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January Reviews

I read 13 books in January! That is simply too many books to review in-depth, so I thought I would do some quick star-reviews and short reviews/summaries.

The Wife Drought by Annabel Crabb - ★★★★

Basic level feminist goodness with a perfect dose of Australian politics and political journalism.

South and West: From A Notebook by Joan Didion - ★★★

A notebook dripping in south-western American aestheticism, with a dash of political tension - you wish it was your own notebook.

Binti (#1) by Nnedi Okorafor - ★★★

A mini and accessible sci-fi tale. I can’t wait to read the sequels.

The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson - ★★★★★

The queer book I didn’t know I needed in my life until I read it and now it is so much a part of my life. A book I could read and read and read again.

The Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves and Why It Matters by B. R. Myers - ★★★

An interesting book that fills the knowledge gaps I had about North Korea. An important read amidst global tension, and curiosity about their Winter Olympics participation and reunification dreams.

Flame In The Mist (#1) by Renee Ahdieh - ★★

A book I wanted to like but just could not get into. The plot was thinned and replaced with unnecessary descriptive passages. Not a bad tale though.

Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah - ★★★★

Born A Crime taught me so much about South Africa that I never knew, and it told it from a cultural perspective that I appreciated. A riveting read.

Moral Panic 101: Equality, Acceptance and the Safe Schools Scandal (Quarterly Essay #67) by Benjamin Law - ★★★★★

This essay provided a great overview of what was at the heart of the media hysteria about the Safe Schools Program in Australia. For fans of social and education policy, and anyone looking to engage more with queer politics.

They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera - ★★★★

The best young adult book I’ve read in a long time. Rufus reminded me so much of Mars from She’s Gotta Have It (Netflix series).

Life of Pi by Yann Martel - ★

I liked nothing about this book. I’m going to try to watch the movie to see if I can come around to it that way, but this book just did nothing for me and I was so disappointed.

All Your Friend Like This: How Social Networks Took Over The News by Hal Crawford, Andrew Hunter and Domagoj Filipovic - ★★

This book was premature in the Share Wars project. Their data set was limited and it was reflected in their unclear message. The book goes off on hardly relevant tangents, boasts about the authors for no good reasons, lacks references, and utilises too many different writing styles. The content had so much potential though!

Feed by M. T. Anderson - ★★★

A fascinating sci-fi tale that appears very Black Mirror-esque.

The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins - ★★★★★

Captivated me right until the last page. An absolute delight to read - you can’t tell if you love/hate/pity the main character.

January Faves

100% Organic Cold-Pressed Rose Hip Seed Oil 30mL by The Ordinary

A lot of my friends regularly use rosehip oil to care for their acne and after reading some reviews I picked up this product. It has been an absolute miracle worker on my skin! Although I have fairly unproblematic skin, in the three weeks I have been using this product, it has cleared pimples and pimple scars that have been around for years.

The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson

The queer book I didn’t know I needed in my life until I read it and now it is so much a part of my life. A book I could read and read and read again.

The Wife Drought by Annabel Crabb

Basic level feminist goodness with a perfect dose of Australian politics and political journalism. Just my cup of tea.

Bullet journaling

For the first time ever I’m trying my hand at bullet journaling to help keep my life organised in 2018!

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Everyone I knew kept recommending this film to me and about halfway through the film I understood why. Amazing cast, amazing message, amazing delivery.

The Final Year

As soon as I saw this advertised, I jumped at the chance to see it. It fulfilled my need for some US foreign policy content, as was a perfect prelude to reading Michael Wolff’s Fire and Fury in February.

After Laughter by Paramore

I got Paramore concert tickets for Christmas from my parents, so I’ve had After Laughter on repeat and it is the perfect soundtrack to my happy summer days.

Lemon water and overnight oats

Kind of a weird monthly fave but I’ve recently started a 9 to 5 job, so having my breakfast prepared and ready to grab on my way out the door is a godsend (because it means I get to sleep an extra 15 minutes, instead of making breakfast) - I’ve been using Minimalist Baker’s overnight oats recipe FYI. I’ve also been starting my days with drinking some water with fresh lemon and I’m not sure if it is doing anything (I’ve read that it’s supposed to be good for you) but it makes me feel healthy and my skin is clear so I guess it works?

2018 Reading Goals

Read 50 books - I completed this goal in 2017 reading 60 books in total. I’m aiming to achieve this goal again this year although it may be difficult as I’m going back to uni to do a postgraduate law degree in February.

Read diversely - I made a post yesterday about how diverse my reading was in 2017. What I learned from it was that I needed to read more books by persons of colour and queer-identifying persons and that I needed to read more books that included characters from queer backgrounds, who are persons of colour, who have mental illnesses, etc.

Reduce the number of books on my shelf - I made a post recently about my ‘book-buying ban’ (you can read it here), through which I intend to reduce the physical number of books I have (and therefore decrease my spending).

Read more classics - Last year I read a lot of non-fiction, YA, and contemporaries/literary fiction, and I would like to incorporate more classics into my reading. I was an avid reader of classics when I was in high school so hopefully, I can pick up right where I left off!

Write more reviews - I don’t have a lot of confidence when it comes to writing book reviews, regardless of whether I loved or loathed the book. I think I have a fear of having not seen something that everyone else has seen in it. I would like to overcome that fear and perhaps do one book review a month.

Diverse Reading

In 2017, I didn’t specifically intend to read diversely - my focus was just to read as I had not read a book in years. However, I thought I would review how diverse my reading ended up being and set myself some goals to further diversify my reading in 2018.

Book-Buying Ban

This year I am continuing to incorporate more zero-waste methods into my life and one major source of clutter and waste in my house are my books.

I’ve seen a lot of book bloggers and booktubers give themselves book-buying bans for certain periods (like a month or two months, etc.) and I’ve taken my inspiration from them and from the zero-waste community and come up with a method that works for me and my lifestyle.

I think ‘book-buying reduction’ might be more suitable as I am actively avoiding purchasing brand new books from bookstores. Instead, I am trying to read what books I already have on my shelf (see the list as of November 2017 here) and utilise my local libraries. I will also do some book-purchasing - from thrift stores and on the Kindle eBook store. While my aim is primarily to reduce my spending on books, I am also focusing on reducing the amount of space my books take up.

Are you reducing your book-buying in 2018?

#books #book #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookblog #book blogger #booktube #booktuber #bibliophile #ban #kindle #amazon #ebook #reading #bookish #studyblr #bookblr #booklr #zero-waste #community

January TBR

Given that I’ve already read four books this month, it is probably time for a long and belated January TBR.

In the first week of January I managed to read:

The Wife Drought by Annabel Crabb

South and West: From A Notebook by Joan Didion

Binti (#1) by Nnedi Okorafor

The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson

I listen to Annabel Crabb’s podcast with Leigh Sales, Chat 10 Looks 3, but had never really delved into any of Crabb’s work (despite my interest in politics), so I was excited to finally get around to reading The Wife Drought. The Argonauts had also been on my radar for a very long time too, as a queer person involved in the queer community, it had been recommended to me as both comforting and essential reading - and it was.

Joan Didion’s notes from her southern travels, South and West: From A Notebook, had been a chance find at the library - a nice cover and notable author that I was willing to take a gamble on given it is only 126 pages long.

For the rest of the month my TBR seems to be becoming an ever-growing list of titles, starting with my current read, The Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves And Why It Matters by B. R. Myers.

I’m also intending to read the remainder of the Binti series, Home (Binti #2) and The Night Masquerade (Binti #3). Although hearing really positive reviews about this series, I hadn’t really intended to read it as sci-fi is not really a genre I like, however, I picked up the first book at a Dymocks sale for $2.50 and thought I’d give it a go. After reading the first book, I loved it and can’t wait to read the sequels.

I have two YA reads on my TBR for this month! I intend to read Renée Ahdieh’s Flame In The Mist, and They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera.

The very last book on this ambitious TBR is Trevor Noah’s biography, Born A Crime: Stores From A South African Childhood.

What’s on your TBR for January?

December Favourites

Wonder (film)

My partner and I saw this film so we could escape the heat and sit in an air-conditioned cinema. We didn’t know what to expect from it and loved it so much (maybe a bit extra given that both our backgrounds are in social work).

She’s Gotta Have It (Netflix Series)

This reworking of the film of the same name has become one of my favourite series’ of the year. It has an amazing soundtrack, dynamic cast, beautiful colour palette, a message with each episode for viewers to take away.

On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From The Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder

This book is short and I devoured it in just over an hour one afternoon, but its message is clear and simple. Contrasting political histories with the current American political climate, this book is a must-read for every person who votes in elections, and for young people beginning to consider their political selves.

The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 30mL

I purchased this just after Christmas because it was finally back in stock and it has been so good for my skin. My skin has felt super hydrated and has begun to look a lot dewier as opposed to rough and shiny.

Kindle Paperwhite

A Christmas gift for myself, my Kindle is going to revolutionise my reading and help to me finally downsize my bookshelf.

Ratboys on Audiotree Live

I discovered Chicago-based Ratboys through a discover weekly playlist on Spotify during December and since then, their Audiotree Live session has become one of my favourite things to listen too. If you’re into garage/indie/shoegaze, you will love these guys.

Go Farther In Lightness by Gang Of Youths

My most listened to record in December. So so good.

Fave Five: Booktube Channels

Books And Quills - Sanne does a variety of bookish and non-book related videos and the variety is what keeps me watching.

Jen Campbell - Jen Campbell is one booktuber that speaks about books outside of YA. Not only does she talk about books but, like Sanne, she gives insight into publishing, which is very interesting.

A Clockwork Reader - Hannah has the most calming voice! Her videos feature a lot of variety and while she has a YA focus, she makes an effort to read widely and communicates that to her viewers.

A Booktube Book - Farah posts a great variety of videos and her reviews and wrap-ups are detailed and well-explained.

Ariel Bisset - Like the others, I follow Ariel because she posts videos that are not simply TBRs and wrap-ups.

#ariel bisset #a booktube book #a clockwork reader #hannah #farah #jen campbell #books and quills #sanne #booktube #channel #books #booklr #bookblr #reading #study blog #studyblr #haul #tbr

Top 10 books of 2017

This year I read 60 books, so I decided to pick my favourite 10 reads of 2017.

In no particular order:

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalinithi

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance

Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of The Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

The Sellout by Paul Beatty

Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer

Just Kids by Patti Smith

Books for Christmas

A discussion of the books I received and the books I gave.

For all the important people in my life, this year I gifted them books. Books are a fantastic gift - personal, a gift to encourage relaxation and education, particularly for people who may not read a lot (my parents argue that because I read so many books, it’s hard to pick one for a meaningful gift).

For my mum, I gifted her two books: Just Kids by Patti Smith, and M Train by Patti Smith. My mum has an affection for rock music biographies and, being a child of the 60s, she loves books that take her back to those days. Patti Smith’s collections were a perfect fit as they read like poetry.

My dad is not a reader, however, a good political story (or book about motorbikes) will have him hooked. My dad received the Best Australian Political Cartoons 2017 edited by Russ Radcliffe - not only is it political, but it is also mostly pictures.

My partner is also not really a reader, but as they are going to university for the first time in 2018, I’ve been encouraging reading to ensure they develop the skill to a university level. Unsurprisingly, my partner was expecting a book for Christmas and they got exactly that. I gifted The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving by Jonathan Evison, which is the book that the film The Fundamentals of Caring is based on. My partner loves the film adaption and given that they will be studying social work and counselling, I thought the book was a perfect match.

I only received one book this Christmas because, as I mentioned above, I read so much and so widely that my family finds it hard to pick a book for me. But my partner took up the challenge and gifted my Iliza Shlesinger’s memoir/manifesto, Girl Logic. My partner loves comedy and I am fairly uninterested in it, so this book was intended as an introduction to comedy for me.

I hope everyone found books under their Christmas tree, and have a happy holiday season x

Bookshelf Stocktake

Books on my shelf I need to read in 2018

I’ve accumulated so many books on my tiny bookshelf, so to reduce the number of books I have I’m going to try to read all the unread books on my bookshelf:

November Favourites

Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

I posted a full-length review of this book which you can find here. I loved this book and feel that it is utterly essential reading.

Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

I read a few fictional/YA titles in November, but this book stood out for me. It felt so honest and presented me with a story of cross-cultural masculinity, which I had not come across prior.

Detroit (film)

This was the only film I saw in cinemas this month, however, it was fantastic. It tells one narrative with the civil rights movement as the films’ background - and it’s based on a true story.

Stranger Things: Season 2

Unsurprisingly, season 2 of Stranger Things was a favourite of mine this month. I wasn’t exactly in love with it to begin with, but about halfway through the season, things really accelerated.

Brothers Green Eats (Youtube)

I came across this channel by accident but it has become a favourite. Their recipes are not completely vegan but those that are not vegan are usually adaptable to vegan diets. They have heaps of cooking tips, focus on raw/natural ingredients, and are just enjoyable to watch!

Sports Bra, self-titled EP

Absolute, indie-rock goodness. Listen to them on Spotify or buy their EP on bandcamp: https://sportsbralovesyou.bandcamp.com/releases

I Love You Like A Brother - Alex Lahey

I slept on this record for a bit, but now that I’ve heard it, I have it on repeat all the time. Listen to the album on Spotify or purchase via Alex Lahey’s website: https://artistfirst.com.au/collections/alex-lahey

December TBR

I still have two books on loan from the library that I want to get through, and they are my current read Vagina by Naomi Wolf and The Taste of Blue Light by Lydia Ruffles.

Then I still have books from my Dymocks VIP night haul - Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari; They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera; Quarterly Essay: Moral Panic 101 by Benjamin Law.

Additionally, since I have completed my 50 book challenge on Goodreads, I’d like to start A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara and perhaps Here I Am by Jonathan Safran Foer. Both of these have been sitting on my shelf since perhaps May, so I feel like its time to get through them.

Mini Reviews

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

This is a young adult fiction coming of age story centering on two Mexican boys discovering their sexuality and navigating masculinity across two cultures. I loved this book - I was so invested in the personal development of Ari and Dante and could not put this down. I’m hoping this is made into a movie and can’t wait for the sequel!

★★★★★ on Goodreads

My Salinger Year by Joanna Rakoff

I was unsure what to expect from Joanna Rakoff’s memoir, which was stylised like a novel, but I was pleasantly surprised. Rakoff’s discussion of Salinger within the context of her work in publishing and literary agency made me reconsider my stance on Salinger (and particularly The Catcher In The Rye). Although the story moves very slowly initially, the second half of the book had me hooked! I feel as though this book may be particular interest to those in publishing, or with strong interests in modern classics.

★★★ on Goodreads

The Rise of the Fifth Estate by Greg Jericho

More and more political news is reported and debated on social media, so analysing the impact and role of social media in contrast to traditional media was necessary. Written in 2012 and focusing largely on a tumultuous period of Australian politics from 2009 - 2012, the content of this book is a little bit dated, as the last 5 years have seen the general public and the media become more engaged with politics on social media than ever before (especially after the 2016 US Presidential election, and human rights crisis on Manus Island). Regardless, for #auspol fans, this is a fantastic read and I would love an updated version.

★★★★ on Goodreads

The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur

Kaur’s poems have previously been largely focused on the self and personal development, however, The Sun and Her Flowers often shifts the focus to Kaur’s mother and her family’s history as migrants. Her poetry feels like advocacy - for a woman’s right to choose, for migrants rights, etc. I feel like I enjoyed this addition a little more than Kaur’s debut poetry book, Milk and Honey.

★★★ on Goodreads

REVIEW: Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

This is absolutely essential reading. Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race should be drawn on in secondary and tertiary curriculums, as it explains racism, it’s history and the intersections between race and class, race and feminism, and race and immigration.

Reni Eddo-Lodge’s debut novel, Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race, stemmed from a blog post of the same title, posted in February 2014. The blog post, included in the book, triggered a mass of responses both positive and negative. Focusing on the persons of colour who identified with her experience, and then those of sympathetic white people who felt apologetic on behalf of their race,

“I didn’t know at the time that I had inadvertently written a break-up letter to whiteness” (p. xiv)

Eddo-Lodge encourages engagement, education, and respect. From white people specifically she passively urges them to listen - as there is little use in not understanding the histories of racism and contemporary structural racism - and to act - not as the voice of, but as a supporting part of a movement to seek out equality and equity.

I particularly enjoyed the first chapter on the history of people of colour in the UK (and some Europe and US). Like Eddo-Lodge, my education on civil rights and race was centred largely on what occurred in the United States, ignoring for the most part Indigenous race relations in Australia - and foolishly, I did not know the origins of persons of colour in the UK. Spanning from the beginning of the English slave trade in the 16th century, through World War I and II, and to modern-day racism, the chapter succinctly provides a UK companion to the reader’s knowledge of slavery and civil rights in the United States.

Perhaps controversially, Eddo-Lodge lends her platform to conservative British politician Nick Griffin. Interviewing him about immigration and mixed-race relationships, she is able to display the politician’s nonsensical opinions, to which she eloquently counters. The contrast between the two truly demonstrates the idiocy of racist ideology.

Another highlight, was the discussion of mixed-race relationships - particularly about the support and education children of mixed-race relationships may need as though they are equal parts of two races, they often present and identify as persons of colour and as such, are subject to both structural racism and plain old racism and bigotry. The lack of support experienced by these children, the author discovered, was that the parents seemed to adopt the notion that they ‘do not see colour’ and therefore did not address it, causing some children to feel out of touch with their culture and heritage, and feel misunderstood regarding their own identity.

Concerning discussion of identity, however, I’d like to draw on a central point of the novel,

“Discussing racism is not the same thing as discussing 'black identity'. Discussing racism is about discussing white identity. It's about white anxiety. It's about asking why whiteness has this reflexive need to define itself against immigrant bogey monsters in order to feel comfortable, safe and secure. Why am I saying one thing, and white people are hearing something completely different?” (p. 215)

I gave Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race 5/5 on Goodreads. I could not agree more with everything this book had to say. It was well-written and thoroughly researched and covered several topics concerning race and intersectionality (also importantly addressing the issue of ‘white feminism’). I want to thrust this book into the hands of everyone I know.

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REVIEW: Turtles All The Way Down by John Green

This is John Green’s best work to date. The story is personal and honest and steers away from the tropes that pollute his prior works (not a single manic-pixie-dream-girl in sight). The maturity of Green’s writing in Turtles All The Way Down rejuvenated my love for YA fiction and excited me for future works by Green.

Turtles All The Way Down follows two plotlines - the first, a group of teenagers investigate the disappearance of a billionaire on the wrong side of the law; and the second, a teenage girl with anxiety disorder and OCD details her mental health struggles and triumphs.

The overarching plot, detailing the investigation becomes looser as the protagonist, Aza Holmes, falls deeper into the “spiral” of her disorders, and eventually becomes background noise to her mental health journey. I say ‘journey’ loosely because there is often no final destination with a mental illness and Green makes this apparent. While Aza gets worse, then gets better, it is acknowledged that it will often revert - to borrow from the novel, the spiral will tighten again, and loosen again, and Aza will live with this part of her self as a lifelong companion.

It feels as though the intention of this book is to accurately describe what anxiety disorder and OCD feel like. Perceived largely as indulging in irrational actions and thinking, it can be difficult for sufferers to explain in plain terms what is truly going on, and we see this with Aza as she grapples with every metaphor she finds to explain the feelings and thoughts and justifications for her actions. Another layer of honest depiction occurs in describing Aza’s relationships with her family and best friends, and illustrating the difficulties of pursuing romantic relationships.

So it was with the tightening spiral of my thoughts: I thought about his bacteria being inside of me. I thought about the probability that some percentage of said bacteria were malicious. I thought about the E. coli and campylobacter and Clostridium difficile... (p. 180)

I gave Turtles All The Way Down 4.5/5 on Goodreads. I absolutely loved this book and devoured it in just over a day. I’m thankful that there is a character who struggles as much as I do to put anxiety into words, and has given me the image of the tightening spiral to explain the descent of ascent of my own anxious thoughts.

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November TBR

After not buying books for a few months, I caved and purchased the new John Green and Rupi Kaur titles from Dymocks. While I was there, I tried to locate Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond, but they didn’t have it in stock so I picked up Reni Eddo-Lodge’s book Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race.

I had a voucher for one of my local bookshops (Elizabeth’s bookshop in Newtown) because I swapped in some old books of mine. So I picked up Jonathan Safran Foer’s Everything Is Illuminated, and yet another Chomsky book (you’ll laugh if you’ve been following my Goodreads and seeing all the international relations titles I’ve been reading). I also bought Oliver Sacks’ Musicophilia since I’ve been reading a lot of psychology/psychoanalysis lately - however, it isn’t featured because I thought my TBR for November was already a bit ambitious.

Lastly, a friend at work gave me a copy of The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty as a thank you for lending her a book of mine! She told me it was her absolute favourite book and thought I would enjoy it.

You can track my progress through this stack on Goodreads, and follow my bookstagram (@bitesizebooks).

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