I don't know what it was about this book because I liked the story, I liked the characters alright, and the writing wasn't bad or anything, but I just couldn't get into this one. I could guess that maybe everything felt like a slow-burn? I didn't feel like there were many "wow!" moments or points where there was a major shift in story or characters.

The story alternated narrators, which I don't really mind, but they felt too separate for too long. Eventually Ollie and Nina's stories intertwine, but maybe it's just a personal thing that it took too long to do so, and when it did, it didn't feel like a climactic moment like I was expecting. 

I loved learning more about traditional Lipan Apache storytelling and diving into that aspect of this book. And I loved that a lot of the animal people use they/them pronouns (yay for a little lgbtqiap+ action!). 

I may have to just try to read this book again at a later date to see if maybe I was just not in the right mood to read it this time around. 

Oh, this was fun. I don't normally read jargon-heavy sci-fi, but this was such a short book that was highly recommended, so I figured I'd give it a try. I loved Murderbot! I thought the concept was really interesting and it kept my attention. The plot was great, the characters were great, the writing was great. I'm thinking of finding the second one to see the continued adventures of Murderbot.

If you love Dolly Parton, this audiobook is for you. It felt more like an interview with Dolly, talking about her life and answering questions rather than a book, but I didn't mind it and actually loved it. There were little musical interludes between some chapters of Dolly's songs that I thought was really cool - I don't think that would have been included in a physical book format. I also learned a lot more about Dolly and her life. I found it entertaining and informative. 

I love seeing depression rep in books. Darius is such a lovely character and so well written. He has so many layers to him, and he felt very real. His relationship with his father was one of the most interesting things in the book for me because the complexities and tension was explored so well. You eventually got to understand both characters and their misunderstandings and their love for one another.

It was so interesting reading a story that took place in a different country than mine. I learned so many things about Iran and Persian culture. This is certainly a book not to miss.

I waited SO LONG to read this book and it was worth the wait. 

It was a beautifully written and illustrated graphic memoir full of unanswered questions, doubts, and lots of gay things. Basically, a book right up my alley. 

I don’t think I can talk enough about the amazing metaphors and similes throughout the book that helpfully depict Maia’s thoughts and feelings. Specifically, I enjoyed and appreciated the “gender is a landscape” metaphor. 

The jumps in time would normally have annoyed me as this tactic usually does, but in this case, the time jump confusion only enhanced Maia’s confusion in emselves and how e identified. 

There’s no doubt this is an important book that anyone should read if they so choose. 

This was such a hilarious and informative memoir graphic novel. I laughed out loud a couple times at the author’s wit and comedic timing. And although it was funny and a great insight to a culture different from my own, Huda tells a story many people could relate to - the feeling of being left out or not fitting in and trying to make friends. 

This is certainly a graphic novel to remember and I would highly recommend it. 

This was a really fun and adventurous journey! It’s a heartwarming story of an older sister who is desperate to find a cure for her younger sister’s poison (and she blames herself for it).

I love the fantasy element that seeps through the pages. I also love the idea of creating magic tea for different abilities and how there’s a risk and a cost to it. The writing was neat and well done. 

I wasn’t too interested in the mysterious boy character, and I think the book could probably do without the romance, but perhaps it’ll come into play more with the second book. 

AND THAT CLIFFHANGER ENDING!!! I didn’t really have plans to read the next book but now I HAVE TO!

Whelp. I’ll have to put the next book on hold! 

SAPPHIC BOOK BINGO 2022: DIFFERING SEXUALITY FROM YOURSELF

This was so incredibly cute, emotional, sweet, powerful, insightful, and lovely. I’m a huge fan of queer graphic novels, and this did not disappoint. I love the trans rep, the queer rep, and some genderfluid/nonbinary rep. I absolutely adored the main characters of Annie and Bebe and how they got along so well, yet they were completely opposite people. 

I will say that it felt like their romance was a little on the fast side, but that’s also the risk of graphic novels - they just read fast so it doesn’t feel like there’s the tension or buildup. 

This tackled so many important topics relating to the lgbtq community - mainly with how Bebe was treated as a trans woman. I love Bebe’s character arc in gaining confidence and related to her so much. Annie’s spunk was alternative style made me absolutely love her. Especially her confidence and say-no attitude (which I’ve been trying to adopt). 

A very quick graphic novel, but it’s so cute, sweet, and queer. What more could you ask for? 

Read for Play Date: A Theatre Book Club on Nov 8, 2022. 

What a stellar script taken from writings of Rachel Corrie. I’m so impressed with how the writings came together to create this life. I would love to see this done in person and onstage. There’s so much to this person (I don’t want to say character because this was a real person. Just an average person who wasn’t anyone particularly special but was heroic and complicated and passionate and stubborn. 

A really well done script with an insightful plot. 

I've liked a lot of Jennifer Dugan's books, so I was pretty excited to read this one! 

Overall, I thought the book was ok. I'm just not sure it was for me - especially for the first 3/4 of it. With the risk of sounding like a completely awful person, I found Ridley to be really annoying. I know he was very poorly mistreated and had lots of mental health issues like depression and severe anxiety, but I started getting really annoyed that he couldn't see how his sister, Gray, or Jubilee cared about him. He'd blow them off, and while I know that's the voice in his head that was conditioned by his abusive parents, it was hard for me to read. Probably because this hits a bit close to home in my own personal life in which I'm the Jubilee character. So in that case, I found this portrayal of Ridley very accurate and spot on.

Ridley also put Jubilee in some really awful positions, and I didn't really find their relationship to be romantic, cute, or exciting because I kept seeing all these red flags. Their relationship was really toxic.

I'm happy to say that this was addressed in the last quarter of the book, and I've never been so happy to have a couple break up because they recognized that the relationship wasn't healthy. Ridley needed to better himself first before being in a relationship, and I'm happy that the ending (while they weren't together) had hopes of them reconnecting and starting over in a healthy way that wasn't focused on lies, emotional manipulation, and toxic obsessions.

Even though I found Ridley to be quite annoying and I was getting frustrated with him, he redeemed himself.

The fact that he finally accepted Gray's help as well as getting professional help was HUGE! It showed real growth and an initiative to change his life for the better.

I think this is an important book that addresses mental health issues - especially as it relates to relationships. I cared about these characters and wanted them to grow, and they certainly did.