Leah Rachel von Essen
Leah Rachel von Essen is a writer and editor who gets most of her reading done while walking. She works full-time as a magazine assistant editor, while also reviewing for Booklist, writing for Book Riot and other publications, writing her blog, and working on writing and querying her novels. She uses her spare time to watch women's soccer, travel, and sometimes even sleep. Originally from New Jersey, she came to the South Side of Chicago to study magical realism, surrealism, fairy tales, religious studies, and the forms of the novel at the University of Chicago. She, her cat Ms. Nellie Bly, and her two large bookshelves live reading-and-walking distance from Lake Michigan. Leah writes about the books she's reading at While Reading and Walking. Twitter: @reading_while
14 Books in Translation from Western Africa
Leah Rachel von Essen
June 28, 2022
Get ready to dig into these 14 fantastic books in translation from Mauritania, Senegal, Cote D'Ivoire, Togo, Mali, and more.
11 Amazing Books About the Wonder of Trees
Leah Rachel von Essen
June 27, 2022
Whether you’re a fellow tree hugger or just starting your tree-loving journey, there’s so much to learn and love in these books about trees, including Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness by Dr. Qing Li.
The 100 Most Influential Queer Books of All Time
Leah Rachel von Essen
June 6, 2022
From Sappho to Audre Lorde to Rivers Solomon, we track the 100 most influential queer books—fiction, nonfiction, and poetry—of all time, including The City and the Pillar by Gore Vidal.
14 Must-Read Chinese Books in English Translation
Leah Rachel von Essen
May 12, 2022
From lost reindeer in The Last Quarter of the Moon to blood donation in Chronicle of a Blood Merchant, the stories in these books in translation are impossible to put down.
How Book Descriptions Can Ruin a Good Book
Leah Rachel von Essen
May 10, 2022
From The Tone Liar to The Excessive Tease, I break down how the description on the back cover can ruin a reader's whole experience.
11 of the Best Swedish Books Available in English Translation
Leah Rachel von Essen
April 28, 2022
Swedish books aren’t just crime novels. Check out these Swedish grim dystopias, exciting thrillers, and emotional contemporary novels, including The Family Clause by Jonas Hassen Khemiri, translated by Alice Menzies.
I Took an Anti-Burnout Reading Vacation (And You Should Too)
Leah Rachel von Essen
April 11, 2022
By setting up a list of rules that kept me grounded, I pressed the "restart" button on my hyperactive, anxious brain.
Please Start Reading Books for What They Are
Leah Rachel von Essen
April 7, 2022
When reviewing a book publicly, consider whether you're critiquing it unfairly because of its intended age group or genre.
8 Weird, Twisty, Dark Comics and Graphic Novels
Leah Rachel von Essen
March 21, 2022
From Junji Ito’s tight, spiraling ink work in Uzumaki to Hannah Berry’s rich greenish shadows in Adamtine, these eight books will leave you deliciously unsettled.
14 Incredible Brazilian Books Available in English Translation
Leah Rachel von Essen
March 14, 2022
Dive into Brazilian literature, from the works of Clarice Lispector to Jorge Amado, with this list of books available in English translation.