While I love a good spooky book, it’s not all that I like to read in the autumn months. Here’s a short list of new books to check out this October—and none of them are horror-specific.
Fans of the Netflix mockumentary Cunk on Earth will love this encyclopedia from its leading character. Full of her trademark misunderstandings, sarcasm, wit, and (somewhat surprisingly) history, this book alphabetically covers random topics like the Black Death, Hiccups, the Mystery of Life, and “Walliam Wallace.”
The memoir of a true celebrity, Emmy-award winning actress and activist Kerry Washington: readers see an intimate portrayal of Kerry Washington’s life so far, her journeys as mother, daughter, wife, artist, advocate, and otherwise trailblazer all the while searching for her most authentic self.
At first blush, this might look like a memoir from Outlander star, Sam Heughan, but it’s more than that: he frames this book with his travel along Scotland’s ninety-six-mile West Highland Way. While it’s certainly a personal journey, the book reads like a love letter to Scotland.
You probably remember the story of Polly Klaas. In 1993, she was 12 years old, and she was kidnapped from a slumber party with two friends while her own mother slept in the room next door. It was the rarest kind of kidnapping, a stranger abduction from the home, and it got everyone’s attention between California and China. These are the stories of those who investigated the case, shared for the first time.
Mary Kay McBrayer is the author of America’s First Female Serial Killer: Jane Toppan and the Making of a Monster. You can find her short works at Oxford American, Narratively, Mental Floss, and FANGORIA, among other publications. She co-hosts Everything Trying to Kill You, the comedy podcast that analyzes your favorite horror movies from the perspectives of women of color. Follow Mary Kay McBrayer on Instagram and Twitter, or check out her author site here.
