A Weird Girl Book Haul, Lessons in Critical Thinking, and Bad Bunny

This past week has been a doozy. From food poisoning to what may or may not be an emerging cold, ya girl has been going through it.

However! Bad Bunny blessed us with an unforgettable halftime performance, and I’ll be going into that today, too (along with some personal anecdotes I haven’t shared on the internet before).

I’m switching things up with a book haul this week. I haven’t finished reading these yet, but I figured I’d share them so you can see what’s up next. Below are four books I picked up recently, along with why I was compelled to take them home with me!

Continuing my Murata kick, I saw this at the bookstore and knew I had to pick it up. It’s been on my TBR (to be read) for quite a while now, and I’ve heard nothing but great things about it. It’s described as a “dreamlike” and “shocking” story about a young girl who believes she’s an alien. What’s not to love?

This book is so up my alley. It’s a gothic mystery set in the Hollywood Hills, and it’s steeped in a blend of social media and horror. Oh, and it’s also about a tarot influencer who goes missing. It’s basically a bunch of my hyperfixations in one. I’m only about 40 pages in, and I’m really enjoying it so far!

If you’re not familiar with Jennette McCurdy, she was an actor on a kids show called iCarly. I adored it growing up. A few years ago, she made her debut as an author with her unflinching memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died. Now, I’m excited to see what’s in store for her debut novel. I flipped to the first page at the bookstore, and the first sentence had me intrigued. It’s a spicy one, which you could probably guess based on the cover. I’ve heard mixed reviews on it so far…so I’m interested to see where I’ll fall on the spectrum.

This book was a wild card pick that I hadn’t heard of before. From what I’ve learned so far, it takes place in 1970s New York City, it’s very queer, and it involves wrestling. What more could you ask for? Side note: If you want to go down a fun rabbit hole, I suggest looking up Rosalyn Drexler. Not only was she a writer, but she was also a painter, professional wrestler, and all-around fascinating person. Talk about a renaissance woman.

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I created my first-ever TikTok account exactly two months ago, and just hit 1k followers! Yay. Speaking of what I thought was a yay, I received a DM from a publisher asking for my rates since they were interested in collaborating. Exciting, right?

Upon first glance, their account seemed innocent. They posted videos about a variety of fiction books, including weird girl books. I thought they could be a feasible publisher to work with—until I did my own research.

Upon further investigation, I found out that they’ve been known to publish far-right and conspiracy books. While they also publish fiction, I just knew it wasn’t a route I wanted to go down or a brand I would want to be affiliated with.

It was yet another reminder of the importance of research and critical thinking skills. It only took a few minutes for me to uncover this information, but I wouldn’t have found it if I had taken their message and account at face value. It was an icky and insidious situation, since their social media presence seemed totally normal.

Stay vigilant out there, y’all. Also, if you’ve been following along on TikTok, thank you! Your support means a lot to me. I’ve been amazed by all of the kind people I’ve met within this bookish nook of the internet. :’)

Plenty of people have already given their full breakdowns of Bad Bunny’s artistic choices throughout his halftime performance, which have been super interesting and insightful. I specifically want to talk about what the performance meant to me, since I’m sure others out there can probably relate in some way.

I don’t often talk about my heritage on the internet. As someone with a dual background and a whole lot of privilege, I don’t always feel like it’s my place to talk about it. It feels self-indulgent somehow. However, this performance reminded me why it’s important to interrogate that. Why do I have a tendency to shrink myself when it comes to my Guatemalan heritage? Hint: It’s a lot of internalized BS.

As I found myself involuntarily screaming when Bad Bunny announced “Guatemala,” on the list of Latin American countries toward the end of his performance, I was reminded of the sense of pride I have. For all that my immigrant mother has gone through, for the memories of eating my abuela’s tamales in the motherland, for the joy that it is to have been blessed with such a rich and beautiful culture.

It wasn’t always sunshine and rainbows, though. I was made fun of at my predominantly white elementary school when kids heard me speaking Spanish. I resented the fact that I had to explain American cultural norms, like sleepovers with friends, to my mom. I felt sad going years at a time without seeing my cousins, aunts, uncles, etc. since they were in a whole other country. I felt angry when well-meaning friends said it was “sketchy” to visit Guatemala, because of their preconceived notions rooted in xenophobia and racism. I in part owe my love of all things weird girl to this side of me. Feeling othered is a very distinct experience to carry with you, and there’s power in owning it.

What’s going on in this country and with ICE is hard for anyone with a shred of humanity to watch happen, but there’s no denying that it does hit extra hard for Latinos right now. If things have been feeling extra heavy for you, I see you and I’m sending you love. If there’s anything we can take from Bad Bunny’s performance, it’s a sense of joy, unity, and pride in who we are. And no one can take that away.

If you’re not familiar with Hemlocke Springs (Isimeme Udu), she took the internet by storm with her catchy synth-pop songs several years ago. Notably, her song "Girlfriend” quickly went viral.

Since then, she’s amassed millions of streams and dedicated fans who have flocked to her signature DIY vibe, distinct sound, and unapologetic weird girl ethos. It made perfect sense to feature her this week since her latest album, the apple tree under the sea, is scheduled for release on February 13th, 2026.

Check out her website to pre-save it wherever you stream your music!

That’s it for now. Want more weird?

Say less. Give me a follow over on Instagram and TikTok!

The Weird Girl Edit is a weekly newsletter written by Maya Rector, and it gets published every Wednesday. View past editions here. If you haven’t already, subscribe for the latest wacky musings in literature, media, and pop culture each week!