Throwback Thursday: Anthem by Ayn Rand Essay

My sophomore year of high school, I was a semi-finalist / third place winner in the international Ayn Rand Foundation Anthem essay contest. This was my essay. Most fictional, future worlds, even the post-apocalyptic and/or totalitarian ones, are technologically advanced, at least compared to the time in which they were written. In Anthem, unlike most,…

Throwback Thursday: The Eye of the Storm: Safe Spaces and the Reframing of Mental Illness in Ellen Forney’s Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, & Me

Mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder have a reputation for being frightening, to both patients who are diagnosed and those around them. Ellen Forney in her graphic memoir Marbles seeks to reframe how her bipolar disorder is thought of, both by others but more importantly by herself, as she grapples with her diagnosis and treatment.…

Beyond Hogwarts Houses: Other Types of Bookish Categorization

Look, I love Harry Potter, but whether you love its popularity or hate it you can't deny it. And because of that, sorting books and characters into Hogwarts Houses, and more recently Ilvermony Houses, is extremely popular in the book blogging world. Well - here are some alternatives if you, like me, are getting sick…

Favorite Books of the Decade: 2010-2019

So, this past decade, I was 10 (2010) to 20 (turned in 2019) years old, so a lot of reading, and a lot of formative reading was done. Here are the ten books that most stick out as my favorite of the decade, narrowed to those published within the peace as well.  

Rec Your Friday: A New Weekly Book Blogging Meme

Here is another series I want to start on this blog! The series is Rec Your Friday, and each week there will be a theme. Themes may be a trope, a general bookish theme, a genre, or may ask for favorites repping a particular aspect not seen as often in books such as F/F romances…

Thoughts for Thursday: A New Monthly Book Blogging Meme

Here is a new original feature of this blog: Thoughts for Thursday. Each month there will be a bookish discussion topic that I will be writing on, and encourage others to write on with me. Topics are posted in advance. Posts can be posted any Thursday (or other day if that works for you) of…

Reading Order: Rick Riordan Books (Percy Jackson, etc.)

Percy Jackson Books in Order: In the Percy Jackson series, we have the main Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, but also sequel series, short stories and more. For some, it’s hard to know where to put them chronologically. So, here is a way to go. I. Percy Jackson & the Olympians   The Lightning Thief…

Reading Order: Discworld

What is the Discworld? From 1983 to 2015, The Discworld was the main satirical/parody fantasy series written by English author Terry Pratchett. It’s an anthology series and each novel contains one stand-alone story, most of them exploiting fantasy clichés and talking about religion, politics, business, race, science, technology, pop culture, modern art or more in a satirical…

Reading Order: Grisha Verse

What is the Grishaverse? The Grishaverse is the lavish fantasy world in which science and magic collide. Established in Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone Trilogy and further expanded in the Six of Crows Duology and the The Language of Thorns, the Grishaverse is home to your favorite characters from Ravka, Ketterdam, and more! I. The…

Reading Order: Divergent

  Four: A Divergent Collection – a prequel to the Divergent trilogy. This book collects the fort short stories: The Transfer, The Initiate, The Son and The Traitor. Divergent Insurgent   The World of Divergent: The Path to Allegiant – More of a bonus than a book, this fifty-page add-on includes faction manifestos, a faction quiz, Q&A with Veronica…