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gentlemanjester · 2 years

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I can’t remember if I’ve written about this before, but here’s another rant. Similar to my one on the Cirque du Freak movie, this one is a bit better but about a book series called The Last Dragon Chronicles by Chris d’Lacey.

So, when I was a kid, I read a book called The Fire Within. It was a really fun and cute book. A guy called David moves in with Liz Pennykettle and her 11 year old daughter, Lucy. The Pennykettles make clay dragons for a living, and it turns out some of them are special dragons who are kind of alive. They give David his own dragon, who he names Gadzooks, and his skepticism basically kills Gadzooks and he emotionally restores him back to life. There’s also a plot about David writing a story about a squirrel in the garden for Lucy’s birthday, it’s really cute, and that writing leads to him meeting a wildlife rescuer who becomes his girlfriend and... i honestly can’t remember her name, she was super generic, your standard nice girl.

But that story’s good. It’s a great standalone novel, has a (mostly) happy ending, fun adventures, it’s good. Then a sequel came. And in this sequel, David’s girlfriend has gone to Africa for a few months because of work, and David’s got a... weird professor at college who’s obsessed with inuits and offers a prize of a research trip to the Arctic for whoever can write the best essay. Two things are off here: firstly, professors teach at universities rather than colleges in the UK, where this is set, and secondly, a research trip to the damned Arctic? In college? That’s a postgraduate trip, at least.

So, we’re also introduced to big tiddy goth gf called Zanna, who is horny as fuck for David. Like she’s basically saying “put a baby in me you mousey dragon boy” in the most kid-friendly way she can. Because this is a kid’s book, without a shadow of a doubt. Keep that in mind for the future: a child is supposed to follow this storyline.

So, we’re also introduced to a villain: Gwilanna. Who, I think... tries to get Liz to... fertilise a dragon egg? Oh, I forgot to mention, the Pennykettles are descended from... uh... I think it’s a lady in ancient times who was tasked with a witch to trick a dragon, but instead sided with the dragon, and the dragon gave her part of his soul? Which is why they’re able to make special dragons that are kinda-sorta alive? I think that’s the gist of it.

So, Gwilanna turns out to be that ancient witch and David uses the power of polar bears (because polar bears are connected with dragons, somehow) to toss her out. He and Zanna make out in the kitchen and just as they pull away, David’s girlfriend comes in and Zanna leaves. Girlfriend then basically says “hey, so I’m gonna be in Africa for several years, so you go ahead and date whoever you want.” OH, that reminds me, David was absolutely a player during this book. Not only was there Zanna, but he also went to a publishing house to publish the story he wrote for Lucy in the first book, and the office is staffed basically only by young women, and David’s eyes are wandering everywhere.

So, David learns that for some reason, Zanna is mad at him for having a girlfriend... even though I am fairly certain he’d already told her, or else he’s even more of a dick, but it all ends with him winning the Arctic trip, Zanna picks him up and is all “we gon fuck in the cold loverboy” because her dad’s rich and everything.

So... okay, an alright sequel, it starts to set things up for the future, but it’s starting to get a bit... iffy. Well, book three is where the normalcy ends.

So, David and Zanna are having a good time at the North Pole, banging, hanging out with the Inuits, David’s writing his story on polar bears. Except he’s... kinda telling the future? Sort of? Like some of the chapters in this book are from the perspective of the polar bears, and David’s writing the story about those specific polar bears. It’s a magic power he has, he used it in the first book while writing Lucy’s story as well. But for some reason, he and Zanna get in an argument and he decides to go back down to England to hang out with Liz and Lucy.

Speaking of Lucy, she’s been kidnapped by Gwilanna and taken to some cave which I think it up against the last dragon? Maybe? Gwilanna’s planning to use Lucy for... something... I’m not entirely sure what. But the polar bears are kinda guardians of the dragon or something? Oh, and David’s professor has an invisible dragon he just keeps around and sends on missions. I think it transforms into an Inuit artefact? That might be something else. I don’t quite remember.

So, the climax sees David saving Lucy, but he gets injured, and he dies in Zanna’s arms. He gives her the invisible dragon, somehow, and the polar bears drag him off.

Okay... a pretty definitive ending there. Sad, but it does the job.

Except it doesn’t end there.

AND THE CRAZINESS RAMPS UP.

5 years have passed. David’s stories have been wildly successful, and Zanna has opened up her own little goth shop which offers massages. She gave birth to David’s daughter so the author could add in the creepy lines of the kid saying shit like “daddy misses us” and wotnot. Lucy is 16 now, and she is an absolute caricature of a teenage girl. On her phone all the time, blowing bubblegum while working as Zanna’s cashier part-time, arguing with her mum... oof.

Journalist guy called Tam comes in for a massage from Zanna, she minorly magically tortures him to get him to admit that he was sent by the paper to get dirt on David. Lucy ends up infatuated with this guy, who’s literally twice her age, she goes on to stalk him to his place of work and tries to sell the family secrets to get close to him.

So, the big reveal: David isn’t actually dead.

Kinda.

Well, he comes back. Zanna is pissed because David is kind of a weird demigod thing? Like he talks about himself needing to save the world, he kinda... imbues the power of two polar bears into Tam? Oh, and Zanna is a witch like Gwilanna. Obviously. Because she’s the big tiddy goth gf, she’s gotta be a witch as well.

Book five gives some backstory to Lucy’s dad. Turns out he was a scientist dude, he and Liz were in love, he then disappeared one day (I think because of Gwilanna?) and he’s spent all this time in self-exile in a monastery as a monk. And while at this monastery, he found a dragon claw which dripped ichor, and anything he wrote with this ichor came true. Kinda like David’s power from a few books ago. Remember that? I barely do.

So, we come to the other massive reveal: David never existed. He was written into existence by Liz’s boyfriend whose name is not even listed on the wiki page, holy fuck. I’ll just call him Bob for easiness. Anyways, Bob wrote David into existence for some reason. They find this out by going to the address listed on David’s letter of application for the Pennykettle lodging waaaayyy back in book 1, and they can’t find the place. Then Lucy gets teleported away and kidnapped again. Oh, and before this, she and Tam went on a road trip to some white horse in the English countryside, they stayed at a B&B and ended up being attacked by their hosts, I think.

OH, YEAH.

THE ALIEN SPACE FAIRIES.

So, there are these alien space fairies that exist. They... worship dragons? Or are dragons? They have something to do with dragons. Anyways, there are the good ones and the bad ones. The bad ones are able to take over people’s minds and make them into slaves. Oh yeah, the evil alien space fairies made the monks of Bob’s monastery attack anyone that came near because Gwilanna wanted to do some ritual. I think.

Oh yeah, and there’s this young dragon called Grockle who... uh... I wanna say Liz gave birth to him? Or maybe Zanna? Or maybe he was hatched from the egg that Gwilanna tried to get Liz to fertilise back in book two? I can’t quite remember. But he’s there.

So, it turns out the good alien space fairies and the evil alien space fairies have been at war for a while, and they need the dragons for... something...

And that, I think, is as far as I ever read. I think there’s maybe two and a half books in the series I haven’t read, because... I just can’t. It’s too much. The story is so convoluted and so far removed from what it started as. The first book was extremely charming. Cutesy clay dragons, an ancient legend which explained why they could kind of come to life, it was a fun read. The sequel was... alright. A bit more complicated, but it managed. The threequel was... eh...

But the rest of it. My God.

Oh, and the weirdest part? There’s this overarching theme of global warming and climate change, except it’s... minorly shoehorned in? Like it’ll be mentioned in passing as background noise on the television, or David will say something like “this is why X is happening, because the ice caps are melting,” but... nothing will come of it. It’s just sort of mentioned. There is literally no payoff to the mentioning of global warming. I get it, it’s a very real and major problem, but it’s just... so out of place in this story (which is saying a lot, considering what I’ve just written) and so obviously shoehorned in.

Oh, also, David’s girlfriend dies in one of the books. Pretty sure it’s book 5. Also, David can teleport. Or fly. Or both? I dunno, he’s a God that didn’t exist until a few years prior. Immaculate conception ftw.

This book series, The Last Dragon Chronicles, is a perfect example of when an author tries to mash together multiple different stories into a single series and, in my opinion, it fails miserably. The alien space fairies. The guy not existing until he was written into existence. The polar bears being guardians of a dragon. Those could have very easily been plot points for an entire different series. There wasn’t really much need to expand on The Fire Within, let along expand it beyond that first trilogy.

The first book is a charming read. I certainly recommend it. The next two... read if you want, but don’t expect the same charm. The rest... stay far away from.

#Last Dragon Chronicles #John D'lacey #Books #Novels #Reading

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ariapmdeol · 2 years

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Two more meta-fiction reccs because I too really really love them:

Redshirts by John Scalzi. Multiple new crewmates of a spaceship, after investigating a string of mysterious casualties, realize that they're extras on a bad Star Trek knock-off.

Last Dragon Chronicles by Chris D'Lacey: A children's series, but anything that's wrong with me can be blamed directly on this children's series. It begins when the protagonist, David Rain, moves into his new landlady's house so he can go to college. Said landlady, Elizabeth Pennykettle, makes clay dragons, each of which have a special talent. David receives a dragon which inspires him to write, so he decides to write a cute story about squirrels for his landlady's daughter. Then it starts to become apparent that his story is either manipulating or predicting the future. And also the dragons may or may not be alive. Among other things.

It gets crazier from there. The first book could easily be realistic fiction with some very ambiguous supernatural elements, but by the last book, time travel and alternate universes are both in play.

(Books, in order, were The Fire Within, Icefire, Fire Star, The Fire Eternal, Dark Fire, Fire World, and The Fire Ascending, if I recall correctly.)

i've actually read the Redshirts! absolutely loved it, will 100% recommend it to anyone interested in either Star Trek, metafiction, or crack treated seriously, its fantastic! i've read it multiple times over at this point and it still means so much to me <3

i will add the Last Dragon Chronicles to my list!! that seems REALLY great i love messing with the narrative and time travel and alternate universes, that is all SO right up my alley oh my god

ALSO I DO HAVE SOME METAFICTION RECS OF MY OWN :D

Aria's Story is an RPGMaker game about a girl (named Aria) who falls asleep in a library, and wakes up having been locked in! In her journey to find a way out, she gets swept up into a really intriguing world of books, genres, and some mysterious characters! It's really fun, has 5 endings, and is relatively short!

MY SECOND REC is, predictably, Cell of Empireo. I realize the eng translation is several videos long but I PROMISE IT'S SO FUCKING GOOD. it has consumed my brain my cells have been so empireo'd the TLDR IS: 28 year old Haruki Atou is working in a detective agency, and his coworker, Eiji Shinano, has gone missing. His phone's last known location was within the grounds of the Empyrean Heaven Research Institute, a cult/religious organization which draws elements and inspiration from Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy (which is also metafiction). Atou's goal is to go find and rescue Shinano, and figure out what exactly is going on in this institute... I REALIZE THIS DOES NOT SEEM LIKE METAFICTION AT FIRST BUT I SWEAR IT IS. I CANNOT SAY ANYTHING BECAUSE IT WOULD BE SO MANY SPOILERS BUT I PROMISE,, I PROMISE ITS COOL AS HELL,, [redacted] is so meta and they drive me insane. there are hidden timers that determine whether characters live or die and I THINK they're there to make getting the best ending first try more difficult, and to encourage you to try again (thus giving you the player more knowledge and there being an additional meta aspect to this). I'm pretty sure that There is a canonical reason for having save files (i have a theory AND evidence that supports this). There is a headless rat.

>has written an entire metafiction coe theory rant post i am a sane and normal rpgmaker game enjoyer

#aria rambles #aria answers #stainedglassthreads #media recs

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happytapirstudio · 3 months

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June 2024 Book Log

New This Month:

Bravelands: Thunder on the Plains Book 1: The Shattered Horn by Erin Hunter (finished)

The Deadlands Book 2: Trapped by Skye Melki-Wegner

Ranger's Apprentice Book 3: The Icebound Land by John Flanagan

When I Arrived at the Castle by Emily Carroll

Continuing:

The Balkan Wars: Conquest, Revolution and Retribution from the Ottoman Era to the Twentieth Century and Beyond by André Gerolymatos (unfinished)

The Chronicles of Prydain Book 2: The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander (finished)

The Dinosaur Lords by Victor Milán

The Fire Within by Chris d'Lacey (finished)

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (reread, finished)

Safe Area Goražde: The War in Eastern Bosnia 1992-95 by Joe Sacco (reread)

On Hold:

Dinosaur Summer by Greg Bear

My Good Man by Eric Gansworth

Orochi Volume 2 by Kazou Umezz

This month felt like a weird black hole. What the hell was I even doing these past four weeks?

You'll notice I've sort of reverted to my old way of formatting these, now with a new section for books I've technically still got a bookmark in but haven't touched in over 28 days.

The Bravelands book revived me. I don't keep track of which Erin is writing what, all I know is they take turns, and the Erin for The Shattered Horn did a really good job. Some really outstanding lines, good voices for some of the characters, and (I'm not sure if this was even their choice, but I'll congratulate them anyway) didn't shy away as much from mentions of polyamory as previous books have.

Also I finally got the next Deadlands book, I am STOKED. *does a little dance* Oh my God I still have to finish my "expanded review" post for the first book.

#tapir literacy #long post

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l4z4rusr1s3s · 6 years

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15, 16, 27, 28, 30

15. five most influential books over your lifetime.

This is a toughy but im gonna say

1. Harry potter (classic, i feel like this series shaped a lot of people growing up in 90s-00s)

2. Margaret Haddix's Found series (kinda shitty books ngl, but they hold a very deep place in my heart as something that gave me joy in a hard time)

2. Michael Grant's Gone series ( i really recommend this as a YA series. Really enjoyable. I still listen to the audiobooks)

3. James Patterson The Witch and The Wizard (i tried rereading the series and i just couldnt, but it was there for me in hard times)

4. John Flanagan The Rangers Apprentice (this series is so fucking good please read it, its a big influence on the stories i tell)

5. Chris D'lacey The Last Dragon Chronicles (these books were my first experience with modern fantasy and theyre fucking amazing)

Bonus: Among the Hidden Margaret Haddix (what can i say, i stanned Marge Haddix as a kid)

16. if you’d grown up in a different environment, do you think you’d have turned out the same?

Absolutely not. The environment i was in growing up was incredibly incredibly traumatic, and a lot of who i am today is the result of healing. Would i have wanted to grow up in a better household? Absolutely. But i wouldn't be the same man i am today.

27. Do you feel like your outside appearance is a fair representation of the “real you”?

Nope. Firstly, i'm trans. Secondly, i have my own appearance in headspace that is more like this

(Credit to skumpup on insta)

So no, i dont match my outside appearance

28. on a scale from 1 to 10, how hard is it for someone to get under your skin?

It depends on how well you know me, but for most people id say about a 6

30. pick one of your favorite quotes.

"Everything will be ok in the end. If it's not ok, it's not the end" - John Lennon

Thanks anon! ❤💙

#reggie answers

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beyondthedustjacket · 6 years

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My TBR Pile

This is a complete list of my TBR pile. These are books that I own, but have not read yet. This list was last updated on June 9, 2024.

Audio Books

NICOL, JAMES — Apprentice Witch

E-Books

MARRS, JOHN — What Lies Between Us

QUINN, JULIA — Duke and I

QUINN, JULIA — Offer from a Gentleman

QUINN, JULIA — Viscount Who Loved Me

THAKRAR, SHVETA — Star Daughter

Graphic Novels, Manga, Etc.

AKUTAMI, GEGE — Jujutsu Kaisen (Volume 1)

ANDREWS, RYAN — This Was Our Pact

ASO, HARO — Alice in Borderland (Volume 1)

ASO, HARO — Alice in Borderland (Volume 2)

CLAMP — XXXHolic (Omnibus 1)

FURUDATE, HARUICHI — Haikyū!! (Volume 2)

GAIMAN, NEIL — Sandman (Volume 1)

GOTOUGE, KOYOHARU — Demon Slayer (Volume 1)

HORIKOSHI, KOHEI — My Hero Academia (Volume 14)

HORIKOSHI, KOHEI — My Hero Academia (Volume 15)

HORIKOSHI, KOHEI — My Hero Academia (Volume 16)

HORIKOSHI, KOHEI — My Hero Academia (Volume 17)

ITAGAKI, PARU — Beastars (Volume 2)

ITAGAKI, PARU — Beastars (Volume 3)

KANESHIRO, MUNEYUKI — Blue Lock (Volume 1)

KANESHIRO, MUNEYUKI — Blue Lock (Volume 2)

KANESHIRO, MUNEYUKI — Blue Lock (Volume 3)

KANESHIRO, MUNEYUKI — Blue Lock (Volume 4)

KANESHIRO, MUNEYUKI — Blue Lock (Volume 5)

KISHIMOTO, MASASHI — Naruto (Volume 1)

KIZU, NATSUKI — Given (Volume 1)

MOORE, TOMM/STEWART, ROSS — WolfWalkers

MXTX — Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (Volume 1)

MXTX — Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (Volume 2)

MXTX — Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (Volume 3)

OHBA, TSUGUMI — Death Note (All-in-One Edition)

ROWELL, RAINBOW — Pumpkinheads

SHAW, ALLISON — Persephone: Hades' Torment

SHIRAI, KAIU — Promised Neverland (Volume 2)

SMYTHE, RACHEL — Lore Olympus (Volume 1)

SMYTHE, RACHEL — Lore Olympus (Volume 2)

SPIEGELMAN, ART — MAUS I

SPIEGELMAN, ART — MAUS II

STEELE, HAMISH — DeadEndia: The Broken Halo

STEELE, HAMISH — DeadEndia: The Watcher's Test

TAKAYA, NATSUKI — Fruits Basket (Volume 1)

TAKEUCHI, NAOKO — Sailor Moon (Volume 1)

TOKUDA-HALL, MAGGIE — Squad

TUR, MÍRIAM BONASTRE — Hooky (Volume 1)

WEIR, IVY NOELLE — Anne of West Philly

XU, WENDY — Tidesong

YAMAZAKI, KORE — Ancient Magus' Bride (Volume 1)

YAZAWA, AI — Paradise Kiss

YOGIS, JAIMAL — Awakening Storm

YOSHIDA, AKIMI — Banana Fish (Volume 1)

Physical Books in a Series I Haven’t Started

ADEYEMI, TOMI — Children of Blood and Bone

ADEYEMI, TOMI — Children of Virtue and Vengeance

AHDIEH, RENÉE — Flame in the Mist

ALBAN, EMMA R. — Don't Want You Like a Best Friend

ALBERT, MELISSA — Hazel Wood

ALSTON, B. B. — Amari and the Night Brothers

BACKMAN, FREDRIK — Beartown

BALDREE, TRAVIS — Legends & Lattes

BARDUGO, LEIGH — Shadow and Bone

BARDUGO, LEIGH — Six of Crows

BAUM, L. FRANK — Wonderful Wizard of Oz

BAYRON, KALYNN — This Poison Heart

BEATTY, ROBERT — Willa of the Wood

BEATY, ERIN — Traitor's Kiss

BLACK, HOLLY — Modern Faerie Tales

BOND, MICHAEL — Bear Called Paddington

BOND, MICHAEL — Love From Paddington

BOND, MICHAEL — More About Paddington

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Abroad

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington at Large

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington at Work

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Goes to Town

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Helps Out

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Here and Now

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Marches On

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington on Top

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Races Ahead

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Takes the Air

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington Takes the Test

BOND, MICHAEL — Paddington's Finest Hour

BOND, VERONICA — Castle Deadly, Castle Deep

BRACKEN, ALEXANDRA — Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding

BRASWELL, LIZ — Whole New World

BRYANT, ELISE — One True Loves

CARROLL, LEWIS — Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass

CHAPMAN, LINDA — Mirror Magic

CHRONICLE BOOKS — Tales of East Africa

CHRONICLE BOOKS — Tales of India

D'LACEY, CHRIS — Fire Within

DADE, OLIVIA — Love Hypothesis

DAHL, ROALD — Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

DASGUPTA, SAYANTANI — Game of Stars

DENNARD, SUSAN — Truthwitch

FAVILLI, ELENA — Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls

FLANDERS, KAYLYNN — Shielded

FUNKE, CORNELIA — Dragon Rider

FUNKE, CORNELIA — Inkheart

GAIMAN, NEIL — American Gods

GEORGE, JEAN CRAIGHEAD — My Side of the Mountain

GLASGOW, KATHLEEN/LAWSON, LIZ — Agathas

GUILLORY, JASMINE — By the Book

HALE, SHANNON — Forgotten Sisters

HARPER, LANA — From Bad to Cursed

HARRISON, PAULA — Kitty and the Moonlight Rescue

HARRISON, VASHTI — Bold Women in Black History

HARRISON, VASHTI — Exceptional Men in Black History

HIBBERT, TALIA — Get a Life, Chloe Brown

JACKSON, HOLLY — Good Girl's Guide to Murder

JACKSON, JAKE — Celtic Myths

JACKSON, JAKE — Egyptian Myths

JACKSON, JAKE — Japanese Myths

JACKSON, JAKE — Polynesian Island Myths

JONES, DIANA WYNNE — Howl's Moving Castle

JORDAN, ROBERT — Eye of the World

KRISCHER, HAYLEY — Something Happened to Ali Greenleaf

KUANG, R. F. — Poppy War

LARSSON, STIEG — Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

LASKY, KATHRYN — Guardians of Ga'Hoole: The Capture

LEE, LORI M. — Forest of Souls

LEE, MACKENZI — Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue

LIM, ELIZABETH — Dragon's Promise

LIN, JUDY I. — Magic Steeped in Poison

LITTLE BADGER, DARCIE — Elatsoe

MAAS, SARAH J. — Court of Thorns and Roses

MAAS, SARAH J. — House of Earth and Blood

MALORY, THOMAS — Le Morte D'Arthur (Volume 1)

MALORY, THOMAS — Le Morte D'Arthur (Volume 2)

MENON, SANDHYA — When Dimple Met Rishi

MEYER, MARISSA — Cinder

MEYER, MARISSA — Cress

MEYER, MARISSA — Fairest

MEYER, MARISSA — Scarlet

MEYER, MARISSA — Winter

MULL, BRANDON — Fablehaven

NICOL, JAMES — Apprentice Witch

NOWLIN, LAURA — If He Had Been with Me

O'BRIEN, ROBERT C. — Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

O'DONOGHUE, CAROLINE — All Our Hidden Gifts

OKORAFOR, NNEDI — Akata Witch

PAOLINI, CHRISTOPHER — Eragon

PARKER-CHAN, SHELLEY — She Who Became the Sun

PEARSALL, KATE — Bittersweet in the Hollow

PRICE, TIRZAH — Pride and Premeditation

RHODES, MORGAN — Echoes and Empires

RIORDAN, RICK — Serpent's Shadow

ROGERSON, MARGARET — Sorcery of Thorns

ROONEY, ANNE — How the World Works: Astronomy

ROONEY, ANNE — How the World Works: Philosophy

ROONEY, ANNE — How the World Works: Planet Earth

RUTKOSKI, MARIE — Midnight Lie

SÁENZ, BENJAMIN ALIRE — Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

SCHWAB, V. E. — Conjuring of Light

SCHWAB, V. E. — Darker Shade of Magic

SCHWAB, V. E. — Gathering of Shadows

SHANNON, SAMANTHA — Bone Season

SHANNON, SAMANTHA — Priory of the Orange Tree

SHINKAI, MAKOTO — 5 Centimeters Per Second

SUMINO, YORU — I Had that Same Dream Again

TAHIR, SABAA — Ember in the Ashes

TRELEASE, GITA — Enchantee

UEHASHI, NAHOKO — Beast Player

WILLIAMS-GARCIA, RITA — One Crazy Summer

YARROS, REBECCA — Fourth Wing

YEE, F. C. — Dawn of Yangchen

YEE, F. C. — Rise of Kyoshi

YEE, F. C. — Shadow of Kyoshi

YOUNG, ADRIENNE — Sky in the Deep

ZHAO, XIRAN JAY — Iron Widow

Physical Books in a Series I’ve Started

CASS, KIERA — Elite

CHAINANI, SOMAN — Ever Never Handbook

CHAINANI, SOMAN — Rise of the School for Good and Evil

CHAINANI, SOMAN — World Without Princes

DE LA CRUZ, MELISSA — Escape from the Isle of the Lost

HARTMAN, RACHEL — In the Serpent's Wake

HARTMAN, RACHEL — Shadow Scale

HERBERT, FRANK — Chapterhouse: Dune

HERBERT, FRANK — Children of Dune

HERBERT, FRANK — Dune Messiah

HERBERT, FRANK — God Emperor of Dune

HERBERT, FRANK — Heretics of Dune

HODGE, A. N. — Great Artists: Gustav Klimt

HUNTER, ERIN — Fire and Ice

L'ENGLE, MADELEINE — Acceptable Time

L'ENGLE, MADELEINE — Many Waters

L'ENGLE, MADELEINE — Swiftly Tilting Planet

L'ENGLE, MADELEINE — Wind in the Door

LOWRY, LOIS — Messenger

LOWRY, LOIS — Son

MARTIN, GEORGE R. R. — Feast for Crows

MARTIN, GEORGE R. R. — Storm of Swords

MEYER, STEPHENIE — Life and Death

MEYER, STEPHENIE — Midnight Sun

MILNE, A. A. — Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie the Pooh

MONTGOMERY, L. M. — Anne of Avonlea

O'HEARN, KATE — Pegasus: The New Olympians

OLIVER, LAUREN — Pandemonium

OLIVER, LAUREN — Requiem

OSEMAN, ALICE — Heartstopper (Volume 5)

OSEMAN, ALICE — Loveless

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda and the Ghost Ship

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda and the Great Parade

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda and the Hidden People

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda and the Nowhere Space

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda and the Time Worm

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda and the White Woff

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda's Sparrow Scout Guide

PEARSON, LUKE — Hilda's World: A Guide to Trolberg, the Wilderness, and Beyond

PENNYPACKER, SARA — Pax

PULLMAN, PHILIP — Amber Spyglass

RIORDAN, RICK — Battle of the Labyrinth

RIORDAN, RICK — Blood of Olympus

RIORDAN, RICK — House of Hades

RIORDAN, RICK — Last Olympian

RIORDAN, RICK — Lost Hero

RIORDAN, RICK — Mark of Athena

RIORDAN, RICK — Son of Neptune

RIORDAN, RICK — Titan's Curse

ROWELL, RAINBOW — Any Way the Wind Blows

ROWELL, RAINBOW — Wayward Son

SNICKET, LEMONY — Austere Academy

SNICKET, LEMONY — Carnivorous Carnival

SNICKET, LEMONY — End

SNICKET, LEMONY — Ersatz Elevator

SNICKET, LEMONY — Grim Grotto

SNICKET, LEMONY — Hostile Hospital

SNICKET, LEMONY — Miserable Mill

SNICKET, LEMONY — Penultimate Peril

SNICKET, LEMONY — Reptile Room

SNICKET, LEMONY — Slippery Slope

SNICKET, LEMONY — Vile Village

SNICKET, LEMONY — Wide Window

TAYLOR, LAINI — Muse of Nightmares

TOLKIEN, J. R. R. — Fellowship of the Ring

TOLKIEN, J. R. R. — Return of the King

TOLKIEN, J. R. R. — Two Towers

Physical Standalones

ABBOTT, MEGAN — Dare Me

ÁBÍKÉ-ÍYÍMÍDÉ, FARIDAH — Ace of Spades

ÁBÍKÉ-ÍYÍMÍDÉ, FARIDAH — Where Sleeping Girls Lie

AESOP — Aesop's Fables

ALBOM, MITCH — Stranger in the Lifeboat

ALI, S. K. — Love from A to Z

ALLAIN, SUZANNE — Mr. Malcolm's List

ANONYMOUS — Tales from the Arabian Nights

AUSTEN, JANE — Northanger Abbey

AUSTEN, JANE — Pride and Prejudice

AUSTEN, JANE — Sense and Sensibility

BABBITT, NATALIE — Kneeknock Rise

BACKMAN, FREDRIK — Man Called Ove

BAILEY, TESSA — My Killer Vacation

BARLOW, ROCHELLE — American Sign Language for Beginners

BLAKEMORE, MEGAN FRAZER — Spy Catchers of Maple Hill

BLAKEMORE, MEGAN FRAZER — Water Castle

BROWN, ECHO — Chosen One

BRUCHAC, JOSEPH — Rez Dogs

BURNETT, FRANCES HODGSON — Little Princess

BURNETT, FRANCES HODGSON — Secret Garden

BURNS, KEVIN — Eastern Philosophy

CALETTI, DEB — Heart in a Body in the World

CASH, JOHNNY — Cash

COTTER, ERIN — By Any Other Name

CUEVAS, MAYRA/MARQUARDT, MARIE — Does My Body Offend You?

D. K. PUBLISHING — Timelines from Black History: Leaders, Legends, Legacies

DANIEL TATUM, BEVERLY — Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria

DAVIS, ANGELA J. — Policing the Black Man

DELGADO, RICHARD/STEFANCIC, JEAN — CRT: An Introduction

DICAMILLO, KATE — Flora and Ulysses

DOSTOYEVSKY, FYODOR — Brothers Karamazov

DOSTOYEVSKY, FYODOR — Crime and Punishment

DOUGHERTY, MARTIN J. — Hindu Myths

DRAPER, SHARON M. — Blended

DUMAS, ALEXANDRE — Three Musketeers

EDDINGS, MAZEY — Late Bloomer

EKREK, ALICE — Tarot

ENTRADA KELLY, ERIN — Hello, Universe

FLORENCE, DEBBI MICHIKO — Keep It Together, Keiko Carter

FUNKHOUSER, DARLENE — Women of the Civil War

GAIMAN, NEIL — Smoke and Mirrors

GAIMAN, NEIL/PRATCHETT, TERRY — Good Omens

GERLINGS, CHARLOTTE — 100 Great Artists

GIBSON, LINDSAY C. — Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents

GILBERT, HENRY — Tales of King Arthur

GILL, NIKITA — Great Goddesses

GOODMAN, JESSICA — They'll Never Catch Us

GRYMES, JAMES A. — Violins of Hope

GYASI, YAA — Homegoing

HAMMONDS, JAS — We Deserve Monuments

HAWTHORNE, NATHAN — Scarlet Letter

HAZELWOOD, ALI — Bride

HAZELWOOD, ALI — Love on the Brain

HEYWOOD, CLAIRE — Daughters of Sparta

HIRSHMAN, LINDA — Victory

HO, JOANNA — Silence that Binds Us

HODGES, KATE — Warriors, Witches, Women

HOFFMAN, ALICE — Faithful

HOSTETTER, JOYCE MOYER — Aim

HUR, JUNE — Crane Among Wolves

HUR, JUNE — Forest of Stolen Girls

ISHIGURO, KAZUO — Klara and the Sun

JENKINS REID, TAYLOR — Daisy Jones & the Six

JOHNSON, KIM — This Is My America

JONES, CHERIE — How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House

KERROD, ROBIN — Tales of the Night Sky

KERVEN, ROSALIND — Viking Myths & Sagas

KING JR., MARTIN LUTHER — Autobiography of MLK Jr.

KING, A. S. — Dust of 100 Dogs

KNISLEY, LUCY — Stepping Stones

KONDŌ, MARIE — The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

KORMAN, GORDON — Unteachables

LAI, THANHHA — Inside Out and Back Again

LAROCCA, ERIC — Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke

LAURE, ESTELLE — Practice Girl

LEE, MIN JIN — Pachinko

LEVINE, GAIL CARSON — Ella Enchanted

LEVITHAN, DAVID/NIVEN, JENNIFER — Take Me With You When You Go

LIGHT, ALEX — Meet Me in the Middle

LIN, GRACE — Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

LIPPINCOTT, RACHAEL/DERRICK, ALYSON — She Gets the Girl

LITTLE BADGER, DARCIE — Snake Falls to Earth

LONDON, JACK — Call of the Wild

LUBNER, SUSAN — Lizzy and the Good Luck Girl

LUKENS, F. T. — In Deeper Waters

MALCOLM X — Autobiography of Malcolm X

MÁRQUEZ, GABRIEL GARCÍA — Love in the Time of Cholera

MCDUNN, GILLIAN — Caterpillar Summer

MCQUISTON, CASEY — Red, White, and Royal Blue

MCSMITH, TOBLY — Act Cool

MÉNDEZ, YAMILE SAIED — Furia

MICHELS, ANNA — Somewhere Summer

MILLER, MADELINE — Circe

MILLER, MADELINE — Song of Achilles

MOISER, PAUL — Echo's Sister

MORGENSTERN, ERIN — Night Circus

MORRIS, BRITTNEY — Cost of Knowing

MORRIS, BRITTNEY — Slay

MUSASHI, MIYAMOTO — Book of Five Rings

NIELSEN, JENNIFER A. — Lines of Courage

NIELSEN, JENNIFER A. — Night Divided

NIELSEN, JENNIFER A. — Rescue

NIJKAMP, MARIEKE — This Is Where It Ends

OH, AXIE — Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

ORWELL, GEORGE — 1984

OSHETSKY, CLAIRE — Chouette

PARK, LINDA SUE — Long Walk to Water

PARKER RHODES, JEWELL — Black Brother, Black Brother

PESSL, MARISHA — Night Film

QUINDLEN, KELLY — She Drives Me Crazy

REYNOLDS, JASON — Miles Morales: Spider-Man

ROGERSON, MARGARET — Enchantment of Ravens

SACHAR, LOUIS — Holes

SAFT, ALLISON — Fragile Enchantment

SAINT, JENNIFER — Ariadne

SCHREFER, ELIOT — Darkness Outside Us

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — As You Like It

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — Complete Works of Shakespeare

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — Hamlet

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — Merchant of Venice

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — Midsummer Night's Dream

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — Much Ado About Nothing

SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM — Taming of the Shrew

SHIKIBU, MURASAKI — Tale of Genji

SILVERA, ADAM — They Both Die at the End

SKLOOT, REBECCA — Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

SMITH, JAMIE — Frostfire

SOONTORNVAT, CHRISTINA — Last Mapmaker

SPEARS, BRITNEY — Woman in Me

STIEFVATER, MAGGIE — Bravely

TARTT, DONNA — Goldfinch

THAO, DUSTIN — You've Reached Sam

THOMAS, SHERRY — Magnolia Sword

THOMPSON, ALICIA — Love in the Time of Serial Killers

TYNDALL, NITA — Who I Was With Her

VAN ARSDALE, PETERNELLE — Cold Is in Her Bones

VARIOUS AUTHORS — Classic Animal Stories

VARIOUS AUTHORS — Dangerous Women

VARIOUS AUTHORS — Deaf Culture: Exploring Deaf Communities in the United States

WATKINS, DAWN L. — Medallion

WHEELER, THOMAS — Cursed

WHITE, E. B. — Trumpet of the Swan

WHITMAN, WALT — Leaves of Grass

WILDENSTEIN, DANIEL — Monet: The Triumph of Impressionism

YANAGIHARA, HANYA — To Paradise

YOON, NICOLA — Instructions for Dancing

YOUNG, WILLIAM PAUL — Shack

YOUSAFZAI, MALALA — Malala: My Story of Standing Up for Girls’ Rights

ZHAO, KATIE — Last Gamer Standing

ZOBOI, IBI — Punching the Air

#ongoing posts

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thataspdfeel · 7 years

Text

that book list I promised

//rubs my grubby hands together happily

Boy howdy do I ever have some book recommendations. This would’ve been posted earlier but mobile decided to go fuck itself. Just a heads up, this is gonna be long

I mostly read series because tbh teen fiction is some of the best. It tends to take the most risks with both style and characterization. (Granted, it also tends to fall risk to some of the worst tropes imo like abuse stalker creepy guy is hot cause he loves protag)

Anything Garth Nix has ever written in his whole life. He’s one of my favorite authors and tends to stick to series. Keys to the Kingdom is 7 books and the first is Mister Monday and you read in order of the days of the week. No really. You’ll see why. His Old Kingdom series is 5 books and a short story so far and starts with Sabriel. It’s about necromancers who keep the dead down rather than raise them. Like I have the biggest boner for this series it’s not even funny

Terry Pratchett is my absolute favorite author of all time (besides Shakespeare) and he’s written over 50 books. You don’t have to read them in any particular order but he does follow characters across books sometimes. I recommend starting with Monstrous Regiment, Small Gods, or Going Postal first. If you want to start in chronological order, I think The Colour of Magic was written first

If you’re patient, read the whole Lord of the Rings series from The Hobbit onward. Tolkien sucks his own dick and describes clouds for a whole page cause he’s a world builder kind of writer. I haven’t had a chance to try the series again but I remember enjoying The Hobbit. Just know this is a very tedious option and may result in more boredom

Less boring is The Chronicles of Narnia but there are a few books that are just an absolute bear to get through. I recommend this right after lotr because these stories are a result OF THE SAME DRUG TRIP because Clive Staples Lewis (no really that’s what CS stands for) and Tolkien were college roommates. And because Narnia is a fucking fun place to visit

George RR Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire cause it includes more detail than Game of Thrones and because I’m always a slut for kingdom musical chairs and dragons

Speaking of dragons, The Inheritance Series which is Eragon etc because it’s like lotr for people who can’t stand reading about a cloud for two pages, almost entirely action. Plus, in one of the books, they (Eragon and Saphira) do a couple of really stupid, slightly offensive things to the elves and admit their mistakes which I thought was cool cause it feels like sometimes protagonists don’t apologize in books

Chris D'Lacey also writes these REALLY COOL books about dragons called The Last Dragon Chronicles where these ladies make dragons out of clay and I’m 90% sure The Fire Within is the first book. There are at least 7 and I really need to catch up

Angie Sage writes about a boy named Septimus Heap who’s the 7th son of a 7th son and those books start with Magyk and there are at least 6 maybe 9. They’re fucking awesome and full of magic and adventure and I’m pretty sure he gets a pet dragon somewhere

Suzanne Collins also writes a lot of great stuff but I REALLY like her Gregor the Overlander series. Think Alice in Wonderland with a guy and no drugs and it’s awesome

Anything Rick Riordan has ever written in his life. I love love love the Percy Jackson series and he also wrote Children of the Lamp which is the bomb dot com about djinn children

Douglas Adams has a whole Hitchhiker’s Guide series and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is the first and it’s just bonkers and loads of fun. Basically earth gets blown up and the protagonist has to deal with it. An absolute riot

James Rollins writes the Blood Infernal series about vampires and were-beings not just werewolves. The first book is Sanguine and the protagonist’s best friend is a werewolf. The first two books don’t have much to do with each other aside from being in the same universe but book three picks up at the end of book one and ties them both together. I’m pretty sure there’s sex

I’d also recommend anything Edgar Allen Poe or Shakespeare ever wrote. I know that’s more Classical Canon or whatever the fuck but honestly? Delightful. Same sentiment for Stephen King

I can’t remember the names of all the series I’ve read but these I definitely do. So onto individual books!

I, Coriander by Sally Gardener set in 17th century London and has to do with a fairy world if I remember correctly

Fairest by Gail Carson Levine about a really ugly inn keeper’s daughter and it’s kind of a retelling of Snow White (She wrote other stand alones but I haven’t read them. Based off this, though, I’d recommend them)

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie about a girl who immigrates from Nigeria(?) to the US and it’s just really really good

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe set in Nigeria(?) right when colonialism happens. The first part is pre-colonialism and then it gets into the beginnings of it and all this happens within the lifespan of one man. Trigger warning though for mentions of abuse, explicit child murder and explicit suicide. Like it’s a good book but it’s gonna be a rough ride if you don’t know what you’re in for

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez is good, if tedious. It’s a Latin American book so the story is circular and told in spirals. I literally have no other way to describe it. Also don’t ignore the family chart at the very beginning because people get the same names across generations and it’s absolutely hellish. Trigger warning for incest, I think rape, definitely abuse, and a baby gets eaten by ants at the end which is more gross than anything

Black Rain by Kuroi Ame is about the bombing of Hiroshima. I’m pretty sure that’s all the trigger warning you’re going to need

The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie is a collection of short stories about various Native American characters living on a reservation

Black Elk Speaks by John G. Neihardt is about a Blackfoot medicine man who finally talks about his life but it’s less interview and more John interpreting things so this needs to be read a little critically

Lame Deer, Seeker of Visions by Richard Erdoes is a book where a Sioux medicine man talks directly to Erdoes from a Native perspective about various things from sex to politics. Was a joy to read honestly. Very enlightening

Hagakure by Yamamoto Tsunetomo basically entails the way of the bushido or the samurai code more or less. Kind of technical but I enjoyed it

Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause is about the werewolf protagonist trying to fit into her pack and figure out how to be a teenager. There’s at least one graphic mention of death (I think). It could also be suicide) so heads up

The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause is a vampire romance set in the 90′s and has absolutely nothing to do with the other book and was definitely something I loved. The protagonist watches her mother waste away from illness so avoid if that’s not something you can handle. Apparently, there are more stories (which I’d LOVE to read) and I’d recommend them just based off the two I have read

The Spook’s Apprentice by Joseph Delaney was amazing and I’ve just found out it’s a series not just a stand-alone so I know what’s going on my to-read list. It’s about an apprentice to The Spook who puts down evil things that hide in the dark. Kind of spine-tingling so if you don’t do horror, don’t read when it’s dark. It’s not horror-horror but if it’s not your thing, definitely read during the day

A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner is the only thing Faulkner ever wrote I can possibly stand. It’s a short story and the time is out of order but I still liked it

The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is also a short story and my absolute favorite

Also not a book, but I greatly enjoy the Puritan poet Anne Bradstreet but not everybody does because 1 early American literature and 2 Puritan but that’s something if poetry is up your alley

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell is about the life of a horse set from the horse’s perspective. No seriously. With I statements and everything. I thought it was very interesting. (I was also like 8)

White Fang by Jack London is by wolves. I don’t remember much more than that because of how long ago I read it but it was probably decent since it stuck in my mind

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman is about a prince’s whipping boy which is a thing because you can’t spank a prince directly so you have to punish somebody else. V interesting

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl was very enjoyable. I like Roald Dahl anyway but the concept of a chocolate factory was awesome. I also read it before I saw either movie and before the remake

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is pretty good but skip the epistolary at the beginning and read it after if you want to spare yourself some headache

Dracula by Bram Stoker is a classic and just really fun and I can definitely see why it’s a classic

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman was really interesting and honestly, I’d read anything that man writes after I read that

The Help by Kathryn Stockett is even better than the movie but there’s abuse mentions in it like even more so than the movie. If you haven’t seen the movie, heads up for graphic depictions of miscarriage, racial violence, and I don’t remember if the one death mentioned is graphic or not but it’s a heavy book

I’d have more but I can’t remember their damned names right now and it’s bugging me. I also have obscure video game recs because I’m one of those indie freaks. They tend to really draw me in

Also, if you like manga, I’ve read like idk how many series but a shitload and the day onemanga shut down was the day my soul died

Anyway, I hope this is fine. It isn’t even the half of what I’ve read. Like I spent almost all of my childhood reading and I enjoyed most of it. I just wish I could remember book names. Their stories are floating around in my head, just not their names. If I remember any more, I’ll probably add to this list

#original post #words #i just recommended at least 500 books probably #maybe more even??? idk #kizamimai #god im so sorry i just love books so much #IF YALL HAVE READ ANY OF THESE HIT MY ASS UP #I AM ALWAYS FUCKIN DOWN TO TALK SOME LITERATURE #its why im an english major tbh

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