Quick read about the (potentially) suicidally-reckless shit teenagers do when they have few, if any, other options available to them. They're all playQuick read about the (potentially) suicidally-reckless shit teenagers do when they have few, if any, other options available to them. They're all playing for the money, even those who say it's to prove something to themselves. They're growing up in a really poor town, and most have no other way out.
I can't see the Hunger Games comparisons, but only if The Hunger Games were voluntary, and realistic, and you could walk away any time....more
Kelly's life is going fine, or at least fine-adjacent, until her 29th birthday. That's the night she ducks into a restroom and finds herself in a diffKelly's life is going fine, or at least fine-adjacent, until her 29th birthday. That's the night she ducks into a restroom and finds herself in a different life: married, living close to her hometown, having given up her art for the high-school sweetheart she never had. Memories of both lives compete in her head, sometimes with a third set like deja Vu. Who is this Kelly? Where did her old life go? And why is every duplicate memory stemming from the same moment when Eric asked her out in high school?
Compulsively-readable thriller with time-travel, sci-fi AI elements. I don't think tech will get to this point, but it's good to have the cautionary tales in case it does....more
Lena has grown up terrified of touch--because any human contact with her skin means a horrible, gruesome death for that person. She was cursed by a wiLena has grown up terrified of touch--because any human contact with her skin means a horrible, gruesome death for that person. She was cursed by a witch before she was born, and her father has done everything he could to keep her safe. Everything except tell her the truth. Lena's need to find her truths bring her on a journey she never imagined through a magical world she never knew existed. After being lied to and shielded for so long, it's nearly impossible to know who to trust, and who will betray her.
This is, primarily, a Sleeping Beauty retelling, but it's important to note which version. This is not the Princess Aurora, sanitized Disney version. This is closer to the Charles Perrault version, or the Grimm Briar Rose version, with the darkly haunting visuals of Trina Schartt Hyman's illustrations. Consistent rules for magic and other worldbuilding details add to the experience. Highly recommend....more
Grief has a funny way of getting in the way. Rose is part of the way home from her best friend's parents' house when her car breaks down, and a radio Grief has a funny way of getting in the way. Rose is part of the way home from her best friend's parents' house when her car breaks down, and a radio signal plays the last voicemail Gaby ever left her. Rose follows the signal into Lotus Valley, where the residents greet her with wariness and fear, being prophecies to bring about the town's destruction in 3 days time. The neighbors--ghosts of the past, creatures of memory or spirit--have something they need to say, and Rose might be the only one who can hear it.
Rose's grief and PTSD cloud her ability to really understand, struggling as she is with her own issues. Her story is sensitively told and emphasizes that grief isn't a linear series of stages and that healing takes time....more
Marin and Kaia are reunited, but there's still so much to be done--freeing the dragons and rescuing Sev, but also renegotiating their relationship givMarin and Kaia are reunited, but there's still so much to be done--freeing the dragons and rescuing Sev, but also renegotiating their relationship given all that's happened to each of them....more
Excellent story, engaging mystery, still a bunch of racism even with the title changed multiple times over. I appreciated the epilogue, explaining how Excellent story, engaging mystery, still a bunch of racism even with the title changed multiple times over. I appreciated the epilogue, explaining how the whole thing was carried out, but it did feel like a cheat. ...more
I saw an exhibit of Jona Frank's photography a the Bowdoin College of Art, and it hit me in ways that really surprised me. I hadn't been prepared for I saw an exhibit of Jona Frank's photography a the Bowdoin College of Art, and it hit me in ways that really surprised me. I hadn't been prepared for the gut-punch that photos of a suburban childhood would deliver. In this book, which expands on Frank's exhibit, Frank talks about her childhood: her distant mother whom she always wanted to please; the complicated relationships with each of her brothers; her attempts to be what everyone else wanted and expected of her while questioning what--or if--she herself wants. ...more
The screw of the Scholomance has turned further, grinding El and her friends down to the bottom floor with the rest of the seniors. This is the year tThe screw of the Scholomance has turned further, grinding El and her friends down to the bottom floor with the rest of the seniors. This is the year they should be preparing to the run the graduation gauntlet, hoping to be just a little bit faster, stronger, better than their classmates so they can be among the few who make it out alive. But El has a different idea: what if the Scholomance could somehow be beaten, and everyone could get out? Not just the senior class, but the juniors, sophomores, and even freshmen? El never meant to become a revolutionary, much less the leader of the revolution, but that's the role she's been thrust into, and if the school is going to stop her, she's going to go down swinging....more
An honest account of one person's journey with gender identity. I'll be passing this title along to a couple of my 8th grade students who I think coulAn honest account of one person's journey with gender identity. I'll be passing this title along to a couple of my 8th grade students who I think could benefit from it....more
Read for a book group, though I'd been meaning to read it for literally years, and I'm glad I finally did.
Jane's beloved aunt has recently died, and JRead for a book group, though I'd been meaning to read it for literally years, and I'm glad I finally did.
Jane's beloved aunt has recently died, and Jane is at loose ends. So when a casual friend invites her to their estate, Jane goes, and it's here that Jane's story fractures. In a moment of chaos, Jane makes a decision to follow someone, and who she follows determines the next part of her story. The multiverse sends her far from home and very close to her starting point, exploring and exploding everything she's known and believed.
The story splits into five vignettes, some grounded (more or less) in reality and others pretty far-flung, and one notable instance of body horror.
Much of this is about Jane's self-discovery and self-acceptance. No one story is the "real" ending. No one Jane is the "real" Jane. And that's okay....more
I listened to an interview with the author on the Depresh Mode podcast, and the combination of mental health, crafts, and a generally accident-prone lI listened to an interview with the author on the Depresh Mode podcast, and the combination of mental health, crafts, and a generally accident-prone life sucked me in. The author has a somewhat self-deprecating tone, but even in making light of some of her struggles, the seriousness still comes through. It's real and raw and vulnerable. There are some things that I wonder about (the specifics of a falling-out with a friend group, for instance), but I recognize that she doesn't owe the reader anything, and she can keep private whatever she wants, and that's okay. I'm not entitled to her story, and I am appreciative and touched by all she was willing to share with her audience....more
Ah, the classic, more-or-less locked-room mystery! Somehow I'd never read this one, and it was excellent company for the six or so hours of listening Ah, the classic, more-or-less locked-room mystery! Somehow I'd never read this one, and it was excellent company for the six or so hours of listening time. A fully-booked overnight train, a murder, a snowstorm blocking the tracks, and several red herrings that might not be red or herrings at all....more
It should have been over. After Simon's death, the school has been shutting down the gossip apps left and right. But then a new one pops up and whoeveIt should have been over. After Simon's death, the school has been shutting down the gossip apps left and right. But then a new one pops up and whoever is running it wants to play Truth or Dare. The truths are hurtful and destructive. The dares are harmless pranks, right up until they aren't. Maeve has some ideas on how to find whoever coordinates this one, but then her own truth gets revealed--and now she's extra-motivated to destroy this person.
It's been a long time since I read the first book, so details are a little fuzzy for me. Still, there's enough context here to catch new (or forgetful) readers up without bogging the story down in exposition. Well paced and plotted, and hard to keep on my library's shelves....more
While the early parts of this memoir focus on the author's sexual history (sometimes in great detail), it's the latter part that really got me--where While the early parts of this memoir focus on the author's sexual history (sometimes in great detail), it's the latter part that really got me--where it stops being about the who/what of bisexuality and digs more deeply into the why and what it means, at a personal level and in the wider world. They are privileged (white, cis) but don't pretend to have always been aware of that--they freely admit to ignorance and the efforts they've made to correct it, while still recognizing that they are a work in progress. Overall, I appreciated the honesty in this memoir. This is someone who is a flawed person trying to do better, and really, who among us isn't?...more
The teens at Hope Juvenile Treatment Center have been convicted of various offenses: arson, thievery, (possibly) murder. At the end of one shift, the The teens at Hope Juvenile Treatment Center have been convicted of various offenses: arson, thievery, (possibly) murder. At the end of one shift, the guards go home–and none come to replace them. Hope is surrounded by armed soldiers, who tell them (not kindly) of the strict lockdown and quickly-spreading plague. The kids at Hope are on their own. Some leave to find a way around the roadblocks. Some stay to make it work until help comes. If help comes....more
Blah blah, magical boarding school, "we've seen this premise before!", sure, fine. BUT.
El could be one of the most powerful dark wizards ever. She hasBlah blah, magical boarding school, "we've seen this premise before!", sure, fine. BUT.
El could be one of the most powerful dark wizards ever. She has the power, and a knack for destruction. People recoil from her due to the vibe she gives off, however unintentionally. By the time she arrives at the Scholomance at age 14, she's been an outcast her whole life. This kind of anger at the world should make her all the more willing to embrace her innate malevolence. But El was raised by her single mom, one of the most gifted magical healers in the world, and her moral fiber doesn't so much as twist. In spite of being ostracized by her peers and bullied by the school itself, El remains committed to being a decent person, resolutely independent--which is why it's so confusing when Orion Lake keeps popping up to vanquish any hint of danger.
There's not a ton of plot in this series--yes, they're trying to keep the school from destroying them all, but the book is largely a richly-built world and the characters who inhabit it. Sure, there's the development and cultivation of magical skills and spells, but when is that not a metaphor for the growth into adulthood and finding the humanity within each of us?...more
Adrian Montague--the only child of Parliamentarian Henri Montague--is struggling still after his mother's death nearly a year ago. So when a box of hiAdrian Montague--the only child of Parliamentarian Henri Montague--is struggling still after his mother's death nearly a year ago. So when a box of his mother's things is returned and Adrian finds her broken spyglass, he is determined to find out what it was about it that captivated her. His early research brings him to a London shipping company, where he uncovers his first family secret: his eldest sibling. Together Monty and Adrian chase the secrets of the spyglass across the globe, finding answers--and more questions--in each port.
"The plausibility of a worry never stopped me from asking it to dance," Adrian says early on, and that is one of the major ides in the book--Adrian's anxiety and OCD nearly leap off the page, but at the time of the book, neither of those things is recognized as the disorders they are. It's a fascinating lens for the character, watching his every decision be filtered through his anxiety and fear. It casts a shadow on the spyglass's origin--does The Flying Dutchman really exist? Is Adrian actually seeing it?--but the story is more about the relationships and characters....more