#s j stine

[birindale]

Page 5 of S J Stine’s Production Journal. Rough transcript below the cut to maintain edit-ability down the line.

can you read this? cool. help me.

bold means ‘I’m pretty sure this says X’, italic means ‘based on context i assume this says Y’. Don’t worry about the links they’re for underlining.

PAGE FIVE

64) As a TV director isn’t story, but to create as much of the surrounding action as possible @ the same time making sure your team isn’t surrounded. & everything you do accounts for budget & time 

65) Layout is just location design. Try to help out the BG department by not placing the scene all over the place. Try to use the information the designers give you. 

66) Think about keeping count. Layout usually has a set number per episode. SAVE YOUR BEAUTY SHOTS

67) Breaking down a script if you have no other [???] for something let the board artists figure it out

68) 

DWTV ORIENTATION 9 AM - 11 AM 

11.28.16

[creepypastabookclub]

Donate to Palestine Children’s Relief Fund: https://www.pcrf.net/

An all-you-can-eat micropasta buffet with Jonah, Wednesday and their guest Michael!

If you have a small horror or web fiction project you want in the spotlight, email us! Send your name, pronouns and project to

creepypastabookclub@gmail.com.

Music Credits: https://patriciataxxon.bandcamp.com/

Our Website: https://jawscast.neocities.org/

Our Tumblr: https://creepypastabookclub.tumblr.com/

Our Twitter: https://twitter.com/CreepypastaBC

Featuring Hosts:

Jonah (he/they) (https://withswords.tumblr.com/)

Wednesday (they/them) (https://www.instagram.com/xx_wormsday_xx/)

Michael (https://www.tumblr.com/barbielore)

Recommended Reading:

White with Red: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/White_with_Red

The Statue: https://www.creepypasta.com/the-statue/

Wake Up: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Wake_Up

Sarah O’Bannon: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Sarah_O%27Bannon

Home Alone: https://creepypasta.org/s/333/home-alone

The Portraits: https://www.reddit.com/r/creepypasta/comments/wbovd/the_portraits/

Humans Can Lick Too: https://www.reddit.com/r/shortscarystories/comments/22rboj/humans_can_lick_too/

WHO WAS PHONE: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/WHO_WAS_PHONE%3F

Ghastlymacaroni Collection: https://bogleech.com/ghastlymacaroni

Man Door Hand Hook Car Door: https://www.reddit.com/r/greentext/comments/r8jvq6/man_door_hand_hook_car_door/

Works Cited:

Lavender Town Syndrome: https://www.creepypasta.com/lavender-town-syndrome/

Russian Sleep Experiment: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Russian_Sleep_Experiment

Under the Bed Chain Letter: https://www.scaryforkids.com/hospital-bed/

Relaxing Car Drive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMgsFZ4rkEI

Just-World Hypothesis: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1979-26009-001

Power of Prayer: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/alley-oops/

The Spire in the Woods: https://web.archive.org/web/20190426135153/https://www.creepypasta.com/the-spire-in-the-woods/

The Licked Hand: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Licked_Hand

A Gathering of 100 Weird Tales: https://hyakumonogatari.com/what-is-hyakumonogatari/

Further Reading:

Delmage A., John; Schnier, Steve; et al., “Freaky Stories”, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0166432/

Dodd, Steven; Gaines, William; “Tales from the Crypt”; https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096708/

Edgar, Patricia; Jennings, Paul; Storm, Esben; “Round the Twist”, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103529/

Gammell, Stephen; Schwartz, Alvin; “Scary Story to Tell in the Dark”, https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/1325218

Narnia, Soren; “Knifepoint Horror”; https://knifepointhorror.libsyn.com/

Newall, Alexander J.; Sims, Jonathan; “The Magnus Archives, Episode 152: A Gravedigger’s Envy”

Stine, R.L; “Goosebumps”; https://kids.scholastic.com/kid/books/goosebumps/series/

[compneuropapers]

Interesting Papers for Week 7, 2024

Targeted memory reactivation in human REM sleep elicits detectable reactivation. Abdellahi, M. E., Koopman, A. C., Treder, M. S., & Lewis, P. A. (2023). eLife, 12, e84324.

Dynamics of cortical contrast adaptation predict perception of signals in noise. Angeloni, C. F., Młynarski, W., Piasini, E., Williams, A. M., Wood, K. C., Garami, L., … Geffen, M. N. (2023). Nature Communications, 14, 4817.

Continuous odor profile monitoring to study olfactory navigation in small animals. Chen, K. S., Wu, R., Gershow, M. H., & Leifer, A. M. (2023). eLife, 12, e85910.

Object representation in a gravitational reference frame. Emonds, A. M., Srinath, R., Nielsen, K. J., & Connor, C. E. (2023). eLife, 12, e81701.

Metacognitive judgments during visuomotor learning reflect the integration of error history. Hewitson, C. L., Al-Fawakhiri, N., Forrence, A. D., & McDougle, S. D. (2023). Journal of Neurophysiology, 130(2), 264–277.

Temporal scaling of dopamine neuron firing and dopamine release by distinct ion channels shape behavior. Juarez, B., Kong, M.-S., Jo, Y. S., Elum, J. E., Yee, J. X., Ng-Evans, S., … Zweifel, L. S. (2023). Science Advances, 9(32).

Evidence for a common mechanism supporting invigoration of action selection and action execution. Kita, K., Du, Y., & Haith, A. M. (2023). Journal of Neurophysiology, 130(2), 238–246.

Causal evidence for the processing of bodily self in the anterior precuneus. Lyu, D., Stieger, J. R., Xin, C., Ma, E., Lusk, Z., Aparicio, M. K., … Parvizi, J. (2023). Neuron, 111(16), 2502-2512.e4.

Long- and short-term history effects in a spiking network model of statistical learning. Maes, A., Barahona, M., & Clopath, C. (2023). Scientific Reports, 13, 12939.

State-dependent coupling of hippocampal oscillations. Modi, B., Guardamagna, M., Stella, F., Griguoli, M., Cherubini, E., & Battaglia, F. P. (2023). eLife, 12, e80263.

Expectations about precision bias metacognition and awareness. Olawole-Scott, H., & Yon, D. (2023). Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 152(8), 2177–2189.

Not what u expect: Effects of prediction errors on item memory. Ortiz-Tudela, J., Nolden, S., Pupillo, F., Ehrlich, I., Schommartz, I., Turan, G., & Shing, Y. L. (2023). Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 152(8), 2160–2176.

Altered oculomotor flexibility is linked to high autistic traits. Pomè, A., Tyralla, S., & Zimmermann, E. (2023). Scientific Reports, 13, 13032.

Dissociation of vicarious and experienced rewards by coupling frequency within the same neural pathway. Putnam, P. T., Chu, C.-C. J., Fagan, N. A., Dal Monte, O., & Chang, S. W. C. (2023). Neuron, 111(16), 2513-2522.e4.

Ventrolateral prefrontal neurons of the monkey encode instructions in the ‘pragmatic’ format of the associated behavioral outcomes. Rozzi, S., Gravante, A., Basile, C., Cappellaro, G., Gerbella, M., & Fogassi, L. (2023). Progress in Neurobiology, 229, 102499.

Testing the generalization of neural representations. Sandhaeger, F., & Siegel, M. (2023). NeuroImage, 278, 120258.

A neural mechanism for terminating decisions. Stine, G. M., Trautmann, E. M., Jeurissen, D., & Shadlen, M. N. (2023). Neuron, 111(16), 2601-2613.e5.

Subtle adversarial image manipulations influence both human and machine perception. Veerabadran, V., Goldman, J., Shankar, S., Cheung, B., Papernot, N., Kurakin, A., … Elsayed, G. F. (2023). Nature Communications, 14, 4933.

Distinct roles of the orbitofrontal cortex, ventral striatum, and dopamine neurons in counterfactual thinking of decision outcomes. Yun, M., Nejime, M., Kawai, T., Kunimatsu, J., Yamada, H., Kim, H. R., & Matsumoto, M. (2023). Science Advances, 9(32).

Alternating capture of attention by multiple visual working memory representations. Zhang, L., & Yamada, Y. (2023). Scientific Reports, 13, 13029.

[lifesarchive]

2023 READS (BOOKLIST)

What an incredible year is has been with my adventures in literature. I went from not reading a complete book in years to reading 30+ whole books in less than a year. Pictured above are THE BOATMAN'S DAUGHTER by ANDY DAVIDSON (★ ★ ★ ★ ★) and MY GOVERNMENT MEANS TO KILL ME by RASHEED NEWSON (★ ★ ★ ★ ★), two amazing books I read this year, but didn't get a chance to review. In descending order, here are all the books I read in 2023:

TRUE EVIL TRILOGY by R. L. STINE (1992) ★ ★ ★

JAZZ by TONI MORRISON (1992) ★ ★ ★ ★

SONG OF SOLOMON by TONI MORRISON (1977) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

SIDLE CREEK by JOLENE McILWAIN (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★

MUCKROSS ABBEY AND OTHER STORIES by SABINA MURRAY (2023) ★ ★ ★

TEXAS HEAT: AND OTHER STORIES by WILLIAM HARRISON (2023) ★ ★ ★

BOYS IN THE VALLEY by PHILIP FRACASSI (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

PIRANESI by SUSANNA CLARKE (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

BARACOON: THE STORY OF THE LAST BLACK CARGO by ZORA NEALE HURSTON (2018) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

NINETEEN CLAWS AND A BLACKBIRD by AGUSTINA BAZTERRICA (2020) ★ ★

THE VIOLIN CONSPIRACY by BRANDON SLOCUMB (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★

MONSTRILIO by GERARDO SAMANO CORDOVA (2023) ★ ★ ★

THE SHARDS by BRET EASTON ELLIS (2023) ★ ★ ★ ★

HUMAN SACRIFICES by MARIA FERNANDA AMPUERO (2021) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

DEVIL HOUSE by JOHN DARNIELLE (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★

FLUX by JINWOO CHONG (2023) ★ ★ ★

THE TROOP by NICK CUTTER (2014) ★ ★ ★

MY DARKEST PRAYER by S. A. COSBY (2019) ★ ★ ★ ★

WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE by SHIRLEY JACKSON (1962) ★ ★ ★ ★

BELOVED by TONI MORRISON (1987) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE by SHIRLEY JACKSON (1959) ★ ★ ★

THE VANISHING HALF by BRIT BENNETT (2020) ★ ★ ★ ★

DRIVE YOUR PLOW OVER THE BONES OF THE DEAD by OLGA TOKARZUK (2009) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

THE BURNING GIRLS by C. J. TUDOR (2021) ★ ★ ★

HIDDEN PICTURES by JASON REKULAK (2022) ★ ★ ★

THE BOOKS OF JACOB by OLGA TOKARZUK (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

THE BOATMAN'S DAUGHTER by ANDY DAVIDSON (2020) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

SACRIFICIO by ERNESTO MESTRE-REED (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

SUPERSTITIOUS by R. L. STINE (1995) ★ ★ ★

THE WRONG GIRL by R. L. STINE (2018) ★ ★ ★

MY GOVERNMENT MEANS TO KILL ME by RASHEED NEWSON (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

BEST BARBARIAN: POEMS by ROGER REEVES (2022) ★ ★ ★

THE THORN PULLER by ITO HIROMI (2007) ★ ★ ★ ★

NOW DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU ARE by DANA LEVIN (2022) ★ ★ ★

THE HOLLOW KIND by ANDY DAVIDSON (2022) ★ ★ ★ ★

A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES by T. KINGFISHER (2022) ★ ★

A DELUSION OF SATAN: THE FULL STORY OF THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS by FRANCES HILL (1995) ★ ★ ★ ★

[nem0c]

Vietnam War - Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine, June 1968

Sourced from: http://natsmusic.net/articles_galaxy_magazine_viet_nam_war.htm

Transcript Below

We the undersigned believe the United States must remain in Vietnam to fulfill its responsibilities to the people of that country.

Karen K. Anderson, Poul Anderson, Harry Bates, Lloyd Biggle Jr., J. F. Bone, Leigh Brackett, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Mario Brand, R. Bretnor, Frederic Brown, Doris Pitkin Buck, William R. Burkett Jr., Elinor Busby, F. M. Busby, John W. Campbell, Louis Charbonneau, Hal Clement, Compton Crook, Hank Davis, L. Sprague de Camp, Charles V. de Vet, William B. Ellern, Richard H. Eney, T. R. Fehrenbach, R. C. FitzPatrick, Daniel F. Galouye, Raymond Z. Gallun, Robert M. Green Jr., Frances T. Hall, Edmond Hamilton, Robert A. Heinlein, Joe L. Hensley, Paul G. Herkart, Dean C. Ing, Jay Kay Klein, David A. Kyle, R. A. Lafferty, Robert J. Leman, C. C. MacApp, Robert Mason, D. M. Melton, Norman Metcalf, P. Schuyler Miller, Sam Moskowitz, John Myers Myers, Larry Niven, Alan Nourse, Stuart Palmer, Gerald W. Page, Rachel Cosgrove Payes, Lawrence A. Perkins, Jerry E. Pournelle, Joe Poyer, E. Hoffmann Price, George W. Price, Alva Rogers, Fred Saberhagen, George O. Smith, W. E. Sprague, G. Harry Stine (Lee Correy), Dwight V. Swain, Thomas Burnett Swann, Albert Teichner, Theodore L. Thomas, Rena M. Vale, Jack Vance, Harl Vincent, Don Walsh Jr., Robert Moore Williams, Jack Williamson, Rosco E. Wright, Karl Würf.

We oppose the participation of the United States in the war in Vietnam.

Forrest J. Ackerman, Isaac Asimov, Peter S. Beagle, Jerome Bixby, James Blish, Anthony Boucher, Lyle G. Boyd, Ray Bradbury, Jonathan Brand, Stuart J. Byrne, Terry Carr, Carroll J. Clem, Ed M. Clinton, Theodore R. Cogswell, Arthur Jean Cox, Allan Danzig, Jon DeCles, Miriam Allen deFord, Samuel R. Delany, Lester del Rey, Philip K. Dick, Thomas M. Disch, Sonya Dorman, Larry Eisenberg, Harlan Ellison, Carol Emshwiller, Philip José Farmer, David E. Fisher, Ron Goulart, Joseph Green, Jim Harmon, Harry Harrison, H. H. Hollis, J. Hunter Holly, James D. Houston, Edward Jesby, Leo P. Kelley, Daniel Keyes, Virginia Kidd, Damon Knight, Allen Lang, March Laumer, Ursula K. LeGuin, Fritz Leiber, Irwin Lewis, A. M. Lightner, Robert A. W. Lowndes, Katherine MacLean, Barry Malzberg, Robert E. Margroff, Anne Marple, Ardrey Marshall, Bruce McAllister, Judith Merril, Robert P. Mills, Howard L. Morris, Kris Neville, Alexei Panshin, Emil Petaja, J. R. Pierce, Arthur Porges, Mack Reynolds, Gene Roddenberry, Joanna Russ, James Sallis, William Sambrot, Hans Stefan Santesson, J. W. Schutz, Robin Scott, Larry T. Shaw, John Shepley, T. L. Sherred, Robert Silverberg, Henry Slesar, Jerry Sohl, Norman Spinrad, Margaret St. Clair, Jacob Transue, Thurlow Weed, Kate Wilhelm, Richard Wilson, Donald A. Wollheim.

[docrotten]

THIS ISLAND EARTH (1955) – Episode 162 – Decades Of Horror: The Classic Era

“I’m sorry. I’d hoped to have prepared you somewhat beforehand. This is a mutant.” A Metaluna Mutant to be precise! Join this episode’s Grue-Crew – Chad Hunt, Daphne Monary-Ernsdorff, Doc Rotten, and Jeff Mohr – as they journey to Metaluna and back, survive an encounter with said mutant, and make it back to This Island Earth (1955).

Decades of Horror: The Classic Era Episode 162 – This Island Earth (1955)

Join the Crew on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel! Subscribe today! And click the alert to get notified of new content! https://youtube.com/gruesomemagazine

ANNOUNCEMENT Decades of Horror The Classic Era is partnering with THE CLASSIC SCI-FI MOVIE CHANNEL, THE CLASSIC HORROR MOVIE CHANNEL, and WICKED HORROR TV CHANNEL Which all now include video episodes of The Classic Era! Available on Roku, AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, AndroidTV, Online Website. Across All OTT platforms, as well as mobile, tablet, and desktop. https://classicscifichannel.com/; https://classichorrorchannel.com/; https://wickedhorrortv.com/

Aliens come to Earth seeking scientists to help them in their war.

  Director: Joseph M. Newman (as Joseph Newman)

Writers: Franklin Coen & George Callahan (as Edward G. O’Callaghan)(screenplay); Raymond F. Jones (story “The Alien Machine”) 

Producer: William Alland

Music: Herman Stein (Universal staff composer) (uncredited), Henry Mancini (uncredited), Hans J. Salter (uncredited)

Cinematographer: Clifford Stine (director of photography)

Editor: Virgil W. Vogel (film editor) (as Virgil Vogel)

Costume Design: Rosemary Odell (gowns)

Makeup Department: 

Hair stylist: Joan St. Oegger 

Special Makeup: Bud Westmore, Jack Kevan, Chris Mueller, Millicent Patrick, Robert Hickman

Special Photography: David S. Horsley, Clifford Stine, Cleo E. Baker (uncredited)

Visual Effects: Roswell A. Hoffmann (optical printing) (as Roswell A. Hoffman), Frank Tipper (effects animator) (uncredited)

Matte Painting: Russell Lawson (uncredited)

Rotoscope Artist: Millie Winebrenner (head rotoscoper) & the roto-girls (uncredited)

Mutant Constructors: Robert Hickman (uncredited), Jack Kevan (uncredited), Chris Mueller (uncredited)

Mutant Design: Millicent Patrick

Movie Poster Art: Reynold Brown (uncredited)

Selected Cast:

Jeff Morrow as Exeter

Faith Domergue as Dr. Ruth Adams

Rex Reason as Dr. Cal Meacham

Lance Fuller as Brack

Russell Johnson as Dr. Steve Carlson

Douglas Spencer as The Monitor

Robert Nichols as Joe Wilson

Karl Ludwig Lindt as Dr. Adolph Engelborg (credited as Karl L. Lindt)

Charlotte Alpert as Metaluna Woman at Decompression Console (uncredited)

Orangey as Neutron the cat

Regis Parton as Mutant (uncredited)

Olan Soule as First Reporter (uncredited)

Richard Deacon as Pilot (uncredited)

Ah! The Metaluna Mutant! This beloved Universal Monster stands proudly alongside the classics such as Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula, and even the Creature from the Black Lagoon, while the film in which it is featured is often overlooked as being included as a Universal Monster movie. Regardless, it’s time for the Grue Crew to revisit this cherished 50s Sci-Fi landmark entry, This Island Earth (1955).  In the film, Rex Reason and Faith Domergue unwillingly follow high-browed, white-hair-domed alien Jeff Morrow to his distant home planet where they finally, in the last few minutes, encounter the Metaluna Mutant face-to-face. Fun, sometimes goofy, always entertaining, the film delivers! During the episode, the Classic Era crew debunk a Hollywood myth about the film and uncover some key behind-the-scenes contributions from the film’s crew. 

At the time of this writing, a stray copy of This Island Earth might be found streaming from Dailymotion or YouTube. The film is currently available on disc as a Blu-ray from Shout! Factory.

Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror: The Classic Era records a new episode every two weeks. Up next in their very flexible schedule, as chosen by Jeff, is Isle of the Dead (1945), a Val Lewton RKO film with an Oscar-nominated director starring Boris Karloff! Beware the vorvolaka!

Please let them know how they’re doing! They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave them a message or leave a comment on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel, the site, or email the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com

To each of you from each of them, “Thank you so much for watching and listening!”

Check out this episode!

[cscclibrary]

[Horizontal graphic; background yellow streaks on black. Black, blue, and orange text: “Top 100 Most Banned and Challenged Books of the Past Decade / ALA American Library Association.” Image courtesy of the American Library Association.]

In 2020, the American Library Association released a list of the 100 most frequently banned and challenged books from 2010-2019. Most of them are for children and young adults, or are commonly assigned in schools. They range from century-old classics to current popular novels. Some were challenged for predictable reasons--swearing, violence, or sex. Many were challenged because they contained LGBTQ+ content. Some were challenged because they critiqued social institutions.

All of them are available either in the Columbus State Library or via the OhioLINK system. Clicking on any of the titles below will tell you where you can find the book; OhioLINK items can be requested and sent to the Columbus State campus. In the case of a series, the link usually leads to the first title in the series. Enjoy your right to read!

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

Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Looking for Alaska by John Green

George by Alex Gino

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell

Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James

Internet Girls (series) by Lauren Myracle

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I Am Jazz by Jazz Jennings and Jessica Herthel

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Bone (series) by Jeff Smith

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss

Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg

Alice McKinley (series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie H. Harris

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Scary Stories (series) by Alvin Schwartz

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

It’s a Book by Lane Smith

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones

A Child Called “It” by Dave Pelzer

Bad Kitty (series) by Nick Bruel

Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby by Dav Pilkey

This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman

This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki

A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl by Tanya Lee Stone

Beloved by Toni Morrison

Goosebumps (series) by R.L. Stine

In Our Mothers’ House by Patricia Polacco

Lush by Natasha Friend

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The Bible

This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

Gossip Girl (series) by Cecily von Ziegesar

House of Night (series) by P.C. Cast

My Mom’s Having A Baby by Dori Hillestad Butler

Neonomicon by Alan Moore

The Dirty Cowboy by Amy Timberlake

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya

Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle

Dreaming In Cuban by Cristina Garcia

Fade by Lisa McMann

The Family Book by Todd Parr

Feed by M.T. Anderson

Go the Fuck to Sleep by Adam Mansbach

Habibi by Craig Thompson

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

Jacob’s New Dress by Sarah Hoffman

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Monster by Walter Dean Myers

Nasreen’s Secret School by Jeanette Winter

Saga by Brian K. Vaughan

Stuck in the Middle by Ariel Schrag

The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal

1984 by George Orwell

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher

The Awakening by Kate Chopin

Burned by Ellen Hopkins

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers

Glass by Ellen Hopkins

Heather Has Two Mommies by Lesle´a Newman

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Madeline and the Gypsies by Ludwig Bemelmans

My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis

Prince and Knight by Daniel Haack

Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology by Amy Sonnie

Skippyjon Jones (series) by Judith Schachner

So Far from the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins

The Color of Earth (series) by Tong-hwa Kim

The Librarian of Basra by Jeanette Winter

The Walking Dead (series) by Robert Kirkman

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S Brannen

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

[readreadbookblog]

Books That I’ve Read

Here is all the new movies that I consumed in the year of 2021. I only put here the new items that I previously never have experienced before. Listed in the order that I saw them in. Lets hope that 2022’s list is greater.

Books

The Last Stone by Mark Bowden REVIEW

How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States by Daniel Immerwahr REVIEW

A Brief History of Nakedness by Philip Carr-Gomm

Alien: Out of the Shadows by Tim Lebbon REVIEW

Alien III by William Gibson REVIEW

The Long Affair: Thomas Jefferson and the French Revolution, 1785-1800 by Conor Cruise O’Brien REVIEW

You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington by Alexis Coe REVIEW

John Adams Under Fire: The Founding Father’s Fight for Justice in the Boston Massacre Murder Trial by Dan Abrams and David Fisher REVIEW

Call Waiting by R.L. Stine REVIEW

Fear Street: Fear Hall: The Beginning by R.L. Stine REVIEW

Goosebumps Horrorland The Wizard of Ooze by R.L. Stine REVIEW

Goosebumps Horrorland The Streets of Panic Park by R.L. Stine REVIEW

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson REVIEW

Dutch Girl: Audrey Hepburn and World War II by Robert Matzen REVIEW

2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke REVIEW

Caffeine by Michael Pollan REVIEW

A Boob’s Life: How America’s Obsession Shaped Me...And You by Leslie Lehr  REVIEW

A Cool Breeze on the Underground by Don Winslow REVIEW

The Minuteman: The Forgotten Legacy of Nat Arno and the Fight Against Newark’s Nazis by Greg Donahue REVIEW

Hitler in Los Angeles: How Jews Foiled Nazi Plots Against Hollywood and America by Steven J. Ross REVIEW

A Cool Breeze on the Underground by Don Winslow REVIEW

To Hell and Back by Audie Murphy REVIEW

Nights of the Living Dead Anthology edited by Jonathan Maberry and George A. Romero REVIEW

A Narco History: How the United States And Mexico Jointly Created the “Mexican Drug War” by Carmen Boulllosa and Mike Wallace REVIEW

Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix REVIEW

Killing a King: The Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the Remaking of Israel by Dan Ephron REVIEW

Napoleon’s Hemorrhoids and Other Small Events That Changed History by Phil Manson REVIEW

Yocandra in the Paradise of Nada by Zoe Valdes REVIEW

When Books Went to War by Molly Guptill Manning REVIEW

My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix REVIEW

Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis REVIEW

Empire of Mud: The Secret History of Washington, DC by J.D. Dickey REVIEW

The China Mission: George Marshall’s Unfinished War, 1945-1947 by Daniel Kurtz-Phelan REVIEW

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata REVIEW

The Egg and Other Stories by Andy Weir REVIEW

The Incredible Shrinking Man by Richard Matheson REVIEW

Perelandra by C.S. Lewis REVIEW

Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown REVIEW

[spydcrbyte]

why r u using j*stine s as a face claim? she called you the r-word beloved. 🥴

[mrsomewhere]

Top 100 most banned and challenged books of the last decade:

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

Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Looking for Alaska by John Green

George by Alex Gino

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell

Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James

Internet Girls (series) by Lauren Myracle

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I Am Jazz by Jazz Jennings and Jessica Herthel

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Bone (series) by Jeff Smith

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss

Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg

Alice McKinley (series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

It's Perfectly Normal by Robie H. Harris

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Scary Stories (series) by Alvin Schwartz

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

It's a Book by Lane Smith

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones

A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer

Bad Kitty (series) by Nick Bruel

Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby by Dav Pilkey

This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman

This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki

A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl by Tanya Lee Stone

Beloved by Toni Morrison

Goosebumps (series) by R.L. Stine

In Our Mothers' House by Patricia Polacco

Lush by Natasha Friend

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The Holy Bible

This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

Gossip Girl (series) by Cecily von Ziegesar

House of Night (series) by P.C. Cast

My Mom's Having A Baby by Dori Hillestad Butler

Neonomicon by Alan Moore

The Dirty Cowboy by Amy Timberlake

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya

Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle

Dreaming In Cuban by Cristina Garcia

Fade by Lisa McMann

The Family Book by Todd Parr

Feed by M.T. Anderson

Go the Fuck to Sleep by Adam Mansbach

Habibi by Craig Thompson

House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

Jacob's New Dress by Sarah Hoffman

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Monster by Walter Dean Myers

Nasreen’s Secret School by Jeanette Winter

Saga by Brian K. Vaughan

Stuck in the Middle by Ariel Schrag

The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal

1984 by George Orwell

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher

Awakening by Kate Chopin

Burned by Ellen Hopkins

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers

Glass by Ellen Hopkins

Heather Has Two Mommies by Lesle´a Newman

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Madeline and the Gypsies by Ludwig Bemelmans

My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis

Prince and Knight by Daniel Haack

Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology by Amy Sonnie

Skippyjon Jones (series) by Judith Schachner

So Far from the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins

The Color of Earth (series) by Tong-hwa Kim

The Librarian of Basra by Jeanette Winter

The Walking Dead (series) by Robert Kirkman

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S Brannen

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

[brightbeautifulthings]

November

J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O

New The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich (4/5) Hocus Pocus & The All New Sequel by A.W. Jantha (3/5) Red Dragon by Thomas Harris (3/5) Sunshine by Robin McKinley (3/5) The Walking Dead, Vol. 2: Miles Behind Us by Robert Kirkman (3/5) The Awakening Evil by R.L. Stine (3/5) The Cabin by N.C. Ferrao (2/5)

Reread A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle (5/5) Carrie by Stephen King (3/5)

[birindale]

Page 1 of S J Stine’s Production Journal. Rough transcript below the cut to maintain edit-ability down the line.

Disclaimer/Plea: I am very very open to alternative interpretations on this. Please help me I can't read.

Color code: Blue is “I think this says” and green is "I can't read this but based on context I think it's this"

[illegible circled text] 2:30-3:30 PM SHE 101 Pilot 2nd Storyboard Pitch Adora & Secret Swords • Catra entrance more like a cat? • Transition from screen to actual castle? • Glimmer’s temper tantrum attitude feels a little childish? Feels like she should be more passionate about fighting to contrast w/ her teenage rebellion dialogue • The position of the sword more special? • Adora’s reaction to Princess Glimmer - what was it? Did she even react? Maybe she could actually go into attack mode, but then when she’s about to punch Glimmer, she can’t do it • Horde logo seems like it should be burned on the ground - huge. Only way to see it is from atop a rock • Did Bow & Glimmer see Adora turn into She-Ra? 11.21.16 Day with Ben Juwono @ Disney TV 1) Have a good morning ritual. Start one hour earlier than everyone else 2) It’s only awkward if you make it awkward (w/ older board artists) 3) You have to be the best board artist or if the team stumbles no one will listen to you. If there’s a foreseeable future w/ a problem make sure to talk to Adam & Sam. The more you delay it, the more it’s gonna be a problem - How come you haven’t said anything this whole time? You have to communicate everything with Adam & Sam. “In case I can’t work w/ this person, please come up w/ a plan [illegible] make the future work out” 4) More important to show authority w/o looking like you’re bossy or someone easy to step on. It’ll be harder on meb/c I’m a woman 5) W/ notes - address every single executive note (w/ solutions), get Revision notes then address, update the episode. If you hear a note you don’t like, say “Hmm. I’m not sure if that will work, but let me give it a try.”

[lovemesomesurveys]

800 questions part 13

601) What is your one major weakness? One of many is that I’m super stubborn. I put things off and avoid stuff and they end up building up and getting worse and then I have an even bigger problem than before. I do this constantly and never seem to learn. The worst part is that I do this a lot with stuff regarding my health. I let my fear, anxiety, and my knack for always assuming the worst to control me and it causes a lot of problems for me.

602) What’s been the best decision you’ve made in your life so far? I don’t know. Of course I can easily think of a shit ton of bad decisions I’ve made because my brain likes to focus on the negative stuff.

603) What’s been the worst decision you’ve made in your life so far? Like I talked about in the first question, I’ve made a lot of bad decisions regarding health related things.

604) What words do you always struggle to spell correctly? For some reason whenever a question like this comes up I always think of the word, “onomatopoeia”, which I always have to look up because it just won’t stick in my brain. The funny thing is I never use that word except for when a question like this comes up; I don’t know why I always think of that word. Maybe one of these times I’ll finally get it. Otherwise, I think I spell pretty well.

605) On a scale of 1-10 how happy would you say you are? I’m not. I think that’s been made pretty clear by now.

606) On a scale of 1-10 how smart would you say you are? I don’t know. I consider myself to be average.

607) On a scale of 1-10 how funny would you say you are? I don’t like rating things. I think I have my funny moments, but I’m not naturally funny. I’m not someone who’s always making people laugh. That’s not a descriptor people would use for me.

608) On a scale of 1-10 how devious would you say you are? I’m not a devious person.

609) On a scale of 1-10 how awesome would you say you are? I’m not.

610) On a scale of 1-10 how devilish would you say you are? I’m not a devilish person.

611) On a scale of 1-10 how nice/caring would you say you are? I don’t know. I’m not the nicest person in the world. I don’t mean that I’m mean or anything, but there’s some people who are just really super nice, ya know? Like they’re just very friendly and everyone gravitates towards them and loves them. I’m not that person. I think people would say I’m nice, but they wouldn’t think of me as the nicest person they’ve ever met. 

612) On a scale of 1-10 how bitchy would you say you are? I get in my moody, irritable moods and I can be short and snippy. 

613) On a scale of 1-10 how polite would you say you are? I think I’m pretty polite. 

614) On a scale of 1-10 how attractive would you say you are? Not at all.

615) If you could be any famous person who would you be and why? I don’t want to be a famous person or be famous at all.

616) What’s your favorite animal beginning with the letter A? I don’t have one.

617) What’s your favorite item of clothing beginning with the letter B? Do beanies count?

618) What’s your favorite expletive beginning with the letter C? “Crap.”

619) What’s your favorite boys name beginning with the letter D? I don’t have one.

620) What’s your favorite girls name beginning with the letter E? I don’t have one.

621) What’s your favorite book beginning with the letter F? I don’t feel like thinking about all the books I like and which ones start with F.

622) What’s your favorite body part beginning with the letter G? Uhhh.

623) What’s your favorite musical instrument beginning with the letter H? The harp sounds pretty.

624) What’s your favorite song beginning with the letter I? “In the End” by Linkin Park first came to mind so we’re going with that.

625) What’s your favorite actress beginning with the letter J? Jessica Lange in American Horror Story.

626) What’s your favorite actor beginning with the letter K? Kevin Hart.

627) What’s your favorite film beginning with the letter L? (The) Little Mermaid. I’m totally blanking on L movies.

628) What’s your favorite tv show beginning with the letter M? (The) Mandalorian. 

629) What’s your favorite game beginning with the letter N? The Nancy Drew computer game I used to play when I was a kid first came to mind.

630) What’s your favorite non-alcoholic drink beginning with the letter O? I don’t have one.

631) What’s your favorite food beginning with the letter P? Pasta.

632) What’s your favorite band beginning with the letter Q? I don’t have one.

633) What’s your favorite author beginning with the letter R? I loved Goosebumps growing up and they’ll always hold a spot in my heart, so I’ll go with R.L Stine. 

634) What’s your favorite sport beginning with the letter S? I don’t like sports. 635) What’s your favorite job beginning with the letter T? I don’t have one.

636) What’s your favorite mythical creature beginning with the letter U? Unicorns.

637) What’s your favorite alcoholic drink beginning with the letter V? None, I don’t drink.

638) What’s your favorite cartoon character beginning with the letter W? Winnie the Pooh.

639) What’s your favorite word beginning with the letter X? I don’t have one.

640) What’s your favorite city beginning with the letter Y? I don’t have one.

641) What’s your favorite country beginning with the letter Z? I don’t have one.

642) Do you get seasick? Yes.

643) If you discovered a new species of dinosaur what would you call it? I have no idea.

644) Do you own a paddling pool? Nope.

645) What do you consider is the most important piece of furniture in a house? For me, it’s my bed.

646) What do you consider is the most important appliance in a house? For me, it’s my Keurig.

647) If you could have any celebrities hair who would it be? I don’t knowww.

648) Which Celebrity do you find the most annoying? They all can be at times.

649) What potential talents do you think you might have if you worked at them? I don’t have any.

650) Who was better, Flipper, Lassie or Skippy? Lassie cause doggo. 

[onelittlebookgeek]

Book Challenge 2020 (100 books!!) (I did it!!)

After forgetting to track my reading for three years, I started recording my reading on Tumblr last year again, and I’m committed to continuing that this year!

This year is my final year of my Bachelor’s Degrees (I’m finishing English in June) and I’m planning to do a gap year from September on, so now more university after June (at least as far as 2020 is concerned).

I do not really foresee any issues or obstacles to reading this year, except of course finishing my thesis which will probably take quite some time, so I do expect a decline around April until early June. Although I do have a lot more time off in my gap year, I used to read a lot of mandatory books for my studies, so I don’t know whether having a gap year will mean reading more books. Since I’m not doing any university studying, I am interested in reading academic books by myself, studying by myself. Those books are often longer, denser and just take more time to get through; consequently, I might read fewer books in the same amount of energy and time spent reading.

To make a (somewhat) long story short: my expectations are in line with the amount of books I’ve read in the last years, so I’m expecting to read 75 books this year!

Update: it’s mid-October and I’ve already read 99 books this year, so I’ve finished my original goal of 75 books! Now I’m going for 100 books (which should be easy to do, and after that we’ll just see how it goes!).

The crossed book is the one I’m currently reading, I’ve written reviews for books that have a (x) behind them, with the (x) being a link to my Goodreads review!

Update: Today (November 23) I’ve read 114 books so I’ve finished my challenge of 100 books! Right now, I’m still 25 books ahead schedule! Let’s see if I can keep that energy up!

January

The Fire Next Time - James Baldwin (5/5) (x)

Serpent and Dove (Serpent and Dove #1) - Shelby Mahurin (4/5) (x)

Lethal White (Cormoran Strike #4) - Robert Galbraith (4/5)

Weirdos from Another Planet (Calvin and Hobbes #4) - Bill Watterson) (5/5)

Selected Poems - E.E. Cummings (5/5) (x)

Niets zal ons redden maar een beetje liefde is oké - Henk van Straten (Dutch) (4/5) (x)

, said the shotgun to the head. - Saul Williams (4/5)

Loud and Yellow Laughter - Sindiswa Busuku-Mathese (3/5)

Fireborn (The Aurelian Cycle #1) - Rosaria Munda (4/5)

Sylvia Plath Poems Chosen by Carol Ann Duffy - Sylvia Plath (4/5) (x)

The Comedy of Errors - William Shakespeare (3/5) (x)

Nieuwe Herinneringen - Remco Campert (Dutch) (2/5)

Dido, Queen of Carthage - Christopher Marlowe (3/5)

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid (4/5)

Alles wat er was - Stine Jensen (Dutch) (3/5)

Zij in de geschiedenis - Alies Pegtel (Dutch) (4/5) (x)

Good Omens - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (reread) (5/5)

February

Prometheus Bound - Aeschylus (3/5)

The Lost Hero (The Heroes of Olympus #1) - Rick Riordan (reread) (4/5)

The Son of Neptune (The Heroes of Olympus #2) - Rick Riordan (reread) (4/5)

So You Want to Talk About Race - Ijeoma Oluo (4/5)

The Mark of Athena (The Heroes of Olympus #3) - Rick Riordan (reread) (4/5)

Educated - Tara Westover (3/5)

Prometheus on Caucasus - Lucian of Samosata (3/5)

March

Reading Old English: A Primer and First Reader - Robert Hasenfratz (4/5) (x)

Still Foolin’ ‘Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys? - Billy Crystal (3/5)

The House of Hades (The Heroes of Olympus #4) - Rick Riordan (reread) (4/5)

Quick Question: New Poems - John Ashberry (1/5) (x)

Exploring the Language of Poems, Plays and Prose - Michael H. Short (3/5) (x)

The Call of the Wild - Jack London (2/5) (x)

The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus #5) - Rick Riordan (reread) (4/5)

April

The Waste Land - T.S. Eliot (reread) (5/5)

And Still I Rise - Maya Angelou (4/5)

Poëzie in Utrechtse Muren - Ingmar Heytze (Dutch) (5/5) (x)

To the Lighthouse - Virginia Woolf (4/5)

Mijn dood en ik - Remco Campert (4/5)

Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster - Mike Davis (3/5)

Native Son - Richard Wright (2/5)

Dido, Queen of Carthage - Christopher Marlowe (reread) (4/5)

May

The Plague - Albert Camus (4/5)

Absalom! Absalom! - William Faulkner (4/5)

Modernism’s Mythic Pose: Gender, Genre, Solo Performance - Carrie J. Preston (2/5)

James Joyce and Sexuality - Richard Brown (3/5)

June

Daisy Jones & the Six - Taylor Jenkins Reid (4/5) (x)

Modernism, Sex and Gender - Alison Pease and Celia Marshik (3/5)

The Burial at Thebes: Sophocles’ Antigone - Seamus Heaney (4/5)

The Host - Stephanie Meyer (reread) (4/5)

The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) - Suzanne Collins (reread) (4/5)

Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2) - Suzanne Collins (reread) (4/5) (x)

A Terrible Beauty is Born - W.B. Yeats (4/5)

Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3) - Suzanne Collins (reread) (4/5)

White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism - Robin DiAngelo (4/5)

Are Prisons Obsolete? - Angela Y. Davis (4/5)

The Final Empire (Mistborn #1) - Brandon Sanderson (4/5)

Everything Leads to You - Nina LaCour (2/5) (x)

The Tempest - William Shakespeare (reread) (3/5)

July

Hag-Seed - Margaret Atwood (4/5) (x)

American Slavery (A Very Short Introduction) - Andrea Heather William (reread) (3/5)

Angels & Demons (Robert Langdom #1) - Dan Brown (4/5) (x)

Mythos: A Retelling of Myths of Ancient Greece - Stephen Fry (4/5) (x)

Mean Time - Carol Ann Duffy (3/5)

Lijfrente - Vrouwkje Tuinman (Dutch) (4/5)

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games #0) - Suzanne Collins (3/5) (x)

Sonnets from the Portuguese - Elizabeth Barrett Browning (3/5)

A Room of One’s Own - Virginia Woolf (reread) (5/5)

The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold (4/5)

Onbreekbaar - Hans Hagen (Dutch) (1/5) (x)

The Penelopiad - Margaret Atwoord (reread) (4/5)

The Importance of Being Ernest - Oscar Wilde (5/5)

Het goede leven: een briefwisseling - Piet Gerbrandy & Andreas Kinneging (Dutch) (2/5) (x)

Constructions of the Classical Body - James Porter (3/5)

August

The Complete Poems - Anne Sexton (4/5)

The Kissing Booth (The Kissing Booth #1) - Beth Reekles (2/5) (x)

The Daily Show: The Book - Chris Smith (4/5) (x)

The Duchess Deal (Girl meets Duke #1) - Tessa Dare (3/5)

Between the World and Me - Ta-Nehesi Coates (4/5)

Fragments - Heraclitus (transl. by Brooks Haxton) (2/5) (x)

Animal Farm - George Orwell (reread) (5/5)

The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo #1) - Rick Riordan (reread) (4/5)

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue (Montague Siblings #1) - Mackenzi Lee (reread) (4/5)

Kitchen - Banana Yoshimoto (4/5)

Catilina’s Riddle (Roma sub Rosa #3) - Steven Saylor (2/5) (x)

When Dimple met Rishi (Dimple and Rishi #1) - Sandhya Memon (1/5) (x)

Adulthood is a Myth (Sarah’s Scribbles #1) - Sarah Andersen (4/5)

September

Normal People - Sally Rooney (3/5) (x)

Not All Dead White Men: Classics and Misogyny in the Digital Age - Donna Zuckerberg (4/5)

Sadie: A Novel - Courtney Summers (4/5)

The Myth of Sisyphus - Albert Camus (4/5)

Vloedlijnen - Piet Gerbrandy (Dutch) (4/5)

Red, White and Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston (reread) (4/5)

This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor - Adam Kay (4/5)

Envelope Poems - Emily Dickinson (4/5) (x)

A Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot #10) - Agatha Christie (3/5) (x)

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - James Joyce (4/5)

October

Titus Andronicus - William Shakespeare (4/5) (x)

The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Hercule Poirot #1) - Agatha Christie (4/5) (x)

Het verhaal van Aeneas - Vergilius (trans. to Dutch) (reread) (4/5)

If Beale Street Could Talk - James Baldwin (2/5)

Lesbia, Verzen van Liefde en Spot - Catullus (Dutch) (transl. by Paul Claes) (4/5) (x)

The Nightingale - Kristin Hannah (4/5) (x)

The Cat Inside - William S. Burroughs (reread) (5/5)

The Murder on the Links (Hercule Poirot #2) - Agatha Christie (3/5)

November

Such a Fun Age - Kiley Reid (3/5) (x)

Narratology and Classics: a Practical Guide - Irene de Jong (3/5) (x)

The Murder of Roger Akroyd (Hercule Poirot #4) - Agatha Christie (4/5) (x)

The ABC Murders (Hercule Poirot #11) - Agatha Christie (4/5)

The Great Cat (Poetry Collection) - ed. by Emily Fragos (3/5) (x)

Weapons of Math Destruction - Cathy O’Neil (4/5)

The Northern Lights (His Dark Materials #1) - Philip Pullman (4/5)

Vincent van Gogh en zijn brieven - Leo Jansen (Dutch) (3/5)

My Dark Vanessa - Kate Elizabeth Russell (4/5)

The Fill-In Boyfriend - Kasie West (reread) (4/5)

Poirot Investigates (Hercule Poirot #3) - Agatha Christie (1/5)

My 2019 challenge

My 2016 challenge

My 2015 challenge

My 2014 challenge

My 2013 challenge

[megs-readstoomuch]

Top 💯 Banned Books of 2010-2020:

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

▪️Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey

▪️Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

▪️Looking for Alaska by John Green

▪️George by Alex Gino

▪️And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell

▪️Drama by Raina Telgemeier

☑️Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James

▪️Internet Girls (series) by Lauren Myracle

▪️The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

▪️The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

☑️Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

▪️I Am Jazz by Jazz Jennings and Jessica Herthel

☑️The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

☑️To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

▪️Bone (series) by Jeff Smith

☑️The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

▪️Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

▪️A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss

▪️Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg

▪️Alice McKinley (series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

▪️It's Perfectly Normal by Robie H. Harris

▪️Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

☑️Scary Stories (series) by Alvin Schwartz

▪️Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

☑️A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

▪️Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin

☑️Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

☑️The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

☑️The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

▪️Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

▪️It's a Book by Lane Smith

☑️The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

☑️The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

▪️What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones

☑️A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer

☑️Bad Kitty (series) by Nick Bruel

▪️Crank by Ellen Hopkins

▪️Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

▪️Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

▪️The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby by Dav Pilkey

▪️This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman

▪️This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki

▪️A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl by Tanya Lee Stone

▪️Beloved by Toni Morrison

▪️Goosebumps (series) by R.L. Stine

▪️In Our Mothers' House by Patricia Polacco

▪️Lush by Natasha Friend

▪️The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

▪️The Color Purple by Alice Walker

▪️The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

☑️The Holy Bible

▪️This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson

☑️Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

▪️Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

▪️Gossip Girl (series) by Cecily von Ziegesar

▪️House of Night (series) by P.C. Cast

▪️My Mom's Having A Baby by Dori Hillestad Butler

▪️Neonomicon by Alan Moore

▪️The Dirty Cowboy by Amy Timberlake

☑️The Giver by Lois Lowry

☑️Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

▪️Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya

▪️Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle

▪️Dreaming In Cuban by Cristina Garcia

▪️Fade by Lisa McMann

▪️The Family Book by Todd Parr

▪️Feed by M.T. Anderson

▪️Go the Fuck to Sleep by Adam Mansbach

▪️Habibi by Craig Thompson

▪️House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

▪️Jacob's New Dress by Sarah Hoffman

▪️Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

▪️Monster by Walter Dean Myers

▪️Nasreen’s Secret School by Jeanette Winter

▪️Saga by Brian K. Vaughan

▪️Stuck in the Middle by Ariel Schrag

▪️The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal

▪️1984 by George Orwell

▪️A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

▪️Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher

☑️Awakening by Kate Chopin

▪️Burned by Ellen Hopkins

▪️Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

▪️Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers

▪️Glass by Ellen Hopkins

▪️Heather Has Two Mommies by Lesle´a Newman

☑️I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

▪️Madeline and the Gypsies by Ludwig Bemelmans

▪️My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis

▪️Prince and Knight by Daniel Haack

▪️Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology by Amy Sonnie

▪️Skippyjon Jones (series) by Judith Schachner

▪️So Far from the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins

▪️The Color of Earth (series) by Tong-hwa Kim

▪️The Librarian of Basra by Jeanette Winter

▪️The Walking Dead (series) by Robert Kirkman

▪️Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

▪️Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S Brannen

▪️Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

[tlbodine]

Hi, I'm writing a ghost story about a ghost working to not only solve their own murder but the murder/death(s) of their fellow ghosts who haunt the same hotel. The ghosts represent the theme of secrets and how they can come back to haunt you, in this case literally. How would I go about showing this rather than just telling the audience/readers?

Hey, sorry for the delayed response! I opened this up at work, planned to answer when I got a spare minute, and then the world kind of went to hell and I’ve been swept up in the chaotic adjustment, eep! 

That said, I hope you & yours are safe wherever you are, and...let’s talk about ghosts! 

So I presume you’ve read my Ghost Post but I’ll link it again here just in case: https://tlbodine.tumblr.com/post/168621456134/how-to-write-horror-ghost-stories

“The past coming back to haunt you” is really baked in to most ghost story tropes. I think for the most part, that’s what defines ghosts as opposed to other sorts of horror spooks. Ghosts can enact revenge, but ghosts can also lead people to uncover truths that had been hidden. 

In order to make that work, we often need someone with an outsider’s perspective -- a living human character -- to act as the recipient of the ghost’s messages. Because ghosts are usually tied to a specific location, they need a human person out there who can go do their investigative legwork for them. 

Here’s a common framework for the trope: 

Person moves to a new place or otherwise experiences a change in scenery, putting them in path of the ghost. 

They experience a number of creepy events, alerting them first to the existence of the ghost, and then drawing their attention to strange things about the house 

A series of clues lead them to discover that More Is Going On Than It Seems, and they are driven to unearth the mystery 

Quite often, unearthing this mystery means confronting a living person, such as the murderer or a person who is benefiting from the murder of the ghost(s) 

Now that justice is served, the ghost can be at peace and leaves the human alone 

Now, this basic formula can be tweaked in a lot of ways. In your scenario, you’ve got one setting but multiple ghosts. Some questions to ask yourself that might help to clarify the story and themes: 

What is it that connects these ghosts to one another? Do they share a killer? Why are they all in this specific hotel? Does that hotel have a dirty secret? Who stands to benefit from their death?

What would bring justice to these souls? Is there a person who can be punished, a secret that can be revealed, a ritual performed, etc. that would lay them to rest? 

Alternatively, is the ghost stepping in to help a living person instead? Does the ghost recognize patterns of behavior and decide to step in to prevent a murder from happening etc.? 

As long as you’re approaching the story thoughtfully and keeping your themes in mind, you shouldn’t have to do too much work to make the message shine through -- trust in your reader to figure it out. Your theme will emerge organically from the way the story plays out, the way the characters change, etc. 

Here are some reading/viewing recommendations that might help you with ideas and in studying how themes are handled: 

A Taste for Monsters by Matthew J. Kirby - A girl becomes the private nurse for Joseph Merrick (The Elephant Man), and the two are visited frequently by the ghosts of Jack the Ripper’s victims. Solving the murders, and preventing the next one, becomes crucial to both of them. 

The Girl in the Well by Rin Chupeco - Told from the POV of a Japanese yurei (vengeful spirit), the book is about the ghost-girl’s relationship with the boy who can see her, and their attempts to resolve a current murderous haunt as well as uncover some secrets to give peace to the ghost. 

The Shining by Stephen King - The book is better for this than the movie. A family spends an isolated winter as custodians of a haunted hotel. The hotel itself is a malevolent character, and it had a lot of evil influence over the main character -- but before he succumbs, there’s a lot of investigation into the history of the place and all the things that have happened in it. 

The Orphanage (El Orfanato) - One of my favorite ghost movies. A woman moves into the building that was once the orphanage where she was raised. When her son disappears soon after, she starts to see ghosts -- are they leading her to him, or trying to harm her? 

The Devil’s Backbone  - Another of my favorite ghost movies, and one of Guillermo del Toro’s finest. A ghost story set in a boarding school for children orphaned by a war. 

Haunted by R.L. Stine - One of my favorite of the Fear Street novels, this book is about a girl who is visited by a ghost who needs her to help him solve his murder. The twist? He’s not dead yet. 

There are obviously lots and lots more, but you get the idea. Hopefully this helps on your quest! Best of luck writing :)