Ten Books Which Feature Characters with Agency

Sometimes I get really tired of reading books where characters don’t have control. Some of the most popular books out there have plots that happen to people. I don’t want life to happen to me, I want to happen to life, and I like to read books like that too. I first learned about the

Paired Reading: Refugees and Displaced Persons in Africa

How does one express the kind of tenderness evoked by this narrative? And yet it is not overtly biased. It is not manipulative. It is a stunningly crafted narrative that focuses on a young man’s memories and struggles. Struggles that were meant to change when he reached South Africa, the supposed land of milk and honey.

Incredible Quotes

Work has been busy, so I find myself working on an unscheduled Top Ten Tuesday post because how can I let the opportunity to wallow in quotes go by? Brace yourself, you’re getting a fresh post! 1. Words and their Meanings by Kate Bassett “Everyone gets one last line. But first lines, stories of love

I Read a Book About CIPA

I love reading YA with protagonists that aren’t perfect. Give me protags with OCD, PTSD, porphyria, cerebral palsy, autism… I want to read about all of the people in the world! I was elated when I heard that someone had written a book about CIPA – congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis.

Reading Lumikki Andersson, the Finnish girl-sleuth

Lumikki is a Finnish-Swedish high school student with a propensity for landing in the middle of trouble that has nothing to do with her. She is independent, talented, and a little bit of a BAMF.

Did You Know That Seeds Are Freaking Awesome?!

I love micro-histories – books that delve into the history and specifics of one small specific thing. One of my favourites is The Big Necessity by Rose George, about human waste (and the toilet). Just for balance, my least favourite is Stiff by Mary Roach.

New Old Fairytales [Reviewing The Turnip Princess]

Most kids have a penchant for fairy tales, but as a kid, my favourites were the stories my dad made up for me. Legally-blind, he made up special characters just for me that far surpassed any Snow White. Of course I loved Disney, but I only really started appreciating the Grimm Brothers’ tales when I

Remedy for Burnout [Book Review]

The book is certainly not all-encompassing, but it is a great starting point, given that most physicians would hardly have the time to read a much more detailed book on the matter. Of course, to take these “prescriptions” seriously, one must be aware of one’s own vulnerability, so it is of no use to physicians who refuse to admit to compassion fatigue.

Ten Books for Readers who Like… The World

I know that with things like We Need Diverse Books a lot of people are trying to read beyond their own milieu. I think for me, the biggest problem as a youngster was that I was constantly reading narratives about young people in the USA or the UK, and so I was getting a very narrow view of the world and indeed of what I could be.

A Tale of Two Sciency Books

I quite enjoy sciency books – from the focused, like Seven Modern Plagues and Stuff Matters, to the kind that addresses all sorts of random topics, like What If.