May 31, 2018

REVIEW| I Was Born for This

I Was Born for This
Alice Oseman
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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UK Publisher: Harper Collin's Children's Books

UK Release Date: 3rd May, 2018

Synopsis:


For Angel Rahimi, life is only about one thing: The Ark – a pop-rock trio of teenage boys who are currently taking the world by storm. Being part of The Ark’s fandom has given her everything – her friendships, her dreams, her place in the world.

Jimmy Kaga-Ricci owes everything to The Ark too. He’s their frontman – and playing in a band is all he’s ever dreamed of doing. It’s just a shame that recently everything in his life seems to have turned into a bit of a nightmare.

Because that’s the problem with dreaming – eventually, inevitably, real life arrives with a wake-up call. And when Angel and Jimmy are unexpectedly thrust together, they will discover just how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be.


REVIEW


I Was Born for This is a book of celebration, of fandoms, of individuality and of our friendships -  our ability to make human connections in the most unexpected of ways.


What made this book even more special is the casual use of diversity representation. I Was Born for This is told in two perspectives: Jimmy Kaga-Ricci and Angel/Fareshteh Rahimi. Jimmy is an internationally worshiped musician, who just also happens to be Trans, Gay and born of Italian and Indian parents. Angel is a fangirl of Jimmy's band, and just so happens to be Muslim. 


Not only is there ethnic, sexuality and gender representation, but Oseman somehow writes anxiety in a way that bought this book way closer to home I had expected it to. I understood a lot of Angel's thought paths in her social interactions and Jimmy's constant struggle with his overthinking. 

 Something else I think that this does well, is proving our need, as humans, to build relationships and connections at the age of Angel and Jimmy. How Angel's connection to fandoms can be cruicial to teens, they are what that person needs in order to shape their identidity and ideas of the self.

It's funny. Okay, 'funny' isn't the right word here, but this book brought me back to some events that have occurred in the past year or so. Especially surrounding the deaths of rock singers Chris Cornell and Chester Bennington. To anyone out there, who isn't aware, Chester Bennington and Linkin Park are my all time favourite band. They are heavily involved in some of my earliest memories and were the first band I ever saw live at 9 years old!
And I just want to draw this back to reminding everyone that we don't know what's happening behind the mask of someone in the public eye, nor the people we come across in the street, or even our closest friends and family members. What we see is one level, a trampoline that we can only push to jump on, before being bounced back to the surface. Be kind!

May 30, 2018

Top 5 Wednesday| Favourite SFF Cover Art

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly blog group that come together to discuss that weeks topic. The idea was first curated by the wonderful Lainey at GingerReadLainey and is now run by Samantha over on ThoughtsonTomes. 

If you wish to participate, either on your Blog or Booktube channel then, please, join the group on Goodreads for all the relevant topics.

This month we're going back to archived topics, which makes it a little harder because I have to make the choice myself as to what I want to write about. 

This week I'm doing one of the SFF babble crossover topics - favourite SFF covers! I am sure we are all suckers for beautiful book covers and I am no exception!

1. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

The UK hardcover and paperback covers of Nevernight, and Godsgrave, are one of my favourite covers. The detail that the artist, Kerby Rosannes, has put into each and every illustration blows my mind. 

2. State of Sorrow by Melinda Salisbury



A UKYA
Fantasy title, I hear this has some captiating characters and some political intrigue -- YES, PLEASE!

3. The Mad Ship by Robin Hobb

Although I have read some of Robin Hobb's books, the Liveship Traders Books are one of her series I am yet to delve deep into.


This cover is a recent redesign, and are just glorious.

4. Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neveul

I very recently just finished Sleeping Giant - and loved it! The US hardcover has this cover under the dust jacket, which is just as stunning, but there is just something wonderous about the face in the stars and of the ideas of possibilities that are put across in the novel.

5. Circe by Madeline Miller

Another one that I am dying to read. Circe is the title character, and known for being one of the first witches in western literature. I'm hoping to read Miller's first book, The Song of Achilles, soon as. I've heard a great number of good things about both of these.














May 17, 2018

Dewey's 24-hour Readathon Wrap-Up

This is way overdue and actually acts as an overall April wrap-up, because deadlines are one of biggest ways to ensure I won't pick up a book.

This attempt of a 24 hour readathon, wasn't a failure nor was it a complete failure. I somehow made it through 13 hours of reading, until I either went to eat, went to a comedy gig and fell asleep at 7am. I'm pleased as to what I go through making my way through most of my definites- knowing it I stayed up a bit longer I could've made it to another book, but hey-ho! I did great!

Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy #1)
Robin Hobb

Pages: 88









The Christmas Invasion
Jenny T. Tolgan

Pages: 176





Monstress Vol 1: Awakening
Marjorie Liu; Sana Takeda

Pages: 192






Kings of the Wyld (The Band #1)
Nicholas Eames

Pages: 201








TOTAL PAGE COUNT: 657

May 09, 2018

TBR| May 2018

May is a weird month.

It's when all my deadlines come tumbling awkwardly towards me and I pretend they don't exist, until I have a week and a half and realize I still need to write a 2,000 word essay, a 18-20 script manuscript with a 5 page pitch, a 2000 word short story with a 500 word commentary and review, and 2000 word chapter (s) of my in-progress novel... with you guessed it a 500 word commentary.

It's a lot and I dread to think what my final year is going to be like, knowing I'll be submitting a 10,000 word creative writing manuscript.

That aside, my final deadline is 11:59am 11th May and I AM COUNTING EVERY SECOND UNTIL THEN.

As soon as I hit "SUBMIT", I am shutting down my laptop and opening up a book. What books? Let me show you:

A Court of Frost and Starlight (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3.1)
Sarah J. Maas

Already started this: 3%




I Was Born For This
Alice Oseman









Ruin and Rising (Shadow and Bone #3)
Leigh Bardugo








Goodbye, Perfect
Sara Barnard








Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1)
Sylvain Neuvel








Planetfall (Planetfall #1)
Emma Newman








Royal Assassin (Farseer Trilogy #2)
Robin Hobb