#suhail reads

[primsycoldbottles]

i feel like im turning into one of those OMG MY BABIEESSS type of uwu romance readers w how im reacting to the romance in the book series im finishing . helpme

[pradeep]

I got this book from the PMC library in Tingre Nagar, Vishrantwadi.

The book is a story of how revolutionaries fighting for Indian independence were helped by divine intervention (specifically by Bhairav).

Nice mixture of historical fiction and mythology.

The story proceeds at a good pace and the plotting is decent.

[honeyveebeevee]

GAZA CAMPAIGNS

These are a few families that have reached out to me, I will be editing as I receive more

______________________________________________________________

Shaima is a mother of four children, Abdul Rahim, Walid, Majdi, and baby Amal. Her children have been unable to attend school because of the ongoing genocide in Gaza, as well as the disappearance of her husband. @gazavetters is verified, and her verified number in the list is (#55). Please share her campaign as well as donate if you can. For more information please click the two links.

$10,050 raised out of $30K

@familgazaamal1

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@nisreen-suhail and her family are a family of eight, Islam (30) years old, Hashem (31), Samer (29), Mohammad (35), Nisreen (37), Noor (36), Amal (12), Kenzy (17), Zoheer (19). Nisreen's brother, Samer suffers from bipolar disorder, and they only need 60 euros to buy his essential medication. Nisreen's and her family's campaign have been verified by @dlxxv-vetted-donations & @a-shade-of-blue @gazavetters number in the list is ( #75 ), and paliliberation number in the list is ( #171 )

€24,776 raised out of €50K

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Mosab Elderawi and his family has lost 25 family members, Mosab Elderawi is 28 years old, and his wife Nadine Adel Al telbani is 21 years old, their daughter was born during the ongoing genocide going on in Gaza, she is five months old, her name is Amani, which means wishes.

€2,169 raised out of €20K

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@yasminfamilysblog previous vetted campaign was deleted by GoFundMe. As of 04:44 GMT on 21 December, Yasmin is 21 years old and is struggling to support her parents and 5 siblings, her father suffers from a chronic illness and a heart condition. Her previous campaign was vetted by @el-shab-hussein #346

$945 raised out of $10K

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Alaa Ashour is a doctoral student in Gaza, her mother’s health condition worsened, and now she is in a wheelchair, needing surgery and evacuation from Gaza, and her father is in his seventies. They must pay $5000 per person in order to leave Gaza. Vetted by @gazavetters, and the number verified on the list is ( #353)

$22,755 CAD raised out of $50K

@alaafamily11

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Mona Ramadan and her family consist of 5 people contains 3 children under 14 years old, now they now live in a tent after losing their home. Vetted by @gazavetters, the number verified on the list is ( #253 )

€1,395 raised out of €50K

@manouche-231

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Ahmed AlSaidi is currently living in Gaza with his wife, 3 children, his elderly parents and his brothers with their families, all his family is still in Gaza. His brothers are Osama, Moatasim, and Mohammed. Ahmed's family includes three children, Qusay, Lyan, and Ayda. Osama's family also has three children, Yahya, Sewar, and Yamen. Moatasim’s family consists of two children, Maria and Aysha. Mohammed is 22 years old. Ahmed father has undergone heart catheterization due to blocked arteries and got food poisoning, while his mother suffers from high blood pressure and heart problems. Qusay, who is four years old, who recently had a difficult throat operation, needs ongoing healthcare and speech therapy. His condition has left him struggling with speech difficulties, and he requires urgent speech therapy.

Vetted by @moayesh and confirmed by @a-shade-of-blue

And also vetted by @bilal_salah0 and shared by @90-ghost https://www.tumblr.com/90-ghost/763413113557090304?source=share

£3,587 raised out of £30K 

@savealsaidifamily

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TAG LIST (DM me for removal)

@gazafundraisers @dlxxv-vetted-donations @gaza-evacuation-funds @loveandleases @gloomcat-mess @palestinegenocide @gazagfmboost @palestine-info-uncensored @northgazaupdates2 @gazafunds @gazareshare @ashwantsafreepalestine @northern-passage @willowcrowned @akaratna @heydreamchild @salam-and-sadaqah @stil-lindigo @fifthnormani @gottastim

I will be adding more tags as I continue adding more Campaigns

[elliepassmore]

Turning Darkness Into Light review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: dragons, linguistics, light/dark academia, multimedia narrative

A Natural History of Dragons review

Tropic of Serpents review

Voyage of the Basilisk review

In the Labyrinth of Drakes review

Within the Sanctuary of Wings review

This book stands as a companion/sequel to the rest of the Lady Trent memoirs. It takes place while Isabella is publishing her memoirs and focuses on her granddaughter, Audrey, who is a linguist specializing in Draconean. While I do think you could read this book without having read the rest of the series (stuff is explained as it comes up and for the most part the two focus on separate things), it does 100% spoil Within the Sanctuary of Wings and the series' 'big reveal,' so bear that in mind. I will also note that there are no dragons in this book, it's all focused on the Draconean stuff.

I was super excited to see a book focusing on linguistics since it played such a big role in the later Lady Trent books. Suhail makes a lot of really big discoveries alongside Isabella and so we got to read about those, but it only whet my appetite for more Draconean linguistics. That being said, I wish we got more of the nitty gritty aspects of linguistics and translating ancient languages. I know getting too into it would probably make it boring for readers not interested in that field, but as a linguist I so desperately wanted all the 'boring' details. I did find it interesting and fun that Brennan decided to model ancient Draconean orthography more on Akkadian and Sumerian than Egyptian, despite the rest of the ancient Draconean culture + the Cataract Stone being modeled on the latter. Akkadian/Sumerian is notoriously difficult to read and translate, especially if you're not an expert, and it doesn't really change anything else, so it makes sense to use that as the basis for Audrey and Kudshayn's work here.

At this point in time, Draconeans were discovered ~40 years prior, giving people enough time to form opinions and biases about them. The desire for ancient Draconean artifacts hasn't died down, and with the upcoming Falchester Conference to determine the fate of the Sanctuary of Wings and Draconeans as a whole, there's a new boom for them. Despite that, there are some people who are neutral, some who support the Draconeans, and some who dislike them. The latter group can be split into different fields of thought: Calderites who think Draconeans are lesser than humans and should stay in the Sanctuary, and Hadamists who think Draconeans mean the end of human civilization and want them dead. Both Draconean supporters and haters are out in full force with the upcoming conference, and some are eager to see what the translated tablets have to say, if only to use them against the other side.

The book is told in a multimedia style, with snippets from Audrey, Kudshayn, and Cora's diaries; newspaper articles; translated tablets; and letters. I really liked this method of telling the story since it allows us to get a much fuller look at everything going on during the course of the story. It's also interesting because it provides us with a number of different narrative styles, and I enjoyed how this storytelling technique nods to the topic of the book. I also liked that Brennan included the translations as Audrey and Kudshayn made them since we got to see the story unfold alongside them and we got to see some of their notes about the translation, some of which come back later on as plot points.

Audrey is clearly very passionate about linguistics and Draconean rights (obviously), and it's clear she's got the Trent/Camherst passion in her. At the same time, she has to juggle with the knowledge that she's being compared against her other illustrious family members -- from Isabella and Suhail to her father and mother -- and wants to achieve her own greatness. She doesn't always make the best decisions, but neither did Isabell, and I enjoyed seeing the dynamic of her trying to pursue her passions, live up to her family name, and 'do what grandmama would do.'

Kudshayn is a Draconean whose mother purposefully laid her clutch in a different environment in order to experiment with Draconean developmental lability with the hopes of ensuring Draconeans can live among humans and not just in the Sanctuary of Wings. Kudshayn, being a male Draconean, is a scholar and a priest, thus the translation is important to him as well as to Audrey. Kudshayn has a lot to grapple with in the book, from the upcoming vote about whether the Sanctuary should be recognized as independent and Draconeans free to roam, to the new religious insights found in the tablet, to the rocky history of human-Draconean relations. He's fairly quiet and sensible, but he also understands a lot about people and is forgiving when something is a genuine mistake vs. malicious intent.

Cora is Lord Gleinheigh's niece, tasked with being Audrey's assistant and with spying on her. Cora is autistic coded, though considering the time period, no one comes out and says it. Poor Cora is stuck between somewhat of a rock and a hard place -- she feels indebted to her uncle and so she spies on Audrey + Kudshayn, but at the same time she becomes friends with them and doesn't necessarily want to do it. Cora is quite clever and while she can't translate Draconean as well as the other two, she actually makes some decent headway and is able to pick some of it up quickly. I did enjoy her frustration with the more confusing or intricate aspect of ancient Draconean orthography. Cora comes into herself in this book and becomes quite the little advocate for herself. I really liked seeing her friendship with the other two (and a little hint in The Long Fall of how the three are still connected.)

Overall I enjoyed this book and think it's a great companion to the Lady Trent memoirs. I liked Audrey as a character and enjoyed following her journey in this book. I also really loved the linguistic aspect of things and am glad that we got a book focused on Draconean translations and linguistics.

[mariacallous]

In its latest assault on basic freedoms, Afghanistan has banned women and girls from speaking in public. It marks a new low in the Taliban-led government’s enforced gender apartheid.

Promises that girls and women would be allowed to study and work were broken shortly after the Taliban returned to power. The group banned girls from going to school beyond sixth grade and outlawed them from pursuing higher education at university. It even prohibited them from taking a stroll in the park or going to the gym, and from nearly all professions that could earn them a living and a semblance of independence and dignity.

And yet even as Afghan women are kept prisoner in their homes and denied basic rights, neither the Islamic nations in the region nor the United States have taken an active interest in compelling the group to reverse its misogynistic policies.

The new rules were announced in the middle of the presidential campaign in the United States, but both candidates kept mum on the issue of women’s rights, even though each of their respective governments knowingly left Afghan women to a fate that was hardly unexpected.

When Kamala Harris and Donald Trump faced off in a debate last week, Afghanistan was raised only in the context of the domestic ramifications of American withdrawal. No mention was made of what happened to Afghans left behind. Neither candidate said a word about how the U.S. exited without securing any guarantees from the Taliban on the future of women and their rights.

The Taliban, firmly in control, brushed off all of its atrocities on Afghan women and violation of their very basic rights as “Afghan values’’ in a conversation with Foreign Policy. Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen said the group was open for engagement with the West, but on economic issues only.

“They can invest in minerals,’’ he told FP. “China, Russia, all have business ties with us, the West can also do that. It is good for them and good for us.’’

“Women’s rights and those things are up to us, and we will determine them according to Afghan values and traditions,’’ he added, as if speaking and reading were matters of Afghan sovereignty and not basic human rights.

Mahbouba Seraj, an Afghan women’s rights activist who was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize last year, blamed both the Trump and Biden administrations for the circumstances the Afghan girls and women find themselves in.

“When they were discussing the agreement in Doha, we were not even given the visa to come to Qatar because we would have asked questions, we would have confronted the Taliban, but that could have scuttled the deal and the Trump administration didn’t want that,’’ she told FP over the phone.

“Biden may not have had enough room to change the deal, but that was not the reason he stuck with it,’’ she said. The Biden administration “wanted to get out.’’

The key tenet of the U.S. policy on Afghanistan has been security and containing the threat that terrorist groups based there can pose to Western countries. The Doha agreement between the U.S. and the Taliban, which led to the U.S. exit, called on the Taliban “to prevent the use of Afghan soil by any international terrorist groups or individuals against the security of the United States and its allies.’’

But even the word “women’’ is missing from it. A post-withdrawal concern has been that a deteriorating humanitarian situation could exacerbate the refugee crisis, particularly in Europe.

In order to address these concerns, and heed calls by humanitarian actors, the U.S. agreed to ease some sanctions and infuse Afghanistan with billions in cash. That helped Afghans, but it also kept the Taliban afloat and emboldened it to carry on as it pleased.

“Since August 2021, the U.N. has purchased, transported, and transferred at least $2.9 billion to Afghanistan using international donor contributions,’’ according to a report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) in January. It added that the U.S. is the largest donor, with $2.6 billion of that sum contributed by the American taxpayer.

While throwing money at the problem has somewhat mitigated a humanitarian crisis, it has also kept the Taliban in power and allowed it to maintain a support base. The report said that the Taliban has accumulated, “a large supply of U.S. dollars, through the conversion process of dollars for afghanis.’’

Some Afghan analysts argued that stopping the cash flow will weaken the Taliban, reduce its acceptability, and ideally encourage an anti-Taliban uprising. Or, at the very least, force them to make some concessions.

22-year-old Miryam, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, pleaded that the West, and especially the U.S., “should stop sending money to the Taliban.’’ Her education was cut short when the Taliban took over in 2021, she can’t wear what she wants, or do anything professionally, or step out of the house.

“Don’t recognize the Taliban,’’ she said from Kabul in her message to the international community, “put pressure on them to at least give women the right to work and study.’’

Davood Moradian, founder and the director-general of the Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies (AISS) now based in London, argued in favor of slashing the aid. “America is the main source of Afghan currency,’’ he told FP. “The moment the U.S. stopped funding, the Taliban will face a serious challenge,’’ to its rule, he added.

Others said if the Taliban didn’t break under 20 years of American presence, they wouldn’t abandon their hardcore ideology now, due to a cash crunch. Seraj, the women’s rights activist, advocated a diametrically different approach and said that the West should instead open the floodgates of developmental aid in a way that upward mobility emboldens the Afghan people to rebel against Taliban’s excesses and fight for women’s rights.

“You can’t even use the word women with them,’’ she said. “You have to come up with things like more investments and business deals and let that create the right conditions.’’

Thus far, the U.S. has threatened the Taliban with a global boycott if it doesn’t grant women their rights. But efforts ostracize the group from the international community are a farce since China, Russia, Pakistan, Qatar and several others continue to engage the group for economic and security reasons.

The truth is there hasn’t been an active U.S. policy to try and bring about a change or help the women of Afghanistan since the U.S. retreated. The policy has been outsourced to the U.N., which is engaging the group, often on the terms set by the Taliban. For instance, in July the U.N. organized Doha III, a dialogue platform to engage the Taliban and various stakeholders on the future of Afghanistan. But to appease the Taliban and make sure they attended, not a single women’s rights activist was invited.

One idea, way short of full recognition, could be to bring together a coalition of Islamic nations to challenge the Taliban’s understanding of Shariah and compel the group to let women and girls study and work, just as they can in other Islamic countries.

In April, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) called on the Taliban’s deputy chief minister Abdul Kabir to end the ban on education and employment for women and girls. Last year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that preventing education for girls is “inhumane and un-Islamic.” Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, a prominent political advisor in the United Arab Emirates, told FP that an Emirati delegation visited Kabul to discuss women’s rights. “There are so many trends in Islam, some more moderate, others more extreme. The Taliban, they are following a very backward ideology,” he said.

But Afghan women’s rights activists say that the condemnations from fellow Islamic countries appear to be more perfunctory and unserious. It could carry weight if it was a cohesive regional policy pushed by the U.S. as one of the pillars of its Afghanistan strategy. The Taliban, after all, is carrying out its oppression in the name of Islam.

Shaheen, the Taliban spokesperson, seemed to make some room for concessions when he told FP that the decision on education and employment for girls and women was pending, and subject to a report by an Afghan “committee.”

As for the next American president, ignoring Afghanistan would be at their own peril. Caging women in their homes and denying them basic rights represents a pattern of the Taliban reneging on promises—and it’s easy to imagine that extending to foreign policy.

“They are all there, all there,’’ Seraj, the activist, said. “ISIS-KP, Al Qaeda, other terrorist groups, they are all there. They are all getting training. Don’t think nothing is happening. The American intelligence knows what’s going on.”

[2346khith]

Hi.

I hope this message finds you well.

I’m Hazem, reaching out from Gaza🇵🇸, where my family is facing grave danger due to the ongoing conflict. Asking for help is incredibly difficult, but during these trying times, every bit of support can make a meaningful difference.🙏

I have committed to saving 10 members of my family from this devastating war, and they are depending on me now more than ever. Your support could provide them with a chance to escape this nightmare.💔

My brother Samer needs expensive medical treatment, and we are suffering from malnutrition and contaminated water, which has caused me stomach pain. Additionally, the educational journey of three family members has come to a halt.

Please consider contributing to our campaign. The verification is in the pinned post!

https://gofund.me/917ecb89

Thank you for your kindness.🙏

For those who see this please, visit their blog and reblog their blog’s posts so they  get more attention and if you have the money to spare please donate.

Also I apologize, but I do not have the ability to donate to you. Trust me if I had the ability I would but I don't and I can't. I have no bank account or credit card to transfer money to and no job to gain any money. Every time I ask my parents to help they shut me down so this is the only way to help you. Please forgive me.

[yanxioustrikas]

super league teams: grimm fc — part 2

links to the other parts

part 1

part 3

cedric revazishvili (top-left)

nationality: georgian-norwegian

birthplace: oslo, norway

ethnicity: georgian

evren "anansi" başaran (top-right)

nationality: turkish

birthplace: izmir, turkïye

ethnicity: afro-turkish

suhail "sloan wolff" wasim (bottom-left)

nationality: canadian

birthplace: vancouver, british columbia, canada

ethnicity: pakistani punjabi

jules "scully molder" de mulder (bottom-right)

nationality: belgian

birthplace: brussels, belgium

ethnicity: flemish + xhosa south african

p.s. — go to part 1 to read the actual p.s. lol

p.s. 2 — "sloan wolff" and "scully molder" are both canon known names... the rest are headcanons

[paranormeow7]

Fundraisers from my inbox (MOST IF NOT ALL LOW ON FUNDS, DO NOT SKIP)

Commissions in exchange for donations

Vetted:

@hananalanqar78

@rehab02

@walidfamile

@swimmingblazenut

@nouraayman

@farahibrahim80

@hazem-suhail

@samiraaymaan

Unvetted:

@abuyasin156

https://gofund.me/504921a8

(Donation protected)

@mohamed-adventure

(donation protected, RIS clean)

@drgaza2

(donation protected, RIS clean)

[vendemiaire-crafts]

Toploader #6 — still available! 🍇🪐

Donate a minimum of 3 USD to a Palestinian fundraiser, and message me to purchase!

Don’t know who or where to support? @hazem-suhail needs your support!

Hazem has his mother, six siblings, and three nieces and nephews to support. Their home and supermarket was destroyed in the war; as well, Hazem’s father passed away from starvation and inadequate healthcare. In addition to evacuating to Egypt, Hazem’s family needs funds for his brother Samer to receive treatment for his mental health.

Help Hazem, Samer, and their family:

As well, check out the other stuff I��ve got!

[b-plot-butch]

Thanks for tagging me @flower-dagger-gay!!

Three ships I like: Gault/Lucienne (Sandman), Kassandra/Brasidas (AC Odyssey), and Suhail ibn Ramiz/Isabella Camherst (Memoirs of Lady Trent) <3

First ship ever: Oh, lord. Probably Nymphadora Tonks/Remus Lupin?

Last song: Rumi by Huayucaltia

Favorite childhood book: HOW DID I NOT KNOW YOU LIKED GREGOR THE OVERLANDER??? That was my childhood favorite too and remains so very important to me to this day!! I was also huuuuge into Warrior Cats.

Currently reading: Well, I just finished reading In the Company of Crows and Ravens by Tony Angell and John Marzluff today! Currently listening to the audiobook of the Spanish-language translation of Watership Down (another childhood favorite) and working on Gay and Lesbian Poetry in Our Time, an anthology edited by Joan Larkin and Carl Morse.

Currently watching: I have two episodes left of the first season of The Bear!

Currently consuming: about to eat frozen macaroni and cheese.

Currently craving: god, I would do unspeakable things for mantou right now.

No pressure tags: @jlemonster @seddenostalgia @lucienne-thee-librarian @the-everqueen @stellerssong @cosmictapestry @rowan-ashtree

[primsycoldbottles]

books are so fun its like Ooh 11pm i should read a little before bed--*its suddenly 3am and i have read nearly 200 pages of a 350 page novel

[spacech3rub]

Hello Everyone!

So, a lot of people have contacted me to spread awareness of their campaigns to help get materials/evacuate, etc from 🍉.

If you can, please donate to one of or some of the campaigns below!

@moomensblog2 : (€665/€30 000): https://gofund.me/c13667ad

@ahmed-sobeh : (€449/€10 000): https://www.paypal.com/donate?campaign_id=EJ892Z3JYTPYS

@hazem-suhail: (€11 329/€50 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/urgent-help-needed-a-journey-from-gaza-to-safety

@mhammedmosa: ($3 363/$20 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/please-help-muhammad-musa-fundraiser?attribution_id=sl:c88278f4-0ef1-448e-b523-e53c335946c6&lang=en_US&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp1c&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link

@severeninjanight: (£5 982/£10 000) https://gofund.me/73d4b003

https://gofund.me/73d4b003

@hayanahed: (€91 412/€100 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-save-the-lives-of-my-family-in-gaza

@anas12a: (€1511/€29 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/Help-Anas-and-Ahmed-in-Gaza

@alaasyam: ($551/$30 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-story-of-alaa-a-mothers-cry-for-help?attribution_id=sl:a0ef745c-ce3c-4a9e-b658-4675aae0ecc2&member=36472839&sharetype=teams&utm_campaign=natman_sharesheet_dash&utm_content=amp8_c&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link

@tahseenkhazen: ($14 581/$25 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/tahseen-family-from-gaza-not-to-feel-hungry?attribution_id=sl:cc688d87-263f-43ba-80ad-fbedd7c95be9&lang=en_US&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link

@khalid-sisters: ($5 840/$15 000) https://www.gofundme.com/f/khalid-little-sisters-in-gaza-not-be-homeless

@jaber-alhj7 https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-a-family-journey-to-safety-and-peace?lang=en_US&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link

@mohammed5alwadiya https://gofund.me/f751a38a

@ahmadbasilgaza https://gofund.me/9c46877a

https://gofund.me/9c46877a

@familygazaamal1

Anyways, I’ll try to update this post and reblog it once in a while. If you can, boost this post :>

Thanks for reading and see you on (occasional) art posts!

[scenegir]

i've gotten a lot of asks from those struggling in gaza recently, so i thought it would be best to make one big post listing them. if you can read the stories of these survivors and donate to any fundraisers at all, or even just share this post, please do! it would mean a lot to me, but more importantly, i know it would mean the world to these families. as far as i am aware, all of these campaigns are also verified.

nisreen suhail's campaign - (direct blog link)

naseer's campaign

oday's campaign (recently had to be restarted)

mohammed's campaign

kenzi's campaign

ali miqdad's campaign

omar hammad's campaign

youssef's family campagin

thank you!!

[catdotjpeg]

On 26 October, the Palestinian Ministry of Health released the list of names of Palestinians killed since 7 October. Among them, from the al-Kahlot family, are:

Jihad Muhammad Hussein (73) and his daughter, Khawlah Jihad Muhammad (41);

Suhail Hassan Ahmed (65) and his children Hassan Suhail Hassan (34), Haya Suhail Hassan (31), Ahmed Suhail Hassan (28), Mahmud Suhail Hassan (26), Hadi Suhail Hassan (25), and Abdul Rahman Suhail Hassan (19);

Ghada Abdel Rahman Younis (55);

Shakir Marzouk Shakir (48), his wife, and their children Raghad Shakir Marzouk (10), Malik Shakir Marzouk (9), Abdullah Shakir Marzouk (8), and Adam Shakir Marzouk (4);

Wail Hassan Mahmoud (46), his wife Amna, and their twin daughters, Rahaf and Rafif Wail Hassan;

Hind Abdelkarim Abdel Rahim (42);

Fatima Khamis Abid (42);

Iffat Zein Rabah (39);

Muhammad Mahir Abdel Rahman (39) and his son Zayn al-Din Muhammad Mahir (2);

‘Isam Mahmoud Muhammad (38), his wife, and their children Nur 'Isam Mahmoud (11), Muhammad 'Isam Mahmoud (5), and Amal 'Isam Mahmoud (13);

Wafaa Yusuf Ali (38);

Abdelfattah Ezzo Abdelfattah (33), a banker and father, remembered as an "ambitious young man since his childhood, loving, courteous, and generous, always willing to serve friends, relatives, and anyone he could;"

Ahmed Maher Abdel Rahman (29);

Rawan Sami Yusuf (29);

Yusuf Rami Abdel Rahim (11);

Sarah Hassan Marzouk (11) and her siblings Hazim Hassan Marzouk (8) and Sally Hassan Marzouk (2);

Omar Bilal Bashir (6);

Yusuf Nael Ismail (6);

Muhammad Bahaa el-Din Awad (4);

Siham Ibrahim Abdelkarim (2);

Muhammad Ahmed Suhail (2);

Halima Abdelkarim, an artist and facilitator with the Palestinian Ministry of Culture, described as having a "unique perspective on life reflected in her artwork";

Majed Abdel Wahab Bakr (6);

Safiyyah Ibrahim Abdelkader (58);

Malik Hamdi Abdullah (19);

and Jana Mahmoud Ahmed (8).

You can read more about the human lives lost in Palestine on the Martyrs of Gaza Twitter account and on my blog.

[elliepassmore]

Within the Sanctuary of Wings review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: adventure, light academia, dragons, epistolary narrative

A Natural History of Dragons review

The Tropic of Serpents review

Voyage of the Basilisk review

In the Labyrinth of Drakes review

So...I still enjoyed this book, but I'm not totally sure how I feel about the big discovery made in this one. I do think it's a little odd and abrupt, but I can also see how the groundwork was laid in prior books.

This book opens 6 years (I think) after Labyrinth with Suhail giving a talk on Draconean linguistics and translation. The 'Cataract Stone' Isabella found in Mouleen provided a bilingual transcription that Suhail and other linguists were able to use to begin cracking the code of the Draconean language. Since the discovery of the stone and the bigger discovery of the mostly intact ruins in the Labyrinth of Drakes, there has been a huge boom of all things Draconean in Scirling society. For those familiar with the Victorian era, this tracks very closely with the Egyptian boom that occurred and, obviously, the Cataract Stone here is analogous to the Rosetta Stone in our world--Draconean art has always been described in a way analogous to Egyptian art, so I thought this was very nice continuity.

Toward the end of the first chapter, a Yelangese rebel and mountain climber, Mr. Thu, approaches Isabella to tell her about a dead dragon he found in the Mrtyahaima mountain range (i.e., Himalayas). Due to her past with Yelang, she's obviously wary, but it involves dragons, so obviously she, Tom, Suhail, and Andrew take off for Mrtyahaima. Caeligers are much more prominent now and there's even an event called the Aerial War that's occurring concurrently in the world. Thus, traveling to a remote and treacherous mountain range is a bit easier than when Isabella and Tom did it in book 1. Of course, getting to the mountain range is one thing, getting around once there is another.

Suhail's archaeological and linguistic work plays an important role in this book, but Isabella's theory of reproductive lability comes back in a big way as well. I liked seeing the convergence of some of these ideas, and I did appreciate that language was a bigger aspect in this one than in some of the other books (while I did study anthropology and find it fascinating, linguistics is my passion).

It's hard to talk too much about this book without giving away some very big spoilers that have been building for the entire series. I will say though that Isabella spends much of this book separated from her loved ones, and that a lot of her scientific work is done via observation. While this is true of most of the series, we were treated to some of her hands-on work in Labyrinth, so really this is just her going back to her usual style of fieldwork. The discovery and actions she takes in this book are the reason she goes from Dame Trent to Lady Trent, and is essentially a household name in Scirling forevermore.

I will say, for all her grumbling about not being good at politics, Isabella is actually very smooth when it comes to political maneuvering in this book. First she has to convince the Scirling government to let her go to Vidwatha (India) and Tser-nga (I am guessing Nepal) on the word of a Mr. Thu who, in exchange, wants her to pledge support to the revolutionary movement in Yelang. Then she runs into political problems later on with another group she runs across, and then she finds a surprising, but completely Isabella, way of following through on her promise of supporting the Yelangese revolution.

When the whole group is together, I enjoy their interactions and the way they're all familiar enough with one another to essentially read each other's minds. As usual, Suhail and Tom both have academic interest in the same/similar things as Isabella, and so the three of them are excited at the prospect of new discoveries. I like that Andrew has essentially become a member of their little group despite not being an academic. He's able to provide support in interesting ways.

Overall, a good and surprising ending to the series that combines the work Isabella and Tom have been doing for 5 books with Suhail's work. I'm definitely excited to read the spinoff/sequel/companion and see how the discoveries here have impacted things down the line.

[birdylion]

@astronicht did this tag game and invited anyone to do it. Hi 👋

three ships: Isabella/Suhail (The Memoirs of Lady Trent), Ryan Lucan/Alex Chen + Alex Chen/Steph Gingrich V relationship (Life is Strange: True Colors), Miranda Barlow/James Flint with Miranda/James/Thomas (Black Sails)

first ever ship: the main character of a horse girl book and her boyfriend. I made fanart for them. I don't remember their names. But it was about long distance riding in Cornwall and they had to huddle together for warmth on a cliff/above a beach to weather a storm that was flooding the beach

last song: Fantasmic by Nightwish

last movie: Glass Onion

currently reading: a closed and common orbit by Becky chambers, The Two Towers (the part with Frodo, Sam and Gollum). Also I subscribed to three newsletters this year: Silmarillion, LotR, and Sherlock Holmes. Every one of the books/stories but the Becky chambers is a re-read. Oh and in the same way I first experienced it, I'm currently reading book 1 of Lady Trents Memoirs to a couple of friends.

currently watching: the last thing I watched, and also the next thing I'm going to watch (in a different version), is a Let's Play of Life is Strange True Colors

currently consuming: nothing but I'm going to have to get up and make breakfast

currently craving: I'm too hungry to have a specific craving

I don't know if you like these games so feel free to ignore, but I'm going to tag: @somename, @chellsky, @val-nite, @sk-ew, @caffeespresso, @thelightinthesky

For anyone else, I honestly like it when someone does this and links back to me, so please, don't be shy, feel free to do this and say I tagged you!