This post might be late. Might be. I’m going to plead vacation. Then I’m going to get technical. My brain is packed with all sorts of random trivia, such as ISO 8601. ISO 8601 says the first day of the week is Monday, so for once I’ll adhere to guidelines because it works for me and my reading resolutions. I’m in a bookclub. More than one actually. The one I’m focusing on today is a book club with two teachers. Two friends. Two friends who happen to be teachers. It’s a smal

I’m still on vacation, so once again two posts in one day. Also, I’m computer free, so please forgive the hyphens masquerading as em dashes. On to the point, eventually . . . Let’s tackle the obvious first. That should be doesn't have, but it’s summer, so let’s go with it. I’ve decided The Giant Lion Turtle occasionally exacts a price-his 30 pieces or his pound of flesh-for my occasionally frequent requests, even though he doesn’t fulfill them. For instance, I wanted Nick Rob

According to a text from the United States Postal Service, my July OwlCrate arrived today. Inside that cute little box lives some bookish goodies and a book. The book this month is My Plain Jane, which is a fantasy/paranormal turned on its head retelling of Jane Eyre. Let it be known that I hate Jane Eyre. I know the lovers of Jane Eyre are a passionate bunch, and I’m usually tolerant of differing opinions, but not where this book is concerned. I can’t even take Jane Eyre ser

I’m on vacation, which should means Blume is on vacation. However, as I realized that my "post twice a week every week" resolution was about to come to a sad and ignoble end, I found myself compelled to complete two posts in one day. I can’t promise that either post will be brilliant or even regular old okay, but I do promise they’ll be quick and dirty. Dirty in the just finished jumping in mud puddles kind of way and not in the zesty kind of way. Zesty will have to wait for

For so long, Watership Down stood alone-a singularity. It was my Mordor. It no longer stands alone, but it’s companion does not evoke the same broken-hearted ache, the same repulsion, the same shiver of something like terror. It’s shelf companion, M.A Bennett’s S.T.A.G.S., has earned my derision. It brings out my inner mean girl. It makes me want to use my powers of intellect for evil-raw and pure, but I'll refrain. Watership Down is considered a classic, and will forever ga

Can we talk about YA tropes? Let me first say that tropes exist in books because they actually exist in real life—some of them, but not all of them. For instance, love triangles are too rare to be real. I say that as someone who witnessed one during college, and it was an epic comedy of errors that made my own romantic missteps seem trivial. What’s a broken guitar between former friends? Some of the other YA tropes, to varying degrees, exist in reality, but they need to be we

In times of trouble, I frequently turn to the Giant Lion Turtle, and ask him to grant me a multitude of wishes. The Giant Lion Turtle usually ignores my desires. I think he might find some of my wishes too inconsequential—Dear Giant Lion Turtle, please let rainbow sprinkles be officially declared a food group. He might find some of my wishes too self-serving—Dear Giant Lion Turtle, please make The Reiki Master decide to join a 12-year expedition to the Artic Circle. He might

Have you ever listened to a song and heard the lyrics incorrectly, but you don’t know that what you’re hearing is incorrect? Then you hear the song again and you still hear the lyrics incorrectly—over and over again. For instance, you hear “Baby, the sound of you is better than a Humvee.” You like the song despite the strangeness of that one line, so you get curious because what does a Humvee sound like, is it really so good that it deserves being in the opening line of a lov