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Renegades by Marissa Meyer
I love Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles, I was slightly disappointed in Heartless (which I chalked up to the fact that I don’t care for Alice in Wonderland), and now I’m not sure what to think about Renegades. There was a lot of world-building done, a lot of background information, a decent amount of action and…
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The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
A very good read, but not the incredibly amazing read that I was expecting after all the buzz on social media. I liked the premise, the characters, and the general story, but I wasn’t enthralled. I found it very easy to put this book down, which is why it took me three months to finish…
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I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara
It took me exactly two pages to become engrossed in Michelle McNamara’s self-described “obsessive search for the Golden State Killer.” But that was no surprise. Given my fascination with true crime, my love for the My Favorite Murder podcast (which introduced me to said fascination and the GSK in general), my appreciation for the comedian…
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The Call of the Wild by Jack London
I can certainly understand why this book is on the Banned Books that Shaped America list—it is quite violent, but at least it’s not completely gratuitous. Though London writes detailed scenes of human and animal brutality, Buck’s is a story of strength, dignity, loyalty, and, above all, survival. Honestly, given the tragedies that were committed…
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Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan
This short novel was the first work published by French author Françoise Sagan. She was eighteen, and this detestable story featuring a detestable teenage child was (apparently) based on her own experiences. Seventeen-year-old Cécile is spoiled, demanding, ungrateful, careless, lazy, and self-absorbed—a true enfant terrible. I genuinely dislike her. And yet, I can whole-heartedly relate…
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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
I keep a book journal. In it, I keep track of everything I read, the dates on which I cracked it open and slammed it shut, give it a rating out of five stars, and write a few lines. It was my blog before I started my blog. I read The Hate U Give in one…
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The Autobiography of Malcolm X As Told to Alex Haley
I have to admit, this book is the reason I stopped writing reviews last year. It’s an important book, people. It’s been lauded since 1965. Proof: “Extraordinary . . . [a] brilliant, painful, important book.” —Eliot Fremont-Smith, New York Times, 1965 “Will surely become one of the classics in American autobiography.” —John William Ward, historian, 1967 “A…
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AuthaGraph World Map; I want it.
Have you seen this new world map? It won a prestigious design award in Japan and is now being used in text books for Japanese students. Now, I have a map on my wall at home. It was a $5 purchase from the local bookstore that I threw in a cheap, ill-fitting Walmart frame and…
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Hey there hi there how the heck are ya
Well hello there! It’s been a hot minute, friends, and I just want to start off by saying HAPPY NEW YEAR / 30th BIRTHDAY TO ME / VALENTINE’S DAY / ST PATRICK’S DAY / EASTER / SPRING! How the heck are ya? I missed you! As you may or (more likely) may not have noticed,…