Book Log
I am a book worm. I'd like to share my reads with you, my delightful friends.2025
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
Wowie I love this series! This is the first true romantasy book I've read outside of some vampire romance novels. And you know what? That just didn't draw me in. Let me reference it for a moment...Spoilers ahead for a book that isn't This!!
In this story (which is the series that "True Blood" is based on), the characters were a bit older than me at the time (I was in high school, they fully grown adults), so I often didn't relate to them. Further, I spent a book and a half getting attached to a love interest only for suddenly the couple to break up. At the time I also could not...relate to breakups as a thing that sometimes needed to happen. I was fully invested in the thought of "true love" and found breakups unappealing, confusing, and unneccesary. In my high school mind, anyone could work through their problems. But tbh I was very wrong. Anyways, back to this story...
Now, the story shared in ACOTAR and ACOMAF is something I can relate to. Trauma bonds clouding judgment. Further, I love a love triangle. I also appreciate that love interests were introduced in the very beginning of the story - I was prompted to be interested in these people from the moment they were written into the story. I cried reading this especially because I love the inevitably of love and the work it takes to get there. With the cliffhanger that this book ended on, I am excited to get into the next book!
The Scott Pilgrim Series (in color!) by Bryan Lee O'Malley
So I never wanted to read this. Much like the drama series Breaking Bad, I thought this series must be overrated and that the main character sounded like a jackass and why would I like something like that!? My partner, however, enjoys Scott Pilgrim. So they offered their copies of the comics for me to borrow after explaining the whole different universes thing (?) So I began to read. Let me tell you - the opening frame sets us up for the series. "Scott Pilgrim is dating a high schooler!" Ew! I almost immediately put the book down. However, I kept at it because I had someone there to explain that yes he is a jackass and that's the point. Unlike the movie, the comics do not glorify Scott being a moron and Ramona being a cheating idiot. The series is about realistic broken people and I appreciate it. I think the end of the series pulls us together and I appreciated the revelations we make about the characters. I also think Scott and Ramona deserve each other.
The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks
I had read that this book was very scary. I dunno where. But I was at a Barnes and Noble with my friends. Unfortunately I found no K-Pop albums I wanted and couldn't decide on a manga, so I went to the horror section. I saw this novel and felt pulled to it. At first, the book was hard to get into. But once I did I was fascinated to see how these events were going to connect and culminate into something I could learn about this character. The way Frank approached the world seemed insane to me and that's how I was supposed to feel! Frank's world is so structured by them and it seems like nonsense to the rest of us. I loved to learn more about the history of Ireland and see how that tied into Frank's story. The twist was fantastic and I loved the ending.
The Grace Year by Kim Liggett
One of my friends read this book and told me that I might enjoy it! I did! I really like speculative and dystopian fiction and this book checked all my boxes for that! The story follows Tierney, who is growing up in a world in which girls are banished at age 16 to get rid of their "magic". Of course Tierney is Not Like Other Girls and doesn't believe in magic. There is a lot at play involving women being chosen for marriage, women's magic being used to seduce men, and the like. There's a year spent being banished, there's an uneccessary romance, there's growth, there's pregnancy. I ended up crying at the end of this book but I do really wish that women-centered dystopians did not always involve romance. I love a romance but this one felt forced. Despite that, it was necessary for the ending and I appreciated that. I do love the big revelation in the ending as well, so it was very worth it!
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
I thought I ought to read this for a while. This is a "semi-autobiographical" novel and follows Esther, who is a stand-in for Sylvia I imagine. I really appreciated learning about Sylvia's life this way but this book did not pull me in in the slightest. I can relate to Sylvia on many fronts but I just think her style of writing is not for me. She is very straightforward which I appreciate. I think many may be able to relate to Esther's struggle to meet social expectations while also trying to find her place in the world while she gives us a look into what mental healthcare looked like not too long ago.
Rereading Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
So I reread Uglies because they produced a movie on Netflix! I was excited to watch it. First, about the book: I thoroughly enjoyed Uglies in high school and now! This story is fascinating and explores themes that I think are still relevant today. The story follows Tally Youngblood who lives in a futuristic society which is centered around the modification of one's form. Before a certain age, one is "Ugly" and goes through school learning about their world with other Uglies. When children reach a certain age, they undergo surgery to become "Pretty". Tally is very much looking forward to this surgery, but it is not all it seems. A friend of hers reject this way of life and Tally is sent to retrieve them. This is where she learns the true nature of her society.
The movie, however, was wild. I watched this with a friend and my partner. The friend read the book, my partner didn't. Afterwards, my friend and I agreed that it would be so weird to watch this movie if we hadn't read the book. My partner sat there thoroughly confused. The movie captures the vibes of the book and seems almost like an homage but makes some pretty big and weird changes as well as not telling the story cohesively. Anyways, I'm sad because if this movie was really good, I think more people would have been pulled back to this awesome book!
Rereading A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
After reading Uglies, something in me clicked. I must have read A Clockwork Orange around the same time. So I reread this! Unfortunately, I got sick around this time. So I had a fever dream that was in the Nadsat language. This made me...not as interested in the book...because I was disturbed.
This book follows a young man, Alex, who is essential a delinquent youth in a dystopian future. He skips school, he meets up with his gang and does drugs, he steals, he rapes, and he murders. The book itself is not so graphic because it is written in a fake language, Nadsat, as to allude to how youth may use a language that adults and outsiders don't understand. I enjoyed this book when I read it because it first gave me insight into the kind of person who might commit acts of violence for fun. Stimulation seeking people can get into nonsense when there hands are bored. When youth are left to their own devices and not given guidance, an othering may happen and they may create a culture apart from morals, especially when someone is not empathetic by nature. Which is not too horrible, okay! We need to be teaching kids empathy! Anyways, this book also helped me center my philosophy on psychiatric rehabilitation. We see two forms of rehabilitation in this novel: The prison route and the hospital route. The way the hospital treats Alex is interestingly similar to some psychiatric techniques at the time and I think this novel does a great job criticizing it! Fun fact: In the American version of the book, there are only 20 chapters. In the British, there are 21. The 21st chapter gives us insight into Alex's future and how one might grow out of a rebellious phase and what it takes to do so. But that was "too boring" for American audiences. The Kubrick movie ends the way the American book does, too, so I would recommend reading the last chapter if you have only seen the movie! Fun Fact: Anthony Burgess does not like the movie rendition of his book for many reasons. But it seems that mainly it is due to the film causing audiences to glorify Alex instead of simply see him as a broken human.
The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward
My friends and I started a book club this year and our first month was October. The prompt was to read a spooky book. I didn't have any I wanted to read laying around so I was looking for a recommendations. A coworker of mine also works at a local book store and offered an advance reader copy of this book to me when I asked for suggestions! When I started this book, I thought it would be like any other horror novel centered around a missing child. This book follows several perspectives and I was excited to read the second chapter which followed the perspective of a cat! I started to wonder if certain people were the same person but the book did not follow my expectations! I cried at the end of the book because of how carefully constructed the story was and how sorry I felt for the character. I highly recommend this book for an offbeat horror-mystery!
Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
This was another book club book for December, the theme being "Winter". This was a quick read and I felt myself pulled it. Yet another Dystopian, this story is quiet. Evan Whitesky, a member of the Anishinaabe nation, is quietly pulled into the end of the modern world. Being such a secluded community, we are not subject to much of the hugeness of the end of the world. Rather, the community loses electricity and phone service, which is not unusual. They were pushed out into the polar regions of the north and so the grids did just go out from time to time. However, they soon realize this is not just like any other outage. The culture's focus on silence is pervasive, some moments of silence seeming comfortable and loving while others feel like avoidance. Consider two instances: A father and son cleaning a moose and preparing it for use silently, as they both know the process and do not need to exchange words; A husband and wife going to pick up their children after a night of drinking in a dry community where they both passed out. These differences in silence continue as outsiders enter the community. I liked the climax and the ending but I wish there was more to it! There was not quite enough build up and then not quite enough climax for me! It was so good and I wanted more! However, this was excellent and I love to learn about different cultures through their fiction! I also love the use of dreams in this novel. Dreams are important in this culture and I love the use of dreams to reveal things that are perhaps unseen or ignored.
Did Not Finish
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab: This was a book club book! This specific book was chosen for us. I wanted to enjoy this book and the premise sounded interesting. Addie LaRue is an immortal who is forgotten by everyone she meets: except for ONE GUY! Woaaah the one guy! The book itself felt very literary and was very much structured around the vibes. Sometimes I felt the world did not keep its rules clean and it pulled me completely out of my immersion to begin questioning why certain rules worked in inconsistent ways. Next, I didn't like the main character. Addie had hundreds of years to learn things and it felt like she was still a child, cursing someone else for her choices. It felt very immature. I could not relate to her because in thirty years I feel like I've already grown more than she had in hundreds. I also do not relate to this tragically pretty thing. She's so beautiful that everyone can't help but immortalize her seven freckles in the shape of constellations. I do not care lol. I appreciate the symbology: A muse who disappears into history is remembered through their art. The execution just was not for me. One final point that had me put down the book was that in the novel, there are what I feel like are token queer characters. And with these tokens they fall into tropes I really dislike. Addie's love interest, Henry or something, is bisexual and has a gay ex who is still in love with Henry. Therefore, the gay man is so incredibly petty and rude to this woman who, in his defense, he can't remember and then sees his ex he's still in love with fawning over. Realistically this makes sense but this is not reality, it's fiction, and I think it's harmful to include queer characters just to include tropes that paint queer characters in a certain light. If you're going to include queer characters, at least make them neutral.Tehanu by Ursula K. LeGuin: I do plan to finish this one this year. I was just going through something? and didn't want to read an ebook LOL! I had borrowed this from the library which is hard because if I get into a non-reading mood in those 30 days, I just can't finish the book. So I didn't finish this despite wanting to. I recently bought the book from a local bookstore so I plan to start this after I finish like...one or two other books. We will see.
2024
Rereading Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
I saw a post online which said, "Normalizing not knowing anything about your favourite book." I'm all for that - but for ages I have referenced this as my favourite book without remembering anything that happens in it aside from the obvious. Rereading this book was an important moment to reflect on what I valued in media in childhood. There was a lot I found interesting in this book at that age. Not only do I love vampires but I also enjoyed characters who sought to punish others. Especially seeing a girl who is frozen in time - an adult in a child's body - was very appealing to me as a child of trauma. When I reread this, I was surprised by how my allegiances switched from Louis to Lestat. Of course they did. I mean, I've been in therapy long enough! Anyways, I enjoyed learning in between readings that Louis and Lestat represent two parts of the author. Louis was the part of her who cared significantly for others and was moral. Lestat was the part of her that didn't care and thrived in chaos.
The Rose of Versailles, vol. 1 by Riyoko Ikeda
I have loved the Rose of Versailles anime for some time! I was in the comic book store and saw this beautiful hard back version of the manga. So I had to buy this. I finished this volume while in the delivery room while my friend had her first child. I hope Oscar's honor rubs off on her somehow. Also, I figured out that I like shoujo but it has to be...like this. It's no wonder - I always liked stories like InuYasha which were focused around a woman but more action inspired!
Flowers of Bufoonery by Osamu Dazai
The second book I read in my friend's delivery room! This is a...prese-quel, a side story, a part of No Longer Human. It explores the lead's stay in a psychiatric hospital. My favourite quote was, "If you want to see a facade, look in the mirror." I love Dazai's writing style - I feel like I'm being scolded by a friend who is so done with me.
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Pretty hot. I am writing this about a month into the new year and have finished the sequel, so I will say I prefer the sequel. But just like some other pieces of media, if I had to sit through this to get to the joy of the sequel (which I did!), then I would happily do it again. We love trauma bonding.
The Farthest Shore by Ursula K. LeGuin (from the Earthsea Series)
Another fantastic book in the Earthsea series! I will say, this one took me a bit longer to complete. I read this while I was travelling and found myself unfocused. My favourite quote from this book was actually in the author's notes after I read the story. She reflected on the message of the book, "A belief shouldn't think for you and a drug shouldn't dream for you."
2023
Rereading Harry Potter...
I happily began this year rereading my favourite book series. Actually, I listened to it. It started off my reading this year right and inspired me to keep going. This series got me interested in reading, and there are many things that I take from it which influence my reading and writing. The first is how rich the world is and how easily I could put myself into the world of Harry Potter. I am sure many fantasy fans will scoff, but as a child, this was a fascinating and inviting world for me to be a part of. The villains were vague enough at times to resonate with, but slowly grew into something I understood and could see in my own life. The absence of Voldemort for most of the series was fascinating to me - how his influence was still felt throughout half of the books without his truly being alive. However, now that I'm grown, I can see several ethical flaws within the series. Nowadays, I resent some of the positions the author has taken, which kind of...makes me want to love the villains more than I usually do. Come on, dude, I can't be forced into this self-sabotage. No wonder I love misanthropes - you didn't have to make Snape so hot, bro. Anyways, this series will always have a special place in my heart.
No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai (Manga by Junji Ito)
I read the manga first, then the novel. 'No Longer Human' is a fascinating story and has been compared to the author's own life. The novel begins with a description of three "photos" which describe this individual, Yozo, at different points in his life. This individual feels seperated from humanity in a way that I associate with trauma and neurodivergence. They learn at an early age to "clown", wearing a mask to hide their discomfort, with their worst fear being someone discovering their secret. Throughout their lifetime, they learn to cope in a number of fun ways (*wink*, not actually fun). As an individual who has been through trauma, I don't find this story "scary". I was led to believe this was a horror story, especially when it was illustrated by my favourite horror mangaka. However, while there are disturbing elements, I find the story incredibly sad most of all, especially when you can...read the writing on the walls as certain events are unfolding. When you know the story of self sabotage, it's like watching a train crash in slow motion.
There are a few notable differences in the manga. The one I find most interesting occurs when Yozo is admitted into a psychiatric hospital. In the manga, Ito depicts the author of the story, Osamu Dazai, as a character who is in the facility with Yozo. The scene is really fascinating, I think, and communicates something that I feel as someone who has gone through trauma and someone who works in mental health - having company in horror is much like an umbrella in a storm. There's still a storm, but maybe you're a little less wet.
More Junji Ito Manga
Dissolving Classroom
As far as Ito collections go, this one was just okay for me. Two siblings arrive in a classroom and proceed to creep people out in various ways. I am fascinated by the exploration of one who overapologizes, and we do love a good brain melt.
Cat Diary: Yon & Mu
I absolutely loved these short stories about Ito's cats! Here's my favourite panel:
Smashed
The first of two story collections I read this year. Smashed was full of great stories, my favourites being "Blood Slurping Darkness" (because I love a good vampire fic) and "Roar of Ages". I found the latter incredibly fascinating as an exploration of trauma and the way energy can linger in a place of natural disaster.
Shiver
My second story collection I read this year! I enjoyed SO many stories in this collection. The titular piece, "Shivers" was fascinating and incredibly creepy for me - images of things filled with many tiny holes freak me out to the extreme, so the images stuck with me. The story, "Long Dream" has stuck with me long after I read it - a strange condition in which an individual experiences dreams which last longer and longer, doctors theorizing that they will eventually enter an "endless dream". The imagery in "Grease" or "Glyceride" creeped me out majorly. I love good body horror and it was just so gross! "In Old Records" and "My Dear Ancestors" also make my top list, but I think every story in this collection is worth reading! For fans of Tomie, she makes an appearance in "Painter". I dunno, I find beautiful women horrifying for very different reasons.
Remina
This story was incredible and I read it in just about a day. I couldn't put it down! As a fan of idols, the themes Ito explores in this story are intriguing. A scientist names a newly-discovered planet after his daughter, Remina, and comes to discover the consequences of deifying his child. I loved this story more than I thought I would. The horror is straight from my nightmares and the social commentary is excellent!
Lovesickness
I enjoyed Lovesickness but not as much as I thought I would. The story revolves around a fortune telling game, "Tsuji-ura", in which you cover your face and ask the first stranger you meet at an intersection your question. Of course, many individuals seek to know their fortunes regarding love. A young, handsome man begins appearaing at these intersections and telling people that they will never find love. What follows but death and one guilty individual seeking to determine the cause. I thought I'd LOVE this but I just like it. The handsome man, though, haunts me in my dreams. I find myself lusting after men who remind me of the crossroads boy, maybe I'm cursed with the Lovesickness.
InuYasha by Rumiko Takahashi
Vol 1
InuYasha is a favourite anime of mine! I read the manga some time ago, but never had the complete collection. So I got Volume 1 and started reading. I think I read this in the bath in about an hour as a nostalgia bomb.
First Person Singular by Haruki Murakami
For some time I've been meaning to read something by Murakami. I started with something more digestible, a collection of short stories told in the first person. I gotta say...I felt really stupid reading this. I didn't understand anything. But I think that's kind of the point. After I read it, I thought, "Well...I think Murakami just isn't for me." There are definitely parts of his writing that irk me - notably how he writes about women. However...I haven't read many pieces lately that leave me as baffled, confused, and pondering like this. I am still thinking about the weird things I read in this book and what they mean. I especially loved the piece, "With the Beatles" for many reasons. First, I love the Beatles. Second, I think it really hammers down the vibe I got from most of the absurdism. Now remember, I'm stupid, but what I think is that this piece is meant to be completely absurd. However, there are flags and symbols that usually lead us to make conclusions about the piece making a certain point or exploring a certain emotion. However, I think it's meant to be absurd and leave us wondering what it means. He drives it home with this question at the end, "(Question: What elements in the lives of these two men were symbolically suggested by their two meetings and conversations?)". I don't know bro and I don't think I ever will.
Falling Leaves by Adeline Yen Mah
I love a good memoir! Particularly I love memoirs involving trauma, and this one certainly does! Adeline Yen Mah tells her story of growing up and leaving an abusive family in China. I am fascinated by people's life stories and reading this reminded me that I should be reading and digesting more memoirs. Fiction is fantastic, but real stories of real people can tell us so much about the world we live in and the horrors we face.
The Moon in the Palace by Weina Dai Randel
This is part one in a duology that I probably won't finish. It's not that I didn't enjoy it, I just didn't enjoy it a lot. Along with that, I've read that this story isn't necessarily historically accurate, which I despise. However, this is a fun and gruesome harem story which apparently tells the story of We Zetian's ascention to the throne. I haven't actually gotten that far - I got to the part where there was a big Revolution and violence. Sorry, spoilers. Something I enjoy about harem fiction is the fabricated rivalry and alliance between women that develops when competing for the hand of the emperor. This story plays on that well and gives us satisfying conclusions to those connections.
The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole
Damn. This book was a rough read. It is very old so I get it. But look, I had to read it. I'm a fan of Gothics and this was the first! As a writer of Gothics, I felt it necessary to see its embryonic stage. However, I will not ever read this again. Not because the story wasn't interesting but because our writing styles and language have changed so much since its conception. Anyways, I hope all y'all lit majors have fun with this book - I took it from my friend who apparently has to read it again for class this year.
Earthsea Series by Ursula K LeGuinn
A Wizard of Earthsea
Someone told me that if I liked Harry Potter, then I should read the Earthsea series. So I hecking did, and boy am I glad! LeGuinn is first an excellent author. Along with that, I read and explored the ways she grew as a person while writing. Something I despise about Harry Potter, as I stated earlier, is the fact that the ethical positions are icky and closed minded. LeGuinn's world is far more enriching. This book opens with a young talented mage who is led to be mentored and eventually learn at an academy. However, we leave the academy in great time! The story is not about the school but rather Sparrowhawk's growth as a wizard and a man. I quickly figured out the theme of the book and then what would happen. It did not change how satisfying the revelation was, though. When reading this book, I recommend paying close attention to the mention of "light and shadows". This theme that LeGuinn explores in this book is beautiful and almost brought me to tears.
Tombs of Atuan
So I quickly went on to read Tombs of Atuan. I was confused at first - this story takes place in a completely different place and with a different perspective than A Wizard of Earthsea. How cool! The sequel explores something completely different within the world of Earthsea and then ties it together so beautifully. I fortunately had a book with an interview at the end (which I LOVE) and LeGuinn talks about what this novel explores regarding gender. A criticism of this novel is that Tenar is not the hero of her own story. I see this point and really love what LeGuinn says about it, which was that in her experience as a woman and within Tenar's story, she couldn't break out on her own. Especially given society during this time, I think Tenar's story of empowerment is realistic. She actually holds a lot of power in regards to her adventure and I'm excited to see where we go next!
