Candy Bunny Reader

While I wait for book 4 of the Huda F series to come out (apparently it's no longer going to be a trilogy), I decided to read another one of Huda Fahmy 's books.  Yes I Am Hot in This doesn't have a linear story--it is more a series of short, relatable comics of funny, awkward, and sometimes unfortunate situations the author has experienced as a hijabi. Sometimes her husband in involved, too. Once again, the book is filled with Huda's fun illustrations! I gave it 4.5 stars , but like the last book of her's that I read, it was because of a few Harry Potter references. But this book was published in 2018, so I could overlook them this time.  

A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicholl is a middle grade book about Addie, who is autistic. At school, she learns about how historically, in her small town in Scotland, they used to execute women they considered witches. They weren't actually witches--they were women who were "different". Probably autistic like Addie! She and her new friend Audrey (and with some help from Addie's older sister, Keedie, who is also autistic) all try to raise money to implement a memorial to the victims, but it isn't easy. Addie also has to deal with a bully teacher, a bully in her class named Emily (who is now friends with her ex-friend Jenna) and her other sister Nina, who actually has a good heart but frequently misunderstands Addie and Keedie.  It's a very short and simple story, but it had so many moments that made me emotional! If you didn't already know, I am autistic, too. Addie was so relatable. Overall, reading this was very cathartic to me.  I gave it 5 stars . I want ...

Where do we even begin?! Halfway There by Christine Mari is a graphic novel memoir about the author growing up struggling with her half-Japanese, half-American identity. During her college years, she studies abroad in Japan thinking she'll be able to find who she truly is, but instead deals with more identity crises. It all leads to depression, and she learns to reach out and ask for help from her grandparents and a therapist.  You really have to read this book to understand how lovely and heartfelt it is! For me it was relatable in so many parts (having parents from two different countries, not knowing where I belong, mental health struggles, getting help when needed, being a great artist, etc.). I really saw myself in this author! I gave it 5 stars . 

    This is the second book in the Deer Hill Anonymous series by Jodi Meadows . The first book was Bye Forever, I Guess , which I read earlier this year, You can read that review here .  Confessions from the Group Chat is about Virginia, an eighth grade girl who has a rather toxic group of friends. She often finds herself acting mean like the rest of her friends, but every time she acts like them she feels guilty. She also has a crush on Grayson: a guy in her grade who used to be quite popular when he was a football player.  One day in their friend group chat, Virginia accidentally sends them a picture of Grayson she secretly took. The other girls start teasing her about liking "a loser" like him. The next day at school during lunch, Virginia kind of gets revenge on them teasing her by admitting a rather private secret of the girls out loud, named Kat.  Humiliated, Kat and another one of the friends named Mary Heather decide to take screenshots of all of Virgi...

  I finally got around to reading this graphic novel memoir!   Almost American Girl by Robin Ha is the story of the author growing up in 80s and 90s in South Korea, then in Alabama, then in Virginia. She faces family drama, language barriers, racism, and feeling like she fits in nowhere. One of the things that keeps her going is her love of art. In particular, her love of comics. She eventually comes to accept herself in her early college years as a Korean-American.   I don't know what else to say except that this memoir was great! I gave it 5 stars . I saw myself a lot in Robin, even though my background is slightly different from hers. I also moved twice when I was a kid to two different states, and had the same growing pains as her. I also loved (and still love) drawing and comics, and that also kept me afloat as I was growing up!

This was a part of the 12 books 12 friends challenge and was recommended by @onceuponatbr over on Instagram. The actual title for this series is really long! It's full title is The Savior's Book Cafe Story in Another World . The author is Kyoka Izumi . This first volume begins with Tsukina, a 30 year old woman with a stable career who is one day randomly asked by "God" (in the form a sphere) to become the savior of another world called Othel. She is unsure of it at first, but when she uses her newfound magic to open up a book cafe, she grows to like it. The most frequent visitor to her book cafe is the captain of the royal guards. His name is Il (capital I, lowercase L!). The two grow close very quickly, bonding over books and food.  Tsukina also finds out that one of the reasons she was sent to Othel was to deal with the previous chosen one. The previous chosen one is a snobby rich girl who cares more about wooing the prince of the land than actually learning magic t...

    Wow! My favorite Ann Liang book so far! I am Not Jessica Chen follows Jenna Chen, an average student who is envious of her seemingly perfect, valedictorian cousin, Jessica. One night, Jenna secretly wishes that she actually was Jessica. The next morning she wakes up and is in Jessica's body! For the next few days she has to pretend to be Jessica, but it isn't always easy. Jenna at first likes her new life as Jessica, but she quickly learns being Jessica is not all sunshine and rainbows. Jenna soon misses her old, simple, life, and she tries to find ways to go back to normal. Even worse, people are starting to forget that the real Jenna even existed. The only one who seems to remember and help her out is Jenna's longtime friend and crush, Aaron.  This book really had me on the edge of my seat! Ann Liang really knows how to captivate her readers. The story was so emotional, heartfelt, and had so many relatable moments ranging from not always feeling your best to the st...

TW: Mention of parents dying  This is the first book I read from Jodi Meadows that she wrote herself. Before this I read The Lady Janies series and The Mary series that she co-wrote with Cynthia Hand and Brodi Ashton.  Bye Forever I Guess is about 13 year old Ingrid Ant, who lives with her grandmother, who taught her how to knit and has her own knitting channel on YouTube (her grandma, not Ingrid). Ingrid also likes gaming, and she became friends with a girl named Lorren who is also her age through an virtual massive role player game. Lorren and Ingrid also bond over their favorite book series, Essa Starlight . Ingrid got into the series as a source of comfort after losing her parents in a car accident. Ingrid has a Scrollr (like Tumblr) account where she posts texts conversations she has with wrong numbers. It's called "Bye Forever I Guess" because the first wrong number text she got was from someone who ended the conversation with "bye forever I guess" afte...

A sweet (pun intended) graphic novel from the celebrity chef Kim-Joy .  Turtle Bread follows Yan, a 23 year old woman who has trouble finding a job, and generally she feels lonely. One day after a job interview she finds a flyer about a baking club in town. Yan loves to bake and although she is nervous about what other people think of her, she decides to go to the club to make new friends. Despite some awkward first introductions, she is able to form a bond with everyone there, especially the club leader, an elderly woman named Bea. Yan ends up having fun baking with her new friends everyday, and it leads to so many surprises, some nice and some heartbreaking.  This was another graphic novel I picked up on a whim, and it was so fascinating how much it reflected my own life, especially with Yan and her social awkwardness. I am not much of baker (I mostly prefer cooking), but I loved reading about all the thing the friends baked. Especially the fluffy turtle shaped bread. ...

 It's a short post today, but today we will talk about my experience with Raina Telgemeier's books! Her website is here:  https://goraina.com/ The first book I read from her years ago is her most popular book: Smile . It was great! I then right away picked up Sisters , which is kind of a sequel to Smile . It was really enjoyable, too!  I then picked up Drama , which, unlike the first two, is a fictional story and not a memoir about parts of her life. Again, it was really sweet! I have yet to read  Guts  (which is her third memoir) and  Ghosts , her second fictional story. They are on my TBR! I hope they are as good as the first three books I read from her. So why do I like Raina Telgemeier's books? She has a really cute art style and her stories are very funny and relatable! 

  Today's poem is inspired by one of the cutest and most relatable romance anime of all time: Kimi ni Todoke by Karuho Shina! Above is the first opening. Poem: To think that Meeting you Would spark Something new To think that Meeting you Would mean meeting New friends To think that Meeting you Would mean The respect of classmates To think that Meeting you Would mean Getting a cute dog To think that Meeting you Would spark Some girl drama To think that Meeting you Would lead to The best birthday ever To think that Meeting you Would mean A misunderstanding To think that Meeting you Would lead to An awkward Valentine’s Day But to think that Meeting you Would lead to us Becoming an official couple

  Before I get into it, can I just say this is the second book from Beverly Cleary I read as an adult? The first was was Muggie Maggie , which I reviewed back in 2022. I did read a lot of Beverly Cleary's books as a kid, though! I read all of the Ramona books (those are my favorites from her, Ramona is so hilarious and relatable. She's basically Junie B. Jones before Junie B. was a thing), the trilogy about Ralph the Mouse , and the first Henry Huggins book. I also read Socks and some of Otis Spofford but I can barely remember those two. I need to reread them sometime. I also need to read the rest of the Henry Huggins books. And the rest of her standalones and maybe her memoirs.  Anyway. Ellen Tebbits is about Ellen, who has a rather embarrassing secret. When she meets a new girl named Austine in her ballet class, it turns out she has the same secret! So they become best friends. The rest of the chapters are about Ellen and Austine getting into all sorts of mishaps whi...

  I wasn't tagged in this, but I though this tag looked neat. I first saw it over at @hades.reads Instagram page.  As usual, I don't tag anyone. Feel free to do this tag if you see it! So here is everything I realized I love seeing in books: Sassy/funny characters friends to lovers rivals to lovers fake dating dual POV (can be first or third person) mysteries found family Queer characters (anyone underneath the LGBT umbrella!) Disabled characters (physical and nonphysical disabilities!) Ethnically diverse cast of characters self-discovery/self-acceptance stories strong friendships cool magic systems rich worldbuilding cozy settings magical creatures (especially fairies, dragons, and mermaids) likeable characters you want to root for unlikeable characters are unlikable on purpose references to anime/other cartoons witches challenging/questioning societal norms linear storytelling What are your favorite things in books? Do you like any of the ones I just mentioned?

I wonder if the author of this book and I are long lost twins. They are asexual and autistic just like me, and also likes anime and cartoons.  How to Be Ace by Rebecca Burgess is a graphic novel of the author's experiences finding out they are asexual, and their experience navigating a world that puts heavy emphasis on romantic and sexual relationships. The meat of the narrative is them talking about how they felt lonely very frequently because it was hard for them to get into a serious relationship like a lot of their peers, but then they felt comfortable finding joy in just having friends. One of their friends is named Sophie and is also asexual like them! Other narrative threads include their experience having OCD and the struggle of trying to find a job after graduating during the 2008-2009 Great Recession. They also pause the story several times to explain more about the asexual and aromantic spectrums, as well as debunking myths on aroace people.  I just loved this book...

  Fun fact: I actually read some of the Amber Brown books as a kid, but I didn't remember too much about them afterward. That's why I am planning on reading all of them as an adult. And it was worth it! Amber Brown is Not a Crayon is the first of the many books of the Amber Brown series written initially by Paula Dazinger and later continued by Elizabeth Levy and Bruce Coville. This book follows third grader Amber Brown dealing with the fact the her best friend since preschool, Justin Daniels, is moving away to Alabama. Amber doesn't like sudden change, and she already feels she is dealing with too much with having no other friends in the class and her parents' recent divorce. She at first tries to hang out and joke around with Justin likes she usually does, but it doesn't last for long as she thinks he looks excited to be moving away. Then after a little fight she decides to stop talking to him but then feels even more sad. Eventually, she learns that change is a...

  I originally saw this tag over @linnareads on Instagram way back in November, and I'm finally doing it!  And feel free to do this tag if you see it.  The books above are 2 others I plan on reading next month! 5 books I loved recently: Bone: Out of Boneville by Jeff Smith Baba Yaga's Assistant by Marika McCool Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker Flip the Script by Lyla Lee A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger 4 auto-buy authors Alice Oseman Nicola Yoon Margaret Peterson Haddix Lyla Lee 3 Genres I love Romance Fantasy Historical Fiction 2 places I like to read at My room A coffee shop 1 book I promise to read soon Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree Who are some of your favorite authors?

  It's a really thin middle grade book but it's worth your time! Muggie Maggie by Beverly Cleary is a classic middle grade novel (well, it's from the 90s) about a third grader named Maggie who does not see the need to learn cursive because she already knows how to write in print and type on a computer. Her defiance catches the attention of her parents and teacher, and they try clever ways to convince her to learn and write in cursive, one big one being them starting to write everything in cursive to her, which makes her have to learn how to read in it, but it's hard at first. Some kids in her class tease her for her rebelliousness. One kid starts calling her "Muggie Maggie" because she can't write her a's properly in cursive, making her name come out like "Muggie". Eventually her teacher Mrs. Leeper comes up with the best way to convince Maggie to learn cursive for herself.  This was such a cute and fun book! It's also a super easy, quick...

Yes, another tag! I love book tags. This one I saw over @cdocslibrary 's Instagram page, again, way back in October. Here are my answers for it! Book genre(s): Romance and Fantasy (Musical) Artists: Kerli and Yoshimi Iwasaki Food: Mac and Cheese Season: Spring Animal: Cats TV Series: Tangled the Series, Avatar the Last Airbender, and Arthur Flower: Pansies Film: Spirited Away Color: Pink Feel free to do this tag if you see this! I'd love to see your answers.  Let me know if you like the same things as me!

While I am reading several books at once and I haven't finished any of them yet, I will continue coming out with more tags! This is another one I saw over a month ago, this time over @linnareads Instagram page. Here we go! 1. Morning or night: Midday, actually. I find I'm more alert and I remember more midday. 2. Audiobooks or ebooks? Both. 3. Fiction or nonfiction? Both! 4. Paperbacks or hardcovers? Paperbacks 5. New release or old release? Both. Honestly, I don't care how old a book is as long as it's a story I vibe with. 6. Emotional or happy? Depends on my mood. 7. Classic lover or hater? A lover!  8. Silence or sound? Sound. Specifically lofi music. 9. Bookmark or dogear? Bookmark! 10. Mood reader or tbr? Mood reader. That's all for now! What are your answers to these questions? I'd like to see in the comments below!