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May 27, 2024 | 
memoirland.substack.com | Jennifer Stewart |Amitava Kumar |Christina Myers |Margaret Lee
Welcome to Memoir Land—a newsletter edited by , now featuring four verticals:Memoir Monday, a weekly curation of the best personal essays from around the web brought to you by Narratively, The Rumpus, Granta, Guernica, Oldster Magazine, Literary Hub, Orion Magazine, The Walrus, and Electric Literature. Below is this week’s curation. First Person Singular, featuring original personal essays. Recently I published “The Bargain” by . The Lit Lab, featuring interviews and essays on craft and publishing.
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May 23, 2024 | 
electricliterature.com | Jennifer Stewart
When Beyoncé released her self-titled album in 2013, I realized I might be a feminist. “Flawless,” was a self-affirming, feminist anthem complete with a recording of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie reading from her seminal work We Should All Be Feminists. I was so enamored that I almost ran a red light while listening to it on my way to work in downtown Houston. Hearing themes of empowerment, agency, and autonomy from a black woman shifted something inside me at the tender age of 29.
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Mar 18, 2024 | 
thehonesttalk.ca | Jennifer Stewart
It seems a bit hard to believe, but it’s been 15 years since I embarked on my entrepreneurial journey, first as a sole proprietor and now as the founder and CEO of one of Canada’s largest communications agencies. To say I have learned a lot over the years is a gross understatement. It’s been a constant path of learning, relearning, and adapting as I go.
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Dec 23, 2023 | 
thehonesttalk.ca | Jennifer Stewart
Celebrating our 15th anniversary at Lake Louise and Yoho National Park was truly special, and the highlight was our stay at Emerald Lake Lodge. This retreat nestled in nature had quaint cabins, no Wi-Fi or TVs (hello forced unplug), excellent dining, and stunning views of the mountains. We really leaned into doing a whole lot of nothing (I read three books), which I believe is a true working professional / busy mom’s dream.
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Oct 19, 2023 | 
texasmonthly.com | Jennifer Stewart
Welcome to Indie Bookstore Week, Texas Monthly’s salute to the bookshops that have shaped the lives of our readers and writers. Like many book lovers, I grew up bubbling with excitement for the annual Scholastic Book Fair at school. My mom was a teacher, and she prompted me to circle the books I wanted to order from the paper catalog. When the day came, I’d gather my selections and proudly present my couch-cushion coins to the cashier for a bookmark or two.
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Sep 19, 2023 | 
texashighways.com | Jennifer Stewart |Tyson Bird
On a Saturday evening in Houston’s west end, hundreds of Indian classical music enthusiasts gather in the Auditorium at the Houston Durga Bari Society. Bright red velvet curtains frame a performance accompanied by Unmesh Banerjee on tabla—a pair of hand drums—and Indrayudh Majumdar on a string instrument called a sarode. For over 30 years, the Indian Music Society of Houston has hosted Indian classical music performances and taught tabla.
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Sep 19, 2023 | 
texashighways.com | Jennifer Stewart |Tyson Bird
On a Saturday evening in Houston’s west end, hundreds of Indian classical music enthusiasts gather in the Auditorium at the Houston Durga Bari Society. Bright red velvet curtains frame a performance accompanied by Unmesh Banerjee on tabla—a pair of hand drums—and Indrayudh Majumdar on a string instrument called a sarode. For over 30 years, the Indian Music Society of Houston has hosted Indian classical music performances and taught tabla.
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Apr 20, 2023 | 
chron.com | Jennifer Stewart
Sinfull Bakery in Midtown looks like just another one of Houston's infamous beige, burglar-barred strip malls. But like many of our strips, the vegan bakery's vibrance is apparent with a closer look. The outdoor dining area with potted flowers and poppy-red chairs ushers you into the store. Within seconds of entering the bakery, your eyes might spot a shelf full of Sinfull's famous Texas-sized cinnamon rolls, or a case of lemon or strawberry cheesecake pop tarts.
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Feb 16, 2023 | 
texasmonthly.com | Jennifer Stewart
A poignant prologue and epilogue bookend the new iteration of ROE, the perennially timely play about the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision known as Roe v. Wade, running at Stages in Houston through March 5. As Sarah Weddington (the lawyer who represented “Jane Roe”), actor Kelley Peters delivers fervent monologues that contextualize Roe for our current, urgent times. The additions, written over the past few months to confront the Dobbs v.
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Feb 10, 2023 | 
texasmonthly.com | Jennifer Stewart
It’s 1999 at Houston Baptist University, a religious college nestled in southwest Houston. The constant whistle of tires on pavement from the neighboring Southwest Freeway is no match for a row of nondescript practice rooms where two violinists—teacher and student—face a Manhasset music stand. The teacher’s black hair is pulled back into a rubber band; her mane is so thick that the elastic need not be looped twice.
