Love and Books and Representation

I'm not talking about the love of books, I'm talking about the romance in them. Reading about romances in books are so common that it's a little surprising when a book doesn't contain romance or where romance isn't the main part of the book. Especially in YA. (Oh, those teens with their raging hormones...)

Image courtesy of Naypong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

First things first. A disclaimer. I don't read of stories that just focus on romance and nothing else simply because I've never been a huge fan of them. The "he-said, she-said", *kissy, kissy*, "be still my heart" thing quickly gets stale for me when the story doesn't show anything else going on in the character's lives. That's not to say that I won't read them at all. It's just that I don't go out of my way to add the latest romance novel to my TBR list. 

If and when I read a story that's mainly romance, I need for there to be a subplot or major theme going on to keep my interest. Like paranormal romance or urban fantasy for example. You have two (or multiple) love interests but then you also have major world building that needs to happen. And to make things more interesting, the world and its inhabitants have flaws that affect the main character(s).

And if it's not paranormal romance, perhaps it's a contemporary novel about spies, heists, secret societies, secret agents, etc. that just happens to have the romance thing thrown in there. Two characters are close to locking lips until something around them blows up, ruining the moment. Why did it blow up, who set it off and what's going to happen to them next. 

On the other hand, the few romances that I've read (and the many that I've heard about) are mainly centered around white people. White man meets white woman and you know the rest of the story line. The same tropes are played out over and over again with many characters that can look similar over time. This is in YA, NA and Adult romance.

However...

YA is making major steps in bringing novels that center LGBT+ characters to light. Go to YouTube and search '2017 anticipated reads' and you'll see what I'm talking about. Also, check out Epic Reads too. More and more YA novels are including LGBT+ characters.

In adult, the romance books expand some. There's historical romances, paranormal, erotica, dark, contemporary and African-American. (To be honest, I really don't see why Af-Am romance has to sit separately from the rest of the romance novels but that's just me and we don't have to talk about that right now.)

So now we have all of these sub-genres, themes and subjects going on in romance novels. So what about two characters that are from two different cultures or whose skin colors just happen to be different? They have to be in there somewhere, right? Perhaps I'm not paying attention enough but I don't see a whole lot of mixed couples in mainstream romance books for YA, NA or adult. Especially showing black girls/women with a male love interest that isn't always black.

If I'm wrong and it turns out that there are plenty of interracial/intercultural romance books that are mainstream, please let me know what they are. I'd love to check them out.

"Why does it matter?" 

Well, why does seeing more people of color and women in movies, tv and ads matter? Why does having a person of color or a female representative in politics matter? 

Representation. I like to see people who sorta look like me getting the spotlight for a change and I'm guessing you do too. People aren't all one particular color, one particular gender, etc. When we hear a story, we want to be able to relate to the character on more than one level. We like to see little bits of our story being told to the world through a character that can identify with something with us besides a name or personality trait.

With all of that being said, there's one thing that I'd like to see become a norm across all genre of fiction and across multiple age groups: have more black girls and women becoming main characters.

Lose the stereotypical personality. Lose the stereotypical background/family life. Just like white people aren't all the same, people of color in any given race/culture aren't all the same either. 

Now in YA and NA, I'd love to see more mixed couple romances... period. The issue of the book doesn't always have to be centered around racism. For example just making something up from the top of my head...

{YA action/adventure novel: girl gets an invitation to join a super secret government agency and is the first black girl to do so. She's tasked with trying to stop the potentially biggest heist in the country. But when she notices that the leader (who just happens to be an Asian-American guy) starts paying a little extra attention to her and her ideas, she begins to fall for him. Now she must learn to balance a potential relationship and doing well on her first assignment.}

Now doesn't that sound fun?

"So what needs to change?" First it starts with the reader. We need to voice our opinions. Write blog posts, start a forum discussion, post stuff to Twitter and Facebook then tag publishing companies in it. Make YouTube videos. Connect with the writers that are writing the kind of stories that we're interested in. 

"Okay. And then?" Then comes the writer. Numerous authors have said in so many words to write the story that you want to read. Write that book and don't give up. (I know, I know. Easier said than done.)

"What next?" Then we need publishers that are willing to help get those books published and sold. We need representatives that are as diverse as the stories that we want to see and we need representatives that are willing to listen, learn and move forward. They're out there. I know it. On the other hand, maybe writing the actual book isn't your thing. Maybe it's in publishing.

"But what if the author I like is self-published?" Then support them. Follow their social media pages, buy their books and leave reviews on the appropriate sites. (I've heard from quite a few authors that just posting a review to Goodreads isn't sufficient enough.) If you love their book(s), submit a request to your local library to buy some copies.

Whew! This post quickly went from romance in books to representation. I guess in so many words, I'm saying that I'd love to be able to fangirl over mainstream books across ALL genres that feature black girls as the main character(s).

I've done enough talking. I want to hear from you all now. As a reader, what kind of untold or underrepresented stories do you want to see included in mainstream books? 

If you're not a reader, (thank you for taking the time to read this long-behind post, by the way.) what stories would make you want to pick up that book? Cause ya know, everyone's a reader. Those that say they aren't just need to find out what books are for them. 😉

NaNoWriMo - Let's Gooooooo!

November 1 (tomorrow) begins National Novel Writing Month where fellow writers and aspiring novelists try to write a 50,000 word novel throughout the month of November. This can be achieved by writing ~1,700 words everyday.

NaNoWriMo logo from www.nanowrimo.org

And I'm announcing that I'm participating this year. *cracks knuckles* Okay,  technically I participated last year and the year before but I didn't last long. I'm really hoping that this time is different because I took the time to plan my story and leave some room for pantsing (coming up with something as I write; flying by the seat of my pants). I'm a plantser who leans more towards planning.

My story may not end up being 50,000 words but my goal is to contribute something to my story everyday.

I almost freaked out today when I was coming up with a synopsis to post to my profile page on the site. There was one story that I had been trying to work out for the past 3-4 years but it kept falling flat and I kept losing interest. Earlier this month, I had another idea for a story to do for fun. So for part of September and October, I planned out the first story while occasionally writing stuff for the second. When it came to writing the synopsis, I wasn't enthused for the first story and trying to explain the synopsis was difficult and felt dull.

Then an itty, bitty whisper of a thought popped into my head. 

"Why not combine them?"

Intriguing. Hmm... No, no, no, no, no. The other story is supposed to be fun and I don't want to ruin it! I can't do that!

"Why not?"

So I sat there with the cursor blinking, blinking, blinking, blinking; impatiently waiting for me to write something. 

But it may enhance it. 

Not wanting to didn't sound like a good excuse and I don't know if I'm going to truly ruin it. 

Why not use the story that's on your mind most often and doing NaNoWriMo won't seem like a chore.

I thought some more and looked over my notes and plans. The phone rang three times while I was trying to think and type. Annoying.

So I combined them. I have to admit that I'm excited and a bit nervous. Hopefully all of my notes and plans won't get completely done away with. But then again, if they do that's part of the writing process. Right? What's important is that I know what I want my story to be about. The details may will change. I may hate having to write and re-write things all over again. But it's not an adventure if there aren't any challenges. NaNoWriMo may end on November 30th but my story won't.

Side note: I may have to go to the store to get more coffee and apple cider tomorrow. Seriously.

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

25 Bookish Facts About Me

I've seen this tag floating around on BookTube and since the idea of making a video of me talking scares me more than it does thrill me, I'm going to do a blog version with pictures!

#1

My favorite book as a young child was Goodnight, Moon by Margaret Wise Brown.

Image courtesy of Goodreads

#2

My favorite book of all time is Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh. I had one copy that I read until it fell apart, then I got another copy to replace it. (Which is now falling apart). I got a hardcover special anniversary edition as a birthday present this year and I plan on keeping it safe. Thanks to that book (and the movie), I've been writing and journaling since I was 7 and to this day I still really enjoy a good spy/heist novel.

#3

When I'm stressed out, I tend to listen to audiobooks and read more comic book/graphic novels.

#4

As of right now, I have more fantasy books on my bookshelf and my to-read list than I do any other genre

#5

My favorite graphic novel (so far) is The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.

#6

I'm slightly ashamed to say that I have not read the entire series of The Chronicles of Narnia. I read the first book in 5th grade and I've seen the movies. Just haven't gotten around to reading the rest. I should get on that.

#7

My favorite classics are/were The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and The Wizard of Oz.

Unfortunately, I only own The Wizard of Oz.

#8
When I was in elementary school, I wrote and illustrated a picture book about a girl and her cat, titled Lucy and Kate, for the Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators contest. I got an honorable mention.

#9
The first manga that I read was Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi.

Image courtesy of Goodreads

#10
One of my bookish pet peeves is having to mark a book as DNF.

#11
As a kid I didn't like the clear plastic covering that were on library-owned hardcover books because I wanted to be able to feel the jacket and see what was underneath. I still feel the same way now.

#12
I still have bookmarks from elementary school.

#13
My least favorite genre (so far) are romance books that don't have any other storyline other than the main characters getting together.

#14
I was a fan of Twilight when I was in late high school and early college. (And I didn't care if Bella was an unreliable narrator.) But I never considered myself to be a "Twihard". Back then I was Team Edward but after reading Dannika Dark's books, the shifter world seems much more interesting.

#15
I love it when a book that I enjoyed gets turned into a movie. But I can't stand it when the original cover of a book is replaced with the movie version.

#16
My favorite place to read is in a big comfy chair with a blanket nearby and tea, coffee or apple cider at my side.

Image courtesy of Michelle Meiklejohn at Free Digital Photos

#17
I don't like marking in books or dog-earring the pages.

#18
Paperback or Hardcover? Hardcover

Image courtesy of ddpavuma at Free Digital Photos

#19
I read more fiction books than I do non-fiction books.

#20
I'd rather have a book that has a lot of chapters but fewer pages per chapter.

#21
My favorite brick and mortar bookstore is Half-Price Books. My favorite online bookstore is Book Outlet.

#22
The first book I ever had signed by an author was Things Change by Patrick Jones.

#23
When I was in elementary school, there were many times I choose to read during recess rather than do what all the other kids were doing.

#24
My favorite book of the Bible is Ruth.

#25
Buying a new copy of a book is fun and all but I much rather "adopt" a used copy instead.

Book Outlet Unboxing

Little tip: If one insists on wearing a cotton t-shirt and a camisole along with thick athletic socks (because all the other ones are all dirty) and long navy blue skinny jeans to work and running errands in the middle of summer when there's a heat advisory, they must bring a change of clothes to change into after work and they shouldn't forget a water bottle. Sunscreen is helpful too.

Anyways... 🙄 I was in a slightly cruddy mood this afternoon because I was hot, I wasn't able to put my hair up while driving without having my head too far forward and my clothes were clinging to me. On top of that, the AC in our car needs fixing. I like summer weather and I can tolerate the heat but I have limits. So when I came home (all sweaty and gross), I saw that a package had arrived for me. The fact that it came a couple days earlier than I expected is a bonus.

It's here!!

Last week I decided to order some books from an online book store called Book Outlet. This is a great place to find books for amazingly low prices. Like "pay-$5-instead-of-$20" low. Curious?Check out the Facebook page to see about getting a $5 gift card then head on over to the website. 😉

What am I supposed to do with all of this brown paper?

Just like all the other Book Outlet unboxing videos that I've watched on BookTube, there's a good amount of stiff brown paper to cushion your precious books. I don't want to recycle it yet because someone may need it for a package or something... maybe.

The first three books in the Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer

This comes right on time because I've started re-reading (re-listening) to Cinder, Scarlet, Fairest and Cress so I can get to Winter and Stars Above.

Thank you Book Outlet!

Reader-Bashing: This Should Be A Thing

Okay, so you know when you're scrolling though social media, looking at articles, and checking up on the CBLV blogger website *winkwink*. You see some kind of mention about a book that you read at some point in time and enjoyed.

Or, better yet, you see an opinion list on the best and worse books ever. Lo and behold, a book (or books) that you enjoyed is on that list of worse books. Then you make the mistake of reading the comments. Oh boy, these comments are mean!

Readers insulting other readers for liking a particular book. Reader-Bashing. I don't know if that's a term but, I'm going to make it one.

If you really disliked a book for personal reasons and you want to share your thoughts, okay. But, I don't understand the insults and name-calling that some readers (and writers) hurl at each other for liking a particular book or genre. We don't know what they're thinking, their true reasons for reading it or what they'll get out of it. Right?

For example, here are some books that have made multiple "Worst Book" lists:

• Twilight (series) by Stephanie Meyers 
• Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler
• 50 Shades of Grey by E.L. James
• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
• The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
• Wicked by Gregory Macguire
• Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
• The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Shouldn't the focus be, "At least they're reading."? Doesn't this "reader-bashing" thing sound kind of dumb? It is. Let's be nice to people with different reading interests. If you want to read Twilight, 50 Shades of Grey or The Da Vinci Code, go ahead. No need to explain why. Just don't forget to read other stuff, okay?

-B

My Addiction: Books and Reading

I felt like this needed a separate post of its own. Last year may have been an emotional year but, it was also the year of books. January 2015, a family member on Facebook posted that they were going to do a reading challenge that they found on popsugar.com. So, I decided to join in. At the same time, I decided to do the Goodreads challenge. Here are my reading stats.

Goodreads 2015 Reading Challenge Goal: 20
Goodreads 2015 Reading Challenge Read: 56

Voracious!

2015 Popsugar Reading Challenge
Pardon the liquid stains. They're either tears or water...  Nearly all 50 boxes are checked except for 12. (Wait, what?) However, there are plenty of books written in the margins that didn't fulfill one of the categories.

• A book with more than 500 pages - The Lost Sisterhood
• A classic romance - A Little Something Different
• A book that became a movie - Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief
• A book published this year - All Fall Down
• A book with a number in the title - One for the Money
• A book written by someone under 30 - Losing It
• A book with non-human characters - Cress
• A funny book - The Job
• A book by a female author - House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz (Note: I changed 'female' to 'male' because a large majority of the books I read are already by women. So actively looking for a book by a man provided me more of a challenge.)
• A mystery or thriller - The Silent Wife
• A book with a one-word title - Scarlet
• A book of short stories - Earth's Mightiest Heroes: The Avengers #1
• A book set in a different country - The Expats
• A nonfiction book - The Birth Order Book
• A popular author's first book - The Rook
• A book from an author you love that you haven't read yet - The Silkworm
• A book a friend recommended - The Shack
• A Pulitzer Prize-winning book
• A book based on a true story - The Anatomy Lesson
• A book at the bottom of your to-read list - The Paris Mysteries
• A book your mom loves
• A book that scares you
• A book more than 100 years old - The Time Machine
• A book based entirely on its cover - A Lifetime of Secrets
• A book you were supposed to read in school but didn't
• A memoir - I Am Malala
• A book you can finish in a day - Dork Diaries
• A book with antonyms in the title - Pros and Cons
• A book set somewhere you've always wanted to visit - The Husband's secret
• A book that came out the year you were born
• A book with bad reviews - Eyes on You
• A trilogy
• A book from your childhood - A Wrinkle in Time
• A book with a love triangle 
• A book set in the future - Cinder
• A book set in high school
• A book with a color in the title - Captain America and Black Widow
• A book that made you cry
• A book with magic - Goddess Boot Camp
• A graphic novel - The Avengers: Origins
• A book by an author you've never read before - Pretty Little Mistakes
• A book that you own but have never read - Americanah
• A book that takes place in your hometown - The Shell Game (Okay, part of the story does.)
• A book that was originally written in a different language
• A book set during Christmas - Politically Correct Holiday Stories
• A book written by an author with your same initials
• A play - The Life of Galileo
• A banned book - Alice in Wonderland
• A book based on or turned into a TV show
• A book you started but never finished - Introverts in the Church

Extensive! BUT, as you can see in the picture, I have more books that read written in the margins:

• The Avengers: Mythos
• Talon
• Ender's Game
• Etiquette and Espionage
• The Scam
• Confessions of a Murder Suspect
• The New 52: Justice League
• X-Men Origins
• Marvel vs. DC #1
• Marvel vs. DC #2
• Forgotten God
• Four
• Justice League 1
• JLA Earth 2
• Mysterious Messages
• Fairest
• The Sleeper and the Spindle
• Code Name Verity

Whew! I've had people ask me how do I read so fast and then they express in interest wanting to read more. My secrets are {drumroll please...}

1. I read more then one book at a time. For example I may start a really long book then start a shorter book all the mean while, I have another book that's on CD or mp3 audiobook that I listen when I'm doing house, computer work or running errands.
2. Well, you may have guessed the second one already but, I read hardcover/paperback books, ebooks and I listen to audio books. 
3. I don't always buy my books. 95% of the time, I get them from libraries. Even the mp3 audiobooks and ebooks. (Hint: go ask your librarian about eMedia.)

Right now, my goal for 2016 is to read 50 books. I also have a couple 2016 reading challenge lists. So, let's go!

The Book I Plan on Reading This Week Is...

Image credit: "Prohibited Sign" by artur84 via FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Margaret Atwood's, The Handmaid's Tale. I looked up my new read on Goodreads, the tags that describe the book are: science fiction, dystopia, feminism, and fantasy. Side note: I enjoy dystopia stories. So dystopia+feminism sounds intriguing! Scrolling down, I also saw that one of my favorite authors, Veronica Roth, also marked it as 'to-read'.

Last year, my banned/challenged book was The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. In this book, Sinclair shows readers the harsh life of immigrants living in the meatpacking district. We see different aspects of their home lives, their hopes and dreams before coming to America, how they are treated during and outside of work, and how they view their world after a few years. In addition to the life of the immigrants, the reader is led down a very vivid and gory journey of what goes on in the slaughterhouses, how the animals are treated, and how the meat is treated before it's sold for consumption. (All for the sake of convenience and money.) It's gross, but I strongly encourage everyone to read it. Then do your own research about factory farms and slaughterhouses today.

So with that being said, I say: be bold and read a banned/challenged book this week... or at least listen to the audio version. (Not the movie!)

Happy Monday!

It's Banned Books Week!!

Image credit: "Censorship" by Dan via FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every year during the last week of September, bibliophiles all over the country celebrate their freedom to read and focus on the importance of having free, open and accessible information for all.
[ALA.org]

Why do some books get banned or challenged? Usually because a group did not like the views that were presented in the book because they were unpopular or unconventional.

So, starting today, we take a stand against censorship by reading and sharing these books. Here are a few examples of frequently challenged and banned books:

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey

Looking for Alaska by John Green

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

And the list goes on. Tomorrow, I'll reveal which book banned/challenged book I plan on reading. In the meantime, I encourage every person reading this and all of their friends to go to http://www.ala.org/bbooks/bannedbooksweek and pick a book to read or listen to this week. (Watching the movie doesn't count!) :)

Book Reviews: "Talon" and "A Little Something Different"

Hello everyone!

I wanted to share my own summary and reviews two books I just finished. If you would like to read the book description from the jacket yourself, click on the caption links under the pictures or go over to Goodreads.

Talon by Julie Kagawa

Image Credit: Amazon.com

Summary: Talon is YA fantasy book about Ember Hill and her brother Dante. Ember and Dante aren't ordinary humans. In fact, they weren't born as humans at all; they're dragons posing as humans. In addition to that, they are the only sibling pair among all dragonkind. The pair grew up under the organization, Talon. Talon trains dragons trust each other and to infiltrate human society. Long ago, the Order of St. George almost wiped out all dragons. After becoming a secret organization, they still have the goal of taking out all dragons, especially the females. Garret is a soldier with St. George. He's been trained to see all dragons as ruthless and threats to human society that need to be exterminated immediately. So he's been tasked with hunting down the sibling duo, especially Ember. Things get a little complicated for Garret when he meets and starts getting to know Ember as a human. Things also get complicated for Ember when she meets Riley, a rogue dragon, who's determined to expose truths about Talon. This book is told from Ember, Garret and Riley's point of view

  

Review: When I first saw this book, I thought the cover looked interesting. I had to read through the description a couple of times before adding it towards the bottom of my "To Read" list. When I started the book, I was captivated from the first few chapters. Ember is the kind of character who can hold her own. Even though she's a dragon and human bullies can't do very much to her, she shows boldness and toughness while maintaining the femininity that she's been taught. Dante is the character who's still a little mysterious and I hope that the author reveals a little bit more of his thinking and his training. Between Garret and Riley: I liked Riley's determination and seeing the softer side of Garret amidst the tough soldier exterior. The whole story so far has kind of a Disney's Pocahontas feel to it. (Which is okay with me because that was one of my favorite movies as a kid.) I wonder if the story would've had the same outcome if Ember and Garret were became close friends and not romantically involved. Just a thought. Anyways, I'm excited to read the next books in the series.

Stars: ★★★★★

A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall

Image Credit: Amazon.com

Summary: A Little Something Different is a YA romance that centers around Gabe and Leah. Gabe and Leah know each other from a creative writing class. Shy Gabe likes Leah and equally quiet Leah likes Gabe as well. Everyone around them sees a potential relationship. However, Gabe and Leah must overcome their own fears and insecurities before pursuing a relationship. This story is told over the length of a school year from fourteen viewpoints (including a squirrel). It takes the careful coaching and nudging of everyone around them in order for them to get the ball rolling.

Review: When I read the book description a while ago, I quickly added it to my "To Read" list. I thought it sounded cute and the idea of watching a budding relationship from different viewpoints seemed quite creative. (Either that or when I added it to my "To Read" list, I was daydreaming about a guy I liked.) When the story started, I noticed that the college student characters didn't take on the "always drunk,  always partying, sex-crazed" stereotype. That I liked. I also admired the fact that both Gabe and Leah's personalities could be seen as quiet and introverted. (Go introverts!) Unfortunately, that's all I liked about the book. Compared to some other romance books that I've read (YA mostly and some romcom adult), this story line seemed to creep along a little too slowly. The ongoing fears, shyness and crippling self-doubt of Gabe and Leah towards themselves started to annoy me. God knows that I love animals, I truly do but, the squirrel's point of view seemed a little pointless. I would've liked to see their relationship progress a little bit faster. I would've also liked to see more conflict that forces them to be more confident and battle any shyness they experience around each other.

Stars: ★☆☆☆☆