Hello again, dear friends, I hope all is well for you, and if not, I hope brighter days head your way soon! A quick administrative note before we go on: I'll be posting on this Blogspot site for the next month or two, as my Wordpress is temporarily down due to unforseen circumstances. I'm sorry for any confusion this may cause, but I'm hoing y'all can spread the word that for now my posts will be here! Anyhoozle! My August was surprisingly amazing! I had a bunch of fun outtings with friends, and I managed to finish two whole books on top of that! So let's dive right in and check out what went down this past month!
what i posted
what i read
🐉Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier (★★★★) I loved this book, but had some very minor issues with it towards the end, so the CAWPILE system spit out a 4 star rating for it and I think that's spot on. Dragonfruit is a Polynesian-inspired YA fantasy involving sea dragons, and it somehow manages to pair adventure and a relaxing vibe in a surprisingly effective way! I wouldn't quite call it "cozy fantasy" cause the stakes of the story are actually quite high, but the entire atmospheric vibe of the book is quite laid back, which was nice. My only issue with the book was a deus ex machina instance and some info dumping towards the end. But other than that? *chef's kiss*
💖Lore Olympus Vol. 1 by Rachel Smythe (★★★+0.5) I...wasn't the biggest fan of this? I know Lore Olympus is MASSIVELY popular, but it just didn't strike a chord with me. The art was beautiful, and the story was decent, but what really niggled at my mind were the characters and the romance set up between Hades and Persephone. I think that Smythe's development of the characters relied too much on modern stereotypes rather than crafting truly unique motivations and inner worlds for the characters. That said, this is volume one of five or six so she still has PLENTY of time to course correct on that. The other big thing that bugged me was the way Hades and Persephone's reltionship is being set up kinda gives major alarm bells for romanticized emotional abuse, which is a personal trigger for me so this complaint is a bit more of a personal one. All in all, this graphic novel was fun, but it wasn't anything I'd call special. I'll probably continue the series to see where Smythe takes it, but it's not at the top of my TBR.
reading challenges progress
the carterhough school for folklore and the fantastic's summer reading challenge
You can find the info about this reading challenge on The Carterhough School’s website here.
Completed: 3/15 Prompts
✅Read A Novella: When Among Crows by Veronica Roth
✅Read A Creature Feature: Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier
✅Read A Graphic Novel: Lore Olympus Vol. 1 by Rachel Smythe
what i plan on reading
🔎The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson I'm 60% through this magnificenty mystery novel, so I'm hoing I might finish it in August. So far I've really enjoyed this book! It's got lots of building tension and I can't wait to find out the ending twist(s)!
💍What The River Knows by Isabel Ibanez So far I'm really enjoying this book! It's full of adventures and reminds me of movies like Indiana Jones and The Mummy, both of which are in my "top five favorite films and franchises" list!
♠️Foul Days by Genoveva Dimova I'm just at the point where this mysterious, Blugarian-inspired fantasy is starting to kick off, but I love it so far and can't wait to find out what's to come!
what i listened to
what i bookmarked
- Peat wrote a thoughtful post on fantasy, its racist origins, and transformation
- Amanda interviewed writer Rukman Ragas on writing outside of the imperial core
- Fanna explored how an era's literature relfects its cultural fears
- Clo continued her astrology book recommendation series by recommending books for Cancer placements
- Michelle talked over how to read dark romance
- Madeline spotlighted YA books for Disability Pride Month
- Anna announced that her Ph.D thesis will be about bookstagram, booktok, and booktube
- Willow used talking about her life lately to also recommend some cozy books that embody "slow living"
- Aimee interviewed her friend's nine year old son to get his thoughts on the Percy Jackson books
- Sophie confessed her worst reader traits
- Kenn talked about the fandoms they used to be a member of
- Aria discussed underconsumption core for book girlies
- Kat reread some books she loved in middle school
- And on She Reads listed books to read for Disability Pride Month
- The Smut Report discussed the subgenre of speculative romance
- Reactor Magazine had several interesting articles up: "What Happens After The World Gets Saved?," "The Rise of Cozy Fantasy," and "Backlist Bonanza: 5 Underrated Near-Futures."
what i did this past july 2024
Right away, I knew this past July was gonna be a good month cause I had plenty of plans with friends, which I knew would feed my extrovert soul!
First up, my friends from my Physics I course and I went to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! This year's theme was "Indigenous Voices of the Americas," and it was so much fun to experience with friends. We saw some singers and drummers perform, ate Indigenous American food, and also watched some Indigenous Lating American skateboarders. Afterwards, we grabbed dinner at a local restaurant, which was delicious, and then we blasted the music and sang songs on the way home.
I also had a big get together with a different group of friends in mid July as well. We all went out to Korean BBQ and it was so nice to see them and catch up with everyone! It was my first time ever having Korean BBQ and I can confirm that it was, indeed, delicious!
One of my best friend's birthdays is also in July, and I wanted to do something special with her to celebrate. We ended up heading to this store in D.C. where you can make jewelry and we made charm necklaces there—which was so much fun and such a cute activity! I had a great time with her, and it was totally worth it to brighten her day as well!
what i plan for in august 2024
My friends from Physics I and I are supposed to go to Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in D.C. sometime in August, which I'm really looking forward to! Kenilworth is a national park that speciaizes in aquatic flora, and apparently it's very beautiful and peaceful, so I can't wait to explore it with my friends! We're also considering going to a different local botanical garden, which has extensive outdoor gardens and is absolutely GORGOEUS, so if we go to either or both I'm hyped!
In addition to that adventure, my choir class (the only course I'm taking this fall) starts in late August, which is another thing I'm eagerly anticipating! I missed my last choir concert due to an unrelated panic attack, but I'm so excited to get back in the game and singing again after the summer break!
Other than these two things, though, I basically just have a TON of "life administrative tasks" I need to get done this August. So much so that thinking about the tasks in question is a bit overwhelming, unfortunately. Nevertheless, I will persist—I am determined!!
spill the beans, friends!
- How was your July of 2024?
- Did you read anything notable?
- Is there anything you're looking forward to this August?
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