#2017reads

[merflk]

BOOKS READ IN 2017: ↳ The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman

“Names. Names. The old woman squinted, then she shook her head. She was herself, and the name she had been born with had been eaten by time and lack of use.”

[glitzerundkonfetti]

BOOKS READ IN 2017 Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

I’m sure you think I was complaining about nothing. You probably think I’m a whiny teenager. And yeah, it was all in my head, probably. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t real. So f**k you all.

[simoneandherbooks]

Happy New Years Eve! I just posted my yearly wrap up with some of my bookish resolutions on the blog (link in bio). Thanks to all the publishers sharing their new reads with me. I’m so excited for 2018 because I have such good reading plans for myself. I can’t wait. For now, here’s a pic of me with all the books I read this year. Not pictures, the books I got from the library and my ebooks. How did you make out this year with your reading? . . . #bookstagram #bookish #bookblog #currentlyreading #bookphoto #bookstack #booksiread #2017reads #newyearseve #bookphotography #booksofinstagram #simonereads #booknerd #bookworm #booklove #booklover #igreads #badassbookbabes #culturetripbooks #hyggereads #thathyggefeeling

[adayinbookland]

Today is the day! My favourite reads of 2017! • - The Hate U Give. This is the only YA in my list and considering I haven’t enjoyed the genre in a while, including this title here speaks volumes about how much I loved it. - Peter and Alice. This one is a play and has a very special place in my heart. It broke me. I like to read plays out loud and I couldn’t stop my voice from quivering or my tears from coming. Every single word is perfect. - Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifiesto in Fifteen Suggestions. A wonderful little book. Adichie is straightforward and unapologetic. It packs a punch. - The Song of Achilles. Another one that destroyed me completely. I had so many feelings. The writing style is perfection. - The Tobacconist. I had high expectations for this one after reading A Whole Life and oh boy, were they met. I loved it. I read it in one sitting. Seethaler’s way of telling a story works very well for me and Collins’s translation is absolutely perfect. - Rebecca. What a masterpiece! Words fail me to tell you all why you should read this but believe me, you should! The story is atmospheric and an absolute roller-coaster of emotions. The tension by the end was unbearable in the best possible way. I think about this novel and its characters all the time. The story traps you in and you cannot let go. - Sing, Unburied, Sing. This was my first Ward and I have the rest of her books on my wishlist to buy them once finals are over to devour them. I absolutely loved Ward’s lyrical writing because it makes you feel so much for this family and their struggles. - Los Tres Mosqueteros. This classic took me completely by surprised. It’s massive but so worth your time. I adored it. • That’s all! Now let’s see what 2018 has in store, reading wise! What books made it to your favourite reads? ❄️ • • • #unitedbookstagram #2017reads #rebecca #classics #literaryfiction #stackofbooks #favouritereads #thehateugive

[fcyrearcherxn]

BOOKS READ IN 2017: The Slippery Slope by Lemony Snicket 

“Every time you enter a library you might say to yourself, "The world is quiet here," as a sort of pledge proclaiming reading to be the greater good.”

[lovestarlightmoon]

Books Read in 2017 » Infini by Krista & Becca Ritchie

"The love we carry for each other is the strongest and most vulnerable place in us all."

[tragicophelias]

Read in 2017 Teeth - Hannah Moskowitz 

“If this were a fairy tale, this would be the part where the fishboy appears and Diana shoots him through the heart. Because he is a tragic hero, he's our fucking Gatsby, and he lived for his fish and he has to die for his fish.”

[therevivedidealist-blog]

You Can’t Touch My Hair: And Other Things I Still Have to Explain - Phoebe Robinson

In You Can’t Touch My Hair: And Other Things I Still Have to Explain, stand-up comedian and podcaster Phoebe Robinson discusses her everyday experiences as a black woman. The essays focus on a variety of topics including: being the token black friend, casting calls for people of color, being called “uppity,” being followed around stores by security guards, etc. 

In every black person’s life, there’s a moment when they go from believing their blackness merely serves as another descriptor, like ‘she has a slight overbite’ or ‘he snorts when he laughs,’ to their blackness and all the complications surrounding that identity becoming the number one thing that defines them.

Prior to reading this book I was not familiar with Robinson’s work but was interested in hearing her perspective on race. While I did enjoy her more serious reflections and appreciate her love of comedy and entertainment, I unfortunately could not get past the pervasive “internet-speak” and heavy-handed pop culture references. 

And I’ll let you in on a little secret about what other black people rarely say: Explaining your life to a world that doesn’t care to listen is often more draining than living in it.

Perhaps this means I am not the intended audience, but I wonder if the book would have benefited from a more critical editing process to smooth out the tone and overall structure. Despite my stylistic hang-ups, I believe Robinson is an insightful writer with a strong voice and am interested to see how her work progresses in the future.

Black parents, for the most part, do not have the warm fuzzy place inside of them that some white parents have. That ‘it’s all a part of the journey’ chill vibe is missing, and in its place is a sense of urgency. There’s no time to figure it out, make crazy mistakes, and have a laugh, because they know the playing field is not level. They know that at some point in life, their children will learn and keep relearning this fact, so there is no room for lollygagging or navel-gazing. That’s why, I think, black parents are so hard on their kids. It’s not just about potential bragging rights. While that’s nice, what truly matters is that we be the ‘yes’ to the ‘no’ their parents heard.

Counts towards: 2017 PoC Reading Challenge, 2017 Women Challenge