My ABC TV/KATU Reviews

For some reason, I never really tell people I’ve been reviewing books on KATU TV/ABC Portland for years. I think I don’t tell people because I feel like I’m making it up when I say “I review books on TV.”

It’s a weird thing to say.

It’s a weird thing to do.

Also, I feel like, well, it’s a local station and since I used to appear on so many massive shows, there was something a little like “Who cares?” about this. But then it occurred to me that are so many places where authors get ripped to shreds that whatever small part I can play in putting better energy out there for people who are doing something I consider noble is important.

I don’t get paid to do this. It came about because I went onto KATU a few years ago to promote one of my books and after my segment, the very sweet booker told me I could come back any time.

I think she expected me to say, “Great, thank you!” Instead I said, “Can I be your book critic?”

(Not to state the obvious but she said yes. Ironically, since she’s not the host of the show but was filling in the day the episode above was shot, it’s Tammy, the lovely woman interviewing me in this segment above.)

This means that I get to indulge in my addiction to reading in ways I could only dream of. I’m sent every book you can imagine1 and more, which means that I have the luxury of reading a few pages or even 75% of it and then deciding I simply don’t want to finish, and I don’t have to feel guilty since I didn’t buy it. (I understand that this is also how the library works; I love the library but I also have to hold up each book when I talk about it so it wouldn’t work for this.2)

But now I’ve decided not only to share them but also to create a hub for ALL the reviews I’ve done over the years.

I figured with everyone always lamenting the death of the book critic—and with the advent of things like Claude Code—it wasn’t actually that hard to gather them all in a gorgeously searchable database.

It’s actually the coolest thing ever. Please check it out; if you like books, you won’t regret it. You can search by title or author—or just browse.

I have no idea what this database will turn into, if anything. I’ve learned that I never really know what anything will ever turn into and I need to just make the thing to find out.

My most recent KATU segment video is above and the written out reviews are below. I’ll start sharing these whenever I have them (I usually go on about four times a year; really depends on how many books I’m reading and loving). If you want to see the backlog, you can do that here.

BTW the grouping this month is essentially made up of the most buzzed-about books this year but that’s not always the case. In fact, I usually recommend books that are far more obscure. But these were far too special to not discuss!

Famesick by Lena Dunham

I will preface by saying that I am a Lena Dunham stan who watches and reads everything she does. Because I was obsessed with both her show Girls and her first book, I salivated over reading this from the moment she first announced it was coming out. And it did not disappoint. Now, we’ve seen celebrity memoirs that are well-written—sometimes but not often. We’ve read celebrity memoirs that dish. But to my knowledge. there’s never been a celebrity memoir that is equal parts exquisite, hilarious, honest writing and DISH with a capital D. There’s a reason that snippets from the book captivated gossip columnists every day for at least the first month it was out. Lena reveals every bit of what it was like getting Girls made—really showing how unlikely it was, an interesting angle when from the outside its success looked so inevitable and enviable—but also what it’s like to grapple with a chronic illness without knowing what it was (until a stranger wrote and told her that her symptoms made it sound like it was Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which it was). Sickness can be romanticized on social media, where waif girls post photos from hospital beds—sick girl porn, for lack of a better phrase. Lena Dunham shows what that’s really like and it’s not romantic. Really, Famesick manages to be many things at once, which is what made it an insta classic to be read over and over—and not just for the gossip (even though the goss is GOOD.)

Strangers by Belle Burden

This was another book that captivated the gossip columnists, primarily because it was about an extremely privileged woman—the granddaughter of Babe Paley, no less—being left by her husband in a shockingly callous way. But while the “oh, how the mighty have fallen” vibe may have brought people in, it’s Burden’s storytelling skill that made them stay. It’s not easy to come across as incredibly likable when you’re wealthy beyond most people’s comprehension and seem to have mindlessly handed full financial control over to someone untrustworthy. But Burden manages it—and well. When she talks about being socially awkward and not a part of the socialite set, it seems entirely believable and you can’t help but take her side. More than just a high-end divorce memoir, Strangers examines what it’s like when trust is entirely eroded in an instant, what it’s like to have to do a life-do over when you thought you’d found your happily-ever-after and how much the trappings people think can insulate you can’t protect you from pain. Perhaps the ultimate sign that this book has “made it” is that it’s already in development as a movie starring Gwyneth Paltrow.

Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash

I don’t think I’ve had more fun reading a book in years than I had reading this. Ostensibly about the Flynn family—a couple going through a troubled patch and their three daughters—but Lost Lambs is about so much more. There’s the daughter who’s convinced their town is being watched. The other daughter who infiltrates a tech billionaire’s inner circle and is dating a guy known as War Crimes Wes. And still another who gets pulled into religious extremism. Then there’s their father, who falls for a plain librarian leading a church group and their mother, who plans to run off with their neighbor until she discovers the art he’s been creating. You’re more than laughing on every page; you’re also marveling at Cash’s brain—how it comes up with the words and scenarios it does and just hoping she’ll write a sequel as soon as humanly possible.

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

This was yet another 2026 book that caused a sensation (it’s already in development with Anne Hathaway scheduled to play the lead). It’s one of those rare novels where the premise—a trad wife wakes up in the 1800s and has to do all the things she pretends she’s been doing on social media—is as good as the execution. I breezed through the chapters, laughing at how catty the protagonist Natalie was, as she said sweet things and thought the opposite. Despite her cattiness, I felt for her when she invited someone into her life who ended up betraying her. And then, as the chapters switched back and forth between her life as a trad wife influencer and her far more somber one as a pioneer wife, I tried to imagine how on earth the story would resolve itself. Was she dreaming? On a reality show? Doing time travel? Let’s just say that the reveal was so shocking, and heartbreaking, that I ended up sobbing in a nail salon. (I’ve asked several friends who read it if they also cried at the end and they didn’t so I think the extreme response was more a “me” thing than a general thing. The point is this book is as incredible as the hype; I haven’t stopped thinking about it for days.

CHECK OUT MY BOOK REVIEW DATABASE HERE