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Followers
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Following
bird words
dani: library support staff/paralibrarian for a public library system in washington state. i read books and peddle a medley of information to those who seek it.
Identity Crisis
There are many facets to this contemporary fiction young adult novel; it takes place among high school students and in a high school setting, so one would expect nothing less. In this novel, the reader can find themselves taken through a story of cyberbullying based around a jealous mean girl's interpretation of events. There is the one being bullied, the one whose identity is used for the bullying, and the one in the mean girl's clique who gets to know the girl they are bullying and decides she doesn't deserve it.Overall, an interesting enough story -- and topical for our times. What I took issue with was the happy ending where things are wrapped up in a bow. I was much happier when Annaliese left the note for Noelle saying that a VIP pass would never be enough of an apology and that she wasn't interested in making ammends. The bully doesn't always need to "make things right" or get the closure they're looking for. In fact, often times I think they shouldn't. Not everything needs to be forgiven.
How It Went Down
I found myself unable to put this book down while simultaneously finding it hard to read. Not because of the writing or the story; on the contrary, I absolutely adored both the writing and the story. But because of the subject matter. It is always hard to read about tragedies involving children being shot by adults and that is the center of this book.This book starts out with Tariq Johnson being shot by a white man and the rest of the book is told in vignettes from multiple characters trying to suss out what actually happened while dealing with the fact that this is tearing a community apart and bringing a small town into national spotlight.
The author states that this is inspired by multiple real life tragedies that mirror the story told in this book and I can feel confident recommending this to anyone who is familiar with them and those that are not familiar with what is happening in the United States. Everyone should read this book.
The Vegetarian
I wish I could say I enjoyed this book. It was awkward and hard to read, which made it so I couldn't care about any of it.(I was given access to a free copy of this text in exchange for my review, via Blogging for Books.)
Shackled
This is a short read and I appreciated it, but it's not one of my favourite pieces of young adult fiction. I found myself wanting the story to resolve even faster than it did, which made certain sections read slower than others. I also didn't care for the romantic aspect of the story, but I don't care for most romance aspects in any stories.I will say that I appreciate that the author avoided going into clinical detail of the main character's mental health issues and the descriptions stayed in the realm of how someone who has a mental health issue would describe it.
Sisters
I really like Telgemeier's books! Sisters was the one I could relate to the least (my sister and I don't fight anymore, we just seem to ignore each other) but it did remind me of when we were younger and had to be stuck on long car trips from San Francisco-ish to Portland, Oregon.Anyway, once again Telgemeier shows that she can write and illustrate graphic novels aimed at younger readers but that are entertaining enough to keep an adult's attention. If you've never read any of her works, please do!
I Am Pusheen the Cat
This book was a gift and I am so grateful for it! Definitely something that everyone should read, especially if you're having a tough day. Pusheen is one of my favourite characters and getting to know them better through this book was really fun.
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Saints (Boxers & Saints)
I preferred this volume over "Boxers"! There is an amazing visual that just caught my breath and when I was finally done, I needed to take the rest of the day before being able to start another book.
 - Gene Luen Yang)
Boxers (Boxers & Saints)
Admittedly, I know very little about the Boxer Rebellion but I really enjoyed this graphic novel, the story it told, and the way it told its story. I'm very excited to read volume two ("Saints") and see the other side of this story.
 - Gene Luen Yang)
The State of Play: Creators and Critics on Video Game Culture
An absolutely amazing collection of essays about the states of past, present, and future gamer/gaming culture. I highly recommend this read to anyone who plays video games, anyone who has played a video game, and anyone who will play a video game.
Full Mouse, Empty Mouse: A Tale of Food and Feelings
This book is an absolutely charming tale of how two different young mice use food to cope with the stress in their life. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has or works with young kids who may just be getting used to the idea of stress or even those who have been coping with it for awhile.
The CIA Makes Science Fiction Unexciting #1: The Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
This was my first introduction to this series and I liked it well enough. My hope is to read more of these zines and get a better feel for the series as a whole.
Harm Reduction Guide to Coming Off Psychiatric Drugs
I found quite a bit of this hard to read and make sense of, but I appreciate that this information is out there. I didn't feel shamed for my choice to take psychicatric medication which was also nice; I can't say that about quite a bit of other literature on the subject.
Make a Zine!: When Words and Graphics Collide
Each summer I give myself a "thing" to do or get obsessed over and learn more about. This summer, it's zines. My work recently acquired a collection of just less than 150 zines and I'm so excited to read them ALL.I really liked this guide's approach to educating the reader about zines and giving helpful tips and advice on starting a zine of one's own. Inspired by this book, I'm going to create a one-shot zine this summer!
