Mystery Book Review - How to Raise an Anti-Racist

I'm not doing a typical review for this one, because it always feels weird to review a book like this, where it's partially a biography and partially advice. Who am I to review someone's lived experience? Especially, in this case, because I ended up needing to hustle to finish reading a bunch of books being considered for our state book awards and haven't had time to finish this one...but that's neither here nor there. 

Thus far, I'm really enjoying the book. It's very insightful, giving so many new ways to think about things and consider how attitudes are shaped from a very young age. So many things get treated as "normal" or as something small that doesn't matter as a result of US culture being shaped from inception by white supremacy, and this book reexamines things that are treated as default or that just straight up are not paid attention to and reminds us to be vigilant about what kids are learning as they observe the world around them and interact with the trusted adults in their lives. 

One of the thing that stands out the most so far in my reading is being aware of whether the things we are choosing to address or not to address with the kids in our lives are because we truly think it's the best for them or if it's because we're uncomfortable with it. I for sure don't always have the perfect answer when I encounter certain situations, but I don't want to ever bail on having a talk that a child in my life needs because I'm uncomfortable with it or don't know exactly the right thing to say.

If you have kids, niblings, work with kids, etc I highly recommend checking this out. It's giving me a lot to think about, for sure.

A Suitcase Full - Maryam Kia

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"When a young girl's family is forced to flee, Iran, there isn't time to make a plan. With only one suitcase, Kimia is forced to leave behind many cherished possessions as well as say goodbye to her beloved grandmother, Nana-joon. As years pass, the family lives in vibrant cities like London and Paris, but are never able to stay for long. After traveling halfway around the world, they finally find a new place to call home on the island of O'ahu. When Kimia's new teacher assigns the class a special project - bringing a suitcase filled with meaningful objects - Kimia finds a way to weave her past into her present, celebrating both her roots and her growth."

Mystery Book Review - A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. Haunted by visions of the Fairy King since childhood, she's had no choice. Her tattered copy of Angharad - Emrys Myrddin's epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, then destroys him - is the only thing keeping her afloat. So when Myrddin's family announces a contest to redesign the late author's estate, Effy feels certain it's her destiny.

But musty, decrepit Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task, and its residents are far from welcoming. Including Preston Heloury, a stodgy young literature scholar determined to expose Myrddin as a fraud. As the two rivals piece together clues about Myrddin's legacy, dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspire against them - and the truth may bring them both to ruin."

Halfway through Reading Harder

As it transpired, packing some of my books paid off. I read Peter Darling in one day, in between doing touristy things in Paris, and while I wasn't sure it would hook me (ha, pun), I thought it was bittersweet and a fascinating twist on what Neverland actually was. I also finished That Self-Same Metal on the plane ride back home, and while I didn't like it as much as Peter Darling, it was adventurous and unique. 

Once we got home, I ended up having massive amounts of free time due to my husband traveling to Texas twice within about a week and a half (thanks, work!). I finished Do You Dream of Terra-Two?, which while I got what it was going for ended up feeling kind of meh by the end. Everything building up to the end was slow, and then the end felt so...incomplete. Eh. I also finished, in quick succession, These Ghosts Are Family, which was so, so sad in so many ways, Deadly Ever After, which could have used a lot more show and a lot less tell, Dear Medusa, which was sad, sad, sad, but also beautiful, Too Bright to See, which was very bittersweet and emotional, and Beyond the Red, which was meh. Parts of it were interesting, but I felt like there was a lot of talking about things but not a lot of actual action, and then the ending was kind of fast-forwarded in a way that didn't feel earned. Hey, similar to my complaint about Do You Dream of Terra-Two! Two books with very different vibes but similar pacing and development issues.

I finally started on Uncommon Grounds toward the end of the month, which I'm sure will take me some time to get through, and I'll be working on Warrior Girl Unearthed and my To All the Boys trilogy reread (finished the first one, two to go). All in all, a pretty productive reading month!

Princess Diaries: The Graphic Novel - Meg Cabot

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Mia Thermopolis is pretty sure there's nothing worse than being a five-foot-nine frizzy-haired freshman, who also happens to be flunking algebra.  

Is she ever in for a surprise.

First, her mom announces that she's dating Mia's algebra teacher. But her dad's announcement is even worse: he is the crown prince of Genovia, and guess what that makes Mia?

A frizzy-haired freshman who is flunking algebra and also happens to be a PRINCESS."

Camelot Rising - Kiersten White

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Princess Guinevere has come to Camelot to wed a stranger: the charismatic King Arthur. With magic clawing at the kingdom's borders, the great wizard Merlin conjured a solution - send in Guinevere to be Arthur's wife...and his protector from those who want to see the young king's idyllic city fail. The catch? Guinevere's real name - and her true identity - is a secret. She is a changeling, a girl who has given up everything to protect Camelot.

To keep Arthur safe, Guinevere must navigate a court in which the old - including Arthur's own family - demand things continue as they have been, and the new - those drawn by the dream of Camelot - fight for a better way to live. And always, in the green hearts of forests and the black depths of lakes, magic lies in wait to reclaim the land.

Deadly jousts, duplicitous knights, and forbidden romances are nothing compared to the greatest threat of all: the girl with the long black hair, riding on horseback through the dark woods toward Arthur. Because when your whole existence is a lie, how can you trust even yourself?"

Lydia Cooper is a Lie - Meaghan McIsaac

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"For as long as Lydia can remember, it's been her and her dad against the world. But while she loves him, her dad is so overprotective. Well-versed in the dangers of the internet from his job in cybersecurity, he refuses to let Lydia be online without heavy parental controls, and social media is out of the question.

One day, when all Lydia's friends are invited to a movie night at her crush's house - except her because she's not in the group chat - Lydia gets fed up with her dad's rules and makes a social media account. Then an armed intruder shows up at her home. Clearly, there's more to her family's past than she knows.

On the run and separated from her dad, Lydia will need to uncover the secrets her dad has been keeping if she wants to reunite with him. But how can Lydia know who to trust along the way when she doesn't even know who she is?"