Hello friends!
I’ve finally made it out of the busiest time of my life and so I’m now back to getting stuff done! Today I’m sharing another iteration of the books I’ve read recently; these were read between June and July.
A ton of these books were on my 2018 GoodReads winners list, so I’m stoked to have them crossed off. I’ve also found a few new favorites of my own this time around; read on to find out what!
The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One by Amanda Lovelace
“The witch: supernaturally powerfuaml, inscrutably independent, and now—indestructible. These moving, relatable poems encourage resilience and embolden women to take control of their own stories. Enemies try to judge, oppress, and marginalize her, but the witch doesn’t burn in this one.”
I read the first book in this series earlier this year and really enjoyed a few of the poems; it felt like something I could relate to. This book had a nice message, but it felt entirely too aggressive and honestly a little scary. I didn’t connect with any of the poems this time around unfortunately! P.S. you don’t need to read them in any order.
3 / 5 Stars
The Rise & Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World by Steven Brusatte
“The dinosaurs. Sixty-six million years ago, the Earth’s most fearsome creatures vanished. Today they remain one of our planet’s great mysteries. Now The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs reveals their extraordinary, 200-million-year-long story as never before.”
I really enjoyed learning more about the history of dinosaurs! There were definitely some misconceptions that were fixed. I wish there were more pictures, or graphics in general to visualize the dinosaurs, or timelines just to help break up the words; it could become a bit dry when it was just pages and pages of text. I really like that he shared his own stories, but some people didn’t, so reader beware!
4 / 5 Stars
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
“Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.”
The first few pages had me feeling a little bit like I was too old for this story, but as I started getting into it, I really fell in love with the writing. There were a few moments that felt preachy, but it was a good message that I think younger readers could really learn from. There were some “dirty” parts, but nothing too graphic. The love interest totally caught me by surprise and I loved it!
5 / 5 Stars
The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
“Stella Lane thinks math is the only thing that unites the universe. She comes up with algorithms to predict customer purchases — a job that has given her more money than she knows what to do with, and way less experience in the dating department than the average thirty-year-old. It doesn’t help that Stella has Asperger’s and French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. Her conclusion: she needs lots of practice — with a professional. Which is why she hires escort Michael Phan. The Vietnamese and Swedish stunner can’t afford to turn down Stella’s offer, and agrees to help her check off all the boxes on her lesson plan — from foreplay to more-than-missionary position…”
I adored this book, and it made me tear up and cry more than a few times. It made me much more aware of what someone on the autism spectrum thinks and feels (it’s own-voices) as well as how a lot of people perceive them. I loved how Michael took things at her pace and never shamed her. The second half of the book was where it fell apart a bit for me and made it lose half a star; it turned into a typical romance with conflicts that shouldn’t have been problems. If only they would have just talked to each other!
4.5 / 5 Stars
The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Yellow by Hidenori Kusaka
Follow Yellow and Pikachu as they search for Red after he goes off to fight a mysterious battle invitation! There, Yellow creates bonds with the various Pokemon he meets as he continues to search; but who’s trying to stop him?
I’ve had this for a while, and finally decided it was time to read and get off my shelf! I love Pokemon, but had a really hard time following the art of this book as it didn’t differentiate much in black and white. Still, it was a cute story about friendship that I enjoyed while I read!
3.5 / 5 Stars
What have your favorite books of the year been so far?
Karissa Talks Beauty 