A Books Eternal Glory: June 2016

Thursday, 30 June 2016

Surprise On The Doorstep.

Harsh knocks pulled me from my dream, they echoed up the stairs where they filled each room.

I roll over misty eyed and squint towards the alarm clock which helped the numbers clear. 4:25 am. Too early for a visitor surely.

By the time I've hauled the cover off of myself and sat up, the knocking seized to exist, but now I was too wide awake to fall back to sleep for a couple of hours now.

I drag my feet out of my room and down the stairs. There was no man nor woman standing at my door.

The door had broken time ago, the deadlock held it tightly shut. With a hard twist the lock grinder open and allowed the door to open. I glance down the street both ways. Dead.

Lay directly in the centre of my door mat, a parcel in a plain cardboard box. Glancing around again I make sure of no audience before bending down and retrieving it. Whatever was in there was warm.

I lock the door unbalanced by the box before entering the front room. I put the parcel down on the closest seat and then flick on the light. Tearing open the cardboard I smell heavy perfume, that is until I open the box fully to find a somewhat fresh load of animal dung.

I waste no time in banishing the box from my house. I turn off the lights and wash my hands in the bathroom before returning to bed. For hours on end I think of people who would send that kind of parcel to only come up short of a single idea. At 6am I propose an investigation starting in 3 hours. With my mind somewhat eased I slip off to sleep.

Tuesday, 28 June 2016

Top Ten Tuesday- Top Ten Moments of 2016 so far.

1. 6th February - 14th February - 27th February - 12th March - England's Men's Rugby Team play and win 4 out of 5 six nations Games this year

2. 19th March 2016 - England win their Final Rugby game of the 2016 Six Nations against France becoming the 2016 champions with 5/5 games won.

3. 4th April 2016 - Meeting Holly Smale at a Feminism in YA talk in Birmingham. Holly Bourne and CJ Daugherty were also there and I got my recent edition of Geek Girl Signed and How Hard Can Love Be signed.

4. 24 April 2016 - I got to see 5 Seconds Of Summer live for the second time at the Genting Arena in Birmingham.

5. Unknown Date - I got my room redecorated into a very nice place to be where I can enjoy reading and writing.

6. May 13th 2016 - My sister and I booked our first holiday away with no parents. It happens the beginning of July, Its going to be a great time I bet.

7. 6th June 2016 - Officially got my first paid commission doing a digital drawing (I'm over the moon with this.)

8. 15th June 2016 - I completed my work at sixth form and officially got signed off

9. 19th June 2016 - 25th June 2016 England Men's Rugby team beat Australia 2 out of 3 test matches, A week later going on to win 3 out of 3 test matches against the wallabies.

10. 25th June 2016 - my 18th birthday came around, officially an adult now, ugh

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke And The Bookish.

Saturday, 25 June 2016

The Art Of Being Normal - Lisa Williamson

Synopsis

Two Outsiders. Two secrets.

David longs to be a girl.

Leo wants to be invisible.

When Leo stands up for David in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms. But things are about to get messy. Because at Eden Park School secrets have a funny habit of not staying secret for long…

Review:

I picked this book up a what feels like years ago but it's maybe 4 months at best. I had heard a lot about the book and it really caught my eye so I just couldn't resist.

What happens on pages 64 for 4 pages made my chest hurt so badly I had to put the book down, cry a little and then pick up where I had let off.

The books follows two protagonists who both go to Eden Park School: David Piper, a biological male who has always wanted to be a girl, and Leo Denten, an outsider with his own dark secrets. Although the two seem quite different - David, more reserved and wistful, Leo, more moody and confrontational - a twist of fate brings them together in ways neither of them expect. Of course its a fight which is mentioned in the synopsis, its a very great moment to have read because although its physically gave me pain to read, to have what happens actually happen makes me smirk because its something I was really wanting to happen.

I adore Lisa's willingness to tackle a trans character and the challenges they face. She makes David's struggle to accept himself a central part of the plot while writing his dual perspective with Leo in a way that maintains a solid pace for the story as a whole. The use of dual perspective was a refreshing way of writing and very enjoyable. I've become accustomed to dual perspective written books recently.

I found David to be very authentic, dealing with the problems and troubles that any transgender teen no doubt encounters. Very anxious at the unwanted changes occurring within and to her body. I found myself feeling very upset that she didn't feel comfortable and didn't have the confidence to 'come out' yet - such is the nature of our modern society that most LGBTQIA+ people feel so oppressed and scared that they don't dare speak out about their wishes.
Leo, although also a main character, seemed to take a more back seat role to me despite his importance and relevance throughout the book. I did really love his character as a transgender teen. I really connected to the main characters in the book, I felt real emotion towards their situations and lives.

I loved that the book also showed the risks - that they might be rejected or ridiculed, and I do hope that through books such as this and the slowly changing stereotypes, that we may soon be able to change the way society thinks.

When it comes to how the book ends, I feel like I could have used my wotsits I was eating minutes later to soak up my tears and leave cheese dust trails down my face. Lisa approved. I really adored how it ended, it was very cute and such a beautiful moment. I was more happy emotional than anything else and I'm pretty sure other readers were too. I can say that id be really happy for a follow up book with these characters but I would be too upset if Lisa had no current plans to go that way soon or at all. I am happy with what I got in this book. I give the book a solid 5/5. I'm off to go and wipe the cheese dust from my face.

Thursday, 23 June 2016

Home Sweet Home

I had spent months living in a damp smelling rat and cockroach infested apartment only a few miles from my childoodle home. But I was no fed up of the lack of hot water, wasting money on pest controllers because the rats and cockroadches only came back days later.

I had seen an advertisement in the newspaper of a 100% better apartment cheaper than this rat hole and closer to my family home. I dial up the number and ask for a viewing. Luckily it had only been advertised today and so barely anyone had asked to view. She had an opening in her schedule at 12 am which was only 30 minutes. It would take me 25 minutes to get there so I lock up and begin walking.

By the time I got there, the estate agent was already there, I quickly introduced myself and begun exploring the luxurious place. In the front room however there was a large hole in the wall. I peer inside to see more damage and only then do I notice that there is an arm in the darkness. I try to forget about for the rest of the tour but I find it hard.

"I'll take it." I smile to her.

"Okay that's wonderful." She replies

Paperwork was filed and keys were given. She was due to come back in when days time to hand over my official keys and rent payment calendar. She smiles as she walks off but all I can think about is the body in the wall.

No matter who it was or who did it, it was staying in the wall they will remain nameless and they will become nothing.

Thanks to my father's teachings, I patch up the wall and settle into my new appartment the next day. No matter what people say, cockroaches and rats were worse than the corpse behind the wall that was easy to forget about.