Hey, magical folx! In this episode we discuss Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, which is *NOT* YA. We gotta say this at the top because its some sexist bs that women/femme adult fantasy writers get miscategorized as YA (read about how sexism impacts genre categorization). *Call to action* This fortnight, we’re urging our magical community to learn more about abolishing borders, abolishing ICE and migrant justice as well as to support organizations doing this work. Watch/listen to the final plenary from this year’s Allied Media Conference, “From Dreams to Practice: Abolition in Our Lifetimes”. The panel features a TON of rad ppl doing abolitionist work, including Miski Noor, Tawana “Honeycomb” Petty, Andrea Ritchie, Toni-Michelle Williams, Mariame Kaba and Rachel Herzing. Check out their work and learn learn learn and act act act [Note: I (K) attended the AMC virtually and I was BLOWN AWAY by the wisdom shared. Cannot recommend enough] Check out Harsha Walia’s Ted Talk “A World Without State Borders”. Her book Undoing Border Imperialism is definitely on my TBR! Abolish ICE Denver is just one of the groups doing the work. They have an encampment outside of the Aurora ICE detention facility run by the for-profit prison company GEO Group. Check out their instagram for updates and action items. And donate if you can! **This isn’t an exhaustive list! Please do research for your local area and share with us any resources you find in your journey. We will share those on Instagram and Twitter. We are often posting resources on social media as well, so check that out, too! Additionally, if you get a chance and are able, please consider becoming a patron on Patreon to get episodes early, access to our discord, and more. Or you can make a one time donation on ko-fi. Support feminist media, ppl! <3 Transcript below (or access the pdf version) And now onto notes, notes, and more notes: Y’all, I (K) was today years old when I found out we can read the entire Popul Vuh translated into English for free. An excellent article that traces the history of the Maya Quiché/Ki’che peoples of what-is-now-called Mesoamerica (Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Belize). And here’s a Khan Academy resource on the region – it’s a great introduction the MANY peoples who are indigenous to the area. A primer on the history of the Mexican Revolution (1910-1917/20), including its antecedents and consequences – video en español and video in English. This PBS video explains why being poor costs more than being rich. An article on anti-Blackness in Latin American countries and how it is enshrined by specific policies. A resource for non-Black POC about how to have convos about anti-Blackness within various communities. J recommends the sci-fi tv show Altered Carbon  (available on netflix) If you’re interested, the New Yorker article “Affect Theory and the New Age of Anxiety” is a good read and includes a primer on affect theory (aka what and how we feel individually and collectively). I (K) am always nerding out about this stuff, so hmu if you want to discuss. The Maya were badass astronomers. Check out this interview with UC Santa Barbara professor Gerardo Aldana to learn more. Speaking of stars, I (K) talk a bit about how much I love space, astronomy, astrology or as I say in the episode, “that star shit” lol. One of my favorite astro-related resources that I use all the time is NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD). It gives me some peace and perspective to see a nebula 70 million light years away. Books mentioned in the episode: Mexican Gothic, Silvia M-G’s new horror novel (also *NOT* YA) As always, we’d love to be in discussion with you, magical folx. Post or tweet about the show using #criticallyreading. Let us know what you think of the episode, anything we missed, or anything else you want us to know by dropping a line in the comments or reaching out to us on twitter or Instagram (@thelibrarycoven),