Today, I am recommending a book written by a man I have known as both an in-character Cookie Monster talking about politics and life on the Internet, and as a freelance writer on pop culture. It’s a weird feeling, to be saying (in my own mind) “read Cookie Monster’s book!” but here I am, saying it. This isn’t Vago’s first book: he’s written a few books for children, most notably the adorable Train, which allows children to actually lead a little train through adventures in the […]
I Should Have Known I’d Like It Just From the Title
If you liked “The Hate U Give” and “Dear Martin” (and you should read both of those books if you haven’t already), you’ll like “Anger is a Gift”. What they are are essentially “issue books”, but good. Remember what “issue books” in the YA genre used to be like? Alternately melodramatic and saccharine, and inevitably preachy, I would groan every time I started a book on a topic related to social justice and realized it was meant to be more educational than well-written. You could […]
The Best Podcast Ever Gets a Book
So, first things first. If you don’t know the wonder that is the McElroys, go fix that now. Get a podcast app, listen to ALL of My Brother, My Brother, and Me (that’s right, all of it), and then listen to all of The Adventure Zone. The McElroys are the funniest dudes around, and The Adventure Zone is a podcast in which Justin, Travis, and Griffin (the three McElroy brothers) play Dungeons & Dragons with their dad, Clint. This book is adapted from their first […]
Unapologetic Patrick Ness Fan Likes Patrick Ness Book: Film at 11!
I discovered recently that people really aren’t a fan of Patrick Ness, and I was baffled: he’s one of my favorite YA writers. I loved how dark and weird the Chaos Walking trilogy got, and I will never stop being disappointed that Charlie Kaufman is no longer involved in the movie adaptation of it. I thought what he did with the bare bones of A Monster Calls was lovely and touching. I thought More Than This was very weird, but interesting. I even liked Release […]
That’s a “meh” from me
I wasn’t sure how to feel about this book! I’m just going to separate this by things I liked and things I didn’t. Things I liked: * The honesty by which this book addressed some of our worst internal thoughts. * Connected to this, the fact that the characters don’t have to be perfect just because they are main characters. * The complex perspectives included covering who would be affected if any kind of personhood amendment for fetuses was passed: this doesn’t just cover people […]
Infuriating but Necessary
People who write exposes on great societal injustice walk a fine line: they must mix their facts and figures with enough interest to keep reader’s interest, temper their own rage at what they’ve found with a rational enough tone that they won’t be dismissed as “radical”, and often find a way to insert a little hope lest too many people avoid their book entirely because it’s “too depressing”. I’ve found a handful of books that have walked this line expertly. Books like Michelle Alexander’s The […]
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