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Blessed Solstice, dear readers! As 2025 comes to an end, I wanted to take an opportunity to share some of the texts and stories that have brought me joy this year.
In January, I decided to make a concerted effort to start doing more reading outside of academics and work. And it paid off—I completed eight (edit: 9!) entire books, read just for pleasure! I’m hoping that in 2026 I can hit at least a dozen.
You’ll notice that a lot of these aren’t exactly books about disability. I did read a fair few of those, but mostly for an independent study project. Still, I find that no field is complete in isolation, and it’s best to consider themes and ideas as they connect across disciplines. Thus, there are disability connections to be made for most, if not all, of these texts.
Below you’ll find each book I completed this year and some of my thoughts on it if you want to check it out. You might discover a fun new gem on this list. If you’ve got suggestions for what I read next year, drop ’em down in the comments.
Table of Contents:
- 1. Madness on Trial: A Transatlantic History of English Civil Law and Lunacy
- 2. Lucida Intervalla
- 3. Thirteen Storeys
- 4. Polysecure
- 5. The Queering of Corporate America: How Big Business Went from LGBTQ Adversary to Ally
- 6. The Lives of Spiders: A Natural History of the World’s Spiders
- 7. Encounters with the Archdruid
- 8. Bandersnatch
- 9. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
1. Madness on Trial: A Transatlantic History of English Civil Law and Lunacy
By James Moran
Finished: January 19th
The title sounds fascinating, right? Like a perfect cozy couch read?
Ok, I’ll admit, this is a dense academic text, and it’s definitely not for everyone. But if you’re interested in historical English conceptions of madness, the roots of modern psychiatry, and/or early English law, read this book. James Moran is a fantastic scholar, explaining ideas and connecting so many pieces of historical evidence that it starts to feel like the cleanest red-string board ever. And any information he doesn’t cover, you can find in one of his many, many sources.
2. Lucida Intervalla
By James Carkesse
Finished: January 21st
This short chapbook is the first published English book of poetry written by a patient of a madhouse—what we would today call a psychiatric hospital. Interned for six months in 1678, first in Finnesbury and then in the infamous Bedlam, Carkesse holds nothing back in his scathing review of the frankly appalling treatment he received. His poetry sheds light on the darker sides of 17th century English society, and still has a lot to teach us today.
How fitting that my 2025 started with Moran and Carkesse, as I have finished it working on a project for a literature class—a project focused on none other than this book of poetry. I even got to take a look at the original copy held in the Huntington Library!
3. Thirteen Storeys
By Jonathan Sims
Finished: March 11th
A very rapid tonal shift from the previous two books, this is a horror fiction novel that is equal parts mysterious, unnerving, and entertaining. Sims is the writer behind “The Magnus Archives,” a favored podcast of mine. I enjoyed that this novel had a very different feel, with an undertone of the type of creeping dread he specializes in.
4. Polysecure
By Jessica Fern
Finished: July 11th
Tonal shifts abound! I followed texts by interest and relevance, and sometimes read multiple at a time, or switched back and forth. So don’t think I read all of these necessarily one after the other.
Polysecure is a stunning overview of attachment, trauma, and consensual non-monogamy. It’s a beginner’s introduction to attachment theory, various types of non-monogamy, and how trauma interplays with both of those things. There are many great diagrams and reference pages I’ve flipped back to.
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5. The Queering of Corporate America: How Big Business Went from LGBTQ Adversary to Ally
By Carlos A. Ball
Finished: August 12th
The first book I read this year where none of the author’s names started with a J!
This was an impulse pickup at my local library, and I’m glad for it. I learned a lot about the history of LGBTQ+ activism, strategies for changing the minds of businesses, and how much of a leader Minnesota has often been. In fact, I learned enough to write a series of posts about it for Rachel.
6. The Lives of Spiders: A Natural History of the World’s Spiders
By Ximena Nelson
Finished: August 30th
This book was a birthday gift, and don’t tell anyone else, but it was definitely my favorite one. I may have finished it August 30th, but I have picked it back up again many times since then. It’s accessible and beginner-friendly, but also gives deep information about spiders of all kinds. It has fed my special interest immensely.
7. Encounters with the Archdruid
By John McPhee
Finished: September 9th
I made it two books before returning to an author with a J name. What can I say? It’s a good letter, and there’s a reason why it’s my middle initial.
Jokes aside, McPhee is a phenomenal writer. I’ve spent much of the latter part of the year considering our relationships with the natural world, and this book was a part of that. A seamless weave of nature writing and profiling, McPhee presents complex debates in a relatable, digestible, sometimes irreverent way. I’m reading another one of his books for a class in the spring, and am immeasurably excited.
8. Bandersnatch
Edited by Paul Tremblay and Sean Wallace
Finished: November 29th
If I was given a device that could change any one moment in my life, I would make it so that in mid-2007 I would be in Cabin John, Maryland, where I could accidentally start a fire in the headquarters of Wildside Press, unfortunately causing every copy of this book to be wiped from existence. Then I could live in magnificent bliss, ignorant of the mere idea of this waste of paper, time, and creative effort.
(edited to add a late December finish:)
9. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
By Robin Wall Kimmerer
Finished: December 29th
I am so, so glad to not be finishing the year with Bandersnatch! I’d actually been reading this book since the end of summer, but it’s long, and I took some breaks from it. Finally finished it right before the New Year.
Having read Gathering Moss a couple years ago, I knew I’d love this book, and I was not disappointed. One of my biggest takeaways will be from one of the closing essays of the book, “Windigo Footprints.” I finally have the right conceptual language to explain my disdain for every film/TV adaptation of the Windigo/Wendigo I’ve seen, as well as an effective metaphor for the often faceless machine of capitalism.
As always, Kimmerer’s writing is both hugely informative and deeply personal. Easily on my list of top 10 authors. She blends knowledge of plants, economies, society, science, cultural survival, settler colonialism, and (in this case) folklore in such an accessible way.
There you have it: my 2025 reading list, complete with absolutely entirely unbiased reviews. Have you read any of these books and have thoughts you want to share? Even better, do you want to recommend books for me to read next (at the sorrow of my to-read shelf)? You can leave a comment down below or leave your favorite tome in the hollow of a local tree. And if you liked this post, make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next one.
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Ashton Rose 