These are the books I read in July 2021 with a rating reflecting my opinion on them. I am leaving books not available in English out for your convenience. At the bottom, I will be sharing some recommendations that fall under the category fiction, non-fiction, or non-fiction political. These recommendations are books I have not read myself, so proceed with caution as I cannot speak to their actual quality.
Read
The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth
This is as much a story about love as it is about loss, sacrifice, and the random cruelty of life. I absolutely adored Saoirse as a narrator, her dry wit was a gift as much as her emotional development throughout the book. On the surface this is a story of two girls having a summer romance, but below it is a coming-of-age narrative about having to grow up and face difficult situations. Saoirse’s struggle with her mom’s early-onset dementia, the potential of a similar fate in her own future, and her father’s remarriage aside from recovering from a break up, a loss of friends, and what to do with herself after graduation was truly touching. The romance aspect was nice and I did appreciate the rom-com themes a lot as they did break up the serious parts really well. Honestly, the serious stuff was my favorite part. Also having outspoken lesbian characters who actually use the word lesbian to describe themselves is incredible and I loved it a lot. A great and touching summer read!
The Ship We Built by Lexie Bean
Gosh, this was a heavy read, but I absolutely adored it. Rowan is such a great protagonist and I loved following him through 5th grade via his letters. Middle grade novels with LGBTQ+ protagonists have my whole heart. All I wanted to do was hug Rowan and his friend Sofie and protect them from all the things they have to endure. The portrayal of young transness was incredible, Rowan’s questions about masculinity and how to be in this world were so poignant and real. What a book!
Star Beasts by Stephanie Young
First off, the art style is absolutely gorgeous. The characters are crisp, the colors vibrant, and the space design captivating. Plot-wise this was quite basic and reminded me a lot of the movie Cats vs Dogs mixed in with Voltron. Not bad, but not that great either. The characters weren’t that developed either which made it hard to care about their plight.
Life as a Unicorn by Amrou Al-Kadhi
I don’t really know what to think of this book. Read it for VC book club. Learning about other people’s life experiences is so important and often very gratifying, especially if they are very different from yours. I definitely learned a lot from reading this work, but didn’t necessarily enjoy it too much. The writing style was coarse, the detours too frequent, and there was so much information I really, really didn’t need to hear. Interesting, but not as good as I had hoped.
The Wrath of Mulgarath by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black
This final book in the main Spiderwick series was a little anticlimactic, but I still enjoyed it. The characters and the world especially are so good and compelling, this re-read has been nostalgic joy at its best!
My Life is a Joke by Sheila Heti
This is an incredibly weird short story from the perspective of a dead woman. With an incredibly direct writing style, nothing is held back. It’s strange, yet thoughtful and compelling. Very interesting read! Free to read here.
Level 4 Kid City by Andreas Schlüter
This was such a nostalgic blast from the past. I last read this book as a kid and remembered it quite fondly. It holds up decently, if definitely directed at a younger audience. An early entry to the “virtual reality” adventure genre, its a fun time all around!
The House at Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne
The last story was my favorite! Loved seeing Tigger be added as well as the focus on Piglet. Some of the stories were a little dull, but everything was still so idyllic and just nice.
The Subtweet by Vivek Shraya
I listened to this story as an audiobook which I believe enhanced my experience of it quite a bit. This is a narrative of artists, of brown women in Canada, of social media, creation, and communication. Miscommunication in particular. Good grief was there a lot of miscommunication. I appreciated the insight into the characters’ lives and what women and women of color in particular struggle through. However, I didn’t grow to actually love any characters and found a lot of the drama needless. This book also markets itself as having a trans character, but it’s literally only mentioned in one line. If you miss it by blinking it doesn’t scream representation to me. This character, at first a deuteragonist doesn’t get any POV chapters from about midway through the book, so that doesn’t make things better. I see what this book was trying to do, it just wasn’t particularly for me.
Conventionally Yours by Annabeth Albert
I really enjoyed this book! Admittedly I am a sucker for stories with majority LGBTQ+ characters, road trip narratives, and fandom elements. So this book was basically written for me to enjoy! I absolutely fell in love with the characters and the whole plot was just tender and compelling. Sure, the romance was a little intense and quick at times, but nothing too bad. Liked the representation a lot and just had a good time with it overall 🙂
Minecraft: Guide to Exploration by Mojang
A little outdated and linear at times, but incredibly useful still! I learned a lot and can’t wait to read the other guides as well.
Minecraft: Guide to Redstone by Mojang
Man, this was a complicated read. I learned a few things but a lot went right over my head. Will have to spend some time to get more educated on Redstone mechanics beyond this book.
The Sandman #13: Men of Good Fortune by Neil Gaiman
Such an interesting story! Had this as an exam text and it was quite engaging honestly! Gave me some major Good Omens vibes and the art style was pretty cool as well.
The Sandman #19: A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Neil Gaiman
Didn’t really like this one. It was too crowded and not great adaptation-wise in my opinion.
Minecraft: The Official Beginner’s Handbook by Mojang
This is a bit outdated now as well a little more entertainment-focused rather than a strict guide. I still had a great time reading this book and learned a thing or two as well!
Recommendations
Fiction
Avi Cantor Has Six Months To Live by Sacha Lamb
“Avi Cantor Has Six Months To Live
Avi comes across these foreboding words scrawled on the bathroom mirror, but what do they mean? Is this a curse, a prediction, or a threat from Avi’s emboldened bullies? And how to they know his real name when he hasn’t even told his mother yet? Then there is Ian—the cool new guy at school, who is suddenly paying attention to Avi. Ian is just like Avi, but he is also all sunshine, optimism, and magic. All the things that Avi doesn’t know how to deal with…yet.”
The Not So Boring Letters of Private Nobody by Matthew Landis
“Twelve-year-old Oliver Prichard is obsessed with the Civil War. So when the last assignment of seventh-grade history is a project on the Civil War, Oliver is over the moon–until he’s partnered with Ella Berry, the slacker girl with the messy hair who does nothing but stare out the window. And when Oliver finds out they have to research a random soldier named Private Raymond Stone who didn’t even fight in any battles before dying of some boring disease, Oliver knows he’s doomed. But Ella turns out to be very different from what Oliver expected. As the partners film their documentary about Private Stone–with Oliver’s friend Kevin signing on as their head writing consultant–Oliver discovers that sometimes the most interesting things are hiding in uninteresting places. ”
Political
How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith
“Poet and contributor to The Atlantic Clint Smith’s revealing, contemporary portrait of America as a slave owning nation
Beginning in his own hometown of New Orleans, Clint Smith leads the reader through an unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks-those that are honest about the past and those that are not-that offer an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation’s collective history, and ourselves.”
The Second: Race and Guns in a Fatally Unequal America by Carol Anderson
“In The Second, historian and award-winning, bestselling author of White Rage Carol Anderson powerfully illuminates the history and impact of the Second Amendment, how it was designed, and how it has consistently been constructed to keep African Americans powerless and vulnerable. The Second is neither a “pro-gun” nor an “anti-gun” book; the lens is the citizenship rights and human rights of African Americans.”
Nonfiction
Sensible Footwear: A Girl’s Guide by Kate Charlesworth
“Cartoonist Kate Charlesworth presents a glorious pageant of LGBTQI+ history, as she takes us on a PRIDE march past personal and political milestones from the 1950s to the present day. Peopled by a cast of gay icons such as Dusty Springfield, Billie Jean King, Dirk Bogarde and Alan Turing, and featuring key moments such as Stonewall, Gay Pride and Section 28, Sensible Footwear: A Girl’s Guide, is the first graphic history documenting lesbian life from 1950 to the present. It is a stunning, personal, graphic memoir and a milestone itself in LGBTQI+ history”
Crippled: Austerity and the Demonization of Disabled People by Frances Ryan
“In austerity Britain, disabled people have become the favourite target. From social care to the benefits system, politicians and media alike have made the case Britain’s 12 million disabled people are a drain on the public purse. In Crippled, leading commentator Frances Ryan exposes the disturbing reality, telling the story of those most affected by this devastating regime. Through personal stories, Ryan charts how in recent years the public attitude towards disabled people has transformed from compassion to contempt: from society’s `most vulnerable’ to benefit cheats. Crippled is a damning indictment of a safety net gone wrong, and a passionate demand for an end to austerity measures hitting those most in need.”
The Congressional Report 