Maquillée est un texte très quotable, écrit à une époque qui feel vintage maintenant, quand Jeffree Star et Shane Dawson étaient encore chums, et qu’Elon Musk n’était "que" la 23e personne la plus riche au monde. Le livre a une vibe très 2018-2019, parfaite si tu es (ou as été) un peu obsédée par les vidéos de maquillage sur YouTube. Coupable. Le tout ne ferait pas de sens si je n’avais pas moi-même passé des heures à regarder des tutoriels, des dramas, et des hauls beauté sur YouTube à ce temps-là.

Daphné B. nous donne ici une série d’essais avec des gros mots et des réflexions profondes sur l'identité, la beauté, l'exploitation, et l’ère numérique.

Quelques quotes marquantes :

“Ils ont le regard creux, les vêtements couverts d’une crasse à la fois brillante et terne. Contrairement à moi, ces enfants ne dilapident pas leurs heures sur YouTube, mais travaillent sept jours sur sept, dans les tunnels exigus, des passages qui menacent toujours de s’effondrer. Là, ils récoltent ce qui me fera scintiller, au péril de leur vie.” (p. 33-34)
– sur les enfants qui extraient le mica pour qu’on puisse briller de mille feux.

“Je vieillis en ligne.” (p. 42)
– moé too.

“Je me maquille de plus en plus avec mes futurs selfies en tête.” (p. 98)
– tellement 2020s.

Et puis cette perle, qui m’a directement rappelé le speech d’America Ferrera dans Barbie :

“Ce serait une autre exemple de la manière dont on a façonné la réalité des femmes dans le monde afin qu’elles soient vues, jamais entendues ; connues, mais jamais crues ; désirées, mais jamais dignes de confiance.” (p. 123) 

You don’t have to read a book the moment it’s released. But after finishing Six of Crows nearly a decade late and spoiler-free, I kind of wish I had. I could’ve read this book ten years ago… and then again and again since. Tsk tsk, when will I learn?

I love Leigh Bardugo. I love the Grishaverse. I love a good heist story. And this one? It delivers. The multiple POVs are brilliantly executed and make the character development so rich. You’re still uncovering layers of these characters right up until the final chapters, which only makes you desperate to dive into the sequel.

Bardugo’s clever style shines in this story. I loved the banter and the backstories. I’ll read everything she writes. What a fantastic book.

 It took me months after receiving this book to finally open it. Meghan is a co-worker of mine, and loving the concept behind the book, I purchased a copy for myself, one for the community library in Cambrian’s employee lounge, and 30 more for a project I have coming up later this year. As I began preparing for that project, I felt I needed to read To the Soul Within cover to cover so I could integrate it meaningfully.

Sitting at my desk last week, I read the first few letters and was immediately brought back nearly 30 years—to my Chicken Soup for the Soul days. My younger self adored those books, and this one gave me nostalgic vibes in the best way. I set it aside for the weekend, leaving it on my desk to pick back up on Monday.

Opening the book again today, I had a sense of what to expect and welcomed the mindfulness and reflection each letter offered. For the most part, I flew through it. While some of the topics were a little heavier, I found—maybe because I share a lot in common with both authors—that I could relate deeply to almost every one. I saw myself in each letter and reflected on moments in my life that echoed the lessons being shared.

There was just one letter that gave me pause—midway through the book: To the Soul Who Is Ready to Forgive. As I read it, I didn’t feel the same connection I had with the others. I understood the message; I’ve had grudges, disagreements, friendships that ended—or didn’t—and I’ve moved on, sometimes, usually, through forgiveness. But something made me feel stuck. I couldn’t move on to the next letter.

I closed the book and took a moment. Instinctively, I reached for my “Rage Journal” (titled with humour) that I keep at my desk. I turned to an empty page and scrawled:

Not everyone deserves forgiveness.
Not everyone deserves forgiveness.

We all process our emotions differently, shaped by different life experiences. As I continued to write, I came to a realization: it is possible to not forgive, and still let go. I can choose not to hold space for that person, those people, those experiences, in my heart or in my head—and still grow.

I have CPTSD. I often feel the urge to stand beside my past self, to rally and rage with her. My diagnosis means that certain parts of my brain, and my heart, may never fully know peace. And strangely, that’s something I’ve come to accept. Instead of striving for peace through forgiveness, I value my self-worth in a different way. I value my fire. That fire has built my resilience, shaped my humour, and a life filled with depth. I’ve come a long way because of my experiences and, perhaps, because of my refusal to forgive.

Forgiveness isn’t weakness—it is powerful and freeing. But not forgiving isn’t weakness either. That’s what I learned in my reflection. For me, not forgiving is a choice. One that validates my past self, protects my present self, and fuels my future self.

After letting those thoughts out, I continued reading and only paused once more—this time on the letter titled: To the Soul Making Friends with Their Shadow.

“Healing means learning to embrace these hidden shadows, the parts of yourself you’d rather ignore, because they hold immense power and wisdom. Just as shadows follow us, these parts are always present, even when we don’t want to see them.”

While what I took from this might not have been the author’s intention, I marked the page and paused again. I don’t need to forgive to heal. I can embrace the truth that I don’t owe some people my forgiveness. Healing, for me, doesn’t mean pretending my wounds don’t exist. It means recognizing that those shadows are part of me. They always will be.

Forgiveness won’t make the shadows go away. But I can choose to meet those shadows with power, control, and self-determination. I am more than my experiences. I have grown stronger and wiser because of them.

My shadows have made me strong.

This book didn’t just offer mindfulness—it sparked deep reflection. It helped me articulate truths I hadn’t fully put into words before. In doing so, it reminded me that healing is not one-size-fits-all and that the most honest path forward is the one that honours our own unique experiences (& our shadows 😉). 

Holiness is a form of monstrosity.

Old Babes in the Wood is a collection of short stories split into three parts. Like much of Atwood’s writing, this book took me a little all over the place.

Part 1, Tig & Nell, took me a while to get into. The three stories were solid and reflective, but they didn’t stand out to me. I wasn’t especially drawn to the characters. I wanted to like them more or feel a deeper connection, I just didn't.

Part 2, My Evil Mother, this is where I found my groove. This section contains eight stories, and four of them hit that perfect five-star mark for me:

My Evil Mother – If not for this collection being written by Margaret Atwood, this would be the reason I picked up the book. This was the story I wanted to read, and it did not disappoint. Fantastic. Nuts. Classic Atwood in the best way.

The Dead Interview – If you could interview any dead famous person, who would it be and what would you ask them? How would they respond? I was completely drawn in and didn’t want it to end.

Impatient Griselda – A super fun and creative take on aliens attempting to tell a human tale. This was funny, adorable, and weird.

Metempsychosis – The soul of a snail trapped in a human body. Weird. So, so good. Somehow touching, upsetting, and absurd all at once.

Part 3 returns us to the characters in Part 1, this time titled Nell & Tig. Unfortunately, this section slowed down for me again. I wasn’t any more invested in the couple than I had been in Part 1, and I found myself skimming the final four stories. They were sad, and meditative and forced the reader to consider mortality, grief, and the loneliness of the loss of a longtime partner. Maybe I could have been more invested, but I found myself not wanting to be.

Overall, Old Babes in the Wood is a mix of hits and misses, but the hits are so worth it. 

This is not going to help my travel anxiety...

Cette histoire est déchirante. Quelle représentation visuelle incroyable de l’expérience d’Odette face à la perte de sa vision. Ça donne une sensation d’étouffement. À mesure que l’état d’Odette progresse, nous ressentons l’émotion, le stress, l’anxiété à chaque page tournée. Nous nous sentons de plus en plus lourds au fil du livre. C’était tellement bien fait, tellement bien conçu. Cela n’aurait pas pu fonctionner de cette manière pour susciter autant d’émotion chez le lecteur sans l’illustration. Une exécution géniale.

I love a good psycho. And I especially love a story from the POV of the psycho! 

Wonderful book. Very amusing the whole way through. Miss Notty is delightfully twisted. I appreciate a short book done well. This could easily have been bogged down with endless details of setting and scene, explanations of the time, and why murder was so much easier to get away with in the 1800s...But it didn't need any of that, which made this book even better. Properly straight to the point. 

A real 'good for her!'

Read this book.

Read for school.  "How to Change Everything" by Naomi Klein is an informative and smart book that does an excellent job of breaking down complex issues without talking down to young readers. I really appreciated how it empowers youth by knowing they are capable of understanding the critical challenges we face today. However, I found myself wanting more concrete ideas and resources for how young people can take action, form advocacy groups, and create real change. While the book definitely inspires reflection and awareness, I think it could have gone a step further by offering more practical guidance for youth resistance and activism.

This book is a collection of speeches that Greta made at speaking engagements around the world in 2018 and 2019. As others have noted, it can feel repetitive—but that's understandable, given that she had a crucial message to share with as many people as possible. Even if important decision-makers heard her speak once or twice, it clearly wasn’t enough to drive the point home, as little meaningful action followed her efforts. Instead, many top officials merely congratulated her on being smart, gave her awards, or even mocked her and spread misinformation to discredit her message—despite the fact that she was amplifying the voices of scientists who have been warning about the climate crisis for decades.

While the repetition did make it feel a bit long at times, I recognize that this book wasn’t meant to present new data but rather to emphasize the urgency of the crisis. I especially appreciated the Canadian ending...