Crystal Shelley
Chinese and Taiwanese cultures, being Asian American, woman/feminist, experience with hospice/end-of-life care, experience with those with Alzheimer's/dementia
Experience
Lived experience, social work career, and education
Reading Interests
Fiction
Alejandra Oliva
First-generation child of immigrants, Mexican American, Spanish speaker, queer.
Experience
Editorial assistant in children's publishing. Professionally knowledgeable in immigration policy and its effects. Lived experience
Reading Interests
All genres welcome
Tina Catania
Ableism, Classism, Sexism, Medical literature and representations, Catholicism/Christianity, Feminism
Experience
Lived experience, BA in Women's Studies, Italian, Social Science MA/PHD in Social Science & Women's Studies, Academic/nonfiction copy editor and developmental/structural editor. Taught high-school creative writing workshops, published non-fiction author
Reading Interests
All genres welcome except horror and erotica
Sossity Chiricuzio
Fat, white, disabled, anxiety, depression, PTSD, dissociation, and eating disorders, non-binary/gender spectrum, queer identities, survivor experiences (sexual, emotional, and mental), communal living, and rural communities, poverty/working class experience, low income housing, and social welfare systems.
Experience
Lived experience, BA in Gender and Women's Studies/Humanities, and decades of personal research, lived experience, and grassroots activism on a range of relevant topics. Broad range of fiction, academic and business nonfiction experience.
Reading Interests
All genres welcome except horror, and I read and enjoy literature from all age groups.
Sabrina Toppa
Muslim, South Asian, Pakistani, Middle East, immigrant background. Social anxiety.
Experience
Lived experience writer
Reading Interests
All genres are welcome
Nathaniel Glanzman
Transgender, Autism Spectrum Disorder/Asperger's Syndrome, Dissociative Identity Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder/Anxiety, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Asian American/Filipino
Experience
Lived experience, Experience as a sensitivity reader, teaches sensitivity reading
Reading Interests
All genres welcome
Marcella Lopez
Mexican American
Experience
Lived experience, BA Psychology with minor in History (focus on Latin America), Master of Public Health degree (specialization in Health Promotion and Behavioral Science), editor, global travel, professional experience working in community-based health programs for the underserved.
Reading Interests
All genres welcome
Jessie Maimone
Biracial (Black & white), chronic illness (ulcerative colitis), anxiety
Experience
Lived experience, M.S. in Book Publishing and Library and Information Science, professional experience
Reading Interests
Romance, Children's and young adult books
Jessica Wu
Chinese-American (bilingual Mandarin speaker), Asian American. Expertise in both mainland Chinese and Hong Kong culture, First gen immigrant American family.
Experience
Lived experience, professional experience with Hong Kong government
Reading Interests
All genres welcome
Isabelle Felix
Black, Haitian American, Afro Latina/e, Chronic migraines, Hard-of-Hearing (HoH), Physical rehabilitation (regarding mobility), Survivor of Natural Disaster, Family member with mental and emotional health disorders
Experience
Lived experience, background in Psychology (research and therapy), experience as a sensitivity reader
Reading Interests
All genres welcome
Gulnaz Saiyed
Indian American, Muslim, Anxiety, foster/adoptive parent (*not* qualified to read for adoptees or those who are/have been in foster care), learning and cognition, special needs parenting
Experience
Lived experience; academic research on Islamic feminism and women's issues; ethnographer of racial, cultural, and power dynamics in learning environments; curriculum writer; editor/writer, MFA Candidate in Writing for Young People at Lesley University; MS in Journalism.
Reading Interests
Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children's Literature, Academic Writing