Top 5 Wednesday: Required Reading

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted on Goodreads. Feel free to join the group here. I haven’t been very much active on the blog this past month, so this is kind of my opportunity to make up for it. The theme for this week is required reading, and I wanted to talk about five books that I picked up in high school or thanks to university. These were not necessarily required reading, but maybe some suggestions from professors that I ended up really loving! I studied both French and English/American literature, so it’s going to be a combination of both, with a mix of autobiographies because that’s also a subject I took many classes on!

The Ladies’ Paradise by Emile Zola

I read this one for school when I was in 9th grade, and I ended up falling in love with this book. To this day, it is still one of my favourites. I remember reading way into the night because I couldn’t sleep. And because of this book, I ended up picking up more of Zola’s work (I particularly enjoyed The Kill as well, I feel like it’s been a while since I last talked about it.) Basically the story centers on the opening of a big department store in Paris during the 19th century, while the city is being modernized. We follow Denise, who has lost everything and became an employee there. She is quickly noticed by her employer, who falls in love with her. Bonus: it’s one of the only books by Zola that actually has a happy ending!

The Years by Annie Ernaux

I picked up this one when I was doing my bachelor’s degree, and it has also become one of my favourite. It’s non-fiction this time. It’s this autobiography of the other from childhood to adulthood. She was born in 1940 during the war, and through the book, explains how she felt like through her life, she passed through major historical events without really being able to participate in them. She is an amazing writer and I can only recommend you check out her work!

A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf

I picked up this one, as you guessed it, through my English studies, and I don’t think I really need to introduce it. I’ve since then read many more books about feminism, but I still cherish this one, and I would love to reread it one day.

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

When I started my Master’s I took a class on Afrofuturism, and my professor recommended this book, which I ended up really loving. It’s a vampire reimagined story, which starts when a seeminly young girl wakes up with no memory of her life. She soon finds out that she is actually an adult genetically modified vampire, and that her community is at risk. This book was absolutely excellent, and I’m so glad I got to discover Butler’s novels through it!

The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis

And last but not least, another French autobiography that was also recommended to me by one of my professors. This one is also contemporary and contemplates questions of class, education and sexuality. Edouard Louis is an amazing writer. I have yet to pick up more of his work, but I am definitely looking forward!

And that’s it for today! Thank you so much for reading, have a wonderful day, and please feel free to recommend some of your favourite required readings!

Favourite Reads of 2020

I haven’t posted in a while and this post has been sitting in my drafts for even longer, but I really wanted to share it at some point.  I usually pick a list of ten favourite books each year, or at least that’s what I have been doing for the past few years. However, as I managed to read 200+ books in 2020, I decided to indulge myself and picked out 16 books that I absolutely LOVED and wanted to talk about just once more.

Most of them were released in 2019/2020, and no one will be surprised when I add: most of them are YA. But without further ado, let’s get to my list!

I added trigger warnings as much as I could, if you feel like I missed some please let me know!

Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee
Ace rep 💜

I was really looking forward to this one because Anna Karenina is one of my favourite classics, and of course I wanted to check it out because of the ace rep. And it’s no surprise I completely fell in love with it. I really loved the fact that we follow a bunch of content creators. It has some really good tropes, and overall, I am full of love when it comes to this book.

Eliza and her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
rep: anxiety, panic attacks, questioning aro/ace
Trigger warnings: anxiety, bullying, suicide, suicidal thoughts

I had heard so many great things about this book, and I don’t know why I put off reading it for such a long time. It was excellent. Again, we are on fandom territory (which is partt of what made it so relatable.) It’s a beautiful book about internet friendships and fame, and I loved it with all my heart.

Summer Bird Blue by Akemi Dawn Bowman
rep: multiracial, questioning aro/ace
TW: car accident/death

I had read Starfish in 2019 and really loved it, so of course I was looking forward to reading this one. It deals with grief, and my heart ached with Rumi on many occasions, but it also resonated with her on her journey and the whole questioning of her sexuality. This book was both stunning and important, and I can only recommend it. I’m already looking forward to Akemi Dawn Bowman’s future releases!

Love from A to Z by S.K. Ali
rep: multiracial, muslim
TW: racism, islamophobia

This one gets the palm of the only non-queer book on that list! It was just too cute not to belong on here. It had already been on my shelves for a couple months when I finally picked it up. I had originally bought it because I really enjoyed S.K. Ali’s previous book Saints and Misfits, but I actually loved this one! It deals with islamophobia a lot, and has a badass feminist main character called Zayneb. The other main character, Adam, is secretly dealing with the fact that he was just diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and left college without telling his family. It’s a beautiful book about friendships, and the romance is THE CUTEST THING.

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
rep: lesbian, Dominican MC

Elizabeth Acevedo is an author I discovered I 2020, and Clap When You Land is so far my favourite of her books. We follow two sisters who just learn of each other’s existence when their father disappears in a plane crash. It’s a poignant book about grief and family, and I’m pretty sure I won’t forget it any time soon. I would also 100% recommend it if you haven’t read it yet.

Little Black Bird by Anna Kirchner
rep: questioning aro/ace

I have been following Anna on Instagram for quite some time now, and was really looking forward to her book release. It has polish folklore & mythology, as well as a great cast of queer characters, and it now also has my heart. It’s a great fantasy novel and I cannot wait for the sequel to be released!

This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
rep: WLW

This book is the hill I will die on. It was so well written, I couldn’t put it down. The world building is honestly a little mysterious and complicated to follow at first, but those love letters really have my heart. I actually read this one on Scribd during the first lockdown not really knowing what to expect and seriously I wasn’t prepared for what came for me. Is it too much to say that this is now my favourite book ever? Because I think it is. (Yes, this list is in no particular order, and yes, I absolutely need my own copy of this one because I WILL be rereading it.)

Loveless by Alice Oseman
rep: aro/ace MC, pan, enby & lesbian side characters

Loveless was also one of my most anticipated releases of the year, and I’m pretty sure it is my favourite of Alice Oseman’s novels at this point (I can say it now that I have read them all!). It has been brought to my attention that yes, this is not the only ace experience, and that some of the rep can be harmful, but I also want to cherish it because I identified with Georgia SO MUCH (despite the fact that I do not identity as aromantic.)

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
rep: trans, gay

I 100% read this book because of the hype, but it was also 100% worth it so no regrets! It has a great fantasy world building with a bruj family and ghosts and also a very addictive romance. I am competely sold, and looking forward to Aiden Thomas’ next releases!

I’ll Be the One by Lyla Lee
rep: Korean-American, bisexual, fat rep
TW: homophobia, fatphobia

The kpop and kdrama fan in me knew I had to check out this one, especially once I heard that the main character was bisexual. This book follows a kpop contest set in the US and it has everything my kdrama loving heart could want. I loved the pace and the characters. Honestly this is such a good comfort book, and I can only recommend it 💜

You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
rep: African-American, WLW
TW: racism, homophobia

Again, I picked up this book because of the hype, and again, I fell in love with it. We follow Liz, a no-nonsense teenage girl who enters a prom queen contest because she wants to get a scholarship and soon finds herself falling for the new girl… A cute romcom with amazing characters and friendships!

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
rep: asexual MC, trans, lesbian (MC of the sequel)

Another book that had been on my TBR for a while! I have now read the whole series (well, I’m almost done with the one that was released in the beginning of January) and I’m honestly not sure what my favourite thing about these books is: the world building which is seriously everything I have wished for in my life, and didn’t know that I needed until now, or the amazing cast of queer characters. I love them all so much.

Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuinston
rep: gay, bisexual

Yes I am aware that this list has many hyped books, but what can I say, I am weak for chaotic bisexual characters, and enemies to lovers romance, and as you probably guessed at this point if you haven’t read it, this book has both (and on top of that a 2020 that was much nicer than the one we went through!) I devoured this book, and I am now trash for it.

The Black Flamingo by Dead Atta
rep: gay, drag queen
TW: racism, homophobia

This is a book that I discovered thanks to Scribd, and it blew my mind away. It’s a beautiful novel in verse, about coming of age and coming to terms with one’s sexuality. The main character also discovers drag in college, and I loved that aspect of the story! If you haven’t checked out this book yet, then I highly recommend it. It was beautiful and heartwarming and so, so important.

King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender
rep: gay
TW: death, racism, homphobia

I know I say this a lot, but this book was SO IMPORTANT! (Also yes, I read Felix Ever After, it was fantastic, but I liked this one even better.) We follow King who is mourning for his brother, and navigating his own sexuality and his relationship with his best friend who just came out to him. This book was stunning and I want to cry just thinking about it. It’s so beautiful. 💜

On Earth We Are Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
rep: Vietnamese-American, gay
TW: racism, homophobia

I’m going to say it once again, and it’s the last time for today: this book was asbsolutely stunning. It’s written in the form of a letter from a son to his mother, in which he talks about his roots and his homosexuality as well as addictions. I picked it up because I heard about it on booktube, and this was one of the best decisions I ever made. This was such a beautiful book, and I’m also delighted to say that it’s just been translated to French which means I now get to talk about it at work and convince more people to buy it & read it!

Honorary mention: three middle grade books I fell in love with in December because I wanted to hype them one more time before moving on to the rest of my reading list: Rick by Alex Gino, Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi and The Strangeworlds Travel Agency by LD Lapinski. These three seriously warmed up my heart and deserve all the love they can get!

December Reading Wrap Up

I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to read as much in December as in the past few months, because with what of Christmas month, I had more work to do, and was more tired. Thankfully, that wasn’t really the case! I started the month with three amazing middle grade books, and managed to get a decent amount of reading done in the end. With that being said, happy new year! And let’s get into the books I read last month!

Middle grade books:

Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I was really excited about this one since I loved the two previous books in the series, and it was just as great. New characters are introduced, as well as new plot twists, and it was overall wonderful. The book ends on a cliffhanger, and I can’t wait for the last instalment in this amazing series!

The Strangeworlds Travel Agency by LD Lapinski ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I also started a new series which had been on my radar for a while! In this one, we follow 12 y/o Flick who stumbles upon a mysterious travel agency. Soon she discovers that she is able to travel to parallel universes through suitcases, and that the heart of this world is in danger. With the help of the agency owner, she will do anything to stop it. This book was amazing, and really promising for the rest of the series! I’m excited for new youger readers to discover it!

Rick by Alex Gino ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I read George a couple years ago, and loved it with all my heart, so when I heard that Alex Gino had written a new story with an a-spec character, I knew that of course, I had to check it out. It won’t come as a surprise when I say that I absolutely loved it. This book is precious, it’s beautiful and important and I’m so glad that it’s out there in the world.

Young adult:

The Life and (Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly by Jamie Pacton ⭐⭐⭐
I was really excited for this book when I first heard of it because I’m all about girls who want to be knights. And to that extent, it did live up to my expectations! This book was also nicely diverse. But it was also very full of clichés. And I have come to the conclusion once again that I’m getting too old for YA books (or at least some of them… Not that it’s going to stop me from reading them!) So overall: enjoyable, but maybe not for me.

Historical fiction:

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles ⭐⭐⭐⭐
It had been a while since I had last read a good historical fiction novel, and this reminded me of how much I do enjoy them. This one follows a dual timeline betwen WWII Paris and small town in Montana in the 1980s, and mostly centers on what happened to the American Library in Paris and its members during the war. It’s a beautiful story about bravery and trust and betrayal. If you like stories with morally gray characters, and WWII stories in general, then I ddefinitely recommend you check out this one!

Graphic novels:

Chinese Queer by Seven ⭐⭐⭐
This one follows the life story of Tian Fushi as he goes through several relationships, and overall both grows up and figures himself out a little bit better.

Peau d’homme de Hubert et Zanzim ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Literally “a man’s skin”, this graphic novel takes place during medieval times and follows a young woman who disguises as a man with a precious man’s skin that is a family heirloom, and tries to get to know her fiancé a little bit better. Overall, it went places I didn’t really expect, and I really enjoyed it!

Livres en français:

La belle lumière d’Angélique Villeneuve ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A stunning historical fiction about the story of Helen Keller’s life. Based on the real life story, Angélique Villeneuve filled in the gaps left in between letters, and built an amazing character who faught for her daughter’s right to independance. It was absolutely beauitful.

La ville sans vent vol.2 d’Éléonore Devillepoix ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The sequel to a book I read earlier this year, it’s a fantasy story with a great world-building. I really grew attached to the characters, and would definitely recommend it to people who loved A Winter’s Promise by Christelle Dabos, and who like fantasy in general!

L’âme agit des livres de Mademoiselle Fa ⭐⭐⭐.5
This one is a short poetry book with many word plays.

Non fiction:

This is How it Starts by Dawn Lanuza ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A beautiful poetry book about breakups. I had read another collection by Dawn Lanuza in the past, and greatly enjoyed it, so I’m really glad I picked up this one to finish the year!

The Invisivle Orientation by Julie Sondra Decker ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This one if you haven’t heard of it is an introdution to asexuality. I bought it back in June and was really looking forward to reading it. I felt so seen and validated through it all (even if it’s not something I relate to one hundred percent of the time, it’s nice to hear that it’s OKAY and NORMAL to feel and thing like this). Anyway, I’m still confused, but I loved this book wholeheartedly and I can only recommed it.

Présentes by Lauren Bastide ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A newly released French book about feminism, developing on the place and presence of women in public space and media. I have to admit I didn’t learn that much, but I’m still educating myself, and the author did make some pretty good points.

Freedom is a constant struggle by Angela Y. Davis ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
And finally, this one was a series of speeches about freedom and anti-racism by activist Angela Davis. I’m so glad I took the time to read it, it was very interesting, and I would definitely recommend it! And overall I’m also really glad I finally took the time to pick up some non-fiction this month.

That’s it for today, thank you so much for reading, and again, happy new year!