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October 13, 2020

BURN by Patrick Ness

October 13, 2020

Book cover & 3-star rating for Burn by Patrick NessWhen I first started out reading Burn, I was intrigued. Historical fiction isn’t all too common in young adult publishing compared to contemporary fiction, fantasy and science fiction. History and fantasy crossing paths? Even less so. But Patrick Ness has an excellent track record of meshing various genres and even defying them, so I expected this one to be a hit as well. It wasn’t but I was still glad that he brought his signature postmodern outlook with a touch of whimsy.

· Categories: Fiction Keywords: american authors, bi- or multiracial characters, british authors, cold war, death, diverse authors, diverse books, dragons, fathers and daughters, murder, poverty, queer characters, race relations, racism, single parenthood

May 9, 2019

STEPSISTER by Jennifer Donnelly

May 9, 2019

Book cover & and 4.5-star rating for STEPSISTER by Jennifer DonnellyThe first time I heard the term “retelling,” I expected it to refer to reimagined fairytales. I didn’t exactly expect these to be simply be stories inspired by fairytales. Stepsister, however, is exactly that which I had originally expected of a retelling. It builds upon the well-loved fairytale of Ashputtel, blood and all. It was entertaining with its dark humour as it continued to tell the story of how it might have continued. Stepsister was more detailed since it’s a novel rather than a short story but stylistically, it still very much read like a fairytale.

· Categories: Fiction Keywords: abuse, ambition, american authors, betrayal, bravery, death, despair, fairies, family problems, fate, feminism, forgiveness, friendship, gender, grief, hardship, hope, horses, jealousy, life, loss, magic, on love, poverty, relationships, retellings, romance, royalty, self discovery, self-esteem, single parenthood, sisters, stepsiblings, villains, war

February 20, 2019

ON THE COME UP by Angie Thomas

February 20, 2019

Book cover & and 5-star rating for ON THE COME UP by Angie ThomasBooks about music usually are full of heart and soul. On the Come Up is no exception. In fact, it far surpassed more than a few of such books I’ve loved before. On that front, I actually am a bit surprised. I knew that coming from Angie Thomas, this one would be a good book. However, hip hop isn’t generally on my radar, so I did go in with slightly tempered expectations.

· Categories: Fiction Keywords: ambition, american authors, assault, dating, diverse authors, diverse books, gangs, gay characters, grandparents, high school, hip hop, hope, lgbtq characters, mothers and daughters, music, musicians, organised crime, poc characters, poverty, queer characters, relatives, religious institutions, siblinghood, single parenthood, solid platonic friendship, surveillance, violence

December 24, 2018

CHRISTMAS CAKES AND MISTLETOE NIGHTS by Carole Matthews

December 24, 2018

Book cover & 3.5-star rating - CHRISTMAS CAKES AND MISTLETOE NIGHTS by Carole MatthewsTechnically, Christmas Cakes and Mistletoe Nights is a sequel to Cake Shop in the Garden but it stands quite well on its own. I actually only realised that it’s a sequel due to the summarised info dump during the first couple of chapters — think throwback highlight reel at the start of new seasons of TV shows. Once that’s done and dusted, it’s back to regular writing and storytelling.

· Categories: Fiction Keywords: baking, british authors, cafes, cheating, christmas, food and drink, friendship, half-siblings, hardship, holidays, illnesses, inheritance, poverty, pregnancy, survival, weddings, winter, work life

November 20, 2018

SOFIA AND THE UTOPIA MACHINE by Judith Huang

November 20, 2018

Book cover & rating - SOFIA AND THE UTOPIA MACHINE by Judith HuangSofia and the Utopia Machine fills an important space in Singapore literature not only as an young adult book but as science fiction. I don’t remember coming across any local YA books when I was in primary and secondary school. In fact, when I was still in secondary school, I wasn’t interested in Singapore literature precisely because it seemed to be geared towards adults. In that regard, it’s heartening that local YA books have gained more visibility in recent years.

· Categories: Fiction Keywords: diverse authors, diverse books, family myth, family problems, imprisonment, inequality, legends, marriage, mythology, on the run, politics, poverty, singaporean authors, singlish, social commentary, surveillance

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About

Joséphine. Word reveller. Loves books. Reads books. Talks about books. Photographs books. When she’s not blogging, she can be found on Instagram under @wordrevel.

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