What it is: Mouthful of Forevers is the newest book of poetry by Clementine von Radics. I’ve been a fan of her work for years, having seen her perform at the Portland Poetry Slam since I was in high school. She also hosts a writing workshop before the slam every week and I’ve really enjoyed…
1. Mr. Penumbra from Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore 2. Liesel from The Book Thief 3. Anne from Diary of Anne Frank (I realize she’s not exactly a “character” but she loved words) 4. Alison Bechdel from Fun Home (also not exactly a character but she’s on the list anyway) 5. Piper Kerman from Orange is…
Diversity in media is an issue that’s really important to me. Racial/ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, LGBTQ people, and people with lower socioeconomic status appear far less often in books, especially those assigned in school (unless part of a curriculum unit surrounding that topic). Here are a few of my favorite books that celebrate diversity: 1.…
1. Where’d You Go, Bernadette. Around Christmastime, my friend and her sister asked if I could do a photoshoot of them so they could turn the images into a gift for their parents. I agreed, and they were nice enough to give me a gift in exchange, including this book (which was already on my…
What it is: Love on the Road 2015 is an anthology that collects the winning short stories from the Love on the Road international writing contest. The stories all loosely revolve around love, although some are dark and tragic while others are light-hearted and fleeting. What I liked about it: There’s a lot of diversity of topics and characters…
What it is: I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson is a young adult novel about twins and talented artists Jude and Noah. The two start off extremely close, but challenges in adolescence (including family, spirituality, romance, betrayal, and death) cause tension as they compete with each other. Meanwhile, they must discover their artistic selves and navigate…
I’ve already been on break for a month, but for all you mortals (read: non-students), summer 2015 is about to begin, and with it, an ambitious list of books to be read! 1. A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore, which I’m reading along with the Lazy Lambs book club. 2. Love on the Road 2015,…
What it is: It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini follows the story of Craig Gilner, a 15-year-old boy with depression. He goes to a highly competitive high school and finds himself struggling with schoolwork, friend conflicts, and an inability to sleep and eat. Suicidal, he checks himself into the psychiatric ward of the…
Upbeat songs, hilarious references, and unconcealed feminism–what’s not to love? After experiencing tons of success with High School Musical, Disney decided to put out another movie with an extremely undetailed (yet somehow descriptive) title. This time we follow two surfer teens who get caught in a storm that transports them to the set of the (fictional) 1960s…
What it is: Lost At Sea is a graphic novel by Bryan Lee O’Malley (of Scott Pilgrim fame) about a girl named Raleigh who goes on an unintentional post-graduation road trip and ends up discovering deep connections with three new friends and with herself. What I liked about it: Basically everything. I’m a sucker for a good road trip…
Victim to Charm 