#and it felt good to get these edits done for the MG novel

[lordsardine]

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[noctem-novelle]

This February, celebrate Black History Month with Black authors!

Culture is important, whether it’s your own to celebrate or someone else’s that you can learn about and appreciate. In the last few years, we’ve seen a steady increase in people of colour, LGBT communities, non-Christian religions, and non-European cultures represented in young adult and middle-grade fiction. While this is a great improvement and definitely a step in the right direction, people of colour are still underrepresented. We can do more to make sure that authors of colour are seen and heard. The following list, while by no means exhaustive, is a selection of excellent YA and MG novels written by Black authors*. This month, take some time to explore their stories.

*This list appears in no particular order and is not intended to be read as though any one book is superior to another.

1. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (Young Adult)

When sixteen-year-old Starr Carter witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend, she must decide whether to lie low or to join the protesters who seek justice for Khalil. A touching, timely, and often raw story about a girl who finds herself when she feels most lost, it’s no wonder this book has spent more than 100 weeks on the New York Times Best Sellers list.

2. Riding Chance by Christine Kendall (Young Adult)

Based on Philadelphia’s Work to Ride program, this novel follows a young man who gets into some trouble at school and winds up doing community service at the Chamounix Stables in Fairmount Park. There, he learns to play polo, an intense sport that teaches perseverance and focus. This book really hit home for me, having spent most of my childhood at polo matches with WTR. In real life, Work to Ride provides underprivileged children and teenagers in Philadelphia with constructive extracurricular activities, peer mentorship, and even college enrollment assistance. To learn more about Work to Ride, check our their website or Facebook page!

3. Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann (Young Adult/New Adult)

Let’s talk about the amazing QPoC rep in this book! Alice, who is asexual and biromantic, is determined to spend her post-breakup summer on a tv binge. She definitely does not intend to fall for her co-worker, Takumi. Whoops. This book is a mostly-fluffy slow-burn romance, full of nerdy pop-culture references. If you remember tumblr circa 2011, this book is for you.

4. Garvey’s Choice by Nikki Grimes (Middle Grade)

Garvey’s father has always wanted him to be an athlete, but Garvey is just not interested. When his only friend convinces him to join their school chorus, Garvey finds confidence and a new way to communicate to his distant dad. Told in verse, this is a heartfelt novel about one boy’s transformation through music.

5. American Street by Ibi Zoboi (Young Adult)

In her debut novel, Ibi Zoboi draws on her experience as a Haitian immigrant to tell the story of Fabiola, a young woman whose mother is detained by U.S. Immigration when they emigrate from Port-au-Prince to Detroit. This book explores the cost of the “American dream” with a mix of family drama, romance, and a hint of magical realism.

6. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo (Young Adult)

Xiomara feels both invisible and too visible in a world that doesn’t want to hear her but is happy to objectify her. To express herself and to find some relief from her religious mother’s strict expectations, she turns to slam poetry. This novel-in-verse includes romance, wavering faith, and feminism.

7. Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson (Young Adult)

This powerful novel features a young woman who is determined to make it out of her impoverished neighbourhood. Jade’s mother taught her to take every opportunity she’s offered, so every day she takes the bus across town to a private school where there are plenty of opportunities, even if she doesn’t quite fit in. But some opportunities are less welcome than others, like the chance to join a mentorship program for “at-risk” girls. Sick of being singled out as someone who needs help, Jade hopes to find some autonomy and to stay true to herself.

8. Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert (Young Adult)

Suzette is home in Los Angeles for the summer and she isn’t sure she ever wants to go back to boarding school. Between supporting her bipolar brother, Lionel, and trying not to think about her clandestine relationship with her roommate, she’s got a pretty full plate. Unfortunately, she’s also falling for the same girl that Lionel likes. When Lionel’s mental illness sends him spiraling, Suzette must face her past to help him. This family features a blended family, Black Jewish characters, and a queer woman of colour.

9. Courage by Barbara Binns (Middle Grade)

T’Shawn has done his best to help out since his father’s death, but life gets complicated when his brother Lamont comes home from a stint in prison. T’Shawn finds peace on the diving board, and earns a scholarship to join a prestigious team at a local swim club. But when the neighbourhood crime rate starts to rise, T starts to think that he and Lamont may never put their pieces back together.

10. Monster by Walter Dean Myers (Young Adult)

A murdered drugstore clerk, a trial, and a young man in crisis. Monster is the story of Steve Harmon, amateur filmmaker and alleged murderer. To cope with the trial, Steve writes down the proceedings as if it were a film script, but as he tries to tell his own story, the truth starts to feel a little hazy. This one has also been adapted as a graphic novel.

11. All-American Boys by Jason Reynolds (Young Adult)

Rashad wasn’t stealing, but people sure seem to think he was. After he drops a bag of chips and a police officer beats him for it, Rashad is stuck in a hospital bed while the nation debates his character. Meanwhile, Quinn, a white boy who witnessed the beating, comes to learn that racism didn’t end with the Civil Rights Movement.

12. Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor (Young Adult)

Sunny is an albino girl living in Nigeria. Her skin tone often makes her an outsider, but she soon finds herself drawn into a community of magic users called Leopard People. Together with her new friends, Sunny is tasked with tracking down a killer known for maiming children.

13. The Red Pencil by Andrea Davis Pinkney (Middle Grade)

Amira is finally twelve and hopes to start school, but her life is turned upside down when the Janjaweed militia attacks her Sudanese village and her family must make the long and difficult journey to a refugee camp. Life at the camp is hard, but when an aid worker gives her a pencil and paper, Amira’s world begins to expand.

14. One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia (Middle Grade)

Delphine Gaither and her two younger sisters travel from Brooklyn to Oakland to spend the summer with a mother they barely know. Imagine their surprise when she sends them to a Black Panther summer camp. Set in 1968, this historical fiction novel explores family dynamics and the importance of sisterhood.

15. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson (Middle Grade)

In powerfully emotional poetry, Woodson tells the story of her childhood and what it was like to grow up Black in the 1960s and 70s. This novel-in-verse won the National Book Award and the Coretta Scott King Award.

16. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor (Middle Grade)

Between the depression and threats from the night riders, the Logan family has had a tough year. Cassie doesn’t see why her family’s land is so important, but as she becomes more aware of the way their white neighbours treat them, she soon comes to understand that the family’s strength comes from having their own place in the world. This book tackles the ugly reality of racism in the deep south from the perspective of a precocious nine-year-old. It can be hard to stomach at times, but I think that just makes it more important.

17. Zora and Me by Victoria Bond & T.R. Simon (Middle Grade)

Part historical fiction and part small-town mystery, this fictional imagining of Zora Neale Hurston’s early days sees the author as a young girl, exercising her skills as a storyteller. When one of Zora’s tales seems to come true and a man winds up dead, she and her friend Carrie find that things in their little town are not as peaceful as they appear.

18. Blended by Sharon M. Draper (Middle Grade)

Every since her parents’ divorce, Isabella has felt torn in two. Two houses, two families, two races. Switching between her parents, also means switching between two different identities. How can she ever feel whole when she’s constantly split in half? This book examines the life of a biracial girl, and doesn’t shy away from addressing exoticism and the (PG) fetishisation of mixed-race people.

19. Black Enough: Stories of Being Young and Black in America edited by Ibi Zoboi (Young Adult)

This contemporary anthology delves into the many-faceted lives of Black teens in the United States. Popular authors from a wide variety of backgrounds have contributed their voices to show that being young and Black in America is not just one singular experience, but a constellation.

20. The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson (Middle Grade)

A hidden letter and a summer mystery are what await Candace when she pokes through an old box in the attic. With the help of her neighbour, Brandon, she deciphers the letter’s clues in the hopes of discovering a forgotten fortune. This book is perfect for readers who like a good puzzle.

[63824peace]

Friday, 25th of november 2005

Female detective Sunny Randall is the heroine of Robert B. Parker's latest novel, Melancholy Baby. During the course of the story, she consults the lovely psychiatrist Susan Silverman. Silverman has also appeared in Parker's series of Spenser novels.

Sunny learns that her ex-husband lately re-married, and the knowledge instills her with a suffering sense of loss. She has a dream one night, and she asks Silverman about the dream's meaning.

"What are our dreams?" Sunny asks. "Do they reveal our desires?"

The psychiatrist answers her without digging deeply into Freudian dream analysis. "Sometimes dreams exaggerate the circumstances of the dreamer's waking life."

I cried out from another nightmare this morning. I felt emotions and stresses like those felt during the dream that I recounted in my October 2 blog.

I always forget good dreams, but I remember all my nightmares.

I don't know whether the dream's circumstances were good or bad... but I was about to accept a tremendously prestigious award. Imagine some combination of the Emmy Awards, the Grammy Awards, and the Academy Awards. Multiple entertainment media qualified-movies, music, and games could all compete equally.

The ceremony would start soon. I needed to head over to the ceremonial hall, or else I would arrive late. I didn't understand why, but I was still fixing an anime clip that I had planned to show at the ceremony.

I don't know why it was specifically anime. I only knew that I needed to edit a segment from the footage --- no, I needed to edit several scenes! The presentation had screwed up somehow.

I hastily tried to correct each scene, but my anime support staff was slow. They were positively inflexible. The corrections shouldn't have taken long, but my staff worked at a snail's pace. We could have edited everything digitally, but everyone insisted that we shoot from animation cells. They couldn't understand the concept of digital editing -- and all of the studio's technology was over ten years old.

Nevertheless, we somehow finished the corrections. I ran to the ceremony hall.

I couldn't find my outfit when I arrived at the dressing room. I asked someone where to find it, but he explained that he couldn't open the suitcase that held my costume. He didn't have the key!

I noticed the gigantic suitcase in the corner. It looked large enough to have held a few corpses.

"Why is it in the suitcase?" I asked. "Who has the key?"

"Well," said the fellow, "The guy with the key left for the airport."

"What?! The airport!?"

I couldn't go onstage in casual clothes. The event had a dress code. Everyone had to dress formally for the live broadcast, even the camera crew.

"Hey, come on! You're up!"

A man opened the dressing room door. I could only see his upper body. He pressured me to come onstage. He had a foreigner's face, but he spoke perfect Japanese.

"All right, we're running out of options," he said. "Put on anything, just hurry!" Strangers surrounded me. They dressed me in a costume covered with patches.

Someone pushed me from behind, and I appeared on-stage beneath dazzling lights. I could still see the faces beyond them though.

The audience stirred. They seemed surprised to see that I had dressed like a street performer, or a vaudeville comedian. The MC froze on the spot.

A musician was supposed to have handed me the trophy... he looked like Mick Jagger. He whispered into my ear, "What the hell kind of costume is this? Is this some kind of joke?!"

He slandered me with words that sounded as though they had been translated, and then he laughed out loud. The ceremony hall's audience erupted into a storm of booing.

They threw all sorts of things at the stage. Something hit my head…

And I suddenly awoke.

It hadn't been a frightening dream, but it was definitely unpleasant. I've had these types of dreams before... dreams wherein I lose or forget something, or I can't proceed according to plans, or all my teeth fall out.

"What sort of dream is this?" How would Parker's Susan Silverman respond? Was this merely a menagerie of "exaggerated forms of circumstances from the dreamer's waking life?"

I ate a combo plate for lunch at Del Sol, followed by a double Macchiato. I looked into my coffee cup and saw the shape of a heart. I stirred the surface to erase it. I don't need any more hearts... hearts are troublesome.

I'd rather fill myself with something more substantial -- something more stable.

We left the restaurant and headed back to the office. On our way, Kenichiro found a provisional booth selling lottery tickets. Was this fortune?

"What's up?" I said.

"I thought that I'd like to buy some lottery tickets."

I hadn't seen one of those booths until yesterday, and then I remembered. They start selling End-of-the-Year Jumbo Lottery tickets today.

"Do they usually sell winning tickets here?"

"Well, I wouldn't know. I'm generally lucky at the lottery."

I looked more closely at the booth. The sign above it read, "Sister shop to Yuurakucho Daikokuten, seller of many big winning tickets!"

"Ha! Looks like it's the sister of the real winning booth."

"Well, that's hardly persuasive, is it?" said Kenichiro.

"We'd better get tickets from the real seller instead of its sister."

"I don't even need to buy them. I'm just that lucky with lotteries." Kenichiro recounted his many lottery victories as he walked away from the booth.

I've never won the lottery -- and what's more, I usually lose games like rock-paper-scissors. I never draw a winning raffle ticket, and I've never won a game of Bingo. Consequently, I don't expect gold to rain upon me. I never gamble or take huge risks... I'm better suited for work that requires steady, serious pacing.

Kenichiro, on the other hand, seems to have good luck.

I've theorized that everyone has received an equal distribution of luck, and each person's luck has a limit. You'll run out of luck if you squander it on lotteries and gambling. We're not like Fortune from MGS2. We won't have luck stored for important things like work if we use it excessively.

If I win the lottery, then I've spent that piece of luck. I try not to use my luck frivolously since I want to save it for my games.

Kenichiro boasted that he always wins back what he spends on lotteries, even though he's never won the big prizes. I said, "Don't you think that's why you've never made a hit game?"

"What are you talking about? I've already done that."

"For example?"

"You know… that game!"

"Oh, that," I conceded. "That was definitely luck."

"I'm lucky with women."

"Same here."

Neither one of us could laugh at that.

I've looked for Masaki Yamada's book Magic Opera since yesterday. It's printed by the Hayakawa Publishing Corporation. I finally chanced upon the set of books today at the Aoyama Book Center.

Mr. Noriyoshi Ohrai made the cover, of course. His composition and layout are fascinating as always!

Magic Opera is the second book in a trilogy. I started with the first book, Mystery Opera, which I had bought back in August. I've just read Magic Opera's first sixty pages, and the story has already captivated me. It looks interesting.

Mr. Masaki Yamada's most notorious recent work is Kamigari-2. Russian Roulette isn't as popular, but I still found it outstanding and interesting. The Opera Trilogy is his newest saga; it's part of the Kiichiro Midashi series that started after the Kami Trilogy. I'm looking forward to its narrative development.

I learned that he'll title the third book Final Opera.

Mr. Masaki Yamada contributed an article for the limited release of MGS: The Twin Snakes on the Gamecube. He always responds whenever I mail him my impressions of his books. He is such a remarkable, intellectual man.

I first discovered Mr. Yamada's writing when I read his novel Agni-wo-nusume. I was either a junior high or high school student back then. Agni-wo-nusume was an adventure novel. Some salary-men had been deceived, and then they received company orders to infiltrate a Himalayan fortress. They risked their lives at the fortress, fighting against the CIA and the special assault team.

I have read so many books published by Hayakawa Publishing Corporation. I might say that they practically raised me. They have really bustled for their sixtieth anniversary. Since the beginning of the year, they've released a variety of reproductions and reissued books.

This month they distributed a short story collection by one of their more unusual authors. They've only done this once before. Hayakawa Publishing Corporation's line-up included Theodore Sturgeon's collection titled One-Horned Beast, Many-Horned Beast. They also featured my much-loved Richard Matheson's collection, 13 Shocks.

They've reissued the books in the B6 standardized publishing format, so we can carry the books around more easily. We can also read the larger print more easily. So many interesting books remain in this world... I'd like to see the good, older book reprinted more often.

I bought the mook-book for the film that I saw yesterday, Always: San-cho-me-no-yuuhi. Nippon TV published it, and they included a pair of red and blue 3D glasses in the back. Solid Eye ought to recall memories of the Shōwa Era now!

Later in the day, Tojin the sound director burst into my work booth. "Director! Can you spare a moment?"

I looked up at him. "What is it? Another problem?"

Tojin wore a huge smile. "I registered my marriage on November 22! That's the day of Ii and Fuufu!" Ii and Fuufu are the old-style Japanese numbers. They have double meanings: Ii means "good," and Fuufu means "married couple."

His face didn't betray any self-consciousness or embarrassment. I could sense the willful pride of man who has taken a wife.

Well then... Ii Fuufu, eh? A good married couple?

Tojin's romance was dramatic from the start. He and his new wife met on top of Mount Fuji, at the eighth and highest checkpoint. She had loved Mount Fuji so much that she chose to live and work in the hut at the top for the summer.

Tojin would climb Mount Fuji just to see her. In other words, Tojin had climbed the whole mountain again every time they shared each other's company. I wonder how many times he climbed Mount Fuji that summer.

One day he realized that he had become an expert at climbing Mount Fuji. He hadn't even paid attention to his growing prowess! He has organized every summer trip up the mountain for the sound team because of his experience. Unfortunately, I had to miss it two years in a row.

I'll never forget the time when he proposed to her.

We had met with some creative staff members from outside the company. Right in front of our guests, Tojin whispered an apology into my ear. "I'm so sorry, but I need to go to the panoramic viewing platform at the Hills. I need to propose to my girlfriend. May I leave now?"

"You're making her wait?" I said. "As cold as it is tonight?"

"Yes, well... I thought about staying here until the end, but...." He was obviously worried about the time.

"You go on," I said. "It's better on the rooftop lookout point, by the way. They've got a heliport up there, and it's much less crowded. It costs five hundred yen to enter."

"Got it."

Everything was so serious that I couldn't keep it to myself. I explained the situation to our guests.

Tojin's spirit and determination had moved them too.

"Hurry on up there!" we yelled, bidding Tojin farewell. It seems as though it happened only yesterday.

It turned out that the rooftop had already closed, but I don't think we need to guess her answer. He's said everything by informing me about Ii Fuufu.

Congratulations, Tojin!

Today I led the MGS4 project meeting in the glass room. Only three of us attended -- Murashu, Rettsu, and myself.

Between the meetings I autographed the placards to send with the Subsistence gifts. These are totally different from signing the MGA2 cards. I have so many presents to send, it's no joke!

I just handled the cards for the Japanese version today. I had only taken care of one-third of the total. It was still some hard work though. Whew!

We received the sample Ghillie suit that we had ordered. We bought it in case we're unable to make one during training.

Toyopy tried it on. He looked like the monster Waiaaru Seijin from Ultraman.

In the evening, I had a small dinner party with Ms. Yamanaka and Ms. Miyamoto, KojiPro's assistants. I occasionally throw them a small party to express my thanks for all their support.

We're able to make good products thanks to them. If game-makers need to present an ordered list of people who deserve thanks, their staff and fellow workers come first, then everyone's families, and then the office assistants. Game-makers ought to recognize themselves last.

Kenichiro is Ms. Miyamoto's supervisor. We four went to a sushi bar in the Roppongi area. I drank a white wine called Sushi Wine, and I got pretty tanked.

I had a couple of sidecars in my Nishi Azabu hideout after that. The Kansai bartender doesn't seem to work there anymore.

I was in a mellow mood, so I turned my thoughts to last night's dream. I felt as though I were forgetting something about it... but I just couldn't remember what. I didn't get anyone's help explaining last night's dream -- no Susan Silverman for me. I decided just to find an answer myself.

If the costume had disappeared, then I should have just bought a new one. I think I got the hint that my dream had left me... "Get a new leather jacket this winter!"

I'll sleep well if I can keep thinking like this.

[cover2covermom]

  Goodbye November & hello December!

I cannot believe we are already in our final month of 2018!  How the heck did this happen?!

October 2018 Reading Wrap-Up + Book Haul

November 2018 TBR

#ThanksgivingReadathon 2018 TBR

#ThanksgivingReadathon 2018 Wrap-Up + I Met Jackie B @DeathbyTsundoku (the Host) IRL!

» The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier

Feelings in a few thoughts:

This book is definitely going on my favorite middle grade Halloween books list!

The Night Gardener is a very complex middle grade book.  I think it can appeal to a wide audience from middle grade all the way up to adult readers.

Someone put this book in Tim Burton‘s hands so he can do a film adaptation!

» Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton

*4.5 Stars*

Feelings in a few thoughts:

I really enjoyed learning more about Cuba & its political turmoil throughout history.  I am really embarrassed to admit that my knowledge of Cuba before this book was minimal.

After reading this, I have more of an appreciation of all the freedoms I enjoy by living in the United States.

I’m not typically big on books where the romance is central to the plot. While there is a lot of romance in Next Year in Havana, it was balanced well with the rest of the plot.

The big plot twist was predictable, but didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the book.

» The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan

*3.5 stars*

Feelings in a few thoughts:

Trigger/Content warning: suicide & depression

I read this book in print form, but I bet it would translate well to audiobook.

This is a heartbreaking read, it is one of those books where you need to be in the right mindset/mood for.

I definitely think this is a wonderful YA book that tackles a very heavy topic.   The magic realism elements & beautiful prose offset the overall heaviness of the book.

For some reason I did not connect fully with this one.  I do not think this was the book’s fault though, it was me.

» Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan

Feelings in a few thoughts:

This book was a mixed bag for me.  I really enjoyed some aspects, but others… not so much.

I hate to say it, but the audiobook is NOT well narrated.  The narrator was far too monotoned throughout the book.  I can’t say if this impacted my rating or not, but I’m sure it played a factor.

I really enjoyed learning more about Joy Davidman, wife of C.S. Lewis, especially since she is a bit of a controversial figure.

I’m not a huge fan of books that are overly religious… they tend to start feeling “preachy.”  I’d say this book was borderline overly religious, but not too hateful.

I felt that the book was dragging in many areas.  Not sure if this because of the audiobook narration or not…

I also had issues with Joy’s character.  I can’t really go into much detail because of spoilers, but I felt like she was a stage 5 clinger for the majority of the book.

» The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle

Feelings in a few thoughts:

This book was not what I was expecting, but not in a bad way.  When people talk about The Last Unicorn, many refer to is as a fantasy classic.  I was expecting more of an epic high fantasy like Lord of the Rings, but that is not what this book is.

This book reminded me of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust, not in the plot, but the overall adult fairytale feeling.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Gaiman drew inspiration for Stardust from TLU.

Themes = identity, unlikely heroes, hope, live life to the fullest, etc.

I loved the unlikely cast of characters: Schmendrick – the subpar magician, Molly Grue – the rough around the edges middle aged woman beat down by life, Prince Lir – the prince with a hero complex, and the last unicorn in the world – a unicorn going through an identity crisis.  You all know I’m a sucker for quirky characters.

» Prince Caspian (Chronicles of Narnia #2 – Publication Order) by C.S. Lewis

Feelings in a few thoughts:

NOT as good as the first book, BUT nothing will ever beat The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

Not sure if it is just me, but I didn’t actually feel like a lot happened in this book?  At least in comparison to the first book…

Loved the addition of new characters: Reepicheep, Trumpkin, Wimbleweather, etc.  Side note – C.S. Lewis really knows how to name characters.

I liked Edmund’s development from the first book.

» And the Ocean Was Our Sky by Patrick Ness

Feelings in  few thoughts:

I know there are mixed reviews for this one, but I really enjoyed it.

And the Ocean Was Our Sky is a retelling of Moby-Dick told from the perspective of a whale.  While I’ve never actually read Moby-Dick, I do know the basic plot.  I don’t think you have to have read Moby-Dick in order to fully “get” this retelling.

I adore how Patrick chose to come at this retelling.  I am here for unique and inventive!  It does take a bit to fully grasp what’s going on, but it does become clear.

Themes: legends (rumors), what makes a monster?, prejudices, etc.  I really enjoyed the morals behind the story the most.

If you need books with well fleshed out characters or in-depth plotlines, this isn’t going to be the book for you.  This is a very simple plotline without much character development.  Remember, this is a short story, but it does have a deep moral.

If I am being completely honest, I was a tad disappointed in the illustrations.  They were far too simple.  Had there been more depth to them, I feel it would have enhanced the story.  BUT the cover almost makes up for this *heart eyes*

» The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

Feelings in  few thoughts:

I knew this book was going to destroy me.  From reading the synopsis, I obviously THOUGHT I knew what was coming, but Boyne managed to still surprise me.

I’ve read MANY a WWII historical fiction, but never from the perspective of a child of a Nazi commandant.  I’d never really thought about this perspective much, but think it was an important perspective to tell.

This is my second John Boyne book, and he has knocked it out of the park both times.  Can’t wait to read more!

»  The Secret of Nightingale Wood by Lucy Strange

Feelings in  few thoughts:

This book was beautifully written!

This book is tagged as a middle grade book, but I would almost classify it as a YA book.  Despite the fact the narrator is 12 (turns 13 in the book), the content & writing is above a MG level in my opinion.

This is definitely a darker, gothic style book with overall themes of grief & depression.

The audiobook was brilliantly narrated by the author herself!  She actually sounds a lot like Keira Knightly.  The narration was simply lovely.

» The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Feelings in  few thoughts:

I am actually not going to rate this one because I do not think print form is the way to go with this book.   I am going to re-read this one via audiobook, especially since it’s narrated by Stephen Fry.

» The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Feelings in a few thoughts:

So I actually didn’t know about Sherman Alexie’s 2018 sexual harassment scandal before picking this book up… I only found out about it after looking him up after reading his book.  Had I known this, I would not have purchased this book, but the damage was already done.

I’ll give Alexie this, he definitely wrote a book that will appeal to teen boys, which is not easy to do.  This book is a tad on the crude side, but it definitely felt like a teen boy POV.  I also think the illustrations were a nice touch as graphic novels appeal to the YA demographic.

I’d never read an #OwnVoices book featuring a Native American main character.  This is definitely a gap in my reading that I need to make an effort to rectify.  After doing some research on Alexie, Arnold is definitely based on the author’s own experiences.  Many things that happen to Arnold in the book happened to Alexie in real life.

There was too much tragedy for a 230 page book.  While I know the issues in the book are all issues that Native Americans living on reservations in the United States face, it made the book feel underdeveloped and rushed including so much in so few pages.  The book either needed to be longer, or aspects of the story needed cut out.  I feel like Alexie wanted to address issues like alcoholism, violence, racism, etc but was too over-the-top with it & didn’t get into any of the reasons behind these issues. I just wanted more exploration of the issues.

My favorite aspect of this book was the friendship between Arnold & Rowdy.

While Arnold’s medical issues are a big part of the beginning, we really don’t hear anything about them for the rest of the book?

» The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia #3 – Publication Order) by C.S. Lewis

Feelings in a few thoughts:

Enjoyed this one more than the second book!

I love a good adventure story and that’s just what this was!

Eustace was a welcome addition to the cast – loved his character development over the course of the book.

I hit my 100 book goal for my Goodreads challenge!  Technically I hit this on the second of December as I finished Vengeful by V.E. Schwab, BUT I started the book in November so I’ll share it in my November wrap-up.

  I *MAY* have gone a tad overboard with my book buying this month… I blame discounted books

*Book titles link to Goodreads

Book Outlet Haul

» Wolf by Wolf (Wolf by Wolf #1) by Ryan Graudin

» American Gods by Neil Gaiman

» Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë *Paper Mill Classics Edition*

» Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë *Paper Mill Classics Edition*

» Frankenstein by Mary Shelley *Paper Mill Classics Edition*

» Ender’s Game (Ender’s Saga #1) by Orson Schott Card

» The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey

» The Pillars of the Earth (Kingsbridge #1) by Ken Follett

Book Loft Haul

» Mosquitoland by David Arnold

» The Wizard of Oz (Oz #1) by L. Frank Baum *Puffin Chalk Edition*

» Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll *Puffin Chalk Edition*

» Lord of the Flies by William Golding *Casebook Edition*

» Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables #1) by L.M. Montgomery *Puffin Classics Edition*

What books did you read in November?

Have you read any of the books I read in the month of November?  If so, what did you think?

Have a wonderful week & happy reading

See which #books I read & my #bookhaul in my November #WrapUp #BookBlogger #Bookworm #Reading Goodbye November & hello December! I cannot believe we are already in our final month of 2018!