Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: December 26, 2022 – January 1, 2023

Posted on January 1, 2023 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles, and happy new year!! I hope this last week of the year treated you well. 🎇

It’s been a nice, relaxing end to this year, I would say. After Christmas, I went to Barnes & Noble and got some amazing-looking books with my gift card, and I’ve had lots of time to draw, read, blog, and decompress overall. With all of the snow that’s still here, Ringo’s been swimming in the snow with his little legs…corgis are so funny lol

I finally feel like I’ve broken out of my reading slump from this month! I really enjoyed Gleanings, and the one book I finished from the B & N haul (House of Hollow) was fantastic, and all of the others look similarly so! I finished 2022’s reading challenge, beating my goal of 200 books and reading 224 books in 2022! I didn’t want to make that drastic of a leap this year, so my goal for 2023 is 215 books!

Other than that, I’ve just been drawing, playing guitar, watching Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (emotionally destroyed me, but leave it to him to make the creation of Pinocchio look like something out of Frankenstein) and Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (the SWEETEST), and rewatching Isle of Dogs. Certainly a nice start to the year, I think. Here’s to a happy 2023!

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe – Neal Shusterman et. al. (anthology) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Women Don’t Owe You Pretty – Florence Given (⭐️⭐️⭐️)

DC: The New Frontier, vol. 1 – Darwyn Cooke (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

House of Hollow – Krystal Sutherland (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Across a Field of Starlight – Blue Delliquanti

The Heartstopper Yearbook – Alice Oseman

To Each This World – Julie E. Czernada

Today’s song:

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: December 19-25, 2022

Posted on December 25, 2022December 25, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles, and a very merry Christmas to those who celebrate! I hope this week has treated you well. 🎄❄️

It’s been a peaceful week, if not a ridiculously freezing one. It got to a balmy -14 degrees on Wednesday, so we stayed inside that day (and most of the week). The weather’s been somewhat normal after that, luckily. I’ve just been relaxing around the house for most of the week and doing some baking and cooking for Christmas.

As far as reading goes, I’m still in a slight bit of a slump; I’ve read a few good books, but I haven’t read anything that’s really wowed me in a couple of weeks. It’s been a slow reading month as is, what with finals earlier in the month, but hopefully I’ll strike gold soon. Luckily, I got Gleanings and Women Don’t Owe You Pretty for Christmas, and my brother, while on his noble quest to reorganize my dad’s comic shelves, found an older Hellboy paperback and a few other things, so I have plenty to read soon. (because nothing says Christmas like Hellboy, right?)

Other than that, I’ve just been drawing, playing guitar, baking for Christmas (and subsequently eating said baking), watching Andor (I’M SO CLOSE TO FINISHING IT’S SO GOOD) and Glass Onion (the whole film is basically a giant middle finger to Elon Musk and I loved it), and staying warm in the way-too-wintry weather.

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

The Genesis of Misery – Neon Yang (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Last Night at the Telegraph Club – Malinda Lo (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Deep in Providence – Riss M. Neilson (⭐️⭐️)

Hellboy: On Earth as it is in Hell – Brian Hodge (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe – Neal Shusterman et. al. (anthology)

Women Don’t Owe You Pretty – Florence Given

DC: The New Frontier, vol. 1 – Darwyn Cooke

Today’s song:

MERRY CHRISTMAS FRIENDS

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, take care of yourselves, and merry Christmas and happy holidays to everyone!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: December 12 – 18, 2022

Posted on December 18, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, everyone! Hope this week has treated you well.

I’m back now!! Again, sorry that I disappeared without warning there, finals just snuck up on me. But they’re over now, and so is my first semester of college!! It doesn’t feel like I’ve already finished a whole semester, but I’m so proud of myself for how far I’ve come—it was scary, but I managed to make good grades and make some friends too! I’m hoping next semester will be fun too—I have a whole class on science fiction (!!!!!!) on my roster, and now that I have stats out of the way, I don’t need any more math classes!

Most of this week has been studying and subsequently packing up my dorm and going back home, so I haven’t been able to do much reading. I’ve been in a slump for a week or two—it’s been punctuated by some great books, but I’ve had a string of mediocre to bad books as of late. It’s starting to look up a little, though, and winter break will definitely give me loads more time to read. (You’ll probably see them pop up in the wrap-up in a few weeks…)

Also, this was last week, but I wanted to share some pictures—I had the AMAZING opportunity of seeing The Smile live!! Easily one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to—the collective talents of Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and Tom Skinner just poured off the stage, and I just felt like I was levitating the whole time, absolutely ecstatic. Since that was all during the muck of finals, I really needed that pick-me-up. So grateful to have seen them! Now I can’t wait for all of those new songs they played to come out…

yes that is Jonny Greenwood playing the bass with a cello bow, and yes it was incredible

Other than that, I’ve just been packing up for home, sleeping in, watching Andor (liking it so far!! doesn’t feel like Disney which is VERY good lol) and VERY much enjoying having home-cooked food and going out to dinner with my family. Love you guys 💗

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

A House Between Earth and the Moon – Rebecca Scherm (⭐️⭐️)

A Venom Dark and Sweet (The Book of Tea, #2) – Judy I. Lin (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

THE ONE, LONELY POST I MADE THIS WEEK:

Winter is Coming Book Tag

THE ONE, LONELY SONG THAT WENT WITH IT:

“Gigantic” – Pixies

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

The Genesis of Misery – Neon Yang

Today’s song:

That’s it for this (very short) week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: November 21-27, 2022

Posted on November 27, 2022November 27, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! I hope this week has treated you well.

Thanksgiving break was this week, which was such a relief. It was so nice to be able to sleep in for a week, and I had a productive break—I got some homework done, and I had a good amount of time to relax. The weather warmed up a little as well, but of course, it’s supposed to snow again right when I get back to college…(maybe they’ll cancel classes again?) Thanksgiving is always fun, and I loved helping my family out with some of the cooking, and subsequently stuffing myself.

The break has also given me some time to read, which was wonderful—apart from all of the single-issue comics I got as well, I went through several books on my Kindle, although one of them ended up being a sore DNF. The others were all good, though, to varying degrees.

Also, I think this happened some time last week, but I finished my reading challenge! I set it to 200 books this year, knowing that I’d probably be reading less while transitioning to college, but I still managed to achieve it! I’m at about 208 books right now.

Other than that, I’ve just been sleeping in, eating too much, drawing, getting our Christmas tree (after Thanksgiving), and watching the Holiday Bakeoff and finally getting around to seeing Wendell & Wild (which is AMAZING if you haven’t seen it, go watch it)

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Scattered Showers – Rainbow Rowell (anthology) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau – Silvia Moreno Garcia (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The All-Consuming World – Cassandra Khaw (DNF – ⭐️)

Soul of the Deep (Of Mermaids and Orisa, #2) – Natasha Bowen (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law – Mary Roach

Today’s song:

so excited for this album!!

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: November 7-13, 2022

Posted on November 13, 2022November 13, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! I hope this week has treated you well.

The temperatures are dropping big time on campus, and I’ve been making plenty of hot chocolate and tea for the occasion. Luckily, I haven’t had an awful lot to do this week, save for a project for comics class. (We also talked about Ms. Marvel this week in that class, which was SO FUN) It’s so strange to think that there’s only about a month left in the semester—I feel like there should still be several months left, with the way that it’s flown by. Jeez.

I’ve had a little more time to read. I snagged a few books from various sections of the library last week, and I went through them, along with a few re-reads for comics class. I went home for the weekend and I was able to reunite with my beloved Kindle, so now I have that to get me through next week.

Other than that, I’ve just been catching up on The Great British Bakeoff (FINALS NEXT WEEK AAAAAAAA), drawing, playing guitar when I can, listening to Lush and Suede, and seeing Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (pretty solid!). VERY glad that Thanksgiving Break starts next week…

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Queen of the Tiles – Hanna Alkaf (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Ms. Marvel, vol. 1: No Normal – G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona (re-read) (for school) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art – Scott McCloud (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

She Gets the Girl – Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick (⭐️⭐️)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Fun Home – Alison Bechdel (for school)

Vicious (Villains, #1) – V.E. Schwab

Today’s song:

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: October 31 – November 6, 2022

Posted on November 6, 2022November 6, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! I hope this week treated you well.

It doesn’t feel like it should be November—mentally, I still feel like it’s…mid-September? Maybe? It doesn’t feel like I’m almost done with the semester. Wow. Weather-wise, it feels like November, though—it’s getting a lot chillier over here, and we had our first snow on my campus on Thursday night and I walked through the snow to class on Friday morning. All of my classes are pretty close to my dorm, thankfully…

Halloween was also on Monday! I carved pumpkins with my parents over the weekend, and I wore my costume (Columbia from The Rocky Horror Picture Show) to class, which was a lot of fun. Nothing like eating a ton of candy and rewatching Rocky Horror in your dorm to celebrate the spooky season.

It’s definitely been fun to get back into the rhythm of blogging this week too! I haven’t been too busy, knock on wood, so hopefully I can start posting more. Good to be back. 💗 I tragically forgot my Kindle at home this week, but the good news is that one of the libraries on campus isn’t even a 5 minute walk from my dorm, so I was able to scrounge around there for stuff to read. Re-reading some great graphic novels for my comics class has also kept me going. And…I completely forgot that NaNoWriMo was a thing, but I’ll probably just put it off this year. Probably not the best time to do it, since…y’know, first semester of college, and all. Plus, I didn’t have any plans, anyway…

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

American Born Chinese – Gene Luen Yang (re-read) (for school) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Sisters (Smile, #2) – Raina Telgemeier (re-read) (for school) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Lost Apothecary – Sarah Penner (⭐️⭐️.5)

Huntress (Ash, #0.5) – Malinda Lo (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Queen of the Tiles – Hanna Alkaf

Ms. Marvel, vol. 1 – No Normal – G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona (re-read) (for school)

Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art – Scott McCloud

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic – Alison Bechdel (for school)

Today’s song:

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: August 8-14, 2022

Posted on August 14, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! Hope this week has treated you well.

Well…things have been…put into perspective this week. I’m now only a few days away from moving into my college dorm, so most of this week has been preparing for that—physically and mentally. I’ve got most of my stuff packed up in boxes and bags in the next room. It feels so strange that the day’s finally here, but it was bound to come eventually. Wish me luck, everybody.

Reading-wise, though, I had some great reads! All of my books were in the 3-4 star range, and I enjoyed them all. This was my last library visit before college, so that was bittersweet, so I’ll probably end up with a mix of Kindle library books and re-reads for this week, especially since I’ll be moving. I finished draft 1 of the WIP I wrote for camp NaNoWriMo this year! It’s a little on the shorter side (~250 pages), but it’s a first draft, so I’m proud of what I’ve got.

Other than that, I dyed my hair green (as seen in my new pfp…face reveal, I guess?), played guitar, drew a little, watched What We Do in the Shadows and rewatched The Shape of Water (my all-time favorite movie…many tears were shed), and started packing for college. Soon…

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Bi: The Hidden Culture, History, and Science of Bisexuality – Julia Shaw (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25)

Alone Out Here – Riley Redgate (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

You’re Welcome, Universe – Whitney Gardner (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Not Good for Maidens – Tori Bolivano (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School – Sonora Reyes (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

THE ONE, LONELY POST I MADE THIS WEEK:

Book Review Tuesday (8/9/22) – That Dark Infinity (ft. my fanart!)

THE ONE, LONELY SONG THAT WENT WITH IT:

“Simulation Swarm” – Big Thief

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

A Sisterhood of Secret Ambitions – Sheena Boekweg

Today’s song:

I’d already heard a good half of this album before, but I listened to the whole thing yesterday…can’t go wrong with the Beatles

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: August 1-7, 2022

Posted on August 7, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! I hope this week has treated you well.

It’s been another quiet week, and college is looming closer and closer still…don’t wanna think about that…I haven’t been busy, though, so that’s always nice. I’ve had a lot of time to read and draw, so that’s always good to be able to collect my thoughts like that. It’s been rather hot, though, so that’s…not ideal.

I finished up Camp NaNoWriMo last Sunday night, and I got to 45,000 words! I’ve been continuing with the first draft of this WIP ever since, and it’s at around 52,000 words right now, and I’d say it’s getting pretty close to being finished! Whew…

I wasn’t able to go to the library last week, so I ended up trawling the Kindle library for books to read last week. I was in a major fantasy mood this week for no particular reason, so that’s what I ended up reading. It was a hit-or-miss batch, but there were a couple of great books I discovered! (I also unintentionally read a bunch of autumnal/wintry books…in 80+ degree weather) I got a promising batch from the library this week too.

Other than that, I’ve just been playing guitar, continuing with What We Do in the Shadows, rewatching Severance, and finally getting around to Ms. Marvel (it’s one of my favorite marvel comics, so you can definitely expect a review of the show soon!), and seeing Nope in theaters (my first Jordan Peele movie—loved all the detail and the creature design!!). My other cat, Anakin, also celebrates his 15th birthday today, so everybody say happy birthday to our little crotchety old man 💗

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Early Riser – Jasper Fforde (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Midnight Girls – Alicia Jasinska (⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️)

That Dark Infinity – Kate Pentecost (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

August Kitko and the Mechas from Space (The Starmetal Symphony, #1) – Alex White (⭐️⭐️.5)

Jackaby (Jackaby, #1) – William Ritter (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Bi: The Hidden Culture, History, and Science of Bisexuality – Julia Shaw

Alone Out Here – Riley Redgate

You’re Welcome, Universe – Whitney Gardner

Not Good for Maidens – Tori Bovalino

The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School – Sonora Reyes

Today’s song:

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: July 25-31, 2022

Posted on July 31, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! Hope this week has treated you well.

It’s been a fairly uneventful week on my end; other than tagging along with my mom to run some errands, I haven’t left the house much this week. I’ve been trying to exercise a bit more—and I have, a little bit—but most of my days have been spent reading on the couch. Not complaining in the slightest. I was gonna go hiking, but after some storms, there was apparently a flash flood AND snow (???) at the place we were going to go, so…nope.

Reading-wise, I’ve had another prolific reading week. Most of it’s been in the 2-3 star range, but by the end of the week, I’d read something incredibly powerful but that made me feel rather sad (Man o’ War), and a sudden 5-star read that made me cry, but…in a good way? (The Amazing Screw-On Head and Other Curious Objects—the short comic “The Magician and the Snake” was the tearjerker in question). I didn’t have a chance to go to the library, so I’ll be trawling the Kindle library for books to read this week.

And now, Camp NaNoWriMo is almost done! I’m about 97% of the way to my goal, and I’ll finish it up tonight!! This year’s Camp was all about feeling my way through—the story, the website, and everything else—and I think it’s gone relatively well!

Other than that, I’ve just been drawing, playing guitar, watching the new episodes of What We Do in the Shadows, and giving one of my cats an extra chicken treat for her birthday. Hobbes turned 6 on Monday.

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

She Who Became the Sun (The Radiant Emperor, #1) – Shelley Parker-Chan (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Ophelia After All – Racquel Marie (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

The Blood Trials (The Blood Gift Duology, #1) – N.E. Davenport (⭐️⭐️)

Man o’ War – Cory McCarthy (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Sisters of Reckoning (The Good Luck Girls, #2) – Charlotte Nicole Davis (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

The Amazing Screw-On Head and Other Curious Objects (20th Anniversary Edition) – Mike Mignola (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Early Riser – Jasper Fforde

Since I’ve already posted today, head over to my July 2022 Wrap-Up for today’s song.

That’s it for this week in blogging! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: July 18-24, 2022

Posted on July 24, 2022 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! I hope this week has treated you well.

I suppose this week hasn’t been terribly eventful. I’ve been able to read and draw more often, and I’ve been learning an unexpectedly challenging song on guitar (it’s “Held” by Smog if you’re interested—who knew that 4 chords could be so infuriating) Aside from a weird dream that I had yesterday (and waking up at midnight to screeching foxes in the backyard—welcome to Colorado 😀) that threw me off, I’d say it’s been a nice, peaceful week, one where I could soak up some more summer.

Reading-wise, I’d say it’s been a solid week. I started off with a fantastic book and the first book I’ve ever read with SPD rep (thank you, Not If I Can Help It!!), and while the rest of what I read didn’t get as good as that, I enjoyed the majority of what I read. I came back from the library with a few nice, thick books, so next week should be a promising reading week.

And now I’m a good three weeks into Camp NaNoWriMo! For most of the week, I got to a slower part in the plot of my WIP, and my motivation teetered off a little before I got excited again. There’s something invigorating to me about writing really tense scenes—I feel like my fingers just start speeding across the keys whenever the tension starts to ramp up.

Other than that, I’ve just been drawing, trying to play said Smog song on guitar (insert the sound of my finger squeaking on the high E string here), catching up on the new season of The Umbrella Academy, and listening to the new Superorganism and Jack White albums. (Superorganism was definitely hit or miss, but Jack White…man, as much as I want to hate him, Entering Heaven Alive is just SO GOOD)

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Not If I Can Help It – Carolyn Mackler (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)