Category Archives: Read This

Read This!: SO THIS IS EVER AFTER by F.T. Lukens

Authors You Should Know, Read This, Recommended Reading, Reviews

So This Is Ever AfterSo This Is Ever After by F.T. Lukens
Summary: Arek hadn’t thought much about what would happen after he completed the prophecy that said he was destined to save the Kingdom of Ere from its evil ruler. So now that he’s finally managed to (somewhat clumsily) behead the evil king (turns out magical swords yanked from bogs don’t come pre-sharpened), he and his rag-tag group of quest companions are at a bit of a loss for what to do next. As a temporary safeguard, Arek’s best friend and mage, Matt, convinces him to assume the throne until the true heir can be rescued from her tower. Except that she’s dead. Now Arek is stuck as king, a role that comes with a magical catch: choose a spouse by your eighteenth birthday, or wither away into nothing. With his eighteenth birthday only three months away, and only Matt in on the secret, Arek embarks on a desperate bid to find a spouse to save his life—starting with his quest companions. But his attempts at wooing his friends go painfully and hilariously wrong…until he discovers that love might have been in front of him all along. 

This book was a delight from start to finish! I loved the focus on what happens *after* the Big Bad is defeated – what does that mean for the found family of heroes that came together to do the defeating? Arek is a flawed, funny, big-hearted protagonist, easy to root for even as you are shouting, “Just tell Matt you love him already!” at the page. The writing is fast-paced and hilarious, bringing a modern sensibility to the setting in a way that feels both fresh and utterly natural. The way the characters bump up against each other makes the relationships feel so strong and authentic, and perhaps more impressively, they feel like real teenagers in addition to epic heroes – real teenagers who get horny and silly and make bad choices sometimes. All in all, this is a great book to disappear into when the real world is just too much. You’ll love hanging out with Arek and friends.

SO THIS IS EVER AFTER is out now.

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Read This!: SITTING PRETTY by Rebekah Taussig

Authors You Should Know, Read This, Recommended Reading, Reviews

Sitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled BodySitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body by Rebekah Taussig
Summary: Growing up as a paralyzed girl during the 90s and early 2000s, Rebekah Taussig only saw disability depicted as something monstrous (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), inspirational (Helen Keller), or angelic (Forrest Gump). None of this felt right; and as she got older, she longed for more stories that allowed disability to be complex and ordinary, uncomfortable and fine, painful and fulfilling. Writing about the rhythms and textures of what it means to live in a body that doesn’t fit, Rebekah reflects on everything from the complications of kindness and charity, living both independently and dependently, experiencing intimacy, and how the pervasiveness of ableism in our everyday media directly translates to everyday life. Disability affects all of us, directly or indirectly, at one point or another. By exploring this truth in poignant and lyrical essays, Taussig illustrates the need for more stories and more voices to understand the diversity of humanity. Sitting Pretty challenges us as a society to be patient and vigilant, practical and imaginative, kind and relentless, as we set to work to write an entirely different story.

In this combination memoir, essay collection, and call to action, Rebekah Taussig invites the reader to consider disability from a different perspective. “Instead of disability as the limitation,” she asks, “what if a lack of imagination was the actual barrier?” She shares stories from her life, which are at turns wry, hilarious, and poignant, but always she ties her experiences to a larger message: What does it mean to be truly inclusive? She lays out how depictions of marginalized people in media affect our society at a granular level, and shows everyone is disadvantaged when some voices are silenced. Taussig’s writing is mesmerizing, and she articulates deep truths in straightforward prose. I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from the book:
“Inclusion isn’t better just because it’s kinder. We should bring disabled perspectives to the center because these perspectives create a world that is more imaginative, more flexible, more sustainable, more dynamic and vibrant for everyone who lives in a body.”

Sitting Pretty is out now.

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Read This!: Fall Down Seven Times, Stand Up Eight: Patsy T. Mink and the Fight for Title IX by Jen Bryant

Read This, Recommended Reading

Fall Down Seven Times, Stand Up EightFall Down Seven Times, Stand Up Eight: Patsy T. Mink and the Fight for Title IX by Jen Bryant
Summary: At an early age, Patsy Takemoto Mink learned that working toward a goal could come with challenges. But she never gave up. As the Japanese proverb says, fall down seven times, stand up eight. That spirit helped Patsy throughout her life. She wanted to become a doctor, but medical schools refused to admit her because of her gender. So … Patsy carved her own path. She went to law school, ran for a seat in the United States Congress, and helped create Title IX, the law that requires federally funded schools to treat boys and girls equally. Although many people tried to knock her down, Patsy always got up again. She was a historic trailblazer who championed equal rights and helped create a better future for all Americans.

Patsy Takemoto Mink spent her life pushing back against racism and sexism – but she never let the opinions of others stop her. Using the proverb of the title as a refrain, Jen Bryant’s snappy text is upbeat and affecting, depicting how Mink came back from heartbreaking losses again and again. Medical schools wouldn’t accept her? Then she’d go to law school. Law firms wouldn’t hire her? Then she’d open her own. Politicians said someone like her would never make it to Congress? She’d prove them wrong, becoming the first woman of color in Congress, serving a total of 12 terms in the House of Representatives, and co-authoring Title IX, a law that would blast open opportunities for women in education and sports. Tashiki Nakamura’s digital illustrations sing with color and movement, reflecting the subject’s indomitable spirit. Accessible and engaging, this picture book biography is a must for any young reader’s shelf of inspirational figures.

Fall Down Seven Times, Stand Up Eight: Patsy T. Mink and the Fight for Title IX is out now!

Watch this space for an interview with Jen Bryant about this book later this week!

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Read This!: SET ME FREE by Ann Clare LeZotte

American Sign Language, ASL/Deaf Culture Book Reviews, Read This, Recommended Reading, Reviews

Set Me FreeSet Me Free by Ann Clare LeZotte
Summary: Three years after being kidnapped and rendered a “live specimen” in a cruel experiment to determine the cause of her deafness, fourteen year old Mary Lambert is summoned from her home in Martha’s Vineyard to the mainland to teach a younger deaf girl to communicate with sign language. She can’t help but wonder, Can a child of eight with no prior language be taught? Still, weary of domestic life and struggling to write as she used to, Mary pours all her passion into the pursuit of freeing this child from the prison of her isolation. But when she arrives at the manor, Mary discovers that there is much more to the girl’s story — and the circumstances of her confinement — than she ever could have imagined. Freeing her suddenly takes on a much greater meaning — and risk.

In Show Me a Sign, Ann Clare LeZotte introduced us to Mary Lambert and the people of Martha’s Vineyard in the early 1800s, where nearly everyone signed and deaf islanders were fully integrated into the life of the island. The Mary we meet in Set Me Free, three years after she was kidnapped and dragged to the mainland to be experimented upon, is warier and wiser. When she is offered the chance to tutor an eight-year-old deaf girl who seems to have no access to communication, she says yes, though she has no idea of the web of secrets and lies she will uncover when she leaves the island to go to the fine manor house. Mary relies on her wits and her own internal moral compass to communicate with the hearing people in the house, always determined to reach the girl – determined not to give up on her, even if her own family already has. Along the way, Mary must confront old friends and enemies, and reckon with the web of prejudice around her, even in her own family and history. LeZotte once again offers a nuanced picture of history, naturally incorporating characters of many backgrounds into the story and showing how the lives of the Wampanoag, black, and white characters are intertwined both on the island and the mainland. Mary remains both passionate and compassionate even as she learns greater patience for those whose minds have not been opened as much as her own. At a family dinner, Papa toasts Mary by signing, “To our Mary, in all her beautiful contradictions.” LeZottte’s work, in turn, shines a light on the beautiful contradictions in every one of us.

SET ME FREE is out now.

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Read This!: LUCY’S BLOOMS by Dawn Babb Prochovnic

Read This, Recommended Reading

Lucy's BloomsLucy’s Blooms by Dawn Babb Prochovnic
Summary: The town’s annual flower contest is coming soon, and a young girl puts her heart into growing a lively bunch of flowers she finds in a meadow. As her grandmother guides her in nurturing a garden, the girl learns that winning isn’t the true reward–it’s the special love found in caring for something or someone. Lucy’s Blooms celebrates the joy and happiness that the world has to offer, through the beauty of nature, the kindness and love of family, and the unique specialness in the most unexpected places.

This is a beautiful story of the nurturing power of love – Grams’ love for Lucy, and Lucy in turn pouring that love and care into her blooms. Like many children, Lucy must confront the reality that not everyone will see the magic she sees in the things she loves – some people might even dismiss them as weeds. But buoyed by the security and affection of her grandmother, Lucy knows that her blooms have something none of the prize-winning flowers can boast. Dawn Babb Prochovnic’s lyrical text skips along like Lucy’s twirling dance in the meadow, perfectly paired with Alice Brereton’s exuberant art. A celebration of connection – human to human, and human to nature – that shines with all the warmth of a sunny summer day in the garden.

Lucy’s Blooms by Dawn Babb Prochovnic is out now!

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