May Reading Wrap Up

May was a good reading month! I read a bit of everything from romance to feminist essays to YA, and most of my reads were hits. I’m slowly catching up with my blog posts these days, and I’m really happy about it. Thanks for reading!

Romance:

The Girl With the Make-Believe Husband by Julia Quinn ⭐⭐⭐
The Other Miss Bridgerton by Julia Quinn ⭐⭐⭐⭐
First Comes Scandal by Julia Quinn ⭐⭐⭐⭐

After speed reading the Bridgertons I moved on to the prequels, and I have to admit, I didn’t enjoy those as much as I did some of the Bridgertons, but the last two really made up for it. I have to admit, when the show was first released, I never thought that I’d read those, and yet here we are… I’m obsessed, and I will definitely be reading more of the spinoffs in the foreseeable future.

Reputation by Lex Croucher ⭐⭐⭐.5
While I did have a great time reading this one, I feel like it could have been much shorter. Aside from that it has friendships, romance and loads of drama, in an atmosphere that’s the perfect blend between Jane Austen in Bridgerton, so if that sounds like something you might enjoy, then I’d definitely recommend it!

Fiction:

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo ⭐⭐⭐⭐
After reading About My Daughter in April, and being more disappointed than anything else, I wanted to check out another novel about the condition of women in South Korea (which by extension applies to the rest of the world). It deals with sexism at work and in education, post-partum depression and the general pressure that the world applies onto women. I’d heard great things about this book, and I’m really glad that I finally decided to read it: it was really good.

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The same thing applies to this one! Crying in H Mart had been on my TBR for a while, and I was really curious about it. It’s a brilliant memoir about life as an Asian American, in which the author recalls everything from her relationship with her mother who just passed away, to her blossoming career as a singer-songwriter. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Michelle Zauner herself, and I had an amazing time reading it.

Young adult:

I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was quite possibly one of my most anticipated releases on the year, and let me tell you: it totally lived up to my expectations and I’m so glad about that. It’s a YA mysterious quest sort of book that follows three teens who are looking for a girl who disappeared after kissing them all on prom night, and left all sort of clues behind her. We follow the improbable friendship growing between her boyfriend, her neighbour and her rival. This is the perfectly example of a book that I couldn’t put it down. Think Paper Towns but make it sapphic. I loved it.

Almond by Sohn Won-Pyung ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I read this book in one sitting, and boy was it worth it. It’s the story of a teenage boy who has alexithymia, meaning that it’s hard for him to feel and express emotions. We watch him grow and brutally lose his mother and grandmother. We watch him discover school and friendships and finally beginning to feel things. It was absolutely excellent. If you loved Wonder by RJ Palacio, then you should definitely check this one out! [TW: violence, death]

Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I absolutely adored These Violent Delights, and I don’t know why I didn’t pick this one up immediately upon its release. Nevertheless, it was excellent. I’m in love with these characters, their mistakes and their selfish decisions. Chloe Gong has my heart (and wallet). I cannot wait for Foul Lady Fortune!

Livre en français:

Les pépins de grenade de Sarah Briand ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Les frénétiques d’Adeline Fleury ⭐⭐⭐

I read the first two because we hosted the authors for signing sessions at work, and they were both delightful. Les pépins de grenade is a historical fiction about WWII so of course it had my heart from the start. And Les frénétiques is a sapphic thriller that had me intrigued from the start. It’s super well written, and I’m really glad that I got to meet the author!

Une vie possible de Line Papin ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Avortée de Pauline Harmange ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

And I also read both of these which are nonfiction about abortion, a topic that seems all the more relevant in these past weeks’ context when it comes to the US especially, but still in many other countries including Poland and Hungary where women and queer people’s rights are more and more limited. Anyway, these to were enlightening, and I’m really glad that I picked them up. Pauline Harmange is the author of I Hate Men and I will seriously read anything that she writes.

Mangas:

Celle que je suis by Bingo Morihashi vol.1 & 2 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Blue Period vol.3 by Yamaguchi Tsubasa ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End vol.3 by Yamada Kanehito⭐⭐⭐⭐
Sasaki to Miyano vol.3 by Harusono Shou ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Plus one graphic novel! I finally read Snapdragon by Kat Leyh. I gave it ⭐⭐⭐⭐ and I had SUCH A GOOD TIME reading it. It’s queer and witchy, it has family secrets and it’s super wholesome. Highly recommended if you haven’t read it yet!

The Nowhere Girls: My Review

I read The Nowhere Girls last month, and found out about it thanks to Riveted Lit, as it was a free read on their website (gods bless them). I didn’t really know what to expect, but the blurb was really catchy, and I ended up LOVING the book! Ever since I read it, I also heard many people complimenting and recommending it, so basically I wonder how I hadn’t heard of it before, but I’m so glad I finally came across it! Also, how gorgeous is that cover??

Title: The Nowhere Girls
Author: Amy Reed
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Publication: 2017
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

TW: Rape, Assault

The story:

The Nowhere Girls follows Grace as she moves into a new town after her mom, a Baptist preacher, turned into a liberal and was rejected by her own community. At her new school, she befriends Rosina a queer punk girl from a Mexican family who constantly has to help out at the diner her uncle owns, or babysitting her cousins; and Erin, a Star Trek obsessed girl constantly following weird diets because her mother thinks it will help with her Asperger’s. When Grace finds out that her house was previously occupied by a girl the same age as her called Lucy, who was chased out of the community because she had accused the most popular guys in school of gang raping her, she decides that she has to do something. Thus are born the Nowhere Girls, an anonymous group who intends to resist the constant sexism that the girls are facing in their own high school.

My opinion:

I absolutely LOVED this book, from the fantastic writing style to the various POV alternating through the chapters, from the three main characters Grace, Rosina and Erin, but also from other girls attending the same school and witnessing the same events. It was extremely cleverly done in my opinion.

The Nowhere Girls was absolutely empowering. It dealt with many aspects of growing up a girl, and dealing with rampant sexism, which was all the better considering it showcased different perspectives. That of girls who had been abused. But also the perspective of WOC and queer girls, and disabled girls. Of girls discovering their own sexuality. It displayed girls of different origins, of different educations, and the troubles they all could face in a very realistic way.

I found their environment extremely harsh and conservative, and I’m super grateful that my own environment was never that bad, but I also know and acknowledge that it exists (and maybe my context is a little bit different because I live in Europe and not America, but I don’t really know where I’m going from here).

This book was beautiful. It showed girls trying their best in the face of adversity. I also liked the fact that it showed girls and their families, for better or for worse. Grace and her absent parents who still loved her very much. Rosina’s complex relationship with her single mother. Erin’s overprotective mom, who was simply trying her best for her daughter. I thought it was particularly interesting to read from Erin’s perspective, as I don’t often have the occasion to read (or watch on TV) people who are on the spectrum, and it made this book all the more interesting ♥ Kudos to the amazing representation throughout the book!

Basically me @ anyone who would do these girls any harm.

I also loved to read from Rosina’s perspective, both as a WOC and as a queer girl with a crush on popular cheerleader. And obviously, I loved reading from Grace’s perspective, because the chubby catholic girl was exactly who I was in high school and it feels good for a character to be relatable like she was.

So basically, this book is important and I think you should read it!

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Similar recommendations:

* Goodbye Perfect by Sara Barnard is a story about friendship and family, also dealing with grooming and a teenage runaway.

* The Way I Used To Be by Amber Smith is another book dealing with the subject of rape, and more specifically with its aftermath on a teenage girl. This book was a heartbreaking and eye opening coming of age story.

* The Netflix show Sex Education: while it does not exactly deal with rape, it deals with coming of age and discovering your own sexuality, as well as unwanted pregnancy and the prejudice some girls can face throughout their high school and life in general — in that aspect it reminds me of The Nowhere Girls.

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Feel free to let me know in the comments your thoughts on The Nowhere Girls, or recommend similar books you think I might like ~

Paris Bookfair 2019

Just like every year, I am back with my endless babble about this year’s bookfair in Paris, aka Livre Paris! This time, I attended on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday morning for a conference. Overall, I went to several book talks and signings, and am very happy with the experience!

This time, I had the great surprise of seeing that Kasie West was in attendance! I absolutely loved her book P.S. I Like You, and have been hoping I’d get to read more of her writing ever since. Although I like reading the books in their original language better, I couldn’t resist getting a copy of Love, Life and the List in order to get it signed. She was absolutely adorable and even complimented my hair!

On Friday, I also got to buy and get signed a copy of a French book about feminism by Margaux Collet called Is Beyoncé really a feminist? which looks super interesting, as well as a graphic novel about Frida Kahlo by Spanish illustrator Maria Hesse (pictured above) which looks absolutely gorgeous!

Just like last year, Lumen Editions’ booth was absolutely gorgeous, this time featuring a Stranger Things theme, as they recently published the translation to the show’s prequel Suspicious Minds by Gwenda Bond.

By the end of Saturday I also bought a book about vegetarianism by French journalist Hugo Clément, and I really hope I enjoy it!

Finally I bought a collection of short stories by my queen Tatiana de Rosnay which I unfortunately didn’t manage to get signed because I was feeling like shit and went home, but it’s fine, I got to meet her last year! I also just finished reading her novel The Rain Watcher (the one I got signed last year) and I absolutely LOVED it. Hopefully I’ll manage to review it soon!

The programmation for this year did not attract me as much as it did the previous year, but I still attended a bunch of very interesting “tables rondes” (which is a fancy French name for discussions). The first one was about feminism, and then there was one about Thatcher and the Brexit, one about the Berlin wall and its consequences today, and one about epistolary novels and virtual exchange. All were super interesting and I’m really happy about that!

Finding Baba Yaga: My Review

Full title: Finding Baba Yaga: A Short Novel in Verse
Author: Jane Yolen
Genre: Fantasy, Poetry, Retelling
(could a blend of literary genres be more perfect that this one?)
Release: October 30th 2018
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

trigger warning: parental abuse

When I heard about this book, I knew it was right up my alley. I love retellings of Slavic mythology, and I hadn’t read any poetry in a while, so it was a perfect opportunity.

The story:

It follows the narrator, Natasha, a teenage girl who is abused by her father and decides to run away from home. After starving and wandering through the woods, she is taken in by Baba Yaga, the infamous witchy character from Slavic Mythology.

My thoughts:

I had read mixed reviews about this book before it was even released, but I absolutely loved the concept, so I knew I had to give it a go and see for myself. I didn’t go in with very high expectations, but I did love it!

I can only describe Finding Baba Yaga as the perfect blend between Vassa in the Night by Sarah Porter, Deathless by Catherynne M. Valente and the poetry of Amanda Lovelace in The Princess Saves Herself in This One, and I am here for it. It works well as a story in verse as it does follow a story in chronological order about a girl who is abused by her parents and rescued by Baba Yaga when she runs away from home. The story also features Vassilisa the Beautiful, Prince Ivan and Koshei the Deathless, all beloved characters from the slavic mythology. So it is partly a story, and it is partly a retelling, but it is also an ode to strong women, through both the character of Baba Yaga, and the narrator herself. This book is feminist all the way, and I love it. I have to admit I have a soft spot for feminist poetry (I have already mentioned Amanda Lovelace, but I’m also thinking about Rupi Kaur here) and this book just did the trick for me when it came to this beloved topic of mine, so if that is also something you like, then I can only recommend Finding Baba Yaga.

Overall, this book was a pleasant surprise. It was right up my alley, which was all the better since I hadn’t ready any similar book in a while. Five Stars, it was also a quick read, and I would definitely recommend it.

Meeting With Reni Eddo-Lodge!!!

I read Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race a little while ago and I absolutely wanted to talk about it on here, so this is the perfect opportunity. Last week, Reni Eddo-Lodge was in Paris for a talk at my favourite library Shakespeare & Company, so of course I had to go. And trust me, it was worth it. First of all, there was A LOT of people, but luckily I got there super early, so I got to sit on the third row. If you have ever been to Shakespeare and Co, you’ll know that’s there’s not a lot of room inside, but it was completely packed with people everywhere, sitting, standing, and seeing the talk from different screens in the shop.

For an hour, she answered questions about her book and her activism. She even read her original blog post, which inspired the book (and she has a gorgeous British accent, sorry not sorry I had to say it). She talked of course about the questions addressed in the books, the history of Black people in the UK, white priviledge, feminism, and more. I could have stayed listening to her forever, honestly she is such an interesting and inspiring person. If you haven’t read her book yet, I highly recommend it. I just want to reread it now honestly, because though I have spent my time tabbing it, I still feel like I have missed so much… This book is so important. If you’re going to read only one book this year, it should be this one. It’s really well made, and clear, and I just, I don’t have the words, but go read this book.

In the meantime, I also found out that she made a podcast called About Race, which I am definitely going to check out.

After the talk, the bookshop offered us wine, and Reni Eddo-Lodge signed her book! It was so surreal to meet her (and of course I made a complete fool of myself). But I can’t wait to hear more and read more of her!

Why I Didn’t Say #MeToo

I’ve been thinking about this a lot, and eventually decided to write it down. I wanted to say #metoo, and yet I didn’t feel legitimate enough. Some of you have been through so much more, why should I complain? I haven’t been beaten up, I haven’t been raped. Some part of me does not feel legitimate enough, and yet I also realised that some things that happened to me shouldn’t have happened, and shouldn’t be deemed normal.

One day, it was summer, maybe five years ago, and it was hot like hell, I was wearing a t-shirt and a skirt – and why should it matter? – just walking home from the train station, minding my own business, and as I passed some random guy, I heard him mutter “prostitute”. For no reason. I didn’t look at him, didn’t talk to him, I was wearing my headphones, and yet after all these years I can still hear him saying this. I cannot unhear this simple word. It was ridiculous and unjustified. And this guy should not have said them.

So me too, I have been harassed.

Me too, I had random guys catcall me in the street, and even in my own dorm last year, once, when I was in my kitchen, in my pyjamas, minding my own business while baking cookies for my friends.

Me too, I had strangers touch me inappropriately in the commute, just because they felt that if it was too crowded, it would go unnoticed, it was permitted.

When I was in the ninth grade, I was bullied by this guy sitting in front of me in class (we had assigned seats). No one really knew about it, except the people who heard him and just joked around, thinking it didn’t matter. I talked about it with my best friend, but I couldn’t bear to tell her the extent of it. This guy kept making sexual propositions to me – we were fourteen or fifteen, mind you – and asking to “buy my virginity for 20 cents” and continued though I didn’t find it funny, didn’t laugh at all, almost cried and asked him to stop talking to me many times. At some point, I went to see our homeroom teacher, who was probably the professor I trusted the most because she was one of the kindest people I had ever met. I went to see her and asked to change seats because that guy was harassing me, and I couldn’t stand it anymore. But she told me that it wasn’t a problem, he had problems in his family with his brother and parents, and I should be nice to him. Though that was not the problem, and he was the problem and his actions shouldn’t be excused. I felt betrayed by this teacher, who didn’t take my pain seriously.

And here I am, years later, thinking that his actions probably partly led to my depression. Here I stand, and I can say “me too”. Me too, I have been harassed, by people I knew, and by people I didn’t know. There are one time occasions and repetitive ones, and none of them should be minimised. It is still harassment even if it’s just a one time thing. Flirting and harassing people are very different things. It plays in the tone of the words, and it plays in the words spoken. Yes, I do like it when people pay attention to me. But harassment is not paying attention to me. It is unwelcome and unwanted. It makes me uncomfortable. And that’s just a natural reaction.

People go minimising harassment because it’s not as bad as rape. But the same people will tell you that “she was asking for it, come on, have you seen what she was wearing?”. The same people will go tell you that the victim is exaggerating the situation and so on. Don’t listen to them. If someone by their actions towards you makes you feel uncomfortable, you should speak up, and even seek protection if you think it’s necessary.

This is all parts of what makes me a person, what makes me who I am, and I wish it didn’t have to be.

Ps: I recommend you to read this article which expresses my thoughts even better than everthing I just shared https://totalsororitymove.com/literally-why-cant-i-say-metoo/

Let’s Talk About Feminism Some More

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article where I shared some thoughts about inequalities, feminism and bullying on Twitter among other things (here is the link). Someone answered telling me that the gender pay gap was a myth, and trying to explain me why. After turning this in my head over and over trying to figure out what to do with this, doing some quick research to make sure that yes, this was bullshit, I finally decided to come back with yet another article, because apparently this is what I do.

And in case you’re wondering, I left the comment below the article though I didn’t really know what to do with it. And yes, I know everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but sometimes people are wrong, and considering this person is using swastika to symbolize feminist, I will not bother answering them. Maybe they will read this article. In any case, I will not take time to answer them, considering the fact that – as I addressed in my previous article – the term “feminazi” is highly wrong as it refers to a historical group that exterminated thousands of people for anti-Semitic and racist reason. I will not delve further into this, but this whole thing is making me more and more uncomfortable.

Don’t. Ever. Use. The. Term. Feminazi. Ever.

It is not a word and it shouldn’t be.

Let me tell you a few things about what mattered in my previous article (and still matter to me, and should matter to everyone in my humble opinion), and some things about why his comment was inappropriate and angered me endlessly.

What I was trying to point out was the fact that feminists were often misjudged. We are in a constantly evolving society, and yes – thankfully – a lot of progress have been made for women. But oh my, we are still far from it. And yes, white straight female from wealthy/privileged countries probably don’t always see that problem. And to some extent, I am immensely happy for them. Because I am happy for successful women. But come one people, let’s not stop at that. There are still thousands of uneducated young girls, young women, and older women, because people don’t value women’s education as well as men’s. (If you want to help, or just learn, check out CARE’s website.) And that is only the beginning of the problem. There are wage inequalities between white men and white women, but these get even worse for women of colour. And lower wages are only the surface of the iceberg. Men are usually considered first for promotion (and by that I mean allocishet white males). It’s harder for women of colour and trans women to get jobs. And why should it be? Name one single reason? There is absolutely not a single reason why we as women should have less rights than men.

By the way, this person was trying to assess his point of view with some examples, if you want to get some knowledge on gender wage gap, check out this Wikipedia page, it is extremely well made in my opinion. A few numbers to remember: the gender wage gap between men and women is somewhere between 4 and 8%, and at this rate, wages would be equal by 2109 – and I am delighted to tell you that I will be very dead at that point, so that’s not very encouraging.

Some people think it’s not necessary to be angry. I’m not asking you to be angry. I’m just asking you to acknowledge that I do, in facts, have a right to be angry. And as a white cis woman from a privileged country, I also know that I am privileged compared to many others. What I was trying to point out in my previous – and want to emphasize here again – is the fact that not only there are gaps between men and women, but that these gaps increase for women of colour, or trans women, or disabled women, who face even more discrimination. Not only do they get lower wages, but it is harder for them to get jobs. And we need to fight for them, we need to fight for their rights.

The thing is, the discrimination against women is not something that can only be seen on read through facts and numbers. It is something that is deeply rooted in our society. Centuries ago, men were going out to work while women were taking care of the house. There is also the problem of children, and when women get on maternity leave, they also can get in trouble with their jobs. Husbands earning more money as their wives is seen as the normalcy because the man is usually seen is the one who brings food on the table, and earns money. Women in high positions of power are often disrespected just because they are women and it makes men uncomfortable. Women are judged for what they look like rather than what they think and can do. And that, once again, is a prejudice deeply rooted in our society.

Even if you truly believe that the gender wage gap is a myth please don’t go argue with me in the comments and get your facts straight. And for once, listen to women when they tell you the situation is not fair rather than dismissing them because they make you uncomfortable.

I also wanted to add that I was quite pissed because this gender wage gap problem is the only thing this person has taken from my article when I was trying to address so much more issues such as the fact that it is normal and revolutionary for women to fight for their rights through social media. It makes you uncomfortable? It’s probably because it’s working. Oh, I’m sorry we are taking away from your privilege. (Kidding, I’m not sorry.)

I know this article in some parts just sounds like an angry rant, but hey, I have every single right to be an angry feminist, and I will keep hoping and working for a better world.

In the meantime, I promise you some bookish content very soon, and I hope you have a wonderful day!

Let’s Talk About Feminism

The other day, I got into an argument on Twitter with some random guy. Basically, he twitted something like “Let’s make a group to bully feminazis together and help each other against them” and I subtweeted “Who still does that?” and then people started getting angry. He also randomly insulted someone who had nothing to do with this in the middle of his answers. I was honestly apalled. Originally I wanted to make a thread on Twitter, but I realised I had too much to say, and decided to make a blog post instead.

First of all, he was making a group to bully people he didn’t like, don’t even get me started on that. That’s not what twitter or any social media is for. And it’s dangerous. Don’t even get me started on that. Bullying is wrong, end of the argument.

But the issue I wanted to address here is the term “feminazi” which is wrong, and shouldn’t even exist. The term “nazi” refers to a group of people who killed thousand of Jews, homosexuals, Roma and POC as well as political opposants in concentration camps. And this term should only refer to them. Since I started living in Germany, I realised that this issue was even more sensitive than I originally thought it was. Using this word is serious (it also goes for “grammar nazi” by the way, don’t say this, it doesn’t make sense). Using it is wrong. It’s harmful for no reason. Please don’t do that.

Now, there is another term I often hear when referring to feminists, and that is “anrgy feminist”. In a way, I find it quite negative, but at the same time, I am a feminist, and I am angry, and I wouldn’t mind being called an angry feminist, because I have a right to be angry.

* I’m angry because people expect me to shut up, get married, have kids and take care of my family.

* I am angry because the advertisement industry is sexist.

* I am angry because too many women don’t have a right to education.

* I am angry because of all the prejudice against sex workers.

* I am angry because of the salary differences between men and women, and even more so, between white men and women of colour. I honestly can’t believe we live in a society like this.

I want to fight for a better world, and I can’t believe there are people who want to shut us up. I have a right to be angry. As long as there are inequalities, I have a right to be angry. Feminism is about equality, not about men bashing – though men are mostly the reason of those inequalities, and are pretty fine with it. Feminism is about giving women – all women – the same rights as men and especially white allocishet men. It’s not about giving women more rights than men. It’s also about raising awareness on those inequalities and solve them. I can’t believe this is the 21st century and people still don’t know that.

In the light of Simone Veil’s recent passing away, I also wanted to comment on something I have seen going around on social media. In case you didn’t know, who Simone Veil is, she is a French politician and activist who fought for women’s right to abortion. And another important fact about her is that she was deported in a concentration camp during World War II as a child, and came back. She was an amazing woman.

She passed away recently, and people again couldn’t help but saying abortion was horrible, but that’s not even what I wanted to discuss. Abortion should be a right, and should be up to a woman’s choice.

What I wanted to discuss is the fact that people were dissing on contemporary feminism, and how much Veil would be ashamed of us. And they were saying that it was better in the past, and that we were aggressive for no reason. I already have listed some of my reasons above. And the feminist movement always had to be violent, at least to some extent, and one of the best exemples for this is probably the Suffragettes movement, which happened a century ago. We just use different means because it’s a different era. And once again, we have a right to be angry. I’m not sure whether it’s a good thing or not, but it’s a fact: you need to scream to make your voice be heard in this world. There’s still a lot to do, and we need to fight, because otherwise there’s no way we’ll be heard. Honestly I can’t believe French people still don’t see that. We got democracy through a revolution. Women at least have a right to be angry that we still don’t have the same rights as men.

And in today’s era, social media is one of the means we have to do that, and we’re not going to be ashamed of it, and we’re not going to stop. It just makes sense, and it’s efficient (and that’s probably why it annoys some people). Social media is one mean among others to be heard, and of course we’re going to take our fight there, just like the Suffragettes took it to the streets. This was a century ago. You can’t compare it to our fight today.

Before I end this article, I know that I am also priviledged, as a young white woman living in Europe. And I recognize that there are many more women who suffer these inequalities more than I do. And I want to fight for them.

 

Lorde made an excellent point about feminism not too long ago (you can watch it here) and I think she’s absolutely right. Honestly, these words are so inspirational, I’m going to try to be more like her when it comes to this. And still fight for it.

And if you want to educate yourself about feminism, I definitely recommend We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, both the TED Talk and the booklet.

The Feminist Booktag

I found this tag on a French blog called Allez Vous Faire Lire (which would be translated as “Go read yourself” or something of the sort!) and when I saw the title, I knew I had to do it as well. It was created by La Voix Du Livre, another blog in French (The voice of the book).

Basically, the idea of this tag is to talk about female characters, female authors and feminist ideas. And I love it. If you want to do it, you just have to answer the 10 different questions.

I haven’t done a tag in forever, and it felt like a good idea!

*****

1- Your favourite female author

   

Victoria Schwab

I haven’t read all of Schwab’s book yet, but I’m definitely planning on achieving that. She is so talented, and creates diverse and unique characters. Her fantasy worlds are amazing. And she, herself, is an amazing person. I really admire her.

2- Your favourite heroine

Sansa Stark from Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Based on both book and TV show, I really love Sansa and her character development. She has always been one of my favourite characters in A Song of Ice and Fire, and I think she is a badass underrated heroine.

3- A novel with a feminist message

The Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer

For this prompt I decided to pick the Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer because it has a set of diverse, badass ladies who are all different and take no shit from anyone, and basically save the world together.

4- A novel with a girl on the cover

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Many books would have matched this prompt, but I decided to pick one of my recent reads, with an important message and an incredibly brave heroine.

5- A novel featuring a group of girls

For this one, I first thought of the Lunar Chronicles series, but I eventually decided to choose it for another prompt. Then there is also the Summers of the Sisterhood series, which feature a group of friends through the years. And finally, I thought of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, and its modern retelling Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (review). All of these match the prompt and have an amazing cast of amazing ladies!

6- A novel with a LGBTQIAP+ feminine character

The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker

This book centers on two amazing ladies who create cartoons together. It is taught through the point of view of Sharon, and her best friend, the other central character, is a lesbian. Honestly, this book changed my life. It was fantastic. (review)

7- A novel with different feminine POV

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

This book features three major different feminine point of views and I love it for that (and many other reasons). First, there’s obviously Dimple’s point of view, she’s a young feminist, and wants to have a great career as a coder. Then there’s her mother, who is more conservative, and wants her daughter to find a good husband. And then there’s Dimple’s friend Celia, who is also a coder, and struggles to be accepted by others (while Dimple basically doesn’t care). All three amazing ladies ♥

8- A book where a girl saves the world

   

I can’t help but think about the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and the Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth. But I wanted to mention something more original. And then I remembered about The Awakened duology by Sara Santana and the New World triology by Jennifer Wilson. Though I haven’t finished that one, it is definitely amazing.

9- A book where you prefer the female sidekick to the male MC

Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

I will seriously never get tired of Hermione. She’s amazing. And I do love Harry Potter, but it’s in Hermione that I found myself while reading those books. She is such an inspiration.

10- A book written by a male author and featuring a female character

All the Light we cannot see by Anthony Doerr

And of course I’m talking about Marie-Laure, who is one of the strongest characters I have ever read. Seperated from her father during WWII, uprooted from everything she knew, and still so strong. She is a character I will never forget.

*****

There are so many other great female characters that I love and admire, some of which are Annabeth Chase from the Percy Jackson series, Delilah Bard from A Darker Shade of Magic, Inej Ghafa from Six of Crows or Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games. The list never ends. Feel free to share your favourite in the comments!

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed! I’m not tagging anyone because I wasn’t tagged myself, and I don’t want to bother any of you, but if you want to do this tag as well, feel free to do so and consider yourself tagged!

Body Issues: Why I Wear Makeup

After writing my posts about mental illness and mental health this month, I decided to talk about other things here, that are more or less linked to it. Because if mental illness is certainly something that is disregarded by a lot of people and needs to be talked about more, I believe body issues are also something that needs to be spoken of more. Which is why I have come up with this idea. I hope you enjoy, and as usual, feel free to share your (respectful) opinion in the comments.

For the past few weeks, I have been arguing a lot with my friend’s flatmate, who announced very proudly that when he would be prime minister, he would forbid women from wearing makeup. Because according to him, women are prettier without makeup. Good for him. But that brings up (at least) two problems.

The first one being that men always believe women wear makeup to be more beautiful, and to impress them.

And the second one being that men think they can simply decide what women can and cannot wear.

Which shows once again that no matter what my mom says, we live in a patriarcal society, and we need feminism.

Dear men, what if I want to impress a girl? What if I don’t want to impress anyone in particular? What if wearing makeup just makes me feel good, and that’s why I do it? Why do you always have to think everything we do has to do with you?

Yes, of course, #NotAllMen and so on. I know. Spare me with your comments, because you can’t deny that it’s a very common behaviour that needs to be addressed.

And while I’m at it, if you’re a woman commenting on other women’s makeup and belittling them, please don’t do that. And if whoever you are, you criticize men and boys wearing makeup, you also need to shut up.

Makeup is wonderful and no one will persuade me otherwise.

The question here is not whether women are prettier or not with makeup. Who cares. What really annoys me is the fact that men always assume women wear makeup to impress them. What really annoys me is when men judge women for wearing makeup and looking different with it. Because makeup is important to me, even if I don’t wear it abundantly. Makeup is my armor. And yes, I wear makeup even if I’m just going to the supermarket which is practically downstairs from my flat. Because makeup makes me confident. And why should I deprive myself of that confidence? I need it.

When I don’t wear makeup, my dad constantly asks me if I’m sick. No dad, I’m not sick, I’m just not wearing makeup thank you very much. My own father thinks I look terrible without wearing makeup, and trust me, that is not helping with my self-confidence issues. And yes, I feel prettier with makeup. I am allowed to do that. I need that satisfaction to carry on with my life. By now, wearing makeup every day is just part of a ritual, a daily routine. I wake up, have breakfast, shower, brush my teeth, wash my face, put on some make up. I honestly just wear BB Cream, eye shadow, mascara and lipstick. That’s enough to boost my confidence and make me survive the day. And no one should judge me for that.

Makeup is an accessory. Do you judge people for wearing clothes or shoes or carrying a bag? No. Then why would you judge them for wearing makeup? Just let us be. What is that to you anyway? It won’t change your life.

Before I end this article, I wanted to say that I really admire and respect people that are very good at makeup. And I also really admire and respects those who have the confidence to go out everyday without wearing makeup. And yes, part of me really wants to find someone who thinks I’m pretty without makeup. But that’s not gonna stop me from wearing makeup everyday. When I look at myself in the mirror with makeup on, I like what I am seeing and it makes me happy. And that’s all I need.

Don’t let the haters get you down. If people tell you you wear too much or not enough makeup, just ignore them. You are strong and beautiful no matter what. It’s what you feel that matters.