In conversation with my kiddo : Best Friends by Shanon Hale and LeUyen Pham

Best Friends by Shannon Hale
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was a Book Club read (Theme - Graphic Novel of choice). The book was picked by my Kids, and we individually read this at our own times. Here is a Summary of What each of us felt about this.

Avni (age 7) - I really liked this book because this is elementary school all over again for Shannon and it's really confusing for her. And this time Shannon feels that she's losing her friends. Its a bit inappropriate but then it's fine. It's good for read alongs or book clubs it's a really nice book.

PS: She typed it on her own, so pardon the grammar. The 'inappropriate' is mention of Boys and 'going out'

My Review : When I read the book 'Real Friends' (Shannon's journey through her early years at Elementary School). I loved it!. I knew I had picked the right kind of book for my kids and also one that I too could read and enjoy.
Best Friends is the journey through 6th Grade. Shannon is now in the senior most batch of her school, just one year before she move on to a whole new world of Junior High. Lot's has changed since 'Real Friends', but she is still working at finding her true self. This book is a journey of self discovery. A discovery of those times when you catch yourself wondering where you fit in, are you what you are meant to be, or do you live up to what you should be?
It was a refreshing PoV, almost reliving the school time through someone who went through it in the same time period as I did. The insecurities, the OCD, the special teacher who recognizes the potential in you, the heartbreaks, the mortifying embarrassing situations when everyone looks at you like a 'wierdo'.... and the point where you decide you just don't care!
I loved the book, Definitely recommend it to preteens and teens and kids who think they are already there (Roll my eyes...lolz)

For the Adults who do read this book Enter the world of Shannon and relive your childhood. You will love the book and the author's style of writing!

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The Academy by F.D. Lee
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The second Installment of the Fairy life is darker and a tad slow to start with, till about 15% when the plot took off and was just couldn't put it down.

Bea is taking her first step toward realizing her dream of becoming an FME, especially a Godmother. Being the fairy she is, she is determined not only to achieve what she wants, but also unable to be a bystander to any wrong goings on in the GenAm.

We see a totally different side of the plotter Mistasinon and the mystery about him. We do meet a few more GenAm characters i this, who will and may play a huge role in the series.

It's amazing though, how close this Fae world, mirrors the real one. I found myself suddenly reminded of the actual Fae features, cause I was so lost in the plot, my mind featuring regular people into the storyline! Incidentally this 'Plot' is more captivating that the 'plots' being watched in the story... and definitely ME LIKEY!!!!!

Looking forward to reading the third one!

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Character Summary -

Bea - Entering the ACADEMY, to train as an FME, we find her more 'human' and relatable, as compared to the Fae she was before her experience in Thaiana in Book 1. She is thoroughly shaken, but more determined because of it! Her dream - remains the same, but the purpose is now strengthened by the fallibility of the Fae world. By the underhandedness she senses, that runs it all. She is torn as she is with the revelation that she was lied to by Mistasinon, but feels connected to him at a deeper level.

Mistasinon - Gone is the confident, strong plotter we saw in Book 1. He is almost like a displaced soul, and this book is as much about him, as it's about Bea. This gives us a whole new perspective of the running of GenAm and the politics of it. Mistasinon's unravels through the storyline both as a character and as a mystery. With that a lot of things that we wondered about him gets clearer. I particularly loved the ending.

Chokey & Hemmings - The Ogre-Elf Brother-sister duo were a welcome respite in all the seriousness that Bea feels. They revive her spirits with their constant presence. The Boisterous Chokey a her 'meloncholy' adoptive sibling Hemmings (Wordplay on Hemmingway - I think 👌), give Bea a fresh perspective of situations and the support she lacks within the ACADEMY.

They sure are characters to look forward to!

Melly - Smaller, but a much needed presence of this adorable Witch. She too is changed by the experience, but not bogged down by it. If nothing more, the incident at the Ball, seems to strengthen her character. We see her as not only a rational voice, but as a cautious advisor to many of the characters in this installment of the series.

Joan - The little Tooth fairy, find a voice. Bea's success at entering the Academy has a mixed reaction among the Fae. There are some who see this as a new beginning, even as most see it as an infiltration. Among all this Joan is inspired to join the few who want to encourage this as a positive movement. Hence again.. we see a new , vocal and confident version of the meek little Tooth fairy!

Julia, West, Barrett - the Antagonists???? Or pawns in the game of Destiny???? These three of all the GenAm characters play a key and vital role in the storyline. Love them, hate them, pity them... they do incite a strong reaction with their actions and their reasoning.

Special mention - Luca : A Brown-suit at the ACADEMY, a Witchlein of Tribe. This Character highlights the unfair discrimination based on tribe within the Fae world. We have seen Bea being targeted because she is a Fairy. She, along with all others of her tribe, is burdened to carry the weight of the failure of the 'King and Queen' Chapter. But Luca, shows that he doesn't identify with the general perception of his own, or of other tribes. We see him as an accepting of all those around him. a Genuine nice guy, who grows on you, bringing out the best in Bea, and anyone else he comes across.

Q:What do I think of the series so far?

A - Well. It's been an amazing journey through this Fae World created by F. D. Lee. I have, in fact, started the Third Installment of this series. The suggestion I would give, is keep with the slow start, as you need it to understand the plot. This is an incredible Fantasy Series and I'm glad I picked it for our Book Club 'theme read'!

The Book is available on Kindle Unlimted on Amazon and is well recommended on both Amazon and Goodreads.

Punching the Air - Ibi Zoobi and Yusef Salaam - Read-along for Dali's book Club

Reading with Dali’s Book Club and @chermanalil

Punching the Air

by Ibi Zoboi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What is Hope? Hope is a butterfly that breaks out of a hard cocoon. it's the torturous journey to break out of the skin, and then out of a restrictive shell, to spread your wings and lift yourself up. to rise from what you were to what you can potentially become. Hope is Amal. Hope is his Umi. Hope is his Uncle Rashon's silent hug.

Unfortunately, not every young mind that makes a mistake, is afforded the chance to hope, to transform their life. To correct their path and to make of themselves, what they could have if they had listened to their misgivings, before the mistake. This is because of their formative wings are cut off at the bud, by the society, the adults around them who's perception is formed not by what the young life was up to this point, what it could potentially be, but solely focused on the 'Mistake' and that is all they see.

Being a true crime buff, this book intrigued me. And when you watch as many documentaries and as many books, one sees some innocents squashed under the wheels of Justice, among the scores of deprived minds that commit a crime. This book gave me a fresh new perspective about the journey of a those few innocents and a journey of Hope.

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The Fairy's Tale (The Pathways Tree, #1)

The Fairy's Tale by F.D. Lee

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Star Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟/ 5

What is a great story, but a boundary within which, one builds hope, faces trials and emerges out of fathoms of almost doom; Victorious.. looking forward to a new beginning!

'Happily ever After!' - How many times have we heard that and how many times have we wondered about how it comes to be. how conveniently things fall into place. Well F.D. Lee puts forth a version of 'behind the scenes' to the fairytale as we know it.

Starting with a glossary of FAE and an in-depth picture that's painted of the running and goings on of the GenAm, the story takes off a bit slow. We see our main protagonist, Bea (a garden fairy), a Fae who dreams of being a Godmother, a trainee FME, struggle through to be seen and heard. Managing to survive in a desolate part of town, she takes whatever story comes to her as a 'plot watcher', trying to make her name visible to those intent on not seeing past her 'tribe'.

Q: Does she get her Chance?

Q: Does she leave her mark?

Q: Will this book forever change the way we look at fairytales?

I'd recommend it. It's a totally different take on tales as we know it.

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Read for - Soul Sister's Book Club

Chosen for - book Theme 'Retellings'

Highlights of the book - The play on words is amazing. Names of places, and references to events, people have been well imagined.

Quoting:

'The Grand Reflection Station was the home of the Mirrors'

A Summary

The Story of Bea, is like every ordinary young gal, with extraordinary potential and infinite dreams. Irrespective of the kid of Fae she is, age, and form, one can easily view every emotion and situation as you would it were with humankind. This book is full of imagination, the kind that is ironically 'without a boundary', helping one paint a cinema of sorts, with a Meg Ryan cast as 'Bae'! 💗

Our Fairy does find herself in charge on one such story, by Fate/chance/Scheme/self-determination - that's open to interpretation; where she realizes what the 'System' is and what the meaning of 'Happily Ever After' truly could mean. Read the book to find out more about her adventure, while she tries to bring about a Happy ending to the story she has been assigned. Meet her Friends, her well wishers(?), her characters and a whole lot of Fae magic!!!!!!

Every character, however desolate, conniving, scary or just fiercely loyal. leaves a lasting impression.

I'm definitely game to reading the second installment to see what new adventures Bae get's on to.

If you like #Fantasy reads, #retellings, this might just be the book for you. It's available on Amazon/Kindle Unlimited too!

If you do read it.. I'd request you to leave a comment on my Goodreads review (linked above)or here on the blog. Doesn't matter if you have a totally opposite view either. I'd love to hear it!💗😉

Giver of Stars - Jojo Moyes

Audio Book Review

Book/Story Rating - 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

Audiobook Quality and Experience - 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The book set in the late 1930's, is a clear depiction of the status of a Woman of those times. Starting with a romanticized marriage, moving to Rural America from her her home in the UK, to the self realization and culminating in being at peace with herself - Alice's Story is very relatable. And in this small town, feeling like an outsider, trying to make peace with her new life she comes across a strange collective of women, embarking on a journey to bring books into daily lives of people.

This book reminded me of a couple of other unrelated books/stories which I hold dear.
Victoria Holt's 'Pride of the Peacock' read almost 2 decades ago.. to 'Year of the Witching' read recently. I loved the portrayal of the Women in the book, the sheer gumption, the bravado and sheer resilience of them.

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Book Chosen for my Soul Sister's Book Club.

Quoting a bit from the Summary on Goodreads -

'Based on a true story rooted in America’s past, The Giver of Stars is unparalleled in its scope and epic in its storytelling. Funny, heartbreaking, enthralling, it is destined to become a modern classic–a richly rewarding novel of women’s friendship, of true love, and of what happens when we reach beyond our grasp for the great beyond.'

The Audible Audiobook is narrated by Julia Whelan.

The book starts with the journey of Alice Wright, who find herself falling for, marrying a charming and handsome American. It's an escape from a judgmental society of her hometown, the cold environment of her family. The one person she feels she may miss, is her brother, and she feels he too would be too busy to miss her. She looks on to an adventure awaiting her, with her handsome husband, as she crosses the ocean.

The reality, however is a totally different one! Arriving in America, she finds herself, travelling further from the cities/town onwards to deeper in the countryside of Southern Appalachia, Baileyville, Kentucky. To home with a bossy Father-in-law, and a disinterested husband. A home, where she is expected to fill the enormous shoes of her revered Mother-in-law and prove herself worthy of being accepted in the small town community. She feels stifled with the constant comparison, and the lack of a relationship with her husband, who seems to completely change on her. Gone is the Adventure, she set out planning... She has to adapt, for a new one for herself!

Along comes an opportunity, a sneaky one, but Alice finds herself volunteering to be a horse pack librarian for the small town. Here she meets and forms a sisterhood of sorts with the women who run the library. Namely,

Margery - A boisterous single woman, with an ill family repute, standing her ground as an individual.
Beth - A young girl from a house full of brothers, who constantly needs to make her presence felt .. so that she isn't lost in the count.
Isabella Brady - A hesitant young girl with a foot disadvantage from a very reputed family, pushed toward volunteering by her mum.
Shopia - A woman from the colored community of the town, well read, an ex-librarian from a colored library, but marginalized in this rural community.

Set in the 1930's , ripe with marginalized treatment of individuals based on ethnicity, class of work and social status, this book journeys the growth oh Alice as a person and due to her close association, it also details the life of Margery as the town's purported 'Bad Girl'. Alice's growing friendship with Margery and idolizing the way she stands her ground, encourages Alice leading to the developments in the story.

We have a couple of well written male characters in the form of Sven and Fred, who stand out as the most virtuous specimens of their lot in that small town.

Do give it a listen. The book is available for 1 Credit on Audible Subscription. The listening experience was clear, amazing and un_put_downable indeed!

SPOILERS - Please do not proceed further as some answers may revel plot/characters.

Q:Why read this book?

A: It's an eye opening experience, reading about the Social equations of rural America of the time. Celebrating the Women's initiatives , struggles and their success in this environment. The plot aside is a very interesting one.

Q: Characters that stood out and why?

A: All the main characters, especially Sven and Fred, as they stand out among the mediocrity among men. But the one I'd not forget in a hurry is Benett (Geoff) Van Cleve Sr.! The man is a despicable and malicious.

#Rashu_Reads and recommends: TNT Series – By Sarah Delany

· Genre – Young Adult Book

· Topics dealt with – #MentalHealth #coping #depresssion #youngadults

· How does one deal with a loss of a loved one? Especially when you are just a teen!
· How heavy is the guilt of not being there , when someone desperately needed you?
· How does one look through the façade and hear the call for help?
· How can one address what they are feeling?

Special Thanks – Creative post picture by @cherumanalil . Do check her Bookstagram account for more of her picture stories and book reviews!

I had the opportunity to read and review the TNT series – by @SarahDelaneyWrites. This 3 Part series was a journey through #mentalhealth issues via a Teen’s frame of mind… and what a journey it was!!!

Tamsyn outwardly a popular girl in school, steady boyfriend, a girl gang, and just seems to be breezing through. Tate, a new kid in town, is the only one who hears the silent scream for ‘Help!’. She is in a grief bubble, and is so adrift, she doesn’t know how to swim back to ‘normal’. Tate is the only one who can get through to her. ‘Don’t Think. Just Breathe.‘ (Book 1) – is a Mantra that he repeats. It’s the line that helps her swim back, wondering at the same time what eddy Tate himself is stuck in.

Tate, comes across as sensitive soul, who isn’t afraid to reach out. He struggles with dealing with an unfortunate event with his twin sister, Quinn. The incident which is heaviest on his heart, guilt of being unable to reach through to her, when she needed him. Helping Tamsyn, is something that keeps him afloat. But it eventually overwhelms him. She is his balm, but she is also his trigger. ‘Don’t Panic. Keep Breathing’ (Book 2) – is when Tamsyn reaches out, to help the sweet boy who heard her when no one else could.

What happens when something happens to make you revisit the very issues you are struggling to deal with? This close knit teen gang of friends face the truth of overwhelming emotions all over again. What is different this time though? How does being there for one another make it different this time? ‘Don’t Fade. Breathe Easy.’ (Book 3) – is what they remind themselves. To be aware, to be open, to reach out, even through your own issues.

It’s difficult to reach out, it’s difficult to accept, when numbness is such a comfort. A bubble where you don’t have to face anything. Set in Teenage characters, these are heavy emotions. A young mind, can travel a lot many different directions to address them. Sarah, guides them beautifully on this journey. What we see is a Support system. A beautifully defined one, inclusive of friends and family. Reach out… because unless you do, the other person will find it difficult to pull you ashore.

This series is beautifully written, amazingly portrayed by these young characters. Definitely recommend it!!!!

All THREE books are available on Amazon/Kindle Unlimited currently. You can ‘CLICK’ on each highlighted book above to go the individual Goodreads page for the books!