Thanks for the fun #SpookySummerSwap package @LeslieO ! @paperwitchs

I liked it! Some of the romance storylines are a little more YA than I typically like, but the story is really picking up now! Plus it checks the box for this month‘s #FairyTaleReadingChallenge @Charityann

This has more depth than your typical summer beach read. I enjoyed the first 2/3 but the last 1/3 felt really drawn out. I also feel like we spent a disproportionate amount of time in the daughters‘ POV. By the end, that made the book feel like YA. I would‘ve liked to get to know Margot a little better and delve deeper into what she was going through. With her character it still felt fairly surface level for me.

#ARC pub date 5/24

Somehow this is my first Baum? Which feels weird being so familiar with his work via film adaptations. Maybe I should‘ve started the series at the beginning but the #ChildrensClassicRead2022 had me intrigued. I liked the story, discovering new characters and seeing some familiar faces. Some of the illustrations reminded me of minstrel shows, which isn‘t great. But I like Baum‘s imagination. @TheBookHippie

I liked it! Not quite as much as Cinder. It felt like it took awhile for the story to really get going. It took me a minute to be invested in Scarlet. I also don‘t love when I figure stuff out way ahead of the characters and have to wait for them to catch up. At least it ended well! I‘m stoked to see what happens to Cinder & co next.

I loved it! I saw the Hitchcock film in college, but it‘s been awhile. The book is an excellent psychological thriller. The movie actually changes quite a lot of major plot points. I rewatched it after reading. It holds up, but, the book is better. 🚊🎠

#AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

The premise of this book is so good, but the execution is lackluster. Lots of other reviewers have used the word “mess”, which is accurate. There were too many characters to keep track of, and the romance storyline was terrible and unnecessary. Meh. #BotM

My last book for April was my second book for April‘s Cinderella #FairyTaleReadingChallenge. I‘m glad I finally started this series! I love the mythology and I liked the first installment even more than I thought I would. Looking forward to May‘s challenges! @Charityann

Super fun retelling of one of my fave Disney movies. I love this series! #FairyTaleReadingChallenge @Charityann

This might be my most unpopular opinion yet, but I did not enjoy this at all. This was my second Boyne, and it‘s definitely my last. I didn‘t connect to the characters, I found it tedious and implausible. Boyne‘s style just does not resonate with me in the slightest. But! I‘m thankful for the #AuthorAMonth challenge as this has been sitting on my shelf for years, and I finally had an excuse to read it. @Soubhiville

Not my favorite Simone St. James. The whodunnit was predictable and revealed very early. I also felt like she relied on too many cliches and tropes with this one. Ah well.

1. ✔️

2. A little bit, insomuch as I won‘t typically read, say, Elin Hilderbrand novels in autumn or Christmas/winter centric stories in summer. That kinda thing.

3. 🌷🌱

@Chrissyreadit @sprainedbrain @j9brown @wanderinglynn

#ThoughtfulThursday @MoonWitch94

Pulled my gorgeous Folio Society edition of Perrault‘s Fairy Tales off the shelf for this month‘s #ChildrensClassicRead2022. Not my fave fairy tale, but still lovely. @TheBookHippie

I love Rupi Kaur‘s poetry and enjoyed this collection.

#NationalPoetryMonth

Finished this up over the weekend. This book is a collection of academically researched essays about the intersection of Black and Native identity in both the historical and present United States. It‘s a section of history that I‘m fascinated by, especially as it‘s so often erased.

So glad I finally read this! It‘s very different from the movie, which I knew going in, but still. I like both a lot! Also, special thanks to Mr. Gaiman for officially pulling me out of my slump. #ReadSpooky2022 @teebe

Thank you so so much @AFrostCauseReads for such a fun #SSS package! I love it all so much. Happy Spring! And a special thanks to @Avanders for hosting! #SpeculativeSpringSwap

Took me awhile, but finally finished this last night. I liked the mythology of the creatures, but otherwise it was a middle of the road post-apocalyptic thriller for me. I started it in March so I‘m still gonna count it for that month‘s #ReadSpooky2022 @teebe

Shipped this puppy off today, scheduled to arrive on Tuesday! @Avanders #SSS

Just got home from being out of town for a bit and this was waiting for me. Thanks @AFrostCauseReads ! Can‘t wait!

@Avanders I still have to ship mine out, will ship priority this week. #SSS

Finished this Mulan retelling last week for March‘s #FairytaleReadingChallenge. The premise of Mulan‘s character being non-binary was really interesting, but I found the execution to be flawed. The story was transparent and tedious. In fact, this book sent me into my first major slump of the year and I have yet to find my way back out. But at least I completed the challenge for March! @Charityann

“I am in a bar in Brooklyn, listening to two men, my friends, discuss whether my life is worth living.” This is not always an easy read, but it‘s a really lovely memoir about disability, womanhood, motherhood, patriarchy, travel, philosophy and beauty standards that forces us to examine ourselves and our perceptions. I think this‘ll be one of the big memoirs of the year.

#ARC pub date 4/5

I can be picky about historical fiction. I think traumatic and violent historical events should be used cautiously when writing fiction for entertainment, and I don‘t feel like the author was thoughtful enough here. The story of Jeju is fascinating and heartbreaking, but I‘m not okay with using real history to maximize the emotional manipulation of the reader. I would‘ve preferred a non-fiction book on these topics. #AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

The story is brilliant. I do have a massive issue with the intro by Zadie Smith. I‘m glad I read other reviews that said to skip it. It‘s completely inappropriate as an introduction, and epitomizes why I hate intros. Smith gives away the entire plot and then analyzes it to death. It strips the reader of any enjoyment in actually experiencing the story and interpreting it themselves. Her essay is an interesting read only AFTER reading the story.

Really fun story, I dig this author.

1. Recitatif by Toni Morrison, Confounding the Color Line: The Indian-Black Experience in North America edited by James Brooks

2. Now We Are Six by A. A. Milne for the Children‘s Classic Reading Challenge

3. Tagged!

#WeekendReads @rachelsbrittain

This was a sweet little book. I would‘ve liked a higher percentage of Pooh, but I‘m glad to finally have read this after it‘s been sitting on my shelves for years. #ChildrensClassicRead2022 @TheBookHippie

First published in 1929 during the Harlem Renaissance, this was the first book to take on the issue of colorism within the Black community and show the toll that internalized anti-Blackness can take. It‘s heartbreaking, but a well-written story.

The story was way too predictable and the characters were too flat.

Absolutely essential reading.

@riversong153 thank you so so much for such a beautiful #BlitsySwap package! I‘ve wanted to read the tagged book so badly for awhile now. The necklace is beautiful and I love Maya Angelou! The pencils and stickers are so fun. Everything is lovely, thanks again! 🤗 And special thanks to @Chelleo for hosting one of my favorite swaps!

I loved it! After this and Spinning Silver I‘m really looking forward to reading The Scholomance novels for Author a Month in October! #FairyTaleReadingChallenge @Charityann

There were some great sections of this book, but other sections left me scratching my head. The chapter on spirituality was thinly veiled Christian sermonizing with no critique of that particular patriarchal structure. I was also deeply uncomfortable with the victim blaming of Nicole Brown Simpson & slut shaming of Monica Lewinsky. There were a lot of inaccurate and judgmental views on poor folks as well. I missed the “love” in those sections.

I really liked it! It started out pretty slow for me, but once the characters reached adulthood I was along for the ride. It‘s different from Little Women, but that‘s a good thing. #ChildrensClassicRead2022 @TheBookHippie

This has been on the TBR for aWHILE so I‘m glad I was able to use #ReadSpooky2022 as an excuse to finally sit down and read it. I did have some issues stylistically and with pacing, but overall it‘s a really heart-wrenching yet beautiful story. There are elements that I‘ll keep coming back to. @teebe

I really really liked it. Definitely worth it for those like me that are into atmospheric novels set in Alaska.

This is out the door and on the way! Should arrive on Monday. @Chelleo #BlitsySwap #BlitsyHistoryMonthSwap

This arrived today! Thank you @riversong153 !!

I still have to wrap and ship my package, but I have everything ready. Hoping to ship this week. @Chelleo #blitsyswap #blitsyhistorymonthswap

👑 #AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

For me, this book is where the series went off the rails. Not sure I‘m interested in a fourth installment.

Super fun story about an aging female assassin in South Korea.

#ARC U.S. pub date 3/8

Part dictionary of new terms, part philosophy, part self-help, part poetry… and a wholly unique experience. Certain parts touched me more than I was prepared for.

I liked it! I did feel like it meandered more than You did, but I‘m still very interested in seeing what happens in You Love Me.

January wrap-up

I‘ve had a run of unpopular opinions lately, and I‘m about to add another one to the pile. I didn‘t connect to this book at all. I love the premise, and there were some moments in the book that I enjoyed, but overall it lacked the cohesiveness and depth I was hoping for. I didn‘t relate to the author at all. It just wasn‘t for me.

I couldn‘t let Snow White month go by without a reread of my fave retelling. #FairytaleReadingChallenge @Charityann

I really liked it, and found it strangely addicting. Interested to see what Joe is up to next.

Unpopular opinion o‘clock! I loved the first half. I absolutely hated the second half.

Not my favorite Kingsolver. I didn‘t like Dellarobia at all, and never connected with her. The characters felt too much like caricatures for me than flawed people. I also felt the climate change story, while it rang true, it was also heavy-handed and overly preachy. There was some unnecessary fatphobia and the book felt overly long. I liked Prodigal Summer so much more. #AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

Disney‘s Pinocchio is one of my favorite films of all-time. I‘ve had this edition on my shelf for awhile, and #ChildrensClassicRead2022 was the perfect excuse to finally pick it up and read it. I loved it! It‘s even darker than the movie, which I enjoyed. Apparently this edition is annotated for younger readers, so I‘ll have to track down the full edition eventually. @TheBookHippie