the publishing community to make our company and our industry a safe and inclusive environment for all, and a publisher of works that represent the breadth and depth of our diverse population.’”

In a 2023 report by PEN America, the organization looked at promises Big Five publishers made, and whether or not they’ve upheld them. According to their findings, as of 2023, many of these publishers had introduced efforts such as professional DEI officers, the collection of employee and author demographics, and more. (Penguin Random House “scored” the highest, answering “yes” to nine out of ten benchmark questions. Macmillan scored the lowest with three.)

There are a few key signs of progress important to highlight:

PRH shares its employee demographics publicly, as well as their benchmark targets. This helps them, as well as us readers, hold the company accountable. (They also are one of the only companies to have shared collected author data externally, as well.)

And while most publishing companies aren’t unionized, particularly within the Big Five, the HarperCollins Union has done tremendous work pushing for increased salaries and commitments to DEI. Entry-level roles, in particular, are essential for creating the foundations of a pipeline and employee retention. And, in recent years, larger publishers have started paying interns…which seems like common sense, but took far too long for them to initiate.

We also can’t talk about commitments to equity without mentioning book bans, as these primarily impact LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC authors. Penguin Random House is one of the most involved in the fight against book bans; they’ve hired a Public Policy Manager to lead the charge, and are taking legal action. And representatives from across the industry—publishers, agencies, foundations, etc.—are working together to fight these bans strategically (although not every Big Five publisher participates).

That all being said, there’s much more publishing has to do—particularly when it comes to actual investment in employees and authors. For publishing to truly change, the industry has to go through a revolution, something we’ve written at length about in the past. The industry must diversify at every level (not just entry roles), increase pay, and alter its current advance structures for authors.

According to Lee and Low’s 2023 Diversity Baseline Survey, (very) modest change has been made in terms of diversity in the industry—but it’s a far cry from what publishers promised. The HarperCollins Union has done incredible work to push for higher starting salaries. And, also, publishers are still not paying living wages. While some employees (read: white middle to upper class individuals) may be able to rely on generational wealth to afford living in New York City on a $50,000/year salary, most employees cannot. Lee and Low’s report also shows that intern demographics have shifted, which is a start…but interns aren’t full time employees with benefits. And the industry has never had a strong system for entry-level promotion or for bringing interns on full time (assistants are notoriously underpaid and overworked).

Diversity in employee composition is important for a number of reasons, but especially at the executive level—where it's severely lacking. These are folks making decisions about who will get a publishing deal, advance terms, marketing support, etc. “If a white person puts their stamp on a Black book, it suddenly becomes more valuable,” said Tracy Sherrod, a former editor at Amistad and Little Brown. “It’s assumed that Black editors don’t know white books and white publishing, but we do, because what do you think we’ve been reading all these years?”

The lack of diversity in publishing is as apparent as ever—especially during an increase in power for the far-right, an ongoing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, and an expansion of fascism’s hold. We have seen a number of companies throw ‘commitments’ to DEI out the window; these ‘commitments’ were clearly voiced to pander to consumers, not something entrenched in their values. And publishing has not been immune. Notably, Sherrod was laid off in 2024 from Hachette, around the same time other publishers, including PRH, laid off Black women (including a few hired shortly after their original promises were made in 2020). And earlier, in 2022, we saw a mass exodus of employees across publishing—a large number of whom were women of color. Not only do these firings and walkouts suggest empty promises, but also point again to the very real problem of publishing’s (lack of) investment in employee retention and nurturement.

But beyond a lack of investment in employees and diversifying their ranks, where have publishers failed us readers?

In 2023, Scholastic—which is not one of the Big Five, but a powerful publisher nonetheless—began to allow schools to “opt out” from including Black and LGBTQIA+ authored books in their book fairs, an offer they reversed after backlash. But weeks ago, they promoted the woman behind the effort to Executive Vice President and President of their new School Reading Events decision, according to employees that wrote in to @xoxopublishinggg. Author and publishing employee Zakiya Jamal has shared other ways Scholastic has rolled back their commitments, and a quick scroll through their Instagram shows the same—no posts about Juneteenth or Pride, for example.

Just days after Trump was elected, Hachette announced a new imprint, Basic Liberty, led by a senior advisor to the organization behind Project 2025. And HarperCollins was the only Big Five member to not sign onto a letter calling on Congress to restore funding to the Institute of Museum and Library Services—even after many called them out, signed petitions, etc. A VP of marketing at Macmillan posted in support of Trump on social media—an individual who oversees marketing decisions for books that face threats from his administration—and the company quietly distanced themselves from the post (although we have been told this employee may have been let go more recently). Nor did the company acknowledge Juneteenth on social media. (Social media, to be clear, is often performative—but in a world that is largely performative and even performative actions are being censored or avoided, every form of defiance is important.)

“After all of this hoopla, after all of this self-education, I worry that we’re going to wake up and be exactly where we were before any of this happened,” Erroll Mcdonald, a Vice President and Executive Editor at PRH’s Knopf imprint, told The New York Times in July 2020. And in a 2024 follow up: “Publishers went out of their way to embrace diversity, equity and inclusion practices, but that intensity seems to be on the wane these days. Despite all the talk of imminent change, that the industry was going through a revolution and it would look completely different in five or 10 years, that has proven not to be true.”

Mcdonald was largely correct.

---

Ways to Respond

How can we keep holding publishers accountable?

As readers, creators, booksellers, publishing employees, and more, these companies rely on us for sales.

• Continue to support publishing unions. We’re seeing more publishers, particularly indie and academic presses, unionize. Follow @xoxopublishinggg on Instagram—they often spotlight new unions in their Stories (as well as other publishing updates).

• Demand publishers release workplace data annually. When they share this information publicly, we are able to better hold them accountable. And, an increase in diversity of staff will lead to an increase in diversity of authors and on-page representation.

• Speak out when publishers announce problematic deals or courses of action. Back in 2023, Atria announced a coloring book based on Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us. Readers, understandably, were upset with this romanticization of a story about abuse. After backlash, the company announced they’d not be releasing the book. Sign any petitions, amplify issues, and email publishers directly and express your frustration and disappointment.

• Support the publishers/imprints that are committed. Often, these are independent presses. These publishers know diversity, equity, and inclusion are not trends, nor something to simply profit off. We are huge fans of the following:

  • Interlink Press: This Palestinian-owned publisher is committed to upholding BDS and continues to advocate for a free Palestine.

  • Haymarket: In addition to continuously making timely books available for free, this nonprofit publisher aims to publish books and host events that contribute to struggles for social and economic justice.

  • Gloo Books: Founded to make children's books more inclusive, Gloo believes books are portals to new worlds, mirrors of self-love, and tools for empowerment.

  • Arsenal Pulp Press: This small publisher is "interested in literature that engages and challenges readers, and which asks probing questions about the world around us."

  • Lee and Low: This family-run, independent, and certified 100% Minority Owned Business conceptualized and oversees the Lee and Low Diversity Baseline Survey, which monitors diversity across the publishing industry."

• Join strategic boycotts. Often organized by publishing employees (another reason to follow union accounts), these boycotts can help pressure publishers into acknowledging harm and making concrete changes.

• Advocate for authors and writers, especially those that are often underrepresented in and excluded by publishing. Read and amplify their stories, newsletters, social posts, etc. We can also support the content creators and bookstores uplifting these authors, too.

On top of all this, stay in the know and stay aware. Look at what publishers are sharing. Marketing is surface level, often, but clues us into who they are publishing and advances/sales (a higher advance = more marketing support, which often equates to more sales). Subscribe to publishing newsletters—like Publishers Weekly and Publishers Lunch—as well as organization updates from People of Color in Publishing and Latinx in Publishing. Follow employee-run accounts like @xoxopublishinggg. (We often get asked how we know so much about the industry—in addition to Olivia being a member of the publishing industry, these are all channels we follow for news/updates.)

---

Final Musings

Companies across all industries, not just publishing, made promises in 2020 that they’ve since thrown out the window or failed to accomplish. While we’re never surprised by publishing’s failure to invest in real change, that doesn’t mean we’re not disappointed in the lack of commitment. But, at the same time, we’re incredibly happy to see the progress that is being made, whether at indie presses, or, for example, in PRH’s commitment to fighting book bans. These efforts feel real, not symbolic or trendy.

We’ll be back in a few weeks with more. In the meantime, make sure to check out our reading-themed prints for a cause, free downloads (wallpapers, templates, and more), and our exclusive downloads for newsletter subscribers (with password newsletterdownloads). If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, don’t hesitate to get in touch via email, the comments below, or Instagram DM.

Xx,

ad astra

Our Recommended Backlist Reads

And why we’ll always be advocates for “older” stories

While in Denver for a work trip, I visited Petals & Pages, a queer and feminist bookstore and community space. The store had a wonderfully curated selection of stories, and the staff picks particularly caught my eye. For one of their monthly book clubs, the store had selected Jam on the Vine. I was taken by the cover of this book I had never seen before; on it, two individuals in beautiful, floral headpieces were laid over a background of newspaper type.

Originally published in 2015, the story chronicles the life of a Black woman’s passion for journalism. Ivoe, the protagonist, makes it her goal to write for a paper. When that doesn’t happen due to misogynoir, she begins her own. We readers follow the evolution of her personal beliefs and values, her family’s move from the Jim Crow South to Kansas, and her romantic and professional partnership with her former professor.

To those who have been reading our newsletter or following us on social media for some time, you know we are huge fans of the backlist. In publishing, pretty much anything not on the frontlist is considered the backlist—so typically stories that have been out for a year or more. These books often don’t receive as much support from publishers (unless they make a big splash about a paperback release, or the story becomes timely in other ways), but backlist titles tend to be the most profitable for publishers, booksellers, and authors alike. Their sales tend to be more predictable than a new release (but exceptions are happening more frequently these days with the aid of BookTok—such as Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles or E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars).

We love backlist titles for a number of reasons: the ability to dive further into a favorite author’s works; discovering hidden gems that we never see on our feeds; and truly reading to our heart’s interests versus whatever is flashy at the time. You might even say that we trust the backlist more than we do the frontlist. Do these books stand the test of time? Are they stories we actually want to read, months after they are no longer on Instagram? Or did we just want to read them because everyone else was reading them?

But one other huge reason we love the backlist is how these books often make us feel like our current times are not so unprecedented. When reading Jam on the Vine, I was reminded of press censorship throughout history, and how individuals have fought the government to accurately depict prejudices and violence, especially when mainstream media does not. Ivoe’s commitment to exposing the US’s prison industrial complex reminded me of Erin Reed’s dedication to trans rights coverage, or the various journalists in Gaza covering the realities of Israeli occupation and oppression. They all face constant threats, yet know that showing the truth can bring about societal change.

There are so many books out there, waiting for us to find them. The next time you’re in an indie bookstore or library, we encourage you to browse their shelves of paperbacks with no story in mind, or ask a bookseller/librarian for their favorite backlist recommendations.

And, because we can’t write a newsletter about backlist without spotlighting some favorites…

• Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison

• The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

• Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot

• Godshot by Chelsea Bieker

• White Tears / Brown Scars by Ruby Hamad

• Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

• How the Word Is Passed by Clint Smith

• Little Gods by Meng Jin

• You Exist Too Much by Zaina Arafat

And many, many more!

---

Other books we are reading (or hope to read) this month

✅ The Salt Eaters by Toni Cade Bambara

✅ Babylon, Albion by Dalia Al-Dujaili

✅ A Ghost in the Throat by Doireann Ní Ghríofa

✅🎧 When Javi Dumped Mari by Mia Sosa

✅🎧 Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood

🗓️ Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq

🗓️ The Morningside by Teá Obreht

Note: For books we have completed, we’ll only include here ones we recommend.

---

Books new to our TBR

• Lawless by Leah Litman

• Forest Euphoria by Patricia Ononiwu Kaishian

---

The 2025 ad astra Readership Challenge: “Read a nonfiction book on an unfamiliar subject”

With constant news headlines sharing this administration’s updates or ongoing global catastrophes, many of us might find it harder to process all that’s happening. And even if we are taking it all in, how do we know what sources are accurate, or what solutions there are to combat the issues at hand?

Nonfiction, particularly when written by experts in their field, is a reliable way to not only learn more about various topics, but also better form our own opinions. Sometimes these books might feel heavy or overly academic, but many authors are skilled at bridging the gap between facts and storytelling.

What’s at the top of our list?

• Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives by Siddharth Kara

• Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton

• Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor by Kim Kelly

• Unmasking AI: My Mission to Protect What Is Human in a World of Machines by Dr. Joy Buolamwini

And what do we recommend?

• Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein (and anything by Klein—she also writes extensively on the climate emergency)

• Are Prisons Obsolete? by Angela Davis

• The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon

• We Do This ‘Til We Free Us by Mariame Kaba

• Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity by C. Riley Snorton

• The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

We encourage you to talk to your local bookseller or librarian about a topic you’d like to learn more about. And while the challenge specifies reading one book, reading a variety of books—fiction and nonfiction—on a subject can be incredibly helpful and paint a large picture. These stories can help shape the actions we take in our everyday lives.

About the challenge

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

Folks who complete all the prompts by EOY will be entered to win a $100 gift card to their indie bookstore of choice. Those who finish at least six of the prompts will receive an exclusive ad astra sticker. In December, we'll share a submission link to complete as proof of participation. (Our downloadable tracker will be helpful for this!)

Want to participate? Join our Broadcast Channel on Instagram, follow our newsletter, and get your friends to join!

---

Other publishing updates

• James Frey—the author who infamously made up his “memoir” and openly uses AI to write his books—is back with a new release…and it’s a Book of the Month pick.

• Scholastic is rolling back its DEI initiatives, including with the “stepping down” of one executive and her replacement with an executive that enabled schools’ ability to opt out of “diversity” inclusion at book fairs.

• Libraries really need our help—keep fighting for IMLS funding!

---

June is Pride month, but we must amplify, champion, and fight for LGBTQIA+ rights every day of every month. Here are some bookish companies to support, and please continue to contact your reps, support mutual aid groups, and show up to protests in support of the queer and trans community.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

We’re also continuing to witness a genocide in Gaza. As we wrote in a recent post, as readers, we are witnesses. We have to trust our eyes. Keep taking action for Palestinian liberation by contacting your reps, practicing BDS, joining protests, and more.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share with friends, and consider subscribing if you have not yet already. Also, in case you missed it, we have launched prints! Learn more and place an order here.

We’ll be back in a few weeks with the latest publishing updates.

Xx,

ad astra

Reading As a Revolution

How readership has spurred change throughout history

Introduction

We, like so many others, often find ourselves focusing on the negatives (especially as they are all too prevalent these days). But it’s essential to focus on the good, too—not just for our own mental health, but as a form of resistance and inspiration to keep pushing for change. Readers have created change throughout history, and their efforts can encourage us to keep going.

You’ve likely read a number of analyses so far about the current presidential administration—from how the Executive Orders are wreaking havoc, to polling numbers, to legal interpretations. But what’s severely lacking—or hidden beneath all the bad on display—are the stories of those pushing back.

Trump’s administration is trying to overwhelm individuals so we get exhausted, so we don’t fight back against their efforts. They are expecting us to give up. And journalism doesn’t always help in this regard, because oftentimes the stories that get the most clicks are those that play into the emotions we are already feeling (in this case being fear, anger, terror, to name a few).

But, as Good Good Good recently shared: “When we consume good news, we can tip the scale away from dread and overwhelm. But it's harder to find, so we have to be intentional and proactive about seeking out stories of progress.”

In today’s newsletter, we are spotlighting various ways readers have created positive societal change via their readership. Because we have, and the change we’ve inspired has echoed through generations. There is no doubt that we can and will continue to create such change, especially if we utilize imagination.

---

A Deeper Look

At the back of Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond, there is a QR code encouraging readers to learn more to “join the fight.” Redirecting to a website, there is not only a database of poverty broken down on a state level, but also a form helping readers send a copy of the book to a political representative.

We can’t say how many readers have taken the call to action, nor that the idea is perfect—Penguin Random House should offer to send the copies for free, in our opinion—but the simplistic suggestion is powerful. How many times have we finished a book that feels especially relevant or culturally impactful and wished everyone—friends, family, and government—would read the book? Reading can create change; as we often note, reading is a catalyst for revolution. Books build emotional resonance (better than facts, even), knowledge, and critical thinking skills.

We might all be quick to dismiss such thoughts as wishful thinking. There’s no way many politicians would ever consider reading a book like Poverty, By America (even if it is authored by a white, cishet man). But what if everyone from a young age has access to a diverse range of stories, and if all educational courses we take growing up expose us to realities, problems, and varying solutions, especially when it comes to the United States’ history? As Mariame Kaba writes, “it’s time for a jailbreak of the imagination in order to make the impossible possible.”

This is exactly what readers have done throughout history—taken an idea that, at the time, felt simply impossible, and turned it into reality. One of the most infamous examples, of course, is how enslaved individuals used literacy to fight enslavers and the wider system of slavery. Anti-literacy laws were written in response to abolition and used to further justify slavery. Enslavers knew that educating Black men and women in reading and writing could be dangerous. By learning—and teaching one another—how to read and write, enslaved individuals were able to create documentation such as travel passes, and imagine “a world beyond bondage,” as historian Dr. Heather A. Williams wrote. In Black in Blues, author Imani Perry writes: “Even those who had no chance to learn to read gathered by candlelight around those who could, who could read aloud the words of abolitionist tracts, the word of God, and news about the war.”

Nat Turner’s rebellion is one of the most infamous examples of how literacy led to change during slavery. A reader of the Bible, Turner found stories within that supported fighting injustice, in direct opposition to how enslavers weaponized and controlled the text. The Rebellion not only led to new legislation prohibiting the education of enslaved individuals, but set the U.S. on its course toward the Civil War. And years later, after the end of the Civil War, Freedom Libraries across the South opened to combat the exclusion of Black individuals from public libraries—reimagining what a library is and who it serves. (This is something many are still actively working toward today, whether that’s getting more books to incarcerated individuals, or making libraries safe for everyone.)

In the early 1900s, a copy of The Jungle by Upton Sinclair landed in the hands of then-president Theodore Roosevelt. Not unlike Poverty, By America’s website suggests, the author sent a copy to the president to expose the nature of meatpacking plants. The book was in part what led Roosevelt to investigate the book’s accusations and pass the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906.

We’ve also seen how book bans have shaped not just our school and library systems, but brought communities together. Students have staged walkouts over book bans, and librarians have created organizations unifying their efforts, such as Amanda Jones’s Louisiana Citizens Against Censorship grassroots organization. There are also a number of accounts through history of librarians and booksellers hiding or documenting archives of books when they are at risk. Of course, this has also happened during the Israeli government’s oppression of Palestinians; not only are librarians archiving and tracking destroyed materials, but Palestinians have throughout the decades built public libraries from scratch using their own personal collection of books, due to Israel’s control over imports.

---

Ways to Respond

How can we, too, take action during this time?

First and foremost, we must continue to educate ourselves. Whether we’re learning from history or ways to push for societal change, reading can play a critical role in furthering our understanding of a more equitable future. Doing so can also encourage us to stay hopeful; change is radical, and requires radical imagination. (We suggest Let This Radicalize You, Mutual Aid, and We Do This ‘Til We Free Us to start.)

Once you’re done with such books, share what you’ve learned. Spread the word online, recommend the books to others, and donate the book to a Little Free Library or other free space.

To ensure that others are able to keep reading, we must fight for the Institute of Museum and Library Services, libraries, and independent bookshops, all of which play a critical role in making stories more accessible.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

We can join and support mutual aid organizations, community spaces, and grassroots initiatives that cultivate, share, and imagine resources for collective organization and change. Many of these are also indie bookstores, such as Firestorm Coop, an indie that runs mutual aid drives, or All Power Books in LA, which hosts workshops on mutual aid, sewing, and more.

And, importantly, we can continue to seek out and celebrate hopeful news. Whether following or donating to media sites such as Good Good Good or even promoting what has brought us hope, this can help many feel encouraged.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

---

Final Musings

The examples we’ve highlighted in this newsletter are only a few of the many, many times readers have directly used readership to cause change. We’ve spotlighted other examples before, such as booksellers working toward liberation and readers pushing Palestinian books to the top of bestseller lists. We can, and will continue, to build a more equitable society.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

If you have other examples, we’d love to hear more from you in the comments.

We will be taking a break in May from newsletters due to travel, but in the meantime we’ll keep sharing updates and resources on our Instagram. In the meantime, make sure to check out our reading-themed prints for a cause, free downloads (wallpapers, templates, and more), and our exclusive downloads for newsletter subscribers (with password newsletterdownloads). If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, don’t hesitate to get in touch via email, the comments below, or Instagram DM.

Xx,

ad astra

Our Favorite Reads of 2025 So Far

Plus, ways to support your indie this Indie Bookstore Day

What makes for an excellent book? Obviously the definition is subjective, based on personal tastes, cravings, interests, and more. What we consider a good book right now might not hold the same a year later. Aside from alllll the biases that go into the defining of a “good book” (tap into this post for more on that), I’ve always felt that an excellent book is defined by a feeling we can’t articulate. They are the books we need to speak immediately with someone, anyone, about, but have a hard time expressing our infatuation with beyond a “you have to read it.” (This is one of many reasons why I’ve never felt as interested in sharing book reviews on social media; to explain how wonderful a book is, others must simply read it themselves.) So I hesitate even to consider doing roundups or spotlights such as this one.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

Spring and fall tend to be the two “biggest” seasons for new releases. Publishers are looking ahead to two large reading seasons—summer trips and holiday gifting—and hoping to avoid the purchasing slumps that come in summer and winter when folks are traveling, busy, etc.* My favorite books of the year almost always end up releasing between February and May. Anyone who knows me understands that asking about my current reads during this time period can be dangerous—my expectations are high, meaning my disappointment is often dramatic.

But this year, I feel as if I’m on a streak. (Even writing that seems to tempt fate.) The books I’ve been most eager to read have, overwhelmingly, been ones I can’t stop recommending. And during a year that has felt both somehow incredibly long and short all at once, as we call into question the future of the publishing industry and wider society, these stories have given me larger frameworks to reflect on and understand what’s happening, as well as even enjoy the good—and active hope—that persists.

So what are the best books I’ve read so far this year? There have been a number I’ve enjoyed, many that I’ll recommend to others, but three stand out distinctly, filling me with that urgency to hand everyone I know a copy, simply so I have more people to speak about them with. In no particular order, they are:

1. Woodworking by Emily St. James

From the publisher: Erica Skyberg is thirty-five years old, recently divorced—and trans. Not that she's told anyone yet. Mitchell, South Dakota, isn't exactly bursting with other trans women. Instead, she keeps to herself, teaching by day and directing community theater by night. That is, until Abigail Hawkes enters her orbit.

Abigail is seventeen, Mitchell High's resident political dissident and Only Trans Girl. It's a role she plays faultlessly, albeit a little reluctantly. She's also annoyed by the idea of spending her senior year secretly guiding her English teacher through her transition. But Abigail remembers the uncertainty--and loneliness--that comes with it. Besides, Erica isn't the only one struggling to shed the weight of others' expectations.

As their unlikely friendship evolves, it comes under the scrutiny of their community. And soon, both women—and those closest to them--are forced to ask: Who are we if we choose to hide ourselves? What happens once we disappear into the woodwork?

Detransition Baby meets Fleishman is in Trouble in this remarkable debut novel from an incisive contemporary voice. A story about the awkwardness of growing up and the greatest love story of all, that between us and our friends, Woodworking is a tonic for the moment and a celebration of womanhood in all its multifaceted joy.

2. One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad

From the publisher: On October 25, 2023, after just three weeks of the bombardment of Gaza, Omar El Akkad put out a tweet: “One day, when it’s safe, when there’s no personal downside to calling a thing what it is, when it’s too late to hold anyone accountable, everyone will have always been against this.” This tweet has been viewed more than 10 million times.

As an immigrant who came to the West, El Akkad believed that it promised freedom. A place of justice for all. But in the past twenty years, reporting on the War on Terror, Ferguson, climate change, Black Lives Matter protests, and more, and watching the unmitigated slaughter in Gaza, El Akkad has come to the conclusion that much of what the West promises is a lie. That there will always be entire groups of human beings it has never intended to treat as fully human—not just Arabs or Muslims or immigrants, but whoever falls outside the boundaries of privilege. One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This is a chronicle of that painful realization, a moral grappling with what it means, as a citizen of the U.S., as a father, to carve out some sense of possibility in a time of carnage.

This is El Akkad’s nonfiction debut, his most raw and vulnerable work to date, a heartsick breakup letter with the West. It is a brilliant articulation of the same breakup we are watching all over the United States, in family rooms, on college campuses, on city streets; the consequences of this rupture are just beginning. This book is for all the people who want something better than what the West has served up. This is the book for our time.

3. The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

From the publisher: Writer Karla Cornejo Villavicencio was on DACA when she decided to write about being undocumented for the first time using her own name. It was right after the election of 2016, the day she realized the story she’d tried to steer clear of was the only one she wanted to tell. So she wrote her immigration lawyer’s phone number on her hand in Sharpie and embarked on a trip across the country to tell the stories of her fellow undocumented immigrants—and to find the hidden key to her own.

Looking beyond the flashpoints of the border or the activism of the DREAMers, Cornejo Villavicencio explores the lives of the undocumented—and the mysteries of her own life. She finds the singular, effervescent characters across the nation often reduced in the media to political pawns or nameless laborers. The stories she tells are not deferential or naively inspirational but show the love, magic, heartbreak, insanity, and vulgarity that infuse the day-to-day lives of her subjects.

In New York, we meet the undocumented workers who were recruited into the federally funded Ground Zero cleanup after 9/11. In Miami, we enter the ubiquitous botanicas, which offer medicinal herbs and potions to those whose status blocks them from any other healthcare options. In Flint, Michigan, we learn of demands for state ID in order to receive life-saving clean water. In Connecticut, Cornejo Villavicencio, childless by choice, finds family in two teenage girls whose father is in sanctuary. And through it all we see the author grappling with the biggest questions of love, duty, family, and survival.

In her incandescent, relentlessly probing voice, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio combines sensitive reporting and powerful personal narratives to bring to light remarkable stories of resilience, madness, and death. Through these stories we come to understand what it truly means to be a stray. An expendable. A hero. An American.

Other favorites this year have included Big Familia, Liquid, and Stag Dance.

*Of course, such a release schedule begs the question as to whether or not books released outside of spring and fall receive the same amount of marketing, publicity, and sales support (and advance promises). What patterns do we see in whose books are released when?

---

Other books we are reading (or hope to read) this month:

✅Liberating Abortion by Renee Bracey Sherman and Regina Mahone

✅Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis

✅The Hollow Half by Sarah Aziza

✅The Night Trembles by Nadia Terranova, translated by Ann Goldstein

✅🎧What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon

🗓️Zeal by Morgan Jerkins

🗓️Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry

Note: For books we have completed, we’ll only include here ones we recommend.

Books new to our TBR:

• The Fantasy and Necessity of Solidarity by Sarah Schulman

• Learned by Heart by Emma Donoghue

---

The 2025 ad astra Readership Challenge: “Show support for the independent bookstore(s) you love.”

We’ve written at length before about the importance of supporting independent bookshops and how readers can do so—no matter our budgets. And as large corporations, such as Amazon and Target, continue to make clear their priorities, investing in small businesses that align with our values is always important.

Saturday, April 26 is Independent Bookstore Day, a day that aims to champion and uplift indie bookstores and all they do to cultivate community. Community is essential in our ongoing efforts to fight against not just the current administration’s ideologies and orders, but longstanding and deeply rooted societal inequities.

Here are some ways we can support indie bookstores on April 26 and beyond:

• Shop in person: Especially with the unknown future of tariffs, indie bookstores and other small businesses are going to be hit incredibly hard. While books continue to be exempt from tariffs on China—where most books are printed—many of the other products stores sell, their packaging, etc. will be impacted. And because of a likely rise in shipping costs, we will probably see an increase in book prices. That being said, these stores are not the enemy and many are already fearing closure. Keep supporting them financially when we can, and keep letting the administration know that they’re hurting small businesses.

  • If they don’t have what you want in store, you can request it from them, or order it online directly from their website.

  • If your indie doesn’t have an online store, you can order books from them via Bookshop.org—but definitely try to order directly from the store first, as they keep a larger portion of the sale. You can also now support your indie with ebooks via Bookshop.org.

• Attend their events: Whether in person or virtual, your attendance helps boost sales and shows publishers that they should schedule events there again in the future.

• Follow and engage with them on social media: Like, share, and comment on their posts, tag them in pictures of your bookstore visits, and share their profile with others.

• Support them with audiobooks: Libro.fm allows you to purchase audiobooks through your indie bookshop. You can start a monthly membership, purchase audiobook credit bundles, or buy audiobooks à la carte—a portion always goes to the indie of your choice.

• Subscribe to their email newsletter: You will likely hear about events, new releases, bookseller recs, and more.

• Purchase non-bookish gifts from them: Many bookstores sell candles, notebooks, art, journals, calendars, puzzles, cards, and more. Think of them whenever you have a gift to purchase, not just for book lovers!

• Grab gift cards: Whether gifting these to others, giving them away on social media, or getting for yourself to use, gift cards are a great way to help a bookstore get an upfront purchase.

• Spread the word: Tell your friends, family, and coworkers about moving away from Amazon and supporting indies.

• Divest from Amazon and large corporations in other areas of your life. Whether choosing a different e-reader service, limiting how much you order from them online, changing your One Medical subscription, etc., diminishing Amazon’s power helps all small businesses—including indie bookstores.

About the challenge -

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

Folks who complete all the prompts by EOY will be entered to win a $100 gift card to their indie bookstore of choice. Those who finish at least six of the prompts will receive an exclusive ad astra sticker. In December, we'll share a submission link to complete as proof of participation. (Our downloadable tracker will be helpful for this!)

Want to participate? Join our Broadcast Channel on Instagram, follow our newsletter, and get your friends to join!

---

Other publishing updates:

• National Library Week took place earlier this month. Libraries, librarians, and library workers need our support more than ever. Here’s why and how.

• Inkitt plans to expand into generative AI…which is concerning for a number of reasons.

• HarperCollins was the only Big Five publisher to not call on Congress to restore funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Let them know your thoughts.

adastra_stories

A post shared by @adastra_stories

---

Thanks so much for taking the time to read! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share with friends, and consider subscribing if you have not yet already. Also, in case you missed it, we have launched prints! Learn more and place an order here.

We’ll be back in a few weeks with the latest publishing updates.

Xx,

ad astra