Sometimes I read a review of an upcoming book and place a hold on it at the library and forget about it, and then months later I get an arrived hold notice and I'm like "wait, what? Oh I guess this does sound like something I'd read..." It's like a surprise book of the month club that I run for myself.

Anywho, this was one of those, and I'm glad I did! Really engaging, thought-provoking and insightful essays. It was especially interesting for me to read about her work organizing voters in Georgia in 2018 and 2020.

This was a cute, fun read and one that I think will be validating for a lot of teens--to see the way Hani defends her bisexual identity against biphobic microaggressions and the way both Hani and Ishu support each other in the face of racism, not to mention seeing a book starring two brown girls of similar-but-different cultural backgrounds and of different religions. Just drop-kicking the single narrative out into the ocean.

That said, I felt like the setup for fake dating--which basically always seems flimsy to me and it isn't a trope that I particularly enjoy as much as many other seem to--seemed like, extra shaky to me? Which like whatever ultimately it worked out and they were a cute fake and real couple but I was definitely like, *Fry squint* about the premise.

Also this is an Irish book and I guess it didn't get an Americanization treatment because there were definitely some slang terms and geographically specific things (local transit terms) that threw me for a loop. But like, I googled them and it was fine and teen readers are capable of that too.

Basically I think that readers who think this book sounds appealing will find it appealing and validating.

I loooved revisiting this childhood fav as an adult, although I do have SOME CONCERNS about Camp Mohawk's staffing model.

https://www.frowl.org/worstbestsellers/episode-174-baby-sitters-summer-vacation/

I was too old for this when it came out in 1999 and reading it now I was like, oh my gosh the Baby-sitters are experiencing such GROWTH! My emotions!!!!!!

https://www.frowl.org/worstbestsellers/episode-174-baby-sitters-summer-vacation/

Oh man Slaughterhouse-Five has been one of my all-time fav books ever since I was a #teen. I periodically revisit it and I'm always a little afraid that something will have switched in my brain and it won't resonate with me as much anymore but that hasn't happened yet. I thought this adaptation was great. Really captured the weirdness and the pain and the tiny moments that make this book so powerful to me.

;_;

I've read and loved most of Lucy Knisley's other graphic memoirs but this one sounded like a bummer so I skipped it. I'm not sure why I decided I had the wherewithal to read it in 2021. But maybe it's like, I'm crying anyway it might as well be in a literary catharsis kind of crying? Anyway, it's really good and moving and yes, also a bummer.

Wow, I was excited to read this just because I like Little Women, but this really knocked my socks off. For starters, I had never learned about the Freedmen's Colony on Roanoke Island but that was such an interesting setting for this book and I'm so glad to have learned a bit about it. But then I loved how thoughtfully and sensitively these characters were adapted--the concept that as a slave, Jo was thought by white people to be mute because she knew that she'd get in trouble if she said the things that were on her mind, so she just...didn't talk...and then after being freed getting to be more like the outspoken Jo from the original books......*sob* Really moving, especially as her family encourages her to explore her burgeoning writing talent. Whew!! And the new layers of Beth's illness here, I don't want to spoil it but it's so smart and beautiful. And just seeing a family like the Marches who are so emotionally intelligent and compassionate, and seeing the way they talk about the experience of slavery and ongoing racism was honestly revelatory to me; I've read a lot of books about the Civil War/race/etc and had never read some of these ideas expressed quite this way before.

The idea of a "Little Women remix" could have been so pat but instead this is a truly new and moving book, worth reading whether or not you've read/enjoyed the original book. Really stunning.

I saw this one a friend's bookshelf and I was like "sorry is this book about Iron Man and Tim Gunn meeting?" and they were like "kinda?" and I was like "can I borrow this?" and they were like "sure" and here we are.

anyway Iron Man and Tim Gunn DO meet in this but it's only like 2 pages? I was not familiar with the older Millie the Model character (but the book includes some reprints of 60s Millie comics that have sort of a vintage Archie vibe I guess?)

You could probably just find the Tim Gunn panels online and that's like all you really need from this experience imo, unless you're an old school Millie the Model stan or something.

OH YEAH I FORGOT how this book was all about cutting and restricted eating!?! jeez

Like I do understand that it's MEANT to show you that the society is bad because they've pushed the kids into a situation where they have to do these things but since it's from Tally's POV it uh..........really does just seem like cutting is cool for a lot of chapters. lol. this might be another reason why this trilogy hasn't had quite the staying power of some of the other popular YAs....

also the stuff with the tribes in the woods.......

suboptimal.......yet it did keep me reading

ohhhhhhh RIGHT right right. it sure has been TEN YEARS since I read these. Now I better understand where the Impostors books take place, which was my main goal in re-reading these OG books. you know, for all the complaints about Bella Swan being a blank slate of a character I think Tally actually is moreso of one. Which sort of makes sense

Spoiler

because of the government mind control and all

but like still it's a particularly weak love triangle IMO!! But whatEVER fuck the GOVERNMENT, amirite!!!!!