BookLez

Check out read an ebook week March 7th-March 13th from Smashwords!

They’ll have lots of great ebook titles from independent authors like me on sale for the whole week!

Yeah you!

If you’re looking for a sign to NOT kill yourself.

THIS IS IT!

This article is really good about how social distancing works to reduce the spread of COVID-19 (or any pandemic, really). 

It has several easy to understand simulations that show just how affective limiting your exposure to other people can be.

Please share this with your friends, loved ones and even people you don’t like because they could potentially spread COVID-19 like crazy too and put other people in danger.

Even if you don’t have symptoms, you could still potentially be infected and still unknowingly spread the virus.

The governments of a lot of different countries are handling this whole thing quite poorly (the United States especially). But together we can make a difference!

We’re all in this together. 

Hi everyone! :) I’m back with another list of book recommendations! Yes, two of the books on here cross-feature on my Dark Academia Rec List, but here, the focus is different.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy my YA LGBTQ+ Rec List!

Her Royal Highness (Rachel Hawkins)

Listen, we’re starting off strong, because this one is an absolute GEM. American girl goes abroad to a fancy boarding school in Scotland. Also, she’s bi, her roommate is the princess of Scotland and the cutest haters-to-lovers situation ensues!! Read if you like fluffier reads, if you’ve ever been on a year abroad, if you’ve ever wanted to go on a year abroad, if you love Scotland or if you’re a girl who likes pretty girls! <3 (Note: This is the sequel to “Royals”, but I didn’t read that one either and you 100% don’t need to in order to understand this one.)

As I Descended (Robin Talley)

Okay, now this one is a lot darker. It’s a queer Macbeth retelling, which is a pretty amazing concept in itself. Also set at a fancy boarding school, but in Virginia. The main girls are a closeted power couple who more or less succumb to the darkness in their strive for even more power. This book is super diverse with Hispanic characters, wlw, mlm and one of the main two girls being disabled (though some people have criticised the way she was written). Read if you want a spooky story, if you love boarding school settings or if you love Shakespeare retellings!

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Benjamin Alire Sáenz)

This book is a classic of the queer coming-of-age genre, and it reads like one, too! The style is fairly simple, which may take some getting used to, but the author nailed the narrator’s voice, the story is meaningful, the characters feel complex and real and Ari’s fight to accept himself for who he is will break your heart! Set in the 1980s in El Paso, Texas. The two main boys are both Mexican American. And for reasons I can’t exactly put my finger on, this read like a modern-day Catcher in the Rye! Read this book if you want boys fighting to accept the fact that they love boys and complex family dynamics!

If I Was Your Girl (Meredith Russo)

Can ONLY recommend this one! The main character is a trans girl who goes to live with her dad after a traumatic event. At her new school, all she wants is to blend in, but she ends up suddenly popular for the first time in her life and dating a cute boy! This book was definitely fluffy at times, but still dealt with the darker aspects of being trans in this world (trigger warning for depression, dysphoria, a suicide attempt!) Read if, like me, you’re a cis person looking to get a better idea of what it’s like to be trans or if you’re trans and want to see yourself represented! The author is a trans woman herself and the book ends with a really emotional and thoughtful author’s note (that, yes, made me cry).

You Know Me Well (David Levithan & Nina LaCour)

Out of the books on this list, this one focuses the most on LGBTQ+ themes. It’s literally set in San Francisco during Pride Week, and it’s about a gay girl who is madly in love with another girl, but self-sabotages at every turn, and a gay boy, who is madly in love with his best friend, who fools around with him occasionally but doesn’t love him back. One thing that bothered me a bit was the insta-friendship between the two main characters, but I’m here for the gay-lesbian solidarity, and I thought the wlw romance was so cute! Read for a slightly fluffier dual-perspective book with strong LBGTQ+ and coming-of-age themes and a central friendship!

We Are Okay (Nina LaCour)

Oh God, this one. Read only if you are ready to be emotionally destroyed! The main character grew up with her grandfather, and after losing him, too, she feels completely alone. Set during Christmas break of her first semester of college, which she spends on campus in New York. Alone! Until her friend/lover comes to visit and emotionally reconnect with her. Hauntingly and lyrically written, this book is an absolute beauty that had me in literal tears and made my heart hurt. Can only recommend!

People Like Us (Dana Meele)

This one cross-features on my Dark Academia rec list, because it’s set at yet another elite boarding school (yes, this is my thing) and begins with a murder. The wlw themes in this came as a very pleasant surprise! Read if you’re looking for more of a mystery thriller that still includes wlw, but not as the main focus. Personally, I had certain issues with the plot, but the book was still a very engaging, quick and fun read!

Radio Silence (Alice Oseman)

ONE OF MY FAVOURITE BOOKS OF ALL TIME! The main character is Frances, a biracial, bisexual girl whose main goal in life is getting into Cambridge. Her friends see her as nothing but a study machine, but secretly, Frances is the biggest fangirl and draws fanart for a podcast called “Universe City”. The book is all about her close friendship with Aled, who turns out to be the podcast’s creator, academic pressure and figuring out what actually matters to you in life. I connected strongly with the themes of working so hard toward certain goals and not being seen by your friends for who you really are. Read if you want the most adorable platonic friendship EVER (between a bi girl and a demisexual guy), internet culture being represented accurately, wlw and mlm and an incredibly relatable main character!

Autoboyography (Christina Lauren)

Tanner is bi and was happy and out when his family still lived in California, but is forced back into the closet, basically for safety, when his family moved to Provo, Utah, where there are more Mormons than non-Mormons. His best friend Autumn convinces him to sign up for a very special class with her in their final year of high school, where the idea is that every student writes a novel. This is where Tanner meets Sebastian and falls head-over-heels! The problem? Sebastian is Mormon and not allowed to be with another boy. Even worse? He’s the bishop’s son! Read this one for two adorable boys actually going through something incredibly hard together and breaking your heart in the process! What I loved about this was that religion was shown in its full complexity, the good and the bad, and Sebastian’s struggle was so realistic! Also, this love story was much more high stakes than the usual “I’m sure he doesn’t like me back!” non-issue and it really drew me in!

I Was Born For This (Alice Oseman)

Another Oseman book!! (Spoiler alert: It’s also very good!) Told in dual perspective. The first one is Fereshteh, who tends to go by the English translation of her name: Angel. The biggest source of joy in her life is the popular boy band “The Ark”, and she plans to go to London to finally meet her best online friend in person, then go to an Ark concert together with her. The second perspective is Jimmy, a trans boy and one of the three members of the band. Things definitely don’t go as planned that week in London, Angel and Jimmy actually meet, chaos ensues. Read this if you’re looking for a fandom-based story that just gets internet culture and also has a very diverse set of characters! But be prepared for this to actually become very dark and intensely emotional at times! (The characters, especially Jimmy, were struggling more mental-health-wise than I had expected, and it wasn’t always easy to read, so be safe, everybody!)

1. Any book you want

2. Don’t read books you don’t want to read

3. That’s it

I’ve gotten a couple of new reviews lately!

Thanks to everyone for their support! Please keep leaving me reviews!

Well then, let me show you, because that’s what I do for a living.

Right now, it’s this time of the year, and the little ones have just freshly hatched:

You’ll notice they’re still blind and naked when they hatch. So I make them little coats to keep them warm during their first winter:

See how they happily line up to put them on:

See? Better. Now they’re ready to go and explore the world.

And if they make it through the winter and we take good care of them, they will grow up to be strong and wise like their older fellows: