i love an nyc-based novel, which is so cliche new york and borderline irritating. but idc.

these are my favorite books based in the greatest city in the world:

1. passing by nella larsen- it is a lush love letter to blackness, to harlem, to secrets. the movie is somehow just as wonderful.
2. sweetbitter by stephanie danler- sb was released the year after i left the city, and it devoured me. it’s not a love for everyone, but honestly, what is?
3. fates and furies by lauren groff- so fucking good. 2nd place LOML book.
4. red at the bone by jacqueline woodson- prose.prose.prose.
5. the devil wears prada by lauren weisberger- when you are young, borderline broke and working in fashion, life is both horrific and unbelievably fabulous. the scene when andi gets off the train @ 59th and lex is so visceral, it catapults me to the entrance of bloomingdale’s and so many manhattan saturdays.
6. luster by raven leilani- a wiiiiild ride. see above about the horrors of being 20-something. raven is expert at forcing the reader to not only face, but normalize the uncomfortable emotions of everyday life.
7. the city we became by nk jemisin- the storytelling could be tighter, but what a magnificent ode to the boroughs!

there is the girl who loves nyc, xx.