Wednesday Book Club - Bad Words

Sidetrack Bookshop BOOK CLUB discussing Bad Words, by Rioghnach Robinson. Led by Sidetrack Bookseller, Courtney. * *Note: $5 registration fee can be used as a credit toward a purchase in-store. The credit expires the night of book club.** Join us for Book Club! Sidetrack Bookshop is a mission-driven bookstore, which means (in part) that we are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive space for people of all identities. In order to maintain our welcoming and inclusive space in the context of what we hope will be a lively and productive book club discussion, we have developed the following house rules. By attending a book club meeting, you agree to the following: • Share the floor: Be sure to let everyone talk and express their thoughts on the book. If you feel like you're talking a lot, you probably are! Invite others to speak. • Be respectful: We'll no doubt have differing opinions. Seek to understand first, then to be understood. Check your privilege, and take special care with others who have lived experience differing from your own. • Comments or behavior that demean a specific person, identity, or culture will not be tolerated. Book club hosts will keep these house rules in mind and will redirect you or the conversation as a whole if we feel they aren't being honored. We also reserve the right to ask an attendee to leave if we feel they're contributing to an unwelcome space. About the Book A magnetic, undeniably clever debut perfect for fans of Sally Rooney and Emily Henry that captures the tender ache of two people caught between criticism and connection. Parker Navarro's buzzy debut novel should've been the book of the year. Instead, it was panned so harshly by notorious critic Selina Chan that it became the literary flop of the decade. Four years later, his new novel marks a second chance. Selina's carefully curated life is a result of the sacrifices she's made in her pursuit for excellence. The last thing she wants to do is review Parker's second book, but as the only Asian-American staffer at City Magazine, and with the iconic publication in financial trouble, she has no choice. The review goes live: a devastating pan, again. That night, at an industry party, Parker and Selina erupt in a fight that's secretly filmed-and it goes viral, driving Parker's preorders and City's subscription numbers. As Parker and Selina are pitted against each other through pointed interviews and in-person clashes, their jabs about publishing, criticism, and who gets to lead an artist's life give way to the realization that they might be more like-minded than they thought. While the feud carries on in public, a different conversation begins in private, especially after they're thrust together one snowy New York evening and begin an epistolary exchange that starts to feel a lot like flirting. Witty and endlessly charming, Ríoghnach Robinson's Bad Words is about the power of writing and the unexpected intimacy of being truly, wholeheartedly, read. About the Author RÍOGHNACH (pronounced ree-uh-nock) ROBINSON is the author of six YA novels published under the pen name Riley Redgate, most recently Come Home to My Heart. Her books have been published on four continents, optioned for film and TV, and named to best-of-the-year lists by ALA, Kirkus Reviews, and the New York Public Library. She is also the writer of the WEBTOON Originals series Angel of Death and has written for The Onion, America's Finest News Source. Bad Words is her adult debut. You can find her on Instagram at @rileyredgate and @rioghnachrobinson.