Two things: 1. I wanted to like this. 2. I did not like this. I will elaborate. (NB: I waited a couple of weeks to actually sit down and write this review, because I was so aggravated while reading I was afraid my review would come out more scathing than the book deserved. I’m glad I waited. Rant reviews are fun on occasion, but I prefer to be more level-headed for the most part.) I wanted to like this because: There are not enough diverse […]
“There’s nothing like a few severed heads to take your mind off politics…”
“It’s a cruel, cruel world. And the people are the worst part…” Dread Nation invites its readers to imagine an alternate history of the United States. During the terrible years of the Civil War the dead began to rise. They feasted upon the living changing them into zombies, or shamblers, as they prefer here. The war was set aside to focus on the more pressing threat. The slaves were set free, but still weren’t given much freedom. Young black men and women were sent to […]
Tackling Grief and Mental Health Issues in YA Lit
But how do we live with these secrets locked within us? National Book Award nominee I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter is a powerful young adult novel that deals with the very real trauma of grief and depression. Fifteen-year-old Julia Reyes, our narrator, lives in Chicago with her parents and older sister Olga, who has just died in a tragic accident. Julia is struggling with feelings of grief, guilt and anger, and her already fragile relationship with her parents is at the breaking point. […]
Snogging means kissing
This book is a cultural institution in England. It was recommended to me so when I found it at my local tesco’s I was like, yeah, might as well. While I was reading it, every woman was like “omg I totally remember reading that when I was fourteen.” There’s even a movie! Maybe I would have liked it better if I was fourteen. Angus, thongs, and full-frontal snogging is a year in Georgia’s life featuring her crazy cat, and her quest to snog Sex God, […]