In Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner (St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2022), three young women work in a bookstore during the 1950s with the intent of proving that women could be equal. Even with a degree from Cambridge, Evie is overlooked for jobs because she is a woman. When she finally finds a position in a bookstore, the manager is eager to keep women "in their place." Along with her coworkers Grace and Vivien, she hopes to bring much-needed change to the bookstore and the treatment of women. A glorious battle of wits that mirrors a changing world, powered by strong and determined women.

Martha Wainwright (sister of Rufus), an accomplished artist in her own right, recounts her life story in Stories I Might Regret Telling You (Random House of Canada, 2022). From her upbringing in Montreal and New York with a musically influenced family to her evolution into a successful musician and everything in between, her honesty is compelling, demonstrating insecurities and struggles while trying to find her place among her renowned siblings. And yet, she hides nothing, telling the reader her truth as if she were speaking to a friend.

Not one to boast about her beauty or desires, Lou is more comfortable behind the camera than in front of it. But when a tragic accident leads Lou to New York, she finds herself immersed in a fashion and modelling culture she never aspired for. Body Grammar by Jules Ohman (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2022) is a realistic look into a gruelling and judgemental world, where a sympathetic character learns to walk proud and hold her head high for all to see. An exquisitely well-developed queer story that is also charming and pleasantly comforting.

I rarely read a new release for pleasure, mostly because I’m drowning in the previous month’s releases. But The Messy Lives of Book People by Phaedra Patrick (Park Row Books, 2022) sounds like the title I would give my memoir, so I had to pick it up — and I’m happy I did. Liv has always put family first at the price of her dreams of being a writer. Her income as a cleaning lady combined with her husband’s can barely afford them the meagre but enjoyable life they lead with their two teenage boys. But when her client — a well-to-do successful author — dies, an opportunity to write and be rich falls right into her lap. However, as she learns, the price of what you dream of may be more costly than imagined. An uplifting and heartwarming story about books, those who read them, and those who write them.