Nick Rhodes recommended The Beatles (White Album) by The Beatles in Music (curated)
Binary Star
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*Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist. *A Best Book of 2015 --NPR, BuzzFeed, Vanity Fair,...
Those Left Behind (Serenity #1)
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Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and scribe of Marvel's Astonishing X-Men, unveils a...
Eurovision: A Plea For Respect
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Discover the hidden treasures of Europe's greatest music tradition - The Eurovision Song Contest: A...
history
Lonely Planet Florida
Lonely Planet, Adam Karlin, Paula Hardy and Jennifer Rasin Denniston
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Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher Lonely Planet Florida is your passport to...
Treasures of the New-York Historical Society
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Founded in 1804, the New-York Historical Society is New York City's oldest museum, with a rich...
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated With the Fire on High in Books
Jul 25, 2019
With The Fire On High centers on Emoni Santiago, a teenage mother struggling to graduate from high school on time. When a culinary arts elective is offered during her senior year of school, she takes it despite feeling like she should be spending her energy on her daughter's future instead of realizing her own dreams. The elective opens up an entire world for her, however, taking her from whipping up magic alone in her own kitchen to being recognized by talented chefs as having something special. The added hours spent on cooking begin to affect her other responsibilities, however, and Emoni struggles to balance everything in her life, a fight that is very nearly upended by the new, very cute boy who just transferred to her school.
Emoni deals admirably with the vast responsibilities of being a parent, the complications of her own somewhat unusual home life (she's been raised by her grandmother after her mother's death and her father's absence), and the pressures of high school. Especially a school where she spent freshman year pregnant. Rather luckily, her daughter's father goes to a different school, so at least she doesn't have to deal with him every day.
Similar to The Poet X, the book deals with the intersection of black American culture and Puerto Rican culture, a combination I've been seeing more and more in Young Adult. (Well, The Poet X was Dominican, but they have very similar worries, mostly revolving around feeling "not black enough.")
I loved Emoni, I loved Malachi (the cute transfer student), I loved Abuela and Baby Girl/Emma. I even didn't mind Tyrone too much. For being a player, he was trying to do right by his daughter. Acevedo has such a talent for characters. Angelica (Emoni's best friend) and her girlfriend were a delight, too.
If you see a book by Elizabeth Acevedo, pick it up. You won't be disappointed. I can't wait to pick up her next book, which appears to be another novel in verse called Clap When You Land, due out next year!
You can find all my reviews and more at http://goddessinthestacks.com
Lonely Planet Northern California
Lonely Planet, Sara Benson, Alison Bing and John A. Vlahides
Book
Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher Lonely Planet Northern California is your...
Rachel King (13 KP) rated Savage Nature (Leopard People #4) in Books
Feb 11, 2019
Much like when I read the short story in Fantasy by Christine Feehan, I found the plot to be overly dramatic and forced. Every scene, every interaction was told with such extreme emotion that I had to wonder if these characters ever had a chance to relax. The melodrama felt like something out of a t.v. soap opera with no natural flow to the time line.
I did like a few of the characters, such as Saria and the woman who ran the inn. Many of the characterizations matched the typical stereotypes of the Cajun people who reside in the backwaters of Louisiana. The dialogue hinted at the Cajun accent without muddling the vocabulary so much that I would have difficulty reading it.
While I loved Christine Feehan's use of Louisiana culture in Savage Nature (Leopard), I do not think I will be continuing to read any more of the Leopard People series.
The Tea Girl Of Hummingbird Lane
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In their remote mountain village, Li-yan and her family align their lives around the seasons and the...