Mid-Year Book Freakout 2020
I have loved watching the Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag videos for YEARS so i'm excited to see how I fare. Thank you to Chami & Ely "Earl Grey Books" for making this fun tag! :)
It is a fun way to get a grasp of the first half of my reading year.
*The Descriptions of these books are from goodreads with some slight edits.*
Questions:
1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2020.
I feel so seen by Elizabeth Acevedo's books! I loved her book With The Fire On High!
Description: Even though she dreams of working as a chef after she graduates, Emoni knows that it is probably not possible for her. She is a single, teen mom, & helps support her family. Yet despite the rules she thinks she has to play by, once Emoni starts cooking, her only choice is to let her talent break free.
So far, With The Fire On High is Acevedo's only book in prose & it is amazing. I love the unabashedly afro-latinidad of Emoni! This book is a contemporary with a little seasoning of magical realism. Acevedo gives all of her characters authenticity & realness in a way that makes you feel like you are eating dinner with them. I listened to the audiobok & finished it in one day, it is amazing to hear the slam poet/author read her work! I will have to reread it in the physical copy I own.
2. Best sequel you've read so far in 2020
The best sequel & third book in a series are the final two in the late John Lewis' March series. I had read March Book One a few years ago & had meant to read the other 2 books. March Book Two & March Book Three are wonderful on their own and as additions to the series.
Description: This series is a vivid first-hand account of John Lewis’ lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow, and segregation. Rooted in Lewis’ personal story, it delves into key moments of his experience during the Civil Rights movement. Each volume also flashes forward to 2009 at President Barack Obama's inauguration.
The entire series is a must read to learn about the late & great Representative John Lewis, the American civil rights movement, American history, and especially right now during this resurgence in the black lives matter movement.
3. New release you haven't read yet, but want to.
So many amazing books I have & am ready to read! I have heard great things about Follow Me To Ground by Sue Rainsford so I am ready to read this genre bending book!
Description: Ada and her father, touched by the power to heal illness, live on the edge of a village. They help sick locals by cracking open their damaged bodies or temporarily burying them in the reviving, dangerous Ground nearby. Ada, a being both more and less than human, is mostly uninterested in these locals-Cures- until she meets a man & comes to a decision that will forever change their ways.
It looks super interesting & unique! My bookish friend Jesse from Jesse bowties & books highly recommends it & they always have great suggestions!
4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year
There are some awesome books coming out this year! My most anticipated release for the second half of the year is Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Mejia & Anna-Marie McLemore.
Description: There hasn’t been a winner of the Miss Meteor beauty pageant who looks like Lita Perez or Chicky Quintanilla in all its history. The road to becoming Miss Meteor isn’t about being perfect, it’s about sharing who you are with the world—and loving the parts of yourself no one else understands. So to pull off the unlikeliest underdog story in pageant history, Lita and Chicky are going to have to forget the past and imagine a future where girls like them are more than enough—they are everything.
I have read & LOVE two of Anna-Marie McLemore so their books are always some of my most anticipated books of the year.
5. Biggest disappointment
By FAR the biggest disappointment is the graphic novel Money Shot. I don't even know what I thought it would be but I did NOT expect this at all. I thought it would be a space opera of sorts but I can't say that it is.
This is a weird yet unique story. It has great illustrations although sometimes they are jarring.
Definitely NSFW! The story is interesting but gets weird very quickly & is alot. Honestly, this was probably the weirdest premise I’ve read this year & maybe ever.
The pros are that the illustrations are great & it is funny at times.
6. Biggest surprise
As I said in an earlier blog, I was plesantly surprised at how much I LOVED Patricia Bright's book!
I have enjoyed Patricia's online content for years & I hoped I would enjoy it.
Heart & Hustle: What It Takes to Make it to the Top is a motivational self-help book to help you strive for your goals & be financially & professionally savy. Patricia includes anecdotes, gives context for tips, & stays true to herself! I also enjoyed listening to her audiobook & I do hope to read a physical copy one day.
7. Favorite new author
Rita Woods' Debut novel Remembrance is one of the best novels I have ever read! I cannot believe she hasn't been publishing books for decades, her book was that amazing & detailed. I took my sweet time in reading this book & analyzing the connections between the characters. This is a speculative fiction gem!
Spoiler free description: . It has 4 characters in different locations and times whose stories intertwine. The locations include: Haiti, New Orleans, and Ohio. The time periods include 1791, 1857, & present day.
I got this book via the February 2020, Adult, Once Upon A Book Club & I LOVED all of the items associated with the story!
8. Newest fictional crush
Maybe Meet Cute's Daxton Hughes? He seemed dreamy & did take care of his sister which is endearing.
Description: Talk about an embarrassing introduction. On her first day of law school, Kailyn ran quite literally into the actor she crushed on as a teenager, ending with him sprawled on top of her. Mortified to discover the Daxton Hughes was also a student in her class, her embarrassment over their meet-cute quickly turned into a friendship she never expected. Of course, she never saw his betrayal coming either...
Eight years later, Daxton is in her office for legal advice.
9. Newest favorite character.
10. Book that made you cry
Dark & Deepest Red by Anna-Marie McLemore. Another of their gorgeous magical realism works with queer & latinx characters.
I don't know why they want to make us cry when reading their books. First, I teared up when I saw this gorgeous cover in person. I do promise, they were happy for the characters, loving the writing, sad for the characters, & then sad at the historical accuracy tears.
Description: Summer, 1518. A strange sickness sweeps through Strasbourg: women dance in the streets, some until they fall down dead. Lavinia & her family are under suspicion of witchcraft * she may have to do the unimaginable to save them. Five centuries later, a pair of red shoes seal to Rosella Oliva’s feet, making her dance uncontrollably. They draw her toward a boy who knows the dancing fever’s history better than anyone: Emil, whose family was blamed for the fever five hundred years ago. There is more to both storylines than the characters know.
5 stars, obviously
11. Book that made you happy
Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow.
Ok hear me out: This is a very triggering & intense read YET knowing that they caught & have prosecuted Harvey. I am also happy that women in hollywood & beyond had the agency to start the Me Too movement.
Also the inclusion of some funny Jonathan & Ronan moments made me laugh & be happy among the intensity of this book.
Description: In 2017, a routine network television investigation led Ronan Farrow to a story only whispered about: one of Hollywood’s most powerful producers was a predator, protected by fear, wealth, and a conspiracy of silence. As Farrow drew closer to the truth, shadowy operatives, from high-priced lawyers to elite war-hardened spies, mounted a secret campaign of intimidation, threatening his career, following his every move, and weaponizing an account of abuse in his own family.
This book deserved EVERY prize & Ronan is a GEM! How is Ronan a year & some months older than me & such a legend? He is the Best journalist of my generation.
12. The most beautiful book you bought/received this year.
Isabel Ibañez's Woven In Moonlight is the most beautiful book i've bought/received this year! Once I realized that this was likely the January book, I went ahead & ordered my first Once Upon A Book Club Young Adult Box! I LOVE the details & colors in this cover & I am so happy to know that the talented author is also the talented graphic designer of her book! I had an amazing experience reading this book & gave it 5 stars, I cannot wait for her next book to come out! It is equally gorgeous!
13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?
(GIF description: Scene from the film Mean Girls, where Cady (played by Lindsay Lohan) answers a question: "The limit does not exist!")
Ok but really, my TBR for the remainder of 2020 is infinite! That said, I do have a few goals:
I want to read more own voices books by BIPOC authors & especially by indigenous authors.
I want to read more nonfiction, especially nonfiction that is relevant & related to the Black Lives Matter movement, LGBTQIA+ history, political, & more art related books.
As a youth services librarian, I feel like I should read some more middle grade books. There are so many great releases that I know i'd enjoy & can better recommend to the kiddos!
I need to catch up with my owlcrate books. I have been subscribed to this bookish box since 2017 & while I have read some, I do need to read the rest. Spin The Dawn came to me in an owlcrate box & I loved it so much I immediately bought the sequel when it came out! You can click on this referral link if you are interested in subscribing to owlcrate. I am not an affiliate, they just give you a referral code if you are a subscriber. :)
On the same note, I need to catch up with my once upon a book club books. I am subscribed to both the YA & Adult book club so clearly, I have a few to read. I LOVED reading Remembrance & Woven in Moonlight through this bookish box's interactive format so I can't wait to read the rest. You can click on this referral link if you are interested in subscribing to Once Upon A Book Club. I am not an affiliate, they just give you a referral code if you are a subscriber & want to share the fun.
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