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December 26, 2017 , Tue | Reviews | 0 or add you thoughts!

“Somewhere far in the distance, she heard the rumble of engines. The voices of the girls grew louder, drawing her onward. They were fifty now, one hundred, the sound so lovely it brought tears to Alia’s eyes. When had she stopped being a child? The first time a guy had whistled at her out of a car window when she was walking to school? The moment she started wondering how she looked when she ran, what jiggled or bounced, instead of the pace she was setting? The first time she’d kept from raising her hand because she didn’t want to seem too smart or too eager? No one had sung. No one had told her how much she would lose until the time for grieving was long over.”

Themes:

  • Female empowerment
  • Trusting instincts over misguided authority
  • Humanity’s natural inclination towards war

So I want to start off by saying that I’m not someone who typically enjoys superhero stuff all that much. I’m not sure that it’s for any particular reason. It’s just one of those things I’ve never been drawn to. Because of this, I had trouble deciding whether I was excited to start this one. I’ve read the Six of Crows duology by Bardugo, and I LOVED it. I also got to meet her at a local book festival, which she attended as part of her tour for this book. On top of all that, the DC Icons series is also going to have books by Marie Lu, Sarah J. Maas, and Matt de la Pena. I’m obsessed with everything Maas does, and the short stories I’ve read by Lu and de la Pena have made it clear that I’m going to enjoy their larger works. So, there were a lot of reasons I wanted to read Wonder Woman: Warbringer, but I wasn’t too invested in the actual story before beginning. Guess what? I adored this book. read more

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November 30, 2017 , Thu | Wrap-Ups | 0 or add you thoughts!

Hello, friends! It’s the final day of November, which means wrap-up time! I read quite a bit, despite being busy, and really enjoyed everything! So yay!!

“Species that rebel against seasonal norms are loved for their courage. The mistle thrush that can be heard to sing when all other birds have turned shy, even during winter gales, earns our respect, and his nickname, ‘tormcock,’ comes alive on the wind. The red berries and dark-green leaves of holly have found their way onto Christmas cards and earned a little fondness, despite their prickles, because they refuse to let their colors be bowed by a decrease in daylight or a blanket of snow. Gorse will flower at any time of year, and our love of this resilience can be found in the old saying, ‘Gorse is out of bloom when kissing’s out of fashion.'”

If you are interested in learning more about the way we perceive nature, and how we can improve, and benefit from improving, our observational skills, this is a book for you! I picked this up mostly just because I thought the audiobook would be nice to listen to on walks with my dog. I ended up loving it and getting so much out of it. Gooley even walks the reader through observational exercises to explain the way we see certain things and how we might see them in more detail. It was so enjoyable! read more

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September 4, 2017 , Mon | Events | 0 or add you thoughts!

This past weekend, I attended the AJC Decatur Book Festival, and IT WAS AWESOME. I always love these things, but this was my first time going to this one. It was well organized, filled with like-minded book lovers, and had a ton of tents overflowing with books, many of which were collectible and/or rare. Needless to say, I was in heaven! In this post, I’ll share photos and recap a little about the weekend.

On Saturday, my dad and I went to the Superheroes Redefined panel and signing with Gwenda Bond (author of the Lois Lane series and the moderator), Leigh Bardugo (on tour for Wonder Woman: Warbringer), and Jason Reynolds (on tour for Miles Morales: Spider-Man). It was SO COOL. The three of them are such intelligent, fascinating people. Listening to them was an unreal experience. As someone who loves to read, I know that the people who write the books I’m reading are uncommonly smart. Of course they are. They wrote a book. But hearing them speak in person, not just about their own novels, but about how they were striving to interweave important themes, was incredible! Bond, Bardugo, and Reynolds touched specifically on the influence superhero stories can have on today’s youth, especially in a political climate where very few real-life examples of moral good exist anymore. I have never read anything by Bond or Reynolds yet, but after this panel I am definitely going to pick up their work. read more

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