January Monthly Recap

Here is my recap for January!

Reviews:

• Unforgiven by Lauren Kate - I was pretty disappointed with this, as I was originally wary of.
• This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp - This book is brilliant! Wonderfully diverse, and absolutely gripping! (Not pictured.)
• This Song Is (Not) For You by Laura Nowlin - Such a good book! I didn't connect emotionally with the characters, but I still really enjoyed it! An asexual main character, and another diverse element - it's spoilery, so I won't tell you, but I talk about it in my review. The first book I've heard of that covers this diverse element. I think it's going to be groundbreaking.
• Playing With Matches by Suri Rosen - This book was cute, but I thought it was a little far-fetched, with all the bad things that happen. But I loved learning about Jewish traditions and their culture.
• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry - This book was so beautiful! I really don't know why I hadn't read it before. So, so good!
• Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard - I didn't connect with Caddy, who narrates the story, but this story is really important, and a wonderful, wonderful friendship.
• Changers: Drew by T. Cooper & Allison Glock-Cooper - This book had an interesting premise, but there wasn't much in the way of world building, so I was quite disappointed. However, it ended on an interesting note, and I think there will be more world building in the next book, so I'm a little intrigued. (Not pictured.)
• The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry - This was such a sweet novel! A great romance between two characters who are facing difficulties; Aidan recently lost his arm, and Kate has diabetes. Such a great story!
• Cinder by Marissa Meyer - Oh my god, WHY DIDN'T I READ THIS SOONER?! So, SO good! I love how it was based on a fairy tale, but brought so much that was new to the story. So eager for the other books in The Lunar Chronicles!

Other posts:

• The first link-up for the Retellings Reading Challenge 2016 went up. There are few reviews submitted, so go check them out!
•  I posted about my goals for Diverse Reading for 2016.
• I discussed why hyping books for content can be a good thing.
• I also discussed why authors coming out is an incredible thing, for so many reasons.
• After it cropped up on Twitter, I decided to join the conversation and wrote about if book bloggers were to get paid.

Reading Challenges:

• Debut Author Challenge 2016 - I've read two, so that's 2/12.
• LGBTQIA 2016 Reading Challenge - I've read three so that's 3/40.
• 2016 Diverse Reads Books Challenge - I read 5. There's no target for this challenge, just an aim to read more. Of the six goals I personally set myself, I've read at least one book for each goal.
• Retellings Reading Challenge - I've read out, so that's 1/12.
• Contemporary Romance 2016 Reading Challenge - I read two, so that's 2/20.
• 2016 Classics Challenge - I read one book, so that's 1/12.
• Unique Formating Book Challenge 2016 - I read one book, so that's 1/15.
• NetGalley Reading Challenge 2016 - I read three books, so that's 3/30.
• Read the Books You Buy Reading Challenge 2016 - I bought 9 in January, I read 1. The aim is to read 40-60% of the books I buy, so I really need to keep on top of this.

Elsewhere online:

• Non Pratt wrote a brilliant article for Guardian Children's Books, No Taboo Should Be Off Limits When Writing For Teenagers.
• YA authors Rebecca Wells, Mackenzi Lee and Ashley Herring Blake have created the Twitter book club #BiYABooks - a monthly chat to talk about YA books with bisexual main characters. The first chat was on Far From You by Tess Sharpe on 26th January. The next chat will be on , on .
• Buzzfeed lists 23 Upcoming YA Novels with LGBT Characters.
• Barnes & Noble list 10 2016 YA Books with Utterly Irresistable Concepts. 
• Nita Tyndall Storified a number of  her really important and informative tweets, Romantic Attraction vs. Sexual Orientation.
• Riley Redgate wrote an absolutely amazing post about self-loathing and self-doubt; Girls Who Love Themselves. 
• Cuddle Buggery wrote a wonderful post, Blog Like No-one's Watching.

And how was your January?

December's Monthly Recap

We're at the end of the month, and the end of the year. It's not been the best year for me away from the blog, but I on the blog, I think it's been pretty good! Here's a look over what's happened on the blog in the last month.

Reviews:

• What We Left Behind by Robin Talley - I was pretty disappointed in this. No communication between characters, and exhausting.
• The Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar - This was fun and awesome! I'm looking forward to the sequel
• Just Visiting by Dahlia Adler - My first Adler book, but not my last! A really wonderful story fo friendship.
• More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera - THIS WAS AMAZING! So much better than I thought it would be! So surprising with a fantastic twist! (Not pictured as it was borrowed.)
• A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig - This was wonderful! Charming and magical, and really made me smile! (Not pictured because I lent it to someone.)
• Made You Up by Francesca Zappia - Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! Romance, mystery, Schizophrenia! Such a great story!
• The Next Together by Lauren James - Absolutely gripping, but the ending left me disappointed.
• One by Sarah Crossan - Great premise, but verse, it seems, isn't the right style for me when it comes to getting emotionally involved in a story.
• Rethinking Normal by Katie Rain Hill - This was really fascinating. A memoir by a transwoman of her teenage years. Eye-opening and interesting.
• The Big Lie by Julie Mayhew - This book was SO thought-provoking and scary, and oh my god, you need to read this book! The whole thing! Even the notes at the end!
• Rooms by Lauren Oliver - Beautiful writing as always, but it felt quite slow to me. I wasn't as invested n this book as I normally am in Oliver's novels.

Other posts on Once Upon a Bookcase:

• We hs just one post for Bookish Spinsters - Equality in Sport - before I postponed the link-up due to things happening in my personal life. The postponment might become a mini-hiatus. I'm not sure yet when it will be back up, and I'm still dealing with a lot of things.
• As it's the end of the year, I wrote a post Looking Over 2015, Looking Forward to 2016. I've signed up for a couple more reading challenges since writing it, so if you're interested in what I'm taking part in, check out my reading challenge page.

What I've been reading elsewhere online:

• Katherine Locke discussed how she's making Twitter her space again, after leaving for a week because of abuse she was getting, with some great tips if it's becoming too much for you.
• Pop! Goes the Reader held a month long 'Tis The Season: Authors Talk Holidays event, which is pretty self explanatory. There were a great number of authors sharing their personal holiday stories, with a number of holidays covered. Do go check it out.
• Dahlia Adler now has a number of pages on her blog for diverse books with minority characters: 
• 2016-17 YAs by Authors of Color
• #OwnVoices in Disability and Neurodiversity
• Books By and About Marginalized Races
• Books By and About People Who Identify as LGBTQIAP+
• Jewish MG/YA/NA Authors
• Resources for Marginalized Perspectives
• Courtney Summers wrote a blog post about how difficult girls deserve to be loved and why she would never write a book that suggests otherwise.
• Check out Disability in Kidlit's Goodreads shelf for #OwnVoices YA.
• Barnes & Noble talk about 15 of Our Most Anticipated LGBTQ YAs of 2016.
• On YA Outside the Lines, Natasha Sinel talks about mature themes covered in YA, and how parents have an issue with sex in YA - Is There *gasp* Sex in This Book?
• Forever Young Adult share their Most Anticipated Books of 2016: Standalones & Series Starters.
• Epic Reads talks about The 17 Most Anticipated YA Books to Read in January.
• Grace of Gracie Actually Writes wrote Girls Just Want to Have Fun, a post on female masturbation on Oh No, Not Another Blogger.
• Author Alex Gino wrote Why I Use the Pronoun "They".
• Over on XOJane, K.T. Bradford wrote I Challenge You to Stop Reading White, Straight, Cis Male Authors for One Year.
• Along the same lines, a reading challenge has come up on Twitter to #ReadWomen. In response to this, Dahlia Adler wrote a really fantastic post On #ReadWomen that you might want to read before you crack on with the challenge.
• After reading Dahlia Adler's On #ReadWomen post, author C.K. Oliver wrote A Trans Guy's Thoughts on #ReadWomen.
• Dahlia Adler (can you tell I'm a fan of this lady?) also answered a question on Goodreads on moving from writing m/f romance to f/f romance. 

 So that's been my December! How was yours? :)

Have a Happy New Year, everyone! :)

November's Monthly Recap

Here's the recap for November!

On the blog:


November was Sex in Teen Lit Month II! Seeing as there was a schedule for the whole month which I added links to, I'm just going to point you in the direction of that post, rather than replicate it. I really enjoyed the event! It was great getting to discuss all these books either in reviews or discussion, and interviewing the authors or having them write guest posts. A really fantastic month, with at least one post per day! Do check it out if you've yet to read any of the posts, I think you'll find it interesting!

Elsewhere online:

There have been some really brilliant posts and articles online this month. There's some really great reading for you ahead if you've missed any of thses.

• Adam Silvera wrote a incredibly brave post, Happiness Isn't Just an Outside Thing, about his suicidal thoughts. It's a hard read, but it's an important one.
• On a related note, The School Library Journal has a fantastic post on Tackling Mental Health Through YA Lit. The post is for librarians, but still a really interesting read with great mental health in YA recommendations.
• 14th - 20th November was Transgender Awareness Week, and Gay YA had a series of fascinating posts, starting with Introduction to Transgender Awareness Week Series.
• The New York Public Library has a post, Telling the Stories of Trans Communities, recommending YA novels with transgender characters - Dahlia Adler, who tweeted the post, also recommends Cam Girl by Leah Raeder (NA), If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo, and Bad Boy by Leah Raeder (out 2016) (NA).
• And you might want to check out this great thread of tweets from John Hansen on trans YA novels by trans authors.
• Nicole at Feed Your Fiction Addiction has a great post on How to Keep Yourself Motivated and Organized for Reading Challenges.
• There's a wonderful post over on Parade, where 23 Bestselling YA Authors Share 'The Book I'm Most Thankful For...'. And the bloggers of Barnes & Noble share the 11 books they're thankful for.
• There was some uproar towards the end of the month over comments made my Scott Bergstrom in a Publisher's Weekly article about his self-published book being bought and an interview with The Pen Muse. Lots of people had a lot to say about Bergstrom and his comments.
• There has been some really fantastic responses to this on Twitter, from people like Dahlia Adler (no thread, but you need to follow her anyway), Tess Sharpe (again, no thread, but follow), and Heidi Heigel, which you should check out.
• You should also check out the #MorallyComplicatedYA hashtag.
• And this blog post from Victoria Aveyard, where she answers the question, What Are Your Thoughts on Scott Bergstrom and His Thoughts on YA?
• And Adrianne Russel's post This Isn't Complicated At All .
• Zakiya Jamal on Buzfeed Books shared 17 YA Novels That Are Definitely Morally Complicated.
• Katherine Locke started Our Walled Garden, which is full of recommendations for #MorallyComplicatedYA.
• On the School Library Journal Site, Kelly Jensen posts, Do We Honor Girls' Stories? The Double Standard of YA Lit.

Now, how was your month? Did you read anything interesting online? Let me know!

October's Monthly Recap

Here is the recap of what's been happening here in October!

It's been pretty quiet here this month as I've been doing the last of my reading for Sex in Teen Lit Month II (which starts tomorrow, I'm so excited!), but there have been a few interesting things going on.

Reviews:

• The Pied Piper of Hamelin by Russell Brand & Chris Riddell - I really enjoyed this! I loved the style in which Brand told it, and I love Riddell's illustrations!
• Colour Me Mindful Series - Underwater, Birds and Tropical by Anastasia Catris - I love these colouring books, they're so cool! And looking forward to giving the new ones in the series a go.
• The Tenderness of Theives by Donna Freitas - This was a really interesting story, but it focused on the romance more than the psychologial thriller side of things. I also didn't like how the girls' based their worth on what guys thought of them. But still a sweet, troubled romance.
• Start Your Day With Katie by Katie Piper - This is a book with an affirmation for every day of the year, and I love it a whole lot more than I thought I would. It's surprisingly personal, because these are the affirmations that helped Katie when she was recovering from her acid attack.  
• Pierre the Maze Detective by Hiro Kamigaki & IC4DESIGN - This is a really beautiful book; intricate illustrations, and puzzles that will keep children occupied for hours. Great fun!
• Paper Dandy's Horrorgami by Marc Hagan-Guirey - This is not at all what I expected, but this is a fantastic book for crafty horror fans to create horror scenes through the art of karigami.
• Secret Garden: Artist's Edition by Johanna Basford - The illustrations in this colouring book are beautiful, and I love how you can pull them out to hang them up. The card doesn't seem to link felt tips/ink though.

Announcements:


I announced that I will be hosting a reading challenge next year: the Retellings Reading Challenge 2016. All retellings - classics, children's classics, fairy tales, myths and legends, folktales - are accepted, as well as prequels/sequels. Do sign up!


Sex in Teen Lit Month II is happening this November! I'm really excited for it to start tomorrow, and get to share all the reviews, interviews, guest posts and more. It's going to be awesome. Find out more in the post above, and do visit throughout November for all the posts.


I will be hosting Bookish Spinsters, a weekly link-up inspired by Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne to discuss feminism and feminist ideas. The first post on What is Feminism? went live yesterday. Please check it out and participate -  this week's link-up closes on Thursday 5th October - I'm excited to learn from you all! If you can't take part for this week's topic, do check out the Bookish Spinsters page, where you'll find a schedule for future topics.


Other posts:

• I discussed my thoughts on eReaders, the pros and cons, and how I warmed to them when I originally hated them. 

Elsewhere:

• C. J. Skuse wrote a piece for The Guardian on why we need angry girls in YA. 
• James Dawson announced on Buzzfeed that he is transgender, and will be starting his transition this year. I think he's pretty incredible for being so open about this.
• Leah Raeder wrote a great piece for Queer Romance Month on why she wrote Cam Girl, her next novel: because of her own gender identity. Again, another incredible author for her honesty and openness.
• There's was a lot of talk last weekend on Twitter about an article on Teen.com about Teen Wolf slash fanfic that was quite homophobic. There were great things said by Dahlia Adler, Tess Sharpe and Leah Raeder (but as it's been a week, it might be hard to find them again.) Tess Sharpe wrote a brilliant letter on her blog to the editor of Teen.com, which explains the whole situation.
• Dahlia Adler shared a list of Books By and About People of Marginalized Races recently. While you're there, check out her other recs.

How has your month been? Will you be taking part in Bookish Spinsters and/or Retellings Reading Challenge 2016 with me? Are you as excited about Sex in Teen Lit Month II as I am? What's happening on your blog next month? Let me know!

September's Monthly Recap

A little late posting this, but I had a mostly good month In September!


Reviews:

• Fool's Quest by Robin Hobb - Oh, I loved this! Such a great second book to the series! So looking forward to the final book Assassin's Fate, but scared where the story is going to take Fitz! (Not pictured as it was borrowed and I had to give it back.)
• Night Owls by Jenn Bennett - Oh my god, this was so, so good! Really amazing story! A sweet, flirty romance, and very sex-positive!
• Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon - This was a really interesting story. It's flawed, and it was probably published at the wrong time, but I think it will get people talking. It's a sweet story, otherwise!
• Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway - A bit of a disappointment; I wasn't emotionally engaged in the story, and so didn't really care what happened. (Not pictured as there was no cover with my NetGalley proof.)
• All of the Above by James Dawson - This book is about far much more than just sexuality, to the point where sexuality is only a small part of the story. Although it was very realistic, and a pretty good story mostly, I was left disappointed for being made to believe this was a story it wasn't.

Not too many reviews this month, but a few of the books I read are for Sex in Teen Lit Month II which is coming in November, and one was reviewed in October.


Had a few A Novel Cover Up posts this month:

• Kate Gaughran on the cover for Asking For It by Louise O'Neill.
• Nathan Ryder on the cover for Here Be Dragons by Sarah Mussi as part of the blog tour.
• Leo Nickolls on the cover for Night Owls by Jenn Bennet.
• Paul Commey guest posted about the proof covers for Night Owls.

Other posts:

• I interviewed Holly Bodger, discussing her novel 5 to 1 and feminism.
• I discussed booktubing, how it's not for me, and why I think that might be my downfall.
• I took part in the blog tour for Sarah Mussi's Here Be Dragons, and Sarah stopped by, interviewing herself about one of the final parts of the writing process, The Death Zone. 

Earlier this month, Louise O'Neill's Asking For It came out, and there's been a lot of really interesting things about it around the internet. Here are just a few:

• There's a really interesting interview with Louise O'Neill on The Guardian with teen site member Patrick Sproull.
• O'Neill was also on The Guardian discussing why she explored rape culture in her latest novel.
• The review of Asking For It on The F Word is fantastic!
• O'Neill talks in The Irish Times about writing Asking For It and unblurring the lines about rape.

And elsewhere online:

• Author Joanne Harris has spoken out about gendered books, saying children are being 'indoctinated'.
• There is a book club group on Goodreads inspired by Holly Bourne's Am I Normal Yet?, The Spinster Book Club, where books by women, with dynamic female characters, and feminist novels are discussed. The first two books for October are Asking For It by Louise O'Neill and We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler.

August's Monthly Recap

Inspired by Faye of A Daydreamer's Thoughts's Weekly Recap, here is a recap of my posts over the last week, and anything else I found interesting.


Reviews:

• Amy I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne - Oh my god, this book was SO good! Incredible story about mental health and feminism. I will be recommending this to everyone! It's amazing!
• Asking For It by Louise O'Neill - I can't even begin to tell you just how bowled over I am by O'Neill and her writing. This lady is so unbelievably talented, and she is tackling such important topics in such a brilliant way. Asking For It is even better than Only Ever Yours. I will be raving about this book for a long time to come.
• What Was Never Said by Emma Craigie - A really brilliant story looking at female genital mutilation. A really powerful book.
• Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson - This didn't really work for me, sadly, but I think it would be a great introduction to the topic of rape for younger teens.
• How the Library (Not the Prince) Saved Rapunzel by Wendy Meddour & Rebecca Ashdown - a wonderful feminist picture book the promote a good work ethic and the wonder of books. I had a few problems with it, but it's brilliant overall.
• Life on the Refrigerator Door by Alice Kuipers - A wonderful epistolary novel, a very quick and emotional read. So, so good.
• The Baby by Lisa Drakeford - I enjoyed this a whole lot more than I thought I would, but it has an awful ending. The story isn't finished, there's more to be told, but we don't get it. So disappointing. AND THEN JUST TODAY I discover there's going to be a sequel. So I'm now much happier.
• Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers - This is a brilliant book about bullying. I read it because it was recently banned, and it's incredible! I get angry when any book is banned, but this book is so important, it could be hurtful to be prevented from reading it, and that has me raging.

I've also been reading Fool's Quest by Robin Hobb, though I've not finished it yet, as it's a HUGE book, and I didn't want to drag it to work. Almost done, should hopefully finish it today. While I've been at work, I read All the Rage by Courtney Summers, which was AMAZING, the review of which will be posted in November as part of Sex in Teen Lit Month II.

Other posts:

• I took part in the cover reveals for both Dagger by Steven dos Santos and Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton, two brilliant sounding books! And, oooh, the cover for Rebel of the Sands is sooo pretty!
• I informed you all of my plans for new content for Once Upon a Bookcase, as I was inspired by Lucy of Queen of Contemporary.
• I wrote about the authors whose books I've read the most of for Top Ten Tuesday.
• I discussed inappropriate, offfensive language in books, and whether authors are contributing to the problem, or just being true to life.
• I posted about how Amber of The Mile Long Bookshelf, who suffers with anxiety and is unable to attend school/college, was trying to raise money to pay for tuition to attend an online school, Interhigh, where she can continue her A-levels. And she raised all the money she needs! Go Amber!
• I started a new blog feature, Fan Mail, in which I write letters to authors I admire, am inspired by, or are simply brilliant. The first one is to high fantasy author David Eddings, whose books are the reason I read.

Elsewhere online:

Inspired by Cait at Paperfury and the awesome links she shares.

• Holly Bourne wrote an article for The Guardian about Am I Normal Yet?, Why We Need to Be Honest About OCD and Teen Mental Health.
• Vlora of Reviews and Cake has a post up discussing gendered books.
• Jim of YA Yeah Yeah discusses Criticism, Reviews and Diversity, looking at negative reviews - they're helpful, but don't tweet them to the authors.
• There's a really interesting article from YA author Louise O'Neill over on The Pool discussing Sexism in the Publishing Industry. 
• The Book Riot shares 11 YA novels on intersectional feminism.
• I stopped by Holly Bourne's Tumblr to take part in the #100DaysofNormal YA Blogger Series to discuss feminism and mental health. 
• On Literary Traveller, check out Room 101, for Teenage Girls: A conversation with Only Ever Yours Author Louise O'Neill; it's a fantastic look at the book, and a brilliant interview. 

So how was your August? Are you looking forward to September? There are some really awesome books out this month! Though I'm not a big fan of Septermber, generally. It fills me with that awful, end-of-summer/back-to-school feeling, even though I don't go to school, and brings me down. My least favourite month of the year.

July's Monthly Recap

Inspired by Faye of A Daydreamer's Thoughts's Weekly Recap, here is a recap of my posts over the last week, and anything else I found interesting.




Reviews:

• 5 to 1 by Holly Bodger - Oh my god, this book was so good! A brilliant feminist dystopian YA novel where the matriachy are in charge, and still screwing everyone up.
• Horns by Joe Hill - An awesome dark fantasy that really gets you thinking about good and evil, and the depravity of human thoughts.
• The Awesome by Eva Darrows - A great urban fantasy novel about a teenage monster hunter, but I found Maggie too snarky, and didn't like her crappy attitude towards women.
• George by Alex Gino - A beautiful and incredible powerful LGBTQ novel about a ten-year-old trans girl. SO, SO GOOD! (Not pictured - I borrowed this book, and have given it back.)
• Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb - An incredible new high fantasy novel about such beloved characters! It was wonderful being back in this world again with Fitz, and seeing how his life gets turned upside down, again.
• I'm a Girl! by Yasmeen Ismail - A wonderful picture book that challenges gender-roles for children!
• Creative Coloring Inspirations by Valentina Harper  - My first colouring book review! Full of photos! I enjoyed this colouring book, but I think it's more the kind I'd want to dip in and out of, than complete before moving on; some of the illustrations are a bit samey.

Other posts:

• Movie Review: Boy Meets Girl - An incredible LGBTQ love story about a transgender woman. It was brilliant, so sex positive, and so funny!
• The Top Ten Tuesday topics I took part in are Ten Books That Celebrate Diversity/Diverse Characters and Ten Characters Who Are Fellow Book Nerds.

Elsewhere online:

Inspired by Cait at Paperfury and the awesome links she shares.

• This month I was interviewed by the Jasmine Denholm of Wenlock Books in their Seven Questions With... series, talking about book blogging and reading.
• Cait over at Paper Fury gives a tutorial on how to create black and white photos with a colour accent on PicMonkey.
• Check out this awesome review of Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill over at The F Word.
• Book Riot talks about Five Novels That Illustrate Rape Culture. And Tammara Webber writes a fantastic response about Easy being on this list.
• Twitter shared an article on the US' Huffington Post, How Young Adult Romance Novels Are Giving Young Girls a Misguided View of Romance, written by an actual teen. In response to this, YA author Holly Bourne share her article from 2013 on the subject, Are Happily-ever-afters in YA Novels Bad for Teenagers'  Love Lives? Both really interesting!
• If you didn't attend YALC and missed the live tweeting, there's an article on the BBC that has a summary of the main points of one of the panels, Let's Talk About Sex - in Young Adult Fiction.
• For her 50th Birthday, a beautiful profile has been written about J.K. Rowling in the Irish Examiner, by YA author Louise O'Neill.
• Candice at O Ye Scribbles talks about the bookish wreaths she creates, and they're just beautiful!
• On Free Word, Sarah Odedina, former managing director of Hot Key Books and now publisher of the children's list at Oneworld, writes a fantastic post about the importance of YA fiction in young people's lives and why YA isn't afraid to tackle heavy subject. "YA fiction is more than a story. It is the opportunity to find out who you are and what you believe in from the safety and security of a book."
• Courtney Summers' YA novel, Some Girls Are, has been banned from West Ashley High School's summer reading list after a parent caused an outcry about it. Read the post, read the book, and support.
• As I'm starting to review adult colouring books, and have been reviewing a few more movies, I decided I wanted to create pages for those reviews separately, and have a drop down menu from my "My Reviews". A quick Google search led me to Monika at Lovely Bookshelf's post, How to Create Drop-Down Menus in Blogger - it's easy to understand and very easy to follow. If you want a drop down menu, I'd highly recommend this post.

My writing:

As you may or may not know, I have another blog, Jo's Journal, where I write about topics that are important to me, and I'm trying to get my writing out there to be read by more people. I was at The Coven this month, asking if offensive jokes can be funny. I also blogged about body shaming slim girls in We're Real Women, Too: On Sizeism and Skinny Shaming.

First Class Post (84) & June's Monthly Recap.

First Class Post - because this post is first class!


Check out Sunday mail memes:
Showcase Sunday on Books, Bisuits and Tea
The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
Stacking the Shelves on Tynga's Reviews.
Here are the books I received in June!

For Review:

• P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han - The sequel to To All the Boys I've Loved Before! Been looking forward to this for ages!
• Timebomb by Scott K. Andrews (UKYA) - This sounds so intriguing!
• Beyond Clueless by Linas Alsenas (LGBTQ YA) - Sounds cute!
• Another Day by David Levithan (LGBTQ YA) - EEEE! Read and loved! Review below.
• Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider - This sounds really awesome! I think it's going to be emotional, and I'm so looking forward to it!
• Here Be Dragons by Sarah Mussi (UKYA) - Dragons! Dragonsdragonsdragons! Need I say more?
• What a Wonderful World by Tim Hopgood (board book) - This book looks so cute! Who doesn't love that Louis Armstrong song? And to have those lyrics as a story for children, it's just genius!
• I'll Catch You If You Fall by Mark Sperring (picture book) - Another sweet looking picture book.
• Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren - Thought I would give this edition of the classic a review.
• Paperweight by Meg Haston - This book sounds so good! I've read a partially negative review of it which has me worried, but it still sounds awesome! I'm hopeful!
• The Awesome by Eva Darrows (2015 YA Debut) - THIS SOUNDS SO GOOD! Oh my god, I'm so excited to read this book! A feminist urban fantasy?! Gotta love it!

Reading Copy:

•  5 to 1 by Holly Bodger (2015 Debut) - THIS SOUNDS AMAZING! Seriously! I am loving the sound of this feminist sounding story! I needs to read it nooow! Also, look at that cover! Gorgeous!

From Hodder & Stoughton's Chapter5 Proof Party:

• Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult & Samantha van Leer (signed - different cover to the one on GR)
• Off the Page by Jodi Picoult & Samantha van Leer (signed) - Picoult and van Leer were at the party briefly, so I got some books signed.
• Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver  - Yes, I already have a proof of Vanishing Girls, but now a finished copy!
• The Curiosity House: The Shrunken Head by Lauren Oliver & H. C. Chester (proof) - And as I love Lauren Oliver so much, I haaave to read this!
• End of Days by Susan Ee - Cait from Paper Fury was recently raving about the Penryn and the End of Days series, so I picked up the final book. Now I have all three to read!

NetGalley:

I have far too many books, so I'm going to try reviewing more on my kindle, even though I prefer physical books. That way, if I don't like a book, it's not taking up so much room.  

• Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan (Irish YA) - Sounds interesting.
• What Milo Saw by Virginia MacGregor (UK adult novel, but I think crossover) - This is going to be amazing, I just know it!
• Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway - I loved Audrey, Weight! So I'm hoping I love this.
• Fire Colour One by Jenny Valentine (UKYA) - My head of dept. has been raving about this, so I thought I'd give it a go.

Bought:

• The Porcupine of Truth by Bill Konigsburg (LGBTQ YA) - Sounds awesome!
• Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig (mental illness memoir) - I've been intrigued by this for ages!
• Lion's Share by Rachel Vincent (ebook - not pictured) - Companion series to Vincent's Shifters series! So excited!
• Horns by Joe Hill - My best friend recommended this to me. When he told me it made him cry, I knew I had to read it.
• Girls Will Be Girls by Emer O'Toole (feminism) - I want to become a better feminist, and this and the following two books are three of many books recommended to me to read to help educate myself. This was recommended to me by Charlie and Louise O'Neill.
• Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay - (feminism) Also recommended to me by Charlie and Louise O'Neill.
• Be Aweseome by Hadley Freeman - (feminism) And this was recommended to me by Nicole Burstein.

Won:

I was one of the winners of Queer YA Scrabble! Thank you to all the people who organised this awesome event, and were involved! I won Team Phoenix's bundle, and this is what I got (all LGBTQ YA):

• Martyr by A. R. Kahler (signed) - This one sounds really intriguing, with all the fantasy and magic! Hoping I like it.
• Trust Me, I'm Trouble by Mary Elizabeth Summer (signed) - This is the second book in a series, and I've yet to read the first one, so I'll hold off before reading this. It sounds intriguing, but I'm not sure if it'll be my cup of tea, we'll see.
• The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson - This is unsigned, and I already have a signed copy, so this will find itself a new home.
• The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun David Hutchinson (signed) - I bought an unsigned copy a while back, so that will get a new home. I've yet to read this book, it sounds awesome!
• Rainbow Briefs by Kira Harp (signed) - This collection of short stories sounds interesting; different genres as well as experiences. Hope I enjoy it!
• Wet Paint by Will Parkinson - This one sounds really good! I'm looking forward to reading it!
• Harry Potter Horcrux Locket - We sell these at work! :) They're kind of cool!
• The Witches' Spell Book for Love, Happiness & Success - I originally thought this was a cute little novelty gift book, but having flicked through it, it's actually uite serious, with pagan spells and rituals. I used to be really interested in this kind of thing when I was younger, so it's such a cool addition!

Thank you to Scholastic, Hodder & Stoughton, Abrams & Chronicle, Electric Monkey, Bloomsbury, Sphere, Simon & Schuster Children's Books, HarperCollins Children's Books, OUP, Hot Key Books, and Raven Stone for the review copies.
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Inspired by Faye of A Daydreamer's Thoughts's Weekly Recap, here is a recap of my posts over the last week, and anything else I found interesting.

Reviews:

• Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews - Hilariously funny! Highly recommended!
• P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han - The ending felt a bit rushed to me, but I enjoyed it!
• Another Day by David Levithan - Beautiful, but not quite as beautiful as Every Day.
• Girls Will Be Girls by Emer O'Toole - Really eye-opening and gets you thinking about what it means to be a woman in today's society.
• Shadowplay by Laura Lam - Really disappointed by this book. My expectations were high after Pantomime, and this just didn't come close to being as good.
• The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle - SO GOOD! Atmospheric and creepy and bloody brilliant!

Other posts:

• Book tags: I took part in the Find Me Tag, which was fun, and the Unpopular Opinions Tag which was more difficult than I expected. Had to look through my reviewed books list to find books - most didn't immediately spring to mind.
• I helped reveal the beautiful cover for Until We Meet Again by Renee Collins.
• Top Ten Tuesday: I posted about the books on my TBR pile for summer 2015, my most anticipated releases for the rest of the year, and my favourite books read so far this year.
• I talked about feminist stories and positive female role models in YA and NA.

I'm thinking of discontinuing the First Class Post aspect of my monthly recaps. It takes so long to put these posts together, and now I have Instagram (go follow me!), I talk about the books I receive on there as and when they come. So... I'm thinking of giving it a miss for next month, and see how we go. What do you think?

Can you believe half the year has gone already? Feels so strange! So how was June for you? What great books did you receive? And what content went up on your blogs? Link me to your round ups!