The last book I read was essentially a modest holiday tray of baklava bites: tons of little snacks, all with flaky and delicious layers. Neatly packaged in a breezy 177-pages, Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill gives readers just enough to chew on with short chapters and even shorter paragraphs. It’s one of those “read in one sitting” books. Because of her engaging writing style—italics, all caps, parentheticals, numbered lists, hypothetical Q&A, unmarked dialogue, unique point of view—you keep reading, eager for another reference of a well-known philosopher, another deadpan joke, or another heartbreaking image, the details of which will stick to your fingers. Offill’s realistic dive into the inherent and unavoidable dilemmas found within a romantic partnership and within motherhood reverberates with me still. What else should we do with our time but speculate about our world and our place in it, one bite at a time?