Review: Miss Meteor

Title: Miss Meteor
Author: Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, LGBT
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback ARC
Release Date: September 22, 2020
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

There hasn’t been a winner of the Miss Meteor beauty pageant who looks like Lita Perez or Chicky Quintanilla in all its history. But that’s not the only reason Lita wants to enter the contest, or why her ex-best friend Chicky wants to help her. 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.

Witty and heartfelt with characters that leap off the page, Miss Meteor is acclaimed authors Anna-Marie McLemore and Tehlor Kay Mejia’s first book together.

Review:

Lita Perez has never felt like she fit in in her town of Meteor. Years ago, a meteor hit their town, giving it the name of Meteor. When it hit, Lita was created from the star dust. She grew up with the appearance of a human, but she’s from the stars. Now, that background is starting to affect Lita. She wants to fulfill her dream of becoming Miss Meteor by winning the beauty pageant in their town. She gets the help of her former best friend, Chicky, and Chicky’s older sisters who have competed in the pageant in the past. Chicky and Lita have never been the popular girls, and they’ve both been bullied, so they have to work extra hard to make Lita stand out in the competition.

This story had great queer representation. One of the characters was transgender. The way it was described by that character was that his family thought he was a girl when he was born, but they were wrong. This description takes the “blame” off the person who comes out as transgender, since they didn’t choose to be that way. Instead it shows that other people were wrong in assuming he was a girl as a child. I loved this description, since it takes the pressure off the person for being transgender and shows that it isn’t a choice.

There was a lot of bullying in this story, including transphobia, xenophobia, and homophobia. These acts and abuses were addressed. At first, I found it shocking that characters were saying these things to other characters in such a casual way. This shows how bullying can happen in casual ways, including by people who are closely related to you. Eventually it was addressed, but it was upsetting and shocking to read at some points.

The one thing that I would have liked to see more of is an explanation on how Lita came to be in Meteor. It wasn’t very clear how she was created from star dust. It was an interesting and fun science fiction storyline which left me with some questions.

I really enjoyed this original pageant story.

Thank you HarperCollins Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia

Blanca and Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore

Have you read Miss Meteor? What did you think of it?

TBR Thursday – November 5

TBR Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly Faye Reads, where you post a title from your shelf or e-reader and find out what others think about it.

My pick this week is Fable by Adrienne Young.

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Goodreads Synopsis:

For seventeen-year-old Fable, the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home she has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one, and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father, and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father.

But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him, and Fable soon finds that West isn’t who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they’re going to stay alive. 

Welcome to a world made dangerous by the sea and by those who wish to profit from it. Where a young girl must find her place and her family while trying to survive in a world built for men. Fable takes you on a spectacular journey filled with romance, intrigue, and adventure.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

Review: Clean Getaway

Title: Clean Getaway
Author: Nic Stone
Genre: Middle Grade, Contemporary
Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: January 7, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

From New York Times bestselling author Nic Stone comes a middle grade road-trip story through American race relations past and present perfect for fans of Jacqueline Woodson and Jason Reynolds.

How to Go on an Unplanned Road Trip with Your Grandma:
* Grab a Suitcase: Prepacked from the big spring break trip that got CANCELLED.
* Fasten Your Seatbelt: G’ma’s never conventional, so this trip won’t be either.
* Use the Green Book: G’ma’s most treasured possession. It holds, history, memories, and most important, the way home.

What Not to Bring:
* A Cell Phone: Avoid contact with Dad at all costs. Even when G’ma starts acting stranger than usual.

Set against the backdrop of the segregation history of the American South, take a trip with New York Times bestselling Nic Stone and an eleven-year-old boy who is about to discover the world hasn’t always been a welcoming place for kids like him, and things aren’t always what they seem–his G’ma included.

Review:

After getting suspended from school, Scoob’s Spring Break trip was cancelled. His grandmother, G’ma, sold her house and bought an RV to go on a special trip. Scoob sneaks out of his dad’s house and travels across multiple states with his G’ma in her new RV. Soon after they leave, she starts acting strange. She refers to Scoob by his father’s name many times. She also insists on stopping at various jewelry stores on their way. Scoob isn’t sure what their destination is, but he starts to question why G’ma has taken him on this trip.

This was such an original story. It’s a middle grade story, but it actually got quite dark at times. Perhaps that’s because I was reading it as an adult, so I picked up on the warning signs of what G’ma was doing quite early on. There were serious events in this book that were heavier than many middle grade books I’ve read.

Scoob was a black boy traveling with his white grandmother. They often got strange looks, since they weren’t the same race and didn’t appear to be related at first sight. G’ma was familiar with this reaction, because she married a black man in the 1960s. They weren’t allowed to go into certain businesses as a mixed race couple. She was even concerned about finding a doctor when she was pregnant, because she didn’t think a doctor would want to look after a white woman who was carrying a mixed race baby. This seems absurd to me, reading it from the twentieth century. It’s disturbing that this would have happened just a few decades ago. Though G’ma was white, she had a unique perspective of being in a relationship with a black man and experiencing racism because of that.

This was an original middle grade novel!

What to read next:

Blended by Sharon M. Draper

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Have you read Clean Getaway? What did you think of it?

‘Waiting on’ Wednesday – November 4

This is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. In this post we highlight a book that’s highly anticipated.

The book that I’m waiting on this Wednesday is The Cousins by Karen M. McManus. The expected publication date is December 1, 2020.

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Goodreads Synopsis:

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of One of Us Is Lying comes your next obsession. You’ll never feel the same about family again.

Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each another, and they’ve never even met their grandmother. Rich and reclusive, she disinherited their parents before they were born. So when they each receive a letter inviting them to work at her island resort for the summer, they’re surprised . . . and curious.

Their parents are all clear on one point–not going is not an option. This could be the opportunity to get back into Grandmother’s good graces. But when the cousins arrive on the island, it’s immediately clear that she has different plans for them. And the longer they stay, the more they realize how mysterious–and dark–their family’s past is.

The entire Story family has secrets. Whatever pulled them apart years ago isn’t over–and this summer, the cousins will learn everything.

What books are you waiting on this week?

Review: Elvis Puffs Out: A Breaking Cat News Adventure

Title: Elvis Puffs Out: A Breaking Cat News Adventure
Author: Georgia Dunn
Genre: Graphic Novel, Humour
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 6, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

This just in: your favorite purr-nalists are back and reporting on all of the most pressing cat issues in this third collection of Breaking Cat News comics for middle-grade readers.

Anchor cat Lupin and his faithful field reporters, Elvis and Puck, are as cute and funny as ever in Elvis Puffs Out. There’s no shortage of news to cover this time around: In the wake of a winter snowstorm, the team tries their hand at meteorology (with mixed results). Man and Woman nurse a stranded kitten back to health. And the pessimistic, straight-laced Elvis demonstrates that even he has a soft side.

The fun continues in the “More to Explore” section, with lessons on wooden-spoon puppet theaters, the basics of reporting your own news stories, and—as always—charming paper dolls to craft.

Review:

The Cat News reporters are back in this fun graphic novel. The cat reporters live with a family with two toddlers and they find lots of breaking news in their daily lives. They experience a snowstorm, a birthday party, a protest, and a stray kitten being fostered in the home.

This is a hilarious graphic novel series. My family and I care for a colony of feral cats at our house, so I could relate to these different cat personalities. I loved the reaction that the cats had to snow. They said the ground had disappeared and created a void. Some of our cats just experienced snow for the first time and they were just as shocked as the cats in this book.

The cats also reported on the news in a hilarious way. The actions of the humans often caused breaking news for the cats. For example, they were worried when the humans brought fire, in the form of a birthday candle on a cake, near the baby on her birthday. The cats asked the humans for interviews, but their owners couldn’t understand them so they couldn’t give interviews.

This is a hilarious parody on breaking news for cat lovers!

Thank you Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

Take It Away, Tommy by Georgia Dunn

Cone Cat by Sarah Howden

Other books in the series:

Have you read Elvis Puffs Out? What did you think of it?

Top Ten Tuesday – Hobbies

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and it is now hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s theme is Non-Bookish Hobbies, but since my life revolves around books, I have to include my Bookish Hobbies too. Here’s my list:

1. Playing piano

2. Looking after feral cats

3. Cuddling with my dog, Skippy, a Bichon Poodle

4. Playing video games

5. Blogging about books

6. Writing young adult fiction

7. Shopping for bookstagram props

8. Reviewing books

9. Chatting to authors about books/attending author events

10. Reading, reading, reading!

(All photos taken from Goodreads)

What’s your list of books on your Top Ten Tuesday?

Review: The School for Good and Evil (The School for Good and Evil #1)

Title: The School for Good and Evil (The School for Good and Evil #1)
Author: Soman Chainani
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Publisher: HarperCollins
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: May 14, 2013
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

The first kidnappings happened two hundred years before. Some years it was two boys taken, some years two girls, sometimes one of each. But if at first the choices seemed random, soon the pattern became clear. One was always beautiful and good, the child every parent wanted as their own. The other was homely and odd, an outcast from birth. An opposing pair, plucked from youth and spirited away.

This year, best friends Sophie and Agatha are about to discover where all the lost children go: the fabled School for Good & Evil, where ordinary boys and girls are trained to be fairy tale heroes and villains. As the most beautiful girl in Gavaldon, Sophie has dreamed of being kidnapped into an enchanted world her whole life. With her pink dresses, glass slippers, and devotion to good deeds, she knows she’ll earn top marks at the School for Good and graduate a storybook princess. Meanwhile Agatha, with her shapeless black frocks, wicked pet cat, and dislike of nearly everyone, seems a natural fit for the School for Evil.

But when the two girls are swept into the Endless Woods, they find their fortunes reversed—Sophie’s dumped in the School for Evil to take Uglification, Death Curses, and Henchmen Training, while Agatha finds herself in the School For Good, thrust amongst handsome princes and fair maidens for classes in Princess Etiquette and Animal Communication.. But what if the mistake is actually the first clue to discovering who Sophie and Agatha really are…?

The School for Good & Evil is an epic journey into a dazzling new world, where the only way out of a fairy tale is to live through one.

Review:

Two hundred years ago, a tradition began with two children being taken from the town of Gavaldon and brought to The School for Good and Evil. At The School for Good and Evil, children are sent to either the Good side to train to become the heroes of fairy tales, or the Evil side where they become fairy tale villains. Sophie is a beautiful girl who dreams of being sent to The School of Good. Her friend, Agatha, lives in a graveyard and seems like she is destined to go to The School of Evil. When Sophie and Agatha are chosen to go to The School, Sophie is sent to the Evil side and Agatha is sent to the Good side. They have to figure out how to switch to their correct schools.

This is a great twist on the fairy tale story. The students at The School for Good and Evil are trained to become fairy tale characters. Most of the students are descendants of fairy tale characters, like Tedros, the son of King Arthur. Sophie and Agatha stand out because they aren’t from fairy tale families and they can’t predict what their tale will become.

This story explored the meaning of good versus evil. Good is usually portrayed as beautiful and kind, while evil is usually ugly and gross. Since Sophie is beautiful she assumed she would go into the Good side, but she was sent to the Evil side to become a fairy tale villain. Agatha isn’t as pretty and wears black, so she is surprised when she’s sent to become a fairy tale hero. Throughout the story, they discover that good versus evil, or hero versus villain, can’t be determined by outward appearances.

I really enjoyed this story. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

What to read next:

A World Without Princes (The School for Good and Evil #2) by Soman Chainani

The Wishing Spell (The Land of Stories #1) by Chris Colfer

Other books in the series:

  • A World Without Princes
  • The Last Ever After
  • Quests for Glory
  • A Crystal of Time
  • One True King

Have you read The School for Good and Evil? What did you think of it?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – November 2

This blog meme is hosted by Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week.  It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile!

What I just finished:

This weekend I finished The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading Master of One by Jaida Jones and Danielle Bennett.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading Clean Getaway by Nic Stone.

What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?

Monthly Wrap-Up – October 2020

These are the books I read in October with their ratings and links to my reviews:

I read 28 books. My favourites were Dear Justyce, Welcome to the New World, and The Lost Wonderland Diaries.

What was your favourite book of October?