1164 ratings | 1067 reviews | avg rating:3.00

Ciara’s Year In Books

Ciara’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Ciara’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

Go to Ciara’s 2025 Year in Books

Ciara Xyerra’s Followers (418)

Ciara’s Bookshelves

to-read (2722)
currently-reading (3)
read (1865)
did-not-finish (0)
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2023 (5)
52-book-club-2023 (52)
about-magic (1)
alleged-humor (32)
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Ciara’s Friends (271)

aabha!

995 books | 379 friends

Timothy

2,188 books | 316 friends

Jenn Estepp

4,807 books | 303 friends

Jess

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Yael

310 books | 98 friends

Bethany

1,039 books | 72 friends

Lindsey W McLaughlin

397 books | 287 friends

Hannah W

957 books | 129 friends

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2026 Reading Challenge

2026

READING

CHALLENGE

Ciara has read 91 of 200 books.

46%

Ciara Xyerra

Goodreads Author

Born

in Toledo, The United States

Website

https://bookshop.org/shop/ciarareadsalot

Genre

Biographies & Memoirs, Humor, Nonfiction

Influences

Angela Carter, Shirley Jackson, Claire Dederer, Roxane Gay, Katherine ...more

Member Since

July 2008

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/ciaraxyerra

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You might remember me from such preposterously long-named zine projects as "A Renegade's Handbook to Love & Sabotage" (1999-200something) or Learning to Leave a Paper Trail Zine Distro (2003-2010). I was also involved with zines way back in the 90s & if you know me from THEN...wow! We are middle-aged now! Isn't it wild? & I don't even need to introduce myself to you because apparently we've known each other for more than half our lives. Bananas!

Maybe you know me from a more recent time in my life, post-2012, which has been dedicated to my two more recent passions: being a mom & sewing. I have a great kid, & with great kids come the discovery of great new directions in life (sometimes). I happened to stumble across a sewing machine & I found You might remember me from such preposterously long-named zine projects as "A Renegade's Handbook to Love & Sabotage" (1999-200something) or Learning to Leave a Paper Trail Zine Distro (2003-2010). I was also involved with zines way back in the 90s & if you know me from THEN...wow! We are middle-aged now! Isn't it wild? & I don't even need to introduce myself to you because apparently we've known each other for more than half our lives. Bananas!

Maybe you know me from a more recent time in my life, post-2012, which has been dedicated to my two more recent passions: being a mom & sewing. I have a great kid, & with great kids come the discovery of great new directions in life (sometimes). I happened to stumble across a sewing machine & I found out that if there's one thing I love even more than zines (I didn't think it possible!) it is making my own clothes. I love it so much that I even went to school for it & am now a professionally-trained pattern drafter & fashion designer! I can write, I can mom, I can sew!

But I also love to READ! I stopped reviewing books here when my kid was little because it felt like homework & you know what I don't need? 100% optional homework that I am forcing myself to do out of some kind of weird sense of obligation. But I do LOVE to read & I do like to talk about what I read, especially when it's really, really good, or really, really bad (though I am a lot less inclined to tolerate the really, really bad as I get older--I don't mind just not finishing a not-great book anymore, & I won't read a "popular" book just for the sake of "having an opinion").

Some of the most popular reviews I have ever written have been my most scathing ones: "All About Love," "Clown Girl," "Cleaving" (I felt a tiny bit bad about that one when Julie Powell recently passed, but...a terrible book is a terrible book), but I have grown up a lot in the last ten years & I don't think I would write those same reviews today. I have also finally learned how to really read fiction with my entire brain & not just the part that makes snap judgments & generates plot synopses, which might make for less-fun reviews, but it has improved my own personal reading experience enormously! Did you know that you can actually appreciate complicated things without rushing to judgment & that some of life's most exquisite pleasures arise from the challenge of holding two conflicting ideas in your head at one time? What a revelation!

So if you remember my reviews from ten years ago, expect some changes. If you are new & you decide to read my reviews from ten years ago...spicy, huh? Expect changes. & if you are new & just going to move forward with me, hello, & welcome. I will still get spicy, I can't help it. But I also appreciate the wonder of living now, & the difficulties of trying to do a thing. I've filed down the edges a bit. It has resulted in about a 35% decrease in the quantity of jokes about dropkicking babies into active volcanoes. Let us clasp hands as we venture into the stacks. ...more

638 posts
Ciara Xyerra's Blog

how I’ve changed my story

It’s been a long time since I wrote a blog post. A lot has changed. The highlights:
– My co-parent started a gender transition at the end of 2018. Our relationship was already struggling, but that kind of pushed it over the edge. I was supportive as a friend, but I’m pretty straight. We tried to make it work for about a year, but finally called it at the end of 2019, right before the pandemic start

Combine Editions
Ciara Xyerra’s books

Average rating: 3.85 · 20 ratings · 3 reviews · 3 distinct works

	You Live for the Fight When That’s All That You’ve Got #1 4.15 avg rating — 13 ratings — published 2008	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	love letters to monsters #2 3.17 avg rating — 6 ratings — published 2009	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	love letters to monsters #1 really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1 rating — published 2007	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

Ciara is Currently Reading

Ciara is currently reading

Hamnet

by Maggie O'Farrell (Goodreads Author)

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23 hours, 41 min ago

Ciara is currently reading

Paper Cut

by Rachel Taff

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Apr 26, 2026 08:32PM

Ciara is currently reading

London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth

by Patrick Radden Keefe

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Apr 15, 2026 09:10AM

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Ciara’s Recent Updates

Ciara is currently reading Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23 hours, 41 min ago · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara started reading Paper Cut by Rachel Taff	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 26, 2026 08:32PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Paper Cut by Rachel Taff. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Paper Cut by Rachel Taff <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara finished reading Allow Me to Introduce Myself by Onyi Nwabineli (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 26, 2026 08:31PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Allow Me to Introduce Myself by Onyi Nwabineli. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Allow Me to Introduce Myself by Onyi Nwabineli <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara finished reading Discipline by Larissa Pham	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 26, 2026 08:58AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Discipline by Larissa Pham. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Discipline by Larissa Pham <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara finished reading The Shutouts by Gabrielle Korn (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 24, 2026 11:38AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Shutouts by Gabrielle Korn. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Shutouts by Gabrielle Korn <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara finished reading Black Leopard, Red Wolf (The Dark Star Trilogy, #1) by Marlon James	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 23, 2026 02:24PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara started reading Discipline by Larissa Pham	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 22, 2026 03:23PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Discipline by Larissa Pham. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Discipline by Larissa Pham <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara has read Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I'm doing a challenge that involves reading books that have won awards, & I'm coming to the conclusion that horror novels that have won awards really cater to the lowest common denominator. The only good thing I can say about this book is that at lea ...more
Apr 22, 2026 08:59AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara finished reading My Dear You by Rachel Khong (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 21, 2026 08:17AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of My Dear You by Rachel Khong. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — My Dear You by Rachel Khong <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ciara has read Woodworm by Layla Martínez	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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