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I really like seeing more of Rickety's origins and the cast of colorful, fun characters makes every scene play out like a movie. I like the mature tone taken with the story, meaning there is violence, existential crisis, and an even a sole curse word without feeling like "ooh, this story is sooo edgy." I just admire the all-ages quality this story has.
Not to mention the artwork and coloring are A1.
Not to mention the artwork and coloring are A1.
Recess Warriors 2: Bad Guy Is a Two-Word Word by Marcus Emerson is even more fun than the first one!
I was concerned about sequel rot, but thankfully the humor and surprise character development has improved.
I love how serious the book takes itself, and Clinton and Bryce's strained friendship is my favorite part.
It's also nice how Yoshi and Jules subverted the "girls can't get along" trope.
In addition, Recess Warriors has some nice foreshadowing. Little things you wouldn't expect are actually important. *wink*
Overall:
Please read this and Marcus Emerson please write more! All of my sentiments from the review of the first book still stand."https://wordswithdestiny.wordpress.com/2017/05/29/book-review-23-recess-warriors-hero-is-a-four-letter-word/"
SN: Albert was awesome and the kiddy romances were too!
I was concerned about sequel rot, but thankfully the humor and surprise character development has improved.
I love how serious the book takes itself, and Clinton and Bryce's strained friendship is my favorite part.
It's also nice how Yoshi and Jules subverted the "girls can't get along" trope.
In addition, Recess Warriors has some nice foreshadowing. Little things you wouldn't expect are actually important. *wink*
Overall:
Please read this and Marcus Emerson please write more! All of my sentiments from the review of the first book still stand."https://wordswithdestiny.wordpress.com/2017/05/29/book-review-23-recess-warriors-hero-is-a-four-letter-word/"
SN: Albert was awesome and the kiddy romances were too!
Diverse fiction? Yes! Diverse fiction with a black main character? Yes, yes! Diverse fiction with a female black main character? So many yes's! Bonus points for the main character being darkskinned and round. I have read a few (there is a severe lack of them) books centered around black girls and that is a rare combination because in most books the girl is brownskin and thin.
STORY:
"My life is full of opportunities. Give an opportunity to someone else.
But girls like me, with coal skin and hula-hoop hips, whose mommas barely make enough money to keep food in the house, have to take opportunities every chance we get" (pg 7).
In Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson (272 pages), Jade hates that she is labeled as an "at-risk-youth" for many factors but tries her best to take advantage of the opportunities given to her. Instead of being nominated for a study-abroad trip in South America (that she is more than qualified for), she is recommended to apply for an African-American Girls' Mentorship program, Woman to Woman. Throughout the program, Jade receives a flaky mentor, gets exposed to new places, and has to wonder is it all worth it. Is she just a charity case?
Jade and I have some things in common such as, both our favorite colors are yellow, we both learn Spanish, and love art. I also completely relate to having a mom who always has a comeback ready and not always having a good reply myself.
STORY:
"My life is full of opportunities. Give an opportunity to someone else.
But girls like me, with coal skin and hula-hoop hips, whose mommas barely make enough money to keep food in the house, have to take opportunities every chance we get" (pg 7).
In Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson (272 pages), Jade hates that she is labeled as an "at-risk-youth" for many factors but tries her best to take advantage of the opportunities given to her. Instead of being nominated for a study-abroad trip in South America (that she is more than qualified for), she is recommended to apply for an African-American Girls' Mentorship program, Woman to Woman. Throughout the program, Jade receives a flaky mentor, gets exposed to new places, and has to wonder is it all worth it. Is she just a charity case?
Jade and I have some things in common such as, both our favorite colors are yellow, we both learn Spanish, and love art. I also completely relate to having a mom who always has a comeback ready and not always having a good reply myself.
"It's okay," I tell her. It's not, but what else am I supposed to say?" (pg 39)
See? Jade gets me.
I enjoyed how short the chapters were (bite-sized pieces!), and how they began with a Spanish word (usually infinitives). I thought Jade's propensity to nickname people in her head like Book Girl, Glamour Girl, and Afro Woman, all characters you will know when you read the story, was cute.
As much as I like reading it, I'm glad that there was NO ROMANCE. Nothing to derail the focus. This book is going to leave you with something.
I liked Jade's narrative immensely, and many of the chapters ripped off metaphorical bandages. Chapter 21 was real, just real.
"And this makes me wonder if a black girl's life is only about being stitched together and coming undone, being stitched together and coming undone" (pg 86).
"Maxine is right and wrong. Those girls are not the opposite of me. We are perpendicular. We may be on different paths, yes. But there's a place where we touch, where we connect are the same" (pg 132)."
"I don't know what's worse. Being mistreated because of the color of your skin, your size, or having to prove that it really happened" (pg 137).
This book is too undeniably real.
CHARACTERS:
The characters are really human, in the sense, that the nicest characters have flaws and good points, help and hurt, and ignore and understand.
OVERALL:
After reading this, I just want to play Solange's "Cranes" and persuade someone to buy this book and parade it on their bookshelf.
Piecing Me Together is thought-provoking and will make you do some serious self-reflection and introspection.
FIVE STARS! Read this. Read this. It's deserving of all its accolades.
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Okay, this was silly but super cute. I believe it's an OEL (Original English Language [manga]), and it read like a shoujo.
STORY:
Reindeer Boy by Cassandra Jean (192 pages) is about Quincy, a normal girl who has nubs growing out of her head. The arrival of a mysterious boy, Cupid, who has full-blown antlers growing out of his head takes not only Quincy's school by surprise, but Quincy herself begins to take an interest in him. Of course, Cupid's had his eyes set on her for a while now, much longer than Quincy ever anticipated. She meets his array of fellow antlered-companions and learns something new.
I really liked the Christmas-y spin on this story because I've never read anything reindeer-centered before. But I don't get the point of the story. Was it about Quincy's heritage (which was never really explained) or the romance?
CHARACTERS:
I have to say the characters are really flat even though Cupid's pretty lovable in that celebrity I like but don't know personally type of way. Okay, what was the deal with Conway, the childhood best friend (if you read shoujo, you know the childhood best friend almost never wins XD)? Why was Irena so flaky? Where was Quincy's mom? Deceased? Divorced? Adopted?
Quincy is a cutie (especially, as a kid; yay, for her being a woc). I guess she was just a girl, curious and a lover of a photography. I couldn't pinpoint her actual personality because I didn't honestly see one. I supposed she was reserved.
Cupid I liked the most. He was smug without being a flirty playboy. It's really hard for some writers to have cocky characters that aren't grating, and I'm glad Cupid's one of the few likable ones.
I liked the Reindeer friends/family, but they weren't too memorable though. Blitzen stood out to me since he so looked cool (reminded me of an action star).
Santa—Kris Kringle here— was very interesting, to say the least. He had like a one-page cameo.
ART:
I adore the art! Everyone dresses like hipsters and the artwork s done in the style of a generic shoujo manga or manwha. I think Cupid looks adorable, and his hair is so fluffy.
Overall:
Yeah.
I would most definitely read a sequel. I enjoyed reading this a lot, and it's sure to make someone smile. Give it a chance!
STORY:
Reindeer Boy by Cassandra Jean (192 pages) is about Quincy, a normal girl who has nubs growing out of her head. The arrival of a mysterious boy, Cupid, who has full-blown antlers growing out of his head takes not only Quincy's school by surprise, but Quincy herself begins to take an interest in him. Of course, Cupid's had his eyes set on her for a while now, much longer than Quincy ever anticipated. She meets his array of fellow antlered-companions and learns something new.
I really liked the Christmas-y spin on this story because I've never read anything reindeer-centered before. But I don't get the point of the story. Was it about Quincy's heritage (which was never really explained) or the romance?
CHARACTERS:
I have to say the characters are really flat even though Cupid's pretty lovable in that celebrity I like but don't know personally type of way. Okay, what was the deal with Conway, the childhood best friend (if you read shoujo, you know the childhood best friend almost never wins XD)? Why was Irena so flaky? Where was Quincy's mom? Deceased? Divorced? Adopted?
Quincy is a cutie (especially, as a kid; yay, for her being a woc). I guess she was just a girl, curious and a lover of a photography. I couldn't pinpoint her actual personality because I didn't honestly see one. I supposed she was reserved.
Cupid I liked the most. He was smug without being a flirty playboy. It's really hard for some writers to have cocky characters that aren't grating, and I'm glad Cupid's one of the few likable ones.
I liked the Reindeer friends/family, but they weren't too memorable though. Blitzen stood out to me since he so looked cool (reminded me of an action star).
Santa—Kris Kringle here— was very interesting, to say the least. He had like a one-page cameo.
ART:
I adore the art! Everyone dresses like hipsters and the artwork s done in the style of a generic shoujo manga or manwha. I think Cupid looks adorable, and his hair is so fluffy.
Overall:
Yeah.
I would most definitely read a sequel. I enjoyed reading this a lot, and it's sure to make someone smile. Give it a chance!
Okay, the artwork is beautiful, and I enjoy the use of pink.
I just don't know what I or the audience was supposed to take away from this story. Every story doesn't have to be wrapped up with a pretty bow. But it needs to have some sort of end/conclusion.
To me, the story was awfully boring. At first, I thought the premise would be entirely of shoplifting. Like stealing's the only thrill Corrina gets outside of her dead-end job. Instead, it wasn't really a plot point. Oh, you see a guy you like? Great. Oh, too bad your best friend had a one night stand with him. Shoplifting? What? Is that what this is supposed to be about? Bruh...
Overall, I think this story would work much better as a webcomic.
I just don't know what I or the audience was supposed to take away from this story. Every story doesn't have to be wrapped up with a pretty bow. But it needs to have some sort of end/conclusion.
To me, the story was awfully boring. At first, I thought the premise would be entirely of shoplifting. Like stealing's the only thrill Corrina gets outside of her dead-end job. Instead, it wasn't really a plot point. Oh, you see a guy you like? Great. Oh, too bad your best friend had a one night stand with him. Shoplifting? What? Is that what this is supposed to be about? Bruh...
Overall, I think this story would work much better as a webcomic.
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I was so done with this book. Everyone’s like ohmygawd Morpheus! Nah, Morpheus can go sit in the corner with Jeb too. Something that annoyed me with this book is why could Jeb never be wrong (Alyssa always reasoned herself to be at fault), and why all the girls had fake dreadlocks. Not to mention mental issues and medical procedures in this book were not handled very well. Overall, I am not interested in any of the sequels.
I will say the best scene was when the mad tea party goers chased that poor duck and ripped it to shreds. I don’t know why I found that scene funny because it was supposed to be brutal.
I will say the best scene was when the mad tea party goers chased that poor duck and ripped it to shreds. I don’t know why I found that scene funny because it was supposed to be brutal.
A cool subversion on the witch steals child storyline since this time the child, Masha in this case, willingly seeks out the witch.
Although the story did end rather abruptly, I think I found this book endearing because the artwork was so cute.
Although the story did end rather abruptly, I think I found this book endearing because the artwork was so cute.
Overall, a good read. I really enjoyed the Melody/Leon dynamic and Leon's friends. I didn't always care for the humor. Some of the jokes don't hold up now due to their unpolitically correct nature. And Leon was a little iffy. I get he's a horny teenager, but I found him too sex-obsessed at times.
But dude. he starts kissing Amy and already trying to take her toward the bed/couch. like no, bro.
Still, I liked this book. Read it twice.
Still, I liked this book. Read it twice.