Book in bfdia is so funny bc wdym she lets others walk over her all the time but then she threatens to spill out one of her fellow contestants' winning strategy just because he wouldn't be friends with her ally. Absolutely wild behaviour. Oh and don't forget that she kicks people when she gets mad.
Surprisingly enough, I've never talked about BFDIA 22's flag destroying scene here, considering it's one of my favorites in the whole season. Since today I am feeling very BFDIA-Book pilled, I think it's the best moment to do so.
Ok so, we all know Book allies with TB because she thinks that the challenge can't keep going on forever. She makes a logical point, because, sooner or later, it's gonna wear them out. However, there's another side to her argument. Remember that the challenge is centered around travelling with Leafy; as a token of friendship and gratitude, she'd place friendship flags if she liked the place. Friendship flags.
Book saw straight into Leafy's heart: she wanted friends.
But Book doesn't know anything about what happened to her. She doesn't know she was forcefully isolated, she doesn't know she needs friends.
So, Book jumps to the most logical conclusion: she's using the contestants' goodwill (and desire to win) for her own benefit. To satisfy her selfish needs. She's expecting them to give her their all, while she's gonna give nothing in return.
And, as we all know, Book is a person who wants nothing more than a safe, comfortable home, for herself and for her friends alike. She values trust, honesty, and kindness above all. All of these values are displayed in her attempts to get TB to get along with Needle, and to make him obey his end of the contract.
So, naturally, after realising that Leafy is actively going against these ideals, she turns on her and the challenge altogether. This is also why she doesn't want to recover her in BFDIA 23. AND THIS IS SO INTERESTING TO ME!! Not only because most people said that Book was one of the most likely people to forgive Leafy, but also because it really shows to what extent she's willing to follow her own ideals. Even if object society is to blame for her not wanting to hear Leafy's side of the story (since Freesmart had "instructed [her] not to make contact" with her), she charged head-on and did what she believed right, without any hesitation. And I love that!!! So much!!! AND WHILE I WAS TYPING THIS. Do you know what she would later do believing that it was the right thing, in the name of friendship?? THAT'S RIGHT!!! CLAIMING THAT TACO WAS A TRAITOR!!! ouuugh It All Comes Together...
Returning to the flag destruction scene, it is also a bit of foreshadowing for what's gonna happen with Freesmart in IDFB. We also get Book not knowing the other side of the story; in this case, she doesn't know that Pencil made alternates a thing because it would ensure the group's safety in the long run. However, and especially if she wins BFDIA, she's gonna realise that she doesn't deserve this treatment. That Pencil might have been using her and Icy for her own benefit. It's the same scenario all over again: she realises that she's just another step on the ladder, and turns her back onto a person who had (overall) good intentions. (I say overall in parentheses bc Leafy did want friends to prove that she's a nice person AND for actual friendship)
Thank you JNJ for giving us not only a blast of an episode, but also the single hardest frame in all of BFDI history. "We love you Book" we all say in unison
Slight gore version + no filter ver under cut!! (smudged blood):
BEHOLD!! THE LONG-AWAITED BOOK BFDI GIJINKA TIMELINE!!!
MY GIRL. SHE IS FINALLY HERE. I spent the last two weeks chipping away at this, and finally IT'S DOOONE yapping on my design choices + closeups under the cut ^_^
First off: BFDIA Book!
I was aiming for a mix between her preferred style (ie, formal wear) and 2010s fashion, with an emphasis on the nerdy girl stereotype. It's not super clear, which is fine, honestly. I wanted to represent the fact that Book does not fit in a single stereotype, unlike the rest of Freesmart; and, if she does, then it overlaps with other members (she is kind like Bubble, smart like Icy). So, her fashion sense is pretty mixed up.
OH AND BY THE WAY She's supposed to be in her late/mid teens here. Like 16 I'd say?? I don't have any set-in-stone age hcs for the bfdi contestants, I just think they are all around the same age, with the exception of Firey Jr and Grassy, who are kids. Freesmart is a middle/high school girl friend group to me lol they enjoy shopping and playing patty cake.
Bows!!! Bows. You'll see them a lot. Not only they represent femininity (one of the of the key aspects of Freesmart, being a group centered around girlhood), but they've an elegant vibe as well. She'd like them
Her ribbon is the same color as her bfdia 18 beacon :D I thought it'd be a nice detail. Plus blue being a color that represents the sky, angels and peace definitely suits her bfdia self (coughcough Live laugh love Book and Angels parallels to Pin and the Devil coughcough).
The Freesmart pin is solely meant for alternates. Full on members get a cap! They all have the same bracelet, though. The flower was taken from the Supervan and is meant to represent Pencil, stars for Ruby, bubbles for... well, Bubble, ice cubes for Icy, alternating beads for Book and a fire bead for Match, at the end (it was more of a stylistic choice, but it could also represent how Pencil wishes to distance herself from her).
She has vitiligo and freckles, both on her face and arms (more visible on the tpot gijinka). The rim of her glasses is boxy, meant to add up to that 2010s vibe AND because of. Well. Books.
You can't see it from here, but she has a matching friendship necklace with Icy.
The bleached tips are supposed to represent her pages. It's a detail I've always liked and carries from my previous Book gijinka design.
The tiny waves of yellow are meant to represent Pencil. It's more than just her influence over her, I also wanted to point out their parallels, with both of them being people who want to feel wanted. Able to protect the ones they care about. It's not relevant in BFDIA, but I thought she wouldn't want to wear orange/yellow clothes further on. Lol!
BFB Book:
Say goodbye to the bows. They won't be here for a while
Instead, you get... a tie. A red tie. Firstly, I chose a tie to convey her firmness, constrating the bows being associated with naivety and softness. As we all know, BFB Book doesn't tolarate nonsense. Secondly, we went from blue to red... what did I say earlier about angels and pin and the devil. BOOM it's pinbook (/p) parallels yet again!! In BFB, Book undergoes a similar change in personality as Pin in BFDIA and IDFB. Instead of mellowing out, she lashes out against the injustices she sees; much like Pin in early BFDIA as well. She swears a blood oath not to let a second Freesmart happen, and oh boy does she abide by it. Once an angel of forgiveness, now the devil who won't let you sleep by night, a watchful, constant reminder of your wrongs.
She has that librarian attire <3 well it's not quite that but you get it. You get it. I think she'd like to look more imposing as well, so she can be taken seriously for once in her life. BFDIA flashbacks
Also the GRANDMA GLASSES!!! ARE HERE TO STAYYY!!! Had she not felt iffy towards contact lenses (projecting), she would have had them back in BFDIA; all because of her fears of not looking popular/pretty enough to be on Freesmart. Instead, she got that boxy model back then to fit in. Now that she isn't a part of it anymore, she lets her true self be seen and uses her lovely granny glasses <3 bfdia 21 changed my brain chemistry
She has a squarish, flat body type, meant to represent the shape of books. It's more noticable here, since she is like... 20?? Either way she's older and doesn't have that lanky teenage build anymore.
There's no matching bracelet or necklace anymore.
It's not well done at all, mostly because I was afraid of cluttering her design too much, buuut she has a burn scar over her right (the green one) eye. I KNOW she lost her upper left corner in BFDIA 22 due to the burns, nevertheless I wanted her vitiligo to stand out as well. Therefore, I had to balance things out and move the scar to the other eye. It's a bit above it, so she doesn't have an overhang.
Her hair is shorter for the same reason. She had to let it grow out after cutting it, in order to completely heal it from the burns. None of them got to her scalp, though; it was just her hair.
Last, but not least: TPOT Book!!
I LOVE HERRR I LOVE HER SO MUCH I'm veryvery proud of this design. I think I managed to mix both comfortable and formal clothing perfectly. She's even happy about it AAAA she's turning over a new leaf and and adn (sobs uncontrollably) ANYWYAS
Extremely formal style, even so, some things (such as the golden buttons and clock) manage to stick out A Lot. Another way to express how, in spite of falling into The Nerd (TM) category, she is so much more than that. She's just a whimsical and silly gal!!!
She has more burn scars in her arms, chest and legs. She usually tries to cover them up, as they are a painful reminder of what she has gone through. Still, she knows that all of those experiences made her who she is and got her where she is now, and wouldn't change any of it. In addition, her legs are shielded from harsh sunlight by her flowy skirt.
The grandma glasses are still there. Let's pretend she decided to get rid of the string for this photo.
Now, she has a matching necklace with Taggy, and a bracelet with a different colored bead for each Just Not member. They are so found family to me you don't understand #underdoggang
THE BOWS HAVE RETURNEDDD!!! She acknowledges her mistakes, resolute not to let them happen again. In TPOT, she is willing to hear her teammates out, to the point of putting up with Pillow, one of the most... unique... contestants. She is willing to trust others again, which is something I wished to represent through her bows. Despite that, she is by no means naive. I think you could say she went full circle.
The yellow bow is the balance between red and blue. I KNOW that purple's what you get from the mix of the two, but erm I liked the yellow one better. Plus you can get the CMYK palette from it :D AND pencil reference!! Still not over Book being a happy ending of Pencil's story. The complete opposite, and yet, so similar. Can someone kill them with hammers please /j
The black bow looks well on her and that's the sole reason it exists. I couldn't pick between black and burgundy. In the end, they'll be interchangeable because fuck it we ball.
Short hair Book hi!!! Firstly, it is obviously meant to represent how she (WILLINGLY) started anew in TPOT, having to build all of her friendships from the ground up. Cutting her hair is meant to represent her desire to change. Secondly, it's really funny to me how her two closest TPOT friends are nonbinary... are they rubbing off the nonbinary beam onto her. Who knows! She definitely would start to explore her image and identity, since she's in a way better place mentally. Oh and her hair undersides are bleached, as another way of representing her pages :3
Lastly, her bag is meant to resemble a book.
AND NOW. rubs hands. First off, thank you SO SO MUCH for reading all of my yapping. Having people willing to listen to and/or interested in my ramblings means a lot to me!! <3/p. SECONDLY. THERE'S A TON OF BFDI CHARACTERS I WANT TO MAKE GIJINKAS OF. BUT I DO NOT KNOW WHERE TO START. SO!!! FEEL FREE TO HIT UP MY MAILBOX AND SEND ME GIJINKA REQUESTS :D!!!/nf Even though I'm not so sure when I'll get to them, I'll try to!! I loveeee drawing the silly objects as humans and figuring hcs and styles out for them ^_^ LASTLY. GO MY ASSORTED BOOK HCS!!!
She is Indian-German, with some Gabonese ancestors as well.
Transfem demigirl and aroace!!! She is in a QPR with Taggy :3. She would have been in one with Icy if she had known the term by then x0 oh icebook... my favouritest situationship ever... She probably figured out she was transfem pretty early on, but didn't start hrt until bfb.
She is BOTH near and far sighted #projectingonceagain
Book is the epitome of "Jack of all trades, master of none". She has SO much knowledge about all sorts of stuff, yet she's not really good at any given thing. This used to stress her out until TPOT, when she was able to recognise the perks of it. We love a queen gaining confidence!
Her burn scars aren't too nasty. Ofc they hurt, but they weren't able to deform her skin that much.
Gifted kid who didn't burn out, but found herself no longer gifted once she grew up. Like. She still loves studying and has a knack for it, but she doesn't find herself standing out from her peers.
Uhhh I actually think that's all tbh she keeps all of her canon pages in her bag. Sometimes, she whips them out of her blazer/cardigan. Other times, she recites them from memory! Wow!
THAT'S ALLLLL THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! FOR LISTENING TO MY BOOK RAMBLES EHHEBEHE YIPPEEE 🎉🎉🎉
