brittmariasbooks's Reviews (1.45k)

Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia was such an interesting read. I had no idea who being fat or thin became racialised after the Renaissance (back when fat women were often painted and seen as the ideal body type). Being fat became "othered" whereas being thin became part of the stereotype of the superior white race.

Sabrina Strings dives into the history books of the ideal body types which on its own was interesting. But her analysis of the racial origins of fatphobia was enlightening for me. I really recommend this book to anyone who's interested in body positivity or books which explain how nowadays problems like fatphobia came to be.

Thank you Inkyard Press for the free e-galley and letting me participate in the Smash it! blog tour! All opinions in this review are my own.

Smash it! is about Olivia "Liv" James. After a Halloween party where she dressed up in a hoodie and khaki shorts, Liv decides to change things up. She makes a F*ck It list.

1. Be bold--do the thing that scares me.
2. Learn to take a compliment.
3. Stand out instead of back.

She also decides to audition for her high school's musical of Othello. Moreover, she wants to stop pining after her best friend and neighbour Eli since she does not think he would like her like that.

I really enjoyed Smash it! I liked the musical theatre aspect, Liv's relationships with Dré, Eli, Lennox and Jackie and how she is simply saying "yes" for things that are out of her comfort zone. I liked that Liv, as a black girl, got three love interests when she started putting herself out there and just being herself even when it is scary. Liv as a narrator is snarky and enjoyable to read.

Spoiler

I just did not like that Liv ended up with Eli. Eli was simply not mature enough yet. He was such a dick to Liv, especially when he found out Liv and Dré had sex and I just did not feel it. I really liked Liv's dynamic with Dré and I was more on their ship than Eli's.

And after reading some of the reviews of other readers, they rightfully point out some insensitive jokes made towards Israeli-Palestanian and Polynesian characters.

Even though The Sea of Monsters is probably my least favourite book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, I still love it. The search for the Golden Fleece and the consequences of finding it are so important for the series overall. The ending of the book is so strong and makes you want to pick up the third book immediately. I think that the chariot races are such a cool element even though I had forgotten it (oops but that's why I reread it). The introduction of Tyson is solid. And as a reader, you just get to run around in this mythologic world some more surrounded by friends, monsters and godly beings.

This book really reminded me of The Illuminae Files by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. Only these files take place on Earth.
I love how mythology and religion is interwoven in the found objects. The characters are well defined though I thought that the love triangle was a bit unnecessary. However, that is probably because I have read about some many love triangles that I am tired of that plot device. As for the audiobook, it has a full cast which, I think, is so awesome. Every character has their own voice which works very well here because most of the files are interviews or other recorded conversations. Overall, I loved this book and I cannot wait until the sequel comes out.

The Prince and the Dressmaker is such an adorable graphic novel about Prince Sebastian who loves to wear dresses and Frances the Dressmaker who is hired to make dresses for him. The art and creativity behind the designs for the dresses are beautiful. Moreover, it is an important story to let boys know that they can wear dresses, too. Moreover, I could imagine that this story is embraced by the LGBTQIA+ community. Jen Wang does not label Prince Sebastian/Lady Crystallia but his fear of rejection may be something people in the LGBTQIA+ community especially can identify with.

Spoiler

I just hope that their parents are as cool and accepting as King Leo.

March is a beautiful graphic novel telling the story of the late U.S. Representative John Lewis, may he rest in peace and power. This first book opens on Lewis waking up on the inauguration day of Barack Obama. Later that morning, a mother and her two sons visit Lewis's office and John Lewis starts to tell how he grew up, and how he later started organising sit-in demonstrations.

I can truly recommend this graphic novel to anyone. John Lewis was on the front line of the Civil Right's Movement in America and they achieved much. I look forward to reading about it in Book 2 and 3. It is inspiring to see how they succeeding and hopefully, that will mean for the future that this generation can also achieve more racial equality and other successes in the areas our governments seem to be failing.

Stoorzender volgt Arjen Lubach in de afgelopen twee jaar. Het is geschreven in zes verschillende plekken, Los Angeles, Vlieland, New York, Friesland, Zweden en Amsterdam. Zelf volg ik Zondag met Lubach al een tijdje en dat is ook waar ik Arjen Lubach van ken. Dit boek is heel persoonlijk en open.

Ik luisterde naar het audioboek dat voorgelezen werd door Lubach zelf. Dit vind ik persoonlijk heel leuk aan autobiografieën.

Ik raad het vooral aan als je fan bent van Lubach en wat meer over hem te weten wil komen.

I am having so much fun rereading this series for the third time (well, I only reread the first three before). The Titan's Curse is the book where the stakes are raised in the series. The Quest for Artemis is one of my favourites in the whole ReadRiordanverse. I love the introduction of both the Di Angelo siblings and the Hunters of Artemis. I love that we get to see Thalia in action after all the stories you read about her. The only downside is a severe lack of Annabeth, however, the presence of Thalia and the Hunters of Artemis, especially Zoe Nightshade make up for her absence.

The Hoover Dam chapter is iconic. Rachel Elizabeth Dare is iconic. Shoutout to Bessie.

Spoiler

But mostly the sacrifices within this book by Bianca di Angelo and Zoe Nightshade is why I love this book as much as I do. It shows that death in this series is very real. Up until this point, there had been no (permanent) character deaths. The Titan's Curse changes that up and raises the stakes in the last two books as the danger of the quests rise as well. As well as the partial responsibility Percy feels towards the death of Bianca and Zoe because he feels that he failed them. This also ties into his fatal flaw, personal loyalty, as Athena points out near the end of the book. Percy will go to the end of the earth to save his friends. Lastly, I want to point out that I love that Percy chooses to be the child of the prophecy and takes the responsibility so it does not have to fall onto Nico's shoulders.

March: Book Two starts with the Freedom Riders and ends with the March on Washington in 1963. I enjoy learning more about the Civil Rights movement in the US. John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell have done a beautiful job writing and drawing these graphic novels. I honestly believe March fits in with classic non-fiction graphic novels, such as Maus: A Survivor's Tale and Persepolis.

March: Book Three continues John Lewis' story about his role in the Civil Rights Movement. The book includes the march from Selma to Montgomery and Bloody Sunday. I had to shed some tears during Lewis' interactions with President Obama. I loved learning about US history through these graphic novels and really recommend them if you like history.