I'm only human after all...
Well, well, well, it seems I had some trouble there in the middle of the year. I'd like to say there's a good reason, but there isn't really. Time just got away from me. Not sure why my rhythm was disrupted, but now I hope it will get back in line. There has been some crazy work shenanigans and some family hiccups, but I'm not ill anymore so hurrah! I'm optimistic about finishing my reading challenges, but cautiously so. If I get off track or hung up on a bad book I'll be in trouble. Crossing my fingers I'll put a dent in the list this holiday weekend.
Re-labelled Convenience Store Woman as “A book eligible for the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation” for the ATY challenge.
Re-labelled Get a Life, Chloe Brown as “A book about art or an artist” for the PopSugar Challenge.
Added these already completed books to the categories:
-New Suns: Original Speculative Fiction by People of Color (ATY: 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 3 Future, PopSugar: An Afrofuturist book)
-Battle Ground by Jim Butcher (ATY: A book written by an author of one of your best reads of 2020)
-The Opal Deception by Eoin Colfer (PopSugar: A book with a gem, mineral, or rock in the title)
-You Should See Me In a Crown by Leah Johnson (PopSugar: A book that has the same title as a song)
The Case of the Left-Handed Lady by Nancy Springer
I want to read this because it is the next in the series.
This was excellent! Enola’s older brother Sherlock is committed to finding her. Can she give the world’s greatest detective the slip? Plus, she’s about to get tangled up in a case that becomes very personal for her. I was engrossed in this whole book. The story and emotions were realistic and relatable on many levels. I felt like this one was firmly aimed at the young adult audience though. Some of the alienation that Enola felt seemed particularly aimed at appealing to teens and the theme of feminine and worker repression was extremely relevant to current events. There’s a conversation that takes place between two servants where they are discussing the recent strikes and wonder why anyone would want a WHOLE day off of work and what would they even do with that much free time. These are working class people, criticizing working class people for wanting a better lot in life. That struck me as so familiar to the rhetoric working class conservatives use when discussing people protesting for a higher minimum wage even though this book is set more than a century ago. I really enjoy this author’s ability to wrap the social commentary up in a truly enjoyable mystery. I can’t wait to read the next one.
Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
(ATY: A book set in a country on or below the Tropic of Cancer, PopSugar: A book about a subject you are passionate about, ReadHarder: Read a realistic YA book not set in the U.S., UK, or Canada)
I want to read this because it sounds a bit like Bend it Like Beckham which is a movie I really enjoyed.
This was a pretty good read and it did have some things in common with Bend it Like Beckham, but it was a lot darker in tone. Camila Hassan loves football (soccer) and she’s good. Really, really good. But for her parents it’s all about her older brother and his soccer career. In fact, if they ever find out that Camila plays soccer, she’d be in deep trouble.So, when Camila’s team is given a shot to play in a real tournament, she feels on the brink of living her dreams, but it’s going to mean revealing it all to her parents. To complicate matters, an old flame returns for a visit riding high on the massive success he’s had as a professional football player. The story dealt with a lot of different themes at the same time, but I think what most strongly came across to me was the portrayal of sexism and oppression experienced by women in that country. It was difficult for me to read about Camila’s experience of sexism at a familial level and so frustrating! Between the attitudes of her boyfriend, brother, and father I think readers were given a glimpse into three types of sexism. Her boyfriend is a sort of passive sexist, he doesn’t really put thought into his actions and expectations and simply follows the way it has always been done. Her brother is sort of existing in a cognitive dissonance. His actions and how he speaks to Camila are consistent with sexist oppression, but also, he clearly has a problem with his father’s attitudes and actions. Camila’s father is completely awful. He’s straight up abusive both to his wife and daughter. I appreciated that it wasn’t just one bad egg, but that each man in Camila’s life was touched by the oppressive sentiments. Despite all of that though, I didn’t feel like it was a bleak book. It was a very satisfying story and Camila was a great character! She was characterized authentically like a teen with insecurities, determination, a wide variety of emotions, without being the overly done “typical” teen that I feel is often portrayed in YA lit. I can see myself recommending this in the future.
Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases by Ida B. Wells-Barnett
(ReadHarder: Read a work of investigative nonfiction by an author of color)
I want to read this because it will fill a huge gap in my historical American reading.
This was intense. It didn’t present any surprising facts, unfortunately they were all too familiar, but I was quite surprised when the author said that to be safe, African Americans should keep weapons in their house. It’s so hard to live with the knowledge that there are people who feel so much hatred of an entire group of people. I don’t like that there are racists and it sucks that they make people’s lives miserable, but even that level of anger doesn’t make me want to KILL them. They certainly deserve to be punished if they act on their beliefs, but I personally don’t want to do violence to them. It makes my heart hurt. I’m glad this was short otherwise I don’t think I could have gotten through it.
Avatar: The Last Airbender: Toph Beifong's Metalbending Academy by Faith Erin Hicks
(ReadHarder: Read a children’s book that centers a disabled character but not their disability)
I want to read this because it’s another Avatar comic.
Ugh! I’m just not digging Faith Erin Hicks’ Avatar stories. They downgrade the characters to a simplistic level and seem to be steering the stories toward a younger audience. The thing I love about Avatar is how even though it’s a show for kids, it is thick with many layers of important topics. The stories by this author just don’t capture any of the depth and nuances. I did appreciate seeing the travelling singers again though! The “Secret Tunnel” song was stuck in my head a bit after that. I realize a good thing can’t go on forever, but I’m sad to see the Avatar franchise waning.I look forward to returning to the Kyoshi books. Even though they are not graphic novels and even though they don’t feature Team Avatar, they are super enjoyable and incredibly well written.
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
(ATY: A book set in a made-up place, PopSugar: A book you have seen on someone's bookshelf (in real life, on a Zoom call, in a TV show, etc.))
I want to read this because the new show on Netflix looks so good!
This was not terrible, but it wasn’t amazing either. Alina was raised as an orphan alongside her best friend Mal in a country torn apart by a literal rift of darkness known as The Fold. Alina and Mal prepare to cross The Fold as part of a military cohort bound for West Ravka, but something goes terribly wrong and Alina’s unknown power is revealed. She’s whisked away to a life among the Grisha and the Darkling, a class of magic users both feared and revered across Ravka. Her power may be the key to saving her country or dooming it. At first I thought this was going to read like another typical young adult, love triangle fantasy. A girl torn between a mysterious, powerful stranger and the wholesome, sweet friend she’s known all her life. Ugh. I was surprised when it took quite a different turn. Still there were a lot of things that bothered me about it. It is most definitely written to appeal to a teenage audience, and Alina struck me as kind of whiny and mostly out of control of her own life. She definitely wasn’t the deepest of thinkers and didn’t have a firm sense of self. All that being said, I still appreciated the depth of the world building and enjoyed the story. I look forward to reading the next one.
Percy Jackson and the Last Olympian by Rick Roirdan
(ATY: A book that fits a prompt suggestion that didn't make the final list (a book you meant to read in 2020), PopSugar: A DNF book from your TBR list)
I want to read this to finish the series.
This was a satisfactory conclusion to the series. It’s the final battle. The titan Kronos has finally come to take Olympus. He’s kept the gods busy battling Typhon so it’s up to the campers and their allies to protect Mount Olympus. The whole book was almost entirely battle scenes so my attention wavered hence why I set it down for MONTHS. Eventually though I finished it off and can safely say it was a pretty good ending that wrapped everything up. I may or may not continue with the other serieses that follow this one.
The Lost Colony by Eoin Colfer
I want to read this because it is the next in the series.
(ATY: A book with a monochromatic cover)
I did not love this one. Long, long ago the 8th fairy race known as demons decided that instead of moving underground with all the other fairy races they would do something quite a bit more ambitious. They would remove their home from the time stream, but it cost the lives of all of the demon warlocks which is a problem because now the spell is deteriorating. Queue Artemis Fowl who happens to notice a pattern to demons appearing and disappearing seemingly randomly across the world, but he’s not the only one who has noticed. A new child genius with an intellect to rival Artemis’s own has also noticed. An unfortunate young demon known only as No. 1 has gotten caught between the two children and he’s in for a wild ride. My opinion on this book stems from how much I disliked the character No. 1. A large part of the book is about him and only him so I really struggled through those parts. I liked the introduction of a girl, named Minerva (har har har), to rival Artemis, but I didn’t really like her character either. I prefer my three main characters: Artemis, Holly, and Butler (and occasionally Mulch, I guess). They were all fantastic and the story was great! Inventive and towards the end, very fast paced. I still can’t wait to read the next one.
The Magnolia Sword: A Ballad of Mulan by Sherry Thomas
(ATY: A book with a travel theme, PopSugar: A book that has a heart, diamond, club, or spade on the cover, ReadHarder: Read a historical fiction with a POC or LGBTQ+ protagonist)
I want to read this because Ivy read it, Sherry Thomas wrote it, and I was struggling to fill this category for ReadHarder.
This was an excellent story and so well written. Each generation a duel takes place between two families with each participant wielding a legendary sword. Mulan has been training her whole life to fight the duel on her family’s behalf. She has disguised herself as a boy to further that training and taken the name of her dead twin brother. However, now China is going to war and young men across the country are being drafted. Mulan goes because there is no other choice and thus the legend begins. This story is not the Disney version. It’s gritty and dirty and much more realistic. Sherry Thomas explains a lot about her research at the end of the book including a lot of the details she used to be as faithful to the period as was possible. It was fascinating to learn about the details she included. Throughout the text there are little cultural tidbits that serve to enhance the feeling of being transported to ancient China such as the self-effacing language used and the references to historical events (like Cao Cao being defeated at the Red Cliffs which I enjoyed because of the Dynasty Warriors game). It was a bit predictable in the conclusion, but the story to get there felt more important anyways. The author did a really good job of encompassing the scope of the conflict and making Mulan’s mission feel real. It was really good.
Outside Over There by Maurice Sendak
A patron insisted I read this picture book.
Creepy as can be. It’s a story about a little girl who is tasked with watching her baby brother and the baby gets stolen by goblins and replaced with an ice baby. The little girl realizes the deception and sneaks out a window at night to rescue him. She kills the goblins with music and rescues her baby brother from a goblin marriage. The illustrations are creepy, the concept is creepy, it’s just a creepy picture book. Who would read this to their kid?
Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
(ATY: A book related to "the end")
I want to read this because I want to know how the story continues after the first book.
This book had me cursing out loud several times and ranting like a lunatic. Alina and Mal thought they had escaped from Ravka and left the Darkling to his doom, but of course that was not the case. After a confrontation Alina and Mal find themselves aboard a pirate ship whose captain is quite a bit more than what he seems. As Mal struggles with Alina’s new determination to defeat the Darkling once and for all, the pressure begins to get to him. Plus, there’s a new threat from a cult revering Alina as a saint. There was a lot going on in this book and it had a much faster pace than the first one. It also felt quite a bit deeper than the first book. Alina was more interesting this time, but I spent a lot of time really upset with Mal. I always really struggle with male characters who have an identity crisis when their love interest isn’t in desperate need of them. It’s not a prerequisite of love to actually NEED someone. I think it’s far more important when they make the choice to be with someone even knowing they have alternatives. I am definitely going to read the final book, but probably not until after I finish up this year’s reading challenges.
House of Light by Mary Oliver
(ATY: A book by an author whose career spanned more than 21 years, PopSugar: A book in a different format than what you normally read (ebook), ‘ReadHarder: Read a book of nature poems)
I want to read this because it is the shortest book that fills this ReadHarder prompt.
In case it isn’t evident, I was not excited to read this book. Nature poetry seemed like a very dull subject matter. Maybe if I had time to really dissect each verse it would be more enjoyable, but I don’t. Also, my brain is so literal it’s hard for me to dissect poetry and glean meaning from it. So most of the book I spend bewildered about what the author is really trying to say. The imagery is beautiful, and the book wasn’t bad. I’m just not the target audience. If maybe I had read it for a class and had someone to discuss it with, I might enjoy it more.
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
(ATY: 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 2 Present, PopSugar: A magical realism book, ReadHarder: Read a romance by a trans or nonbinary author)
I want to read this book because I LOVE LOVE LOVED their last book.
This was cute! I didn’t love it as much as I loved Red, White, and Royal Blue, but it was still cute as can be. August just moved to New York and somehow she’s managed to move in with these strange but friendly people AND fall in love with a complete stranger on the subway. One of her roommates might be a psychic and the girl on the train might be a ghost, but hey, those are totally normal things, right? Like RWRB there were lines that had me laughing out loud and the language was very much current speech patterns (like making nouns into verbs and saying absolutely outrageous things to describe extreme emotion). However, there was discussion of fatal violence against the LBGTQIA+ community that was incredibly sad and it gave the book a more somber tint than Red, White, and Royal Blue. Also, August didn’t have a super awesome childhood and that made for some pretty sad moments. However, that didn’t detract from an abundance of funny moments and a joie de vivre that was fantastic to read! I will definitely seek out more from this author in the future.
The Time Paradox by Eoin Colfer
(ATY: A book with a female villain or criminal)
I want to read this book because it’s the next in the series.
This was pretty good! The later iterations seem to have slower starts than earlier books in the series and I struggled with the first couple chapters, but they are still great stories and I persisted. Artemis Fowl’s mother is ill and the cure lies in Artemis’s own dark past. He’ll enlist the help of his ally Captain Holly Short and travel back in time to battle his most challenging adversary yet… his younger self. Once the story got going, I really enjoyed this one. A budding romance between Artemis and Holly made another appearance much to my delight. The reappearance of an old adversary did NOT contribute to my enjoyment, but it made sense in the story and brought everything to an explosive conclusion! It was a pretty fast paced story and got even faster the closer to the end it got. I am eager to read the next one.
The Atlantis Complex by Eoin Colfer
I want to read this because it is the next in the series.
This one was pretty good. Artemis seems to be suffering from severe OCD and multiple personality disorder which is hampering his intellect. Bad timing because the fairy world is once again under threat. Can his friends find a way to help Artemis through this latest catastrophe? This story was not hard to get through at all. It was quite enjoyable. There were a couple of memorable moments that had me laughing out loud. I loved the promise Artemis had to make to his mother and on a related note the thought he had during a near death encounter with a giant squid. Both instances serve to really humanize Artemis and make him even more likable. PLUS, much to my joy and amusement, the romance for Holly and Artemis is really being played up in this one! I can’t wait to read the next one and I hope we get some resolution between Artemis and Holly.
Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
I want to read this because it is a classic in junior fiction and I never read it in school.
(ATY: A short book (<210 pages) by a new-to-you author, PopSugar: The shortest book (by pages) on your TBR list)
Hm… Sarah Elisabeth, the year before I was born.That took me by surprise and made me smile a little. This is a book about a family who live on a farm somewhere in the midwest on the plains narrated by the little girl, Anna. Their mother died in childbirth and so their father has placed an advertisement asking for a wife. Sarah responds and after the exchange of several letters comes to visit. This story was really lovely, but I’m not really sure why it won the Newberry. It didn’t seem sad enough. I don’t think it’s really complex. It does have a lot of moving sentiment and the language is very rich. Anyways, it is a sweet story and I enjoyed it.
Re-labelled Convenience Store Woman as “A book eligible for the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation” for the ATY challenge.
Re-labelled Get a Life, Chloe Brown as “A book about art or an artist” for the PopSugar Challenge.
Added these already completed books to the categories:
-New Suns: Original Speculative Fiction by People of Color (ATY: 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 3 Future, PopSugar: An Afrofuturist book)
-Battle Ground by Jim Butcher (ATY: A book written by an author of one of your best reads of 2020)
-The Opal Deception by Eoin Colfer (PopSugar: A book with a gem, mineral, or rock in the title)
-You Should See Me In a Crown by Leah Johnson (PopSugar: A book that has the same title as a song)
The Case of the Left-Handed Lady by Nancy Springer
I want to read this because it is the next in the series.
This was excellent! Enola’s older brother Sherlock is committed to finding her. Can she give the world’s greatest detective the slip? Plus, she’s about to get tangled up in a case that becomes very personal for her. I was engrossed in this whole book. The story and emotions were realistic and relatable on many levels. I felt like this one was firmly aimed at the young adult audience though. Some of the alienation that Enola felt seemed particularly aimed at appealing to teens and the theme of feminine and worker repression was extremely relevant to current events. There’s a conversation that takes place between two servants where they are discussing the recent strikes and wonder why anyone would want a WHOLE day off of work and what would they even do with that much free time. These are working class people, criticizing working class people for wanting a better lot in life. That struck me as so familiar to the rhetoric working class conservatives use when discussing people protesting for a higher minimum wage even though this book is set more than a century ago. I really enjoy this author’s ability to wrap the social commentary up in a truly enjoyable mystery. I can’t wait to read the next one.
Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
(ATY: A book set in a country on or below the Tropic of Cancer, PopSugar: A book about a subject you are passionate about, ReadHarder: Read a realistic YA book not set in the U.S., UK, or Canada)
I want to read this because it sounds a bit like Bend it Like Beckham which is a movie I really enjoyed.
This was a pretty good read and it did have some things in common with Bend it Like Beckham, but it was a lot darker in tone. Camila Hassan loves football (soccer) and she’s good. Really, really good. But for her parents it’s all about her older brother and his soccer career. In fact, if they ever find out that Camila plays soccer, she’d be in deep trouble.So, when Camila’s team is given a shot to play in a real tournament, she feels on the brink of living her dreams, but it’s going to mean revealing it all to her parents. To complicate matters, an old flame returns for a visit riding high on the massive success he’s had as a professional football player. The story dealt with a lot of different themes at the same time, but I think what most strongly came across to me was the portrayal of sexism and oppression experienced by women in that country. It was difficult for me to read about Camila’s experience of sexism at a familial level and so frustrating! Between the attitudes of her boyfriend, brother, and father I think readers were given a glimpse into three types of sexism. Her boyfriend is a sort of passive sexist, he doesn’t really put thought into his actions and expectations and simply follows the way it has always been done. Her brother is sort of existing in a cognitive dissonance. His actions and how he speaks to Camila are consistent with sexist oppression, but also, he clearly has a problem with his father’s attitudes and actions. Camila’s father is completely awful. He’s straight up abusive both to his wife and daughter. I appreciated that it wasn’t just one bad egg, but that each man in Camila’s life was touched by the oppressive sentiments. Despite all of that though, I didn’t feel like it was a bleak book. It was a very satisfying story and Camila was a great character! She was characterized authentically like a teen with insecurities, determination, a wide variety of emotions, without being the overly done “typical” teen that I feel is often portrayed in YA lit. I can see myself recommending this in the future.
Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases by Ida B. Wells-Barnett
(ReadHarder: Read a work of investigative nonfiction by an author of color)
I want to read this because it will fill a huge gap in my historical American reading.
This was intense. It didn’t present any surprising facts, unfortunately they were all too familiar, but I was quite surprised when the author said that to be safe, African Americans should keep weapons in their house. It’s so hard to live with the knowledge that there are people who feel so much hatred of an entire group of people. I don’t like that there are racists and it sucks that they make people’s lives miserable, but even that level of anger doesn’t make me want to KILL them. They certainly deserve to be punished if they act on their beliefs, but I personally don’t want to do violence to them. It makes my heart hurt. I’m glad this was short otherwise I don’t think I could have gotten through it.
Avatar: The Last Airbender: Toph Beifong's Metalbending Academy by Faith Erin Hicks
(ReadHarder: Read a children’s book that centers a disabled character but not their disability)
I want to read this because it’s another Avatar comic.
Ugh! I’m just not digging Faith Erin Hicks’ Avatar stories. They downgrade the characters to a simplistic level and seem to be steering the stories toward a younger audience. The thing I love about Avatar is how even though it’s a show for kids, it is thick with many layers of important topics. The stories by this author just don’t capture any of the depth and nuances. I did appreciate seeing the travelling singers again though! The “Secret Tunnel” song was stuck in my head a bit after that. I realize a good thing can’t go on forever, but I’m sad to see the Avatar franchise waning.I look forward to returning to the Kyoshi books. Even though they are not graphic novels and even though they don’t feature Team Avatar, they are super enjoyable and incredibly well written.
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
(ATY: A book set in a made-up place, PopSugar: A book you have seen on someone's bookshelf (in real life, on a Zoom call, in a TV show, etc.))
I want to read this because the new show on Netflix looks so good!
This was not terrible, but it wasn’t amazing either. Alina was raised as an orphan alongside her best friend Mal in a country torn apart by a literal rift of darkness known as The Fold. Alina and Mal prepare to cross The Fold as part of a military cohort bound for West Ravka, but something goes terribly wrong and Alina’s unknown power is revealed. She’s whisked away to a life among the Grisha and the Darkling, a class of magic users both feared and revered across Ravka. Her power may be the key to saving her country or dooming it. At first I thought this was going to read like another typical young adult, love triangle fantasy. A girl torn between a mysterious, powerful stranger and the wholesome, sweet friend she’s known all her life. Ugh. I was surprised when it took quite a different turn. Still there were a lot of things that bothered me about it. It is most definitely written to appeal to a teenage audience, and Alina struck me as kind of whiny and mostly out of control of her own life. She definitely wasn’t the deepest of thinkers and didn’t have a firm sense of self. All that being said, I still appreciated the depth of the world building and enjoyed the story. I look forward to reading the next one.
Percy Jackson and the Last Olympian by Rick Roirdan
(ATY: A book that fits a prompt suggestion that didn't make the final list (a book you meant to read in 2020), PopSugar: A DNF book from your TBR list)
I want to read this to finish the series.
This was a satisfactory conclusion to the series. It’s the final battle. The titan Kronos has finally come to take Olympus. He’s kept the gods busy battling Typhon so it’s up to the campers and their allies to protect Mount Olympus. The whole book was almost entirely battle scenes so my attention wavered hence why I set it down for MONTHS. Eventually though I finished it off and can safely say it was a pretty good ending that wrapped everything up. I may or may not continue with the other serieses that follow this one.
The Lost Colony by Eoin Colfer
I want to read this because it is the next in the series.
(ATY: A book with a monochromatic cover)
I did not love this one. Long, long ago the 8th fairy race known as demons decided that instead of moving underground with all the other fairy races they would do something quite a bit more ambitious. They would remove their home from the time stream, but it cost the lives of all of the demon warlocks which is a problem because now the spell is deteriorating. Queue Artemis Fowl who happens to notice a pattern to demons appearing and disappearing seemingly randomly across the world, but he’s not the only one who has noticed. A new child genius with an intellect to rival Artemis’s own has also noticed. An unfortunate young demon known only as No. 1 has gotten caught between the two children and he’s in for a wild ride. My opinion on this book stems from how much I disliked the character No. 1. A large part of the book is about him and only him so I really struggled through those parts. I liked the introduction of a girl, named Minerva (har har har), to rival Artemis, but I didn’t really like her character either. I prefer my three main characters: Artemis, Holly, and Butler (and occasionally Mulch, I guess). They were all fantastic and the story was great! Inventive and towards the end, very fast paced. I still can’t wait to read the next one.
The Magnolia Sword: A Ballad of Mulan by Sherry Thomas
(ATY: A book with a travel theme, PopSugar: A book that has a heart, diamond, club, or spade on the cover, ReadHarder: Read a historical fiction with a POC or LGBTQ+ protagonist)
I want to read this because Ivy read it, Sherry Thomas wrote it, and I was struggling to fill this category for ReadHarder.
This was an excellent story and so well written. Each generation a duel takes place between two families with each participant wielding a legendary sword. Mulan has been training her whole life to fight the duel on her family’s behalf. She has disguised herself as a boy to further that training and taken the name of her dead twin brother. However, now China is going to war and young men across the country are being drafted. Mulan goes because there is no other choice and thus the legend begins. This story is not the Disney version. It’s gritty and dirty and much more realistic. Sherry Thomas explains a lot about her research at the end of the book including a lot of the details she used to be as faithful to the period as was possible. It was fascinating to learn about the details she included. Throughout the text there are little cultural tidbits that serve to enhance the feeling of being transported to ancient China such as the self-effacing language used and the references to historical events (like Cao Cao being defeated at the Red Cliffs which I enjoyed because of the Dynasty Warriors game). It was a bit predictable in the conclusion, but the story to get there felt more important anyways. The author did a really good job of encompassing the scope of the conflict and making Mulan’s mission feel real. It was really good.
Outside Over There by Maurice Sendak
A patron insisted I read this picture book.
Creepy as can be. It’s a story about a little girl who is tasked with watching her baby brother and the baby gets stolen by goblins and replaced with an ice baby. The little girl realizes the deception and sneaks out a window at night to rescue him. She kills the goblins with music and rescues her baby brother from a goblin marriage. The illustrations are creepy, the concept is creepy, it’s just a creepy picture book. Who would read this to their kid?
Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
(ATY: A book related to "the end")
I want to read this because I want to know how the story continues after the first book.
This book had me cursing out loud several times and ranting like a lunatic. Alina and Mal thought they had escaped from Ravka and left the Darkling to his doom, but of course that was not the case. After a confrontation Alina and Mal find themselves aboard a pirate ship whose captain is quite a bit more than what he seems. As Mal struggles with Alina’s new determination to defeat the Darkling once and for all, the pressure begins to get to him. Plus, there’s a new threat from a cult revering Alina as a saint. There was a lot going on in this book and it had a much faster pace than the first one. It also felt quite a bit deeper than the first book. Alina was more interesting this time, but I spent a lot of time really upset with Mal. I always really struggle with male characters who have an identity crisis when their love interest isn’t in desperate need of them. It’s not a prerequisite of love to actually NEED someone. I think it’s far more important when they make the choice to be with someone even knowing they have alternatives. I am definitely going to read the final book, but probably not until after I finish up this year’s reading challenges.
House of Light by Mary Oliver
(ATY: A book by an author whose career spanned more than 21 years, PopSugar: A book in a different format than what you normally read (ebook), ‘ReadHarder: Read a book of nature poems)
I want to read this because it is the shortest book that fills this ReadHarder prompt.
In case it isn’t evident, I was not excited to read this book. Nature poetry seemed like a very dull subject matter. Maybe if I had time to really dissect each verse it would be more enjoyable, but I don’t. Also, my brain is so literal it’s hard for me to dissect poetry and glean meaning from it. So most of the book I spend bewildered about what the author is really trying to say. The imagery is beautiful, and the book wasn’t bad. I’m just not the target audience. If maybe I had read it for a class and had someone to discuss it with, I might enjoy it more.
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
(ATY: 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 2 Present, PopSugar: A magical realism book, ReadHarder: Read a romance by a trans or nonbinary author)
I want to read this book because I LOVE LOVE LOVED their last book.
This was cute! I didn’t love it as much as I loved Red, White, and Royal Blue, but it was still cute as can be. August just moved to New York and somehow she’s managed to move in with these strange but friendly people AND fall in love with a complete stranger on the subway. One of her roommates might be a psychic and the girl on the train might be a ghost, but hey, those are totally normal things, right? Like RWRB there were lines that had me laughing out loud and the language was very much current speech patterns (like making nouns into verbs and saying absolutely outrageous things to describe extreme emotion). However, there was discussion of fatal violence against the LBGTQIA+ community that was incredibly sad and it gave the book a more somber tint than Red, White, and Royal Blue. Also, August didn’t have a super awesome childhood and that made for some pretty sad moments. However, that didn’t detract from an abundance of funny moments and a joie de vivre that was fantastic to read! I will definitely seek out more from this author in the future.
The Time Paradox by Eoin Colfer
(ATY: A book with a female villain or criminal)
I want to read this book because it’s the next in the series.
This was pretty good! The later iterations seem to have slower starts than earlier books in the series and I struggled with the first couple chapters, but they are still great stories and I persisted. Artemis Fowl’s mother is ill and the cure lies in Artemis’s own dark past. He’ll enlist the help of his ally Captain Holly Short and travel back in time to battle his most challenging adversary yet… his younger self. Once the story got going, I really enjoyed this one. A budding romance between Artemis and Holly made another appearance much to my delight. The reappearance of an old adversary did NOT contribute to my enjoyment, but it made sense in the story and brought everything to an explosive conclusion! It was a pretty fast paced story and got even faster the closer to the end it got. I am eager to read the next one.
The Atlantis Complex by Eoin Colfer
I want to read this because it is the next in the series.
This one was pretty good. Artemis seems to be suffering from severe OCD and multiple personality disorder which is hampering his intellect. Bad timing because the fairy world is once again under threat. Can his friends find a way to help Artemis through this latest catastrophe? This story was not hard to get through at all. It was quite enjoyable. There were a couple of memorable moments that had me laughing out loud. I loved the promise Artemis had to make to his mother and on a related note the thought he had during a near death encounter with a giant squid. Both instances serve to really humanize Artemis and make him even more likable. PLUS, much to my joy and amusement, the romance for Holly and Artemis is really being played up in this one! I can’t wait to read the next one and I hope we get some resolution between Artemis and Holly.
Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
I want to read this because it is a classic in junior fiction and I never read it in school.
(ATY: A short book (<210 pages) by a new-to-you author, PopSugar: The shortest book (by pages) on your TBR list)
Hm… Sarah Elisabeth, the year before I was born.That took me by surprise and made me smile a little. This is a book about a family who live on a farm somewhere in the midwest on the plains narrated by the little girl, Anna. Their mother died in childbirth and so their father has placed an advertisement asking for a wife. Sarah responds and after the exchange of several letters comes to visit. This story was really lovely, but I’m not really sure why it won the Newberry. It didn’t seem sad enough. I don’t think it’s really complex. It does have a lot of moving sentiment and the language is very rich. Anyways, it is a sweet story and I enjoyed it.