Fiction

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus

2017, Books in Bed, Children's Literature, Favorites, Fiction /

I can’t believe how good Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus was. I picked it up because the cover was interesting and fun but I almost didn’t read it because I have a huge stack of Cybils that I knew I’d want to get through. TW read it first and said she really liked it, I see why.

A girl with no arms. A boy with Tourette. A fat boy. And, an old wild west style amusement park. Win win win win!

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Raymie Nightingale

2017, Audiobooks, Books in Bed, Children's Literature, Cybil Challenge, Favorites, Fiction /

Raymie Nightingale is on the Cybils shortlist in the audiobook category — so we listened to it on audio and I loved every single thing about it. I chuckled at the 70s southern characters. Little Miss Central Florida Tire… baton twirling… hahaha.

But it wasn’t all amusing, either. The three girls had a lot to deal with and they did it together. LOVED IT.

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The Velveteen Daughter

1 Comment / 2017, Art, Books in Bed, Favorites, Fiction /

When I was little, The Velveteen Rabbit was one of my favorite stories so I had to pick up The Velveteen Daughter. HAD TO.

I didn’t know a darn thing about Margery Williams, except that she wrote a bunch of children’s books long before I was born. I didn’t know she had kids. Or, that her daughter was a child prodigy. Or any damn other thing about her. And while this book is primarily about her daughter, I learned a lot about Margery Williams. So interesting.

About her daughter, Pamela Bianco… what a heartbreaking story! (The book IS fiction but it’s based on news accounts and personal correspondence.)

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The Selection

2017, Books in Bed, Fiction, Young Adult /

TW read The Selection ages ago. It was just some random YA romance she picked up at the library and I never expected to read it. When she finished, instead of putting it into the return bag, she put it back on the shelf and said it was surprisingly good… for what it was.

When I needed a quick and easy book, in between Disney World trips, I picked it up. And it was good, considering what it was about. (The prince chooses his bride from a “selection” of his subjects, one from each region – kind of like that Bachelor TV show.)

What I hated was the end. I didn’t realize it was a series and was thrown for a loop when it didn’t END PROPERLY. Gah. Now I feel like I have to read the next book but I’m afraid that it’s going to drag this out for many books and I’m not sure I can handle that. I do really kind of want to know how it ends, though. Gah.

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Salt to the Sea

2017, Books in Bed, Cybil Challenge, Favorites, Fiction, Young Adult /

We listened to Salt to the Sea (a YA Cybil) on audio and it took awhile. It’s tough to listen to this kind of book on audio – the subject matter is SO depressing and it’s not really something you are dying to listen to while driving to/from Walt Disney World, ya know?

It was well-written, good character choices and development, good ending (you know what I mean, since there really aren’t good endings to WWII historical fiction), and it’s definitely worth reading.

TW says it’s going to be a movie. I hope they do the book justice and don’t turn it into a WWII version of Titanic. I really hope they don’t do that. Maybe you should read the book before the movie comes out, just in case.

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The Hate U Give

2017, Books in Bed, Favorites, Fiction, Young Adult /

I put The Hate U Give on my TBR list ages and ages ago. I reserved it at the library and then put the reservation on hold because I was traveling a lot and knew I wouldn’t be able to read it while traveling. I reactivated the hold and then completely cancelled it because you’ve seen my monthly reading counts – they’re abysmal! I knew I’d need a lot more time and energy to read this than I’ve had for most of the year.

So, September it was. Not an ideal month for this book but I really, really wanted to read it and I was tired of putting it off. I’m so glad I finally read it.

It was just as good as you’ve heard it was. Just as painful. Just as anger-inducing. Everyone should read this. Everyone should talk about it.

#BLACKLIVESMATTER

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Run

2017, Books in Bed, Cybil Challenge, Favorites, Fiction, Queer, Young Adult /

Woot! A Cybil I loved, loved, LOVED. Run was excellent. Both Agnes and Bo felt like real people. I especially liked the ending — Agnes’s parents behaved true to character rather than tying things up in the perfect happily ever after. (And, I admit I might have shed a tear or two there towards the end.)

PS. Four books in the first four days of the month. How long has it been since I could say that?

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Three YA! Yes, THREE!

2017, Books in Bed, Favorites, Feminism, Fiction, Young Adult /

Considering I read a whopping five books total in August, September is off to an amazing start! Three books down (all YA) and it’s 8amish on 9/4! How awesome is that? (And, today’s a holiday so I should be able to get some more reading in — even though we need to run into a city of some sort where there is a Lowes… anyway, back to the books…)

I read the next two books in the Stranje House series. (Refuge for Masterminds and Exile for Dreamers.) Both were just as good as the first one. Now, how long will it be before we get the next two books in the series?

After that, I read The One Memory of Flora Banks was difficult. I think it’s the mom part of me that read this and just shuddered all the way through it. I kept trying to figure out how I would parent a child who had no short-term memory. (I also wonder how kids feel about this story. I might have to go track down some kid reviews to find out.)

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