Tag: The Light at the Bottom of the World

Posted in Sunday Songs

Sunday Songs: 9/28/25

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

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

This week: You know what’s better than Monday? That’s right, Sun—[gets dragged offstage by a comically large cane]

Enjoy this week’s songs!

SUNDAY SONGS: 9/28/25

“The Happy Dictator” (feat. Sparks) – Gorillaz

This song came out at the tail end of a terrible day for me…even though I’d experienced some pretty awful events in the past 24 hours, at least there was Gorillaz at the end of it. And a new album with Sparks, IDLES, and Yasiin Bey on it??? EVERYBODY SAY THANK YOU, GORILLAZ! March can’t come soon enough…

From the looks of it, Sparks are having a better 2025 than most of us, what with releasing MAD! and an accompanying EP—collaborating with Gorillaz just seems to be the cherry on top for them. It’s surprising that it’s taken so long for them to collaborate. Either way, they’ve come together to sprinkle some healthy satire and upbeat tunes on this dystopian hellscape, and I am all the better for it. As always, Albarn has an eye trained on…well, the trajectory of most of the world right now, but he weaves a tale of opulent tyranny, of dictators who shroud their dirty deeds in illusions of placidity, peace, and universal happiness; it was specifically inspired by a visit to Turkmenistan with his daughter, where the former dictator, Saparmurat Niyazov, “wanted everyone in Turkmenistan to only think happy thoughts and sleep unaffected by the doom of the world, and just keep everything upbeat, so he kind of banned all bad news.” Even though his rule ended decades ago, echoes of it can be heard the world over, and Gorillaz is once again here to critique them: “In a world of fiction, I am a velvet glove/I am your soul, your resurrection, I am the love.” It’s…well, frankly, if I emptied out all the parallels, this post would be impossibly long and I would be even more dismal about the news than I already am. At least, in these turbulent times, we can count on Gorillaz to weave some excellent art out of the collective suffering. Plus, if Russell Mael is the dictator in this situation, then y’know what? All hail our new overlord.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

Sunrise on the Reaping – Suzanne Collins – …need I really say more?

“Glider” – Japanese Breakfast

I promise I’ll stop blabbering about Japanese Breakfast soon, but the concert’s had me on such a kick of their music since the beginning of the month. I wasn’t familiar with any of Michelle Zauner’s soundtrack work before the concert, and I wasn’t familiar with the video game Sable at all. (I’m fairly video game illiterate, but it looks super cool, honestly—from what I can tell, you’re basically exploring the ruins of an ancient civilization on a desert planet, and the art was inspired by Moebius. You had me at Moebius!) This game was Zauner’s first foray into soundtracks.

At the Japanese Breakfast show, Zauner whipped this one out of nowhere solely because she’d heard somebody humming it before the show, which should tell you everything about how cool she is as a person. The instrumentation is fairly different than most of her work—it’s much more synth-based, but it works well with something like “Posing in Bondage.” It has a chiming, starry quality to it, just the kind of music I’d imagine hearing while wandering the desert on a sci-fi glider. Once her lyrics fade out of the recognizable and into the more abstract, pulled apart like putty by autotune and editing, it takes on an almost Cocteau Twins quality to it, but if they had been transposed into glaring sunlight and not the wintry sound palettes I usually associate with them. “Glider” is weightless, always looking skyward, yearning and hoping.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

The Light at the Bottom of the World – London Shah – I feel like “Glider” fits in a multitude of sci-fi settings, but somehow, it feels particularly at home in London Shah’s vision of a flooded England and submersible races.

“Better Than Monday” – Ginger Root

Opening bands are always a gamble, but somehow, I’ve had unusually good luck with them this year—Hana Vu, Tyler Ballgame, and Black Country, New Road are some of the standouts. I went to Japanese Breakfast with a dear friend of mine, and neither of us really knew Ginger Root, and the only person we knew who knew him was a mutual friend. We looked on his Spotify bio, where he described his music as “aggressive elevator soul.” So, in a word, our expectations were…lowered? But we were morbidly curious.

Honestly? I wouldn’t go back and listen to everything of Ginger Root’s, but at the end of the day, I can’t deny how creative of a guy Cameron Lew is. Not only does he have this very polished indie pop act going, he’s also got an entire short film, which he played excepts of during his show. He’s a talented musician, and his band is too, and god, he’s got his hyperspecific vibe down to a science, so I can’t fault him for that. It ventured from more soul-oriented songs to instrumentals that sounded like they should’ve been in the background of MarioKart, but dammit, the guy’s got a vibe going. Plus, anyone who puts absolutely everything into getting an action shot of a melodica solo has my approval…as much as I hate to admit it. “Better Than Monday” was my immediate standout—the bassline is just so propulsive and bouncy, and it’s just such a bright, sleek song. It’s one of those songs where you know from the get-go how much fun Lew and company had making it—the enthusiasm radiates from every note, and that was half of the fun of their opening set. Catchy songs are great on their own, but they’re even catchier when you know that every part of the process was a blast.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

Finna – Nino Cipri – it feels odd to say that Ginger Root works perfectly for a book set in an inter-dimensional, legally-distinct IKEA, but life is full of surprises.

“Sunken Treasure” – Wilco

A song with the line “music is my savior” and a refrain repeating adages about rock n’ roll is bound to be a crowd favorite—hook, line, and sinker. Yet none of this song strikes me as cliched. Just because it rouses a crowd doesn’t mean there’s no truth to it. And who could be better than that than Jeff Tweedy?

That’s not even the real sunken treasure of “Sunken Treasure.” I’d only remembered this song when I saw Wilco play it live back in August, but it’s so jam-packed with showstopping lyrics that it made me astounded that I hadn’t listened to it more attentively when I’d heard it in my dad’s car…because I definitely had. It was an inevitability that I’d come back to this gem. Just…okay, it’s about to be a “just copying and pasting the lyrics” moment, because my god:

“There’s rows and rows of houses/With windows painted blue/With the light from a TV/Running parallel to you/But there is no sunken treasure/Rumored to be/Wrapped inside my ribs/In a sea, black with ink…”

The fact that I’m now picturing the Muppet talking houses notwithstanding, I am once again asking Jeff Tweedy to save some poetic talent for the rest of us. Come on. It’s one of those songs with such a near-universal theme—melancholy and relationships sputtering out—and painted it in a way no other artist has. To some extent, we all go through a handful of the same experiences in our lives, and yet nobody can retell it in the exact same way as the person next to them, despite sharing 99% of their DNA with them. “Sunken Treasure” makes me think of that, because I doubt anybody else would pair that feeling with “If I had a mountain/I’d try and roll it over.” Roiling in the background is a veritable red-hot pot of soup boiling over—it feels like a quieter precursor to “Via Chicago” with distorted, crumbling-brick guitars collapsing in the background, strings pulled to the limits. It’s the instrumental epitome of insisting that you’re fine and unbothered, but deep down…there’s no sunken treasure rumored to be wrapped inside your ribs, etc.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

The Seep – Chana Porter – “But there is no sunken treasure/Rumored to be/Wrapped inside my ribs/In a sea, black with ink/I am so/Out of tune/With you…”

“midori” – mary in the junkyard

With the steady breadcrumb trail of singles that mary in the junkyard have been putting out since the end of last year, I can only hope that this mean that there’s an album on the way…or an EP, at the very least. Paired with “drains,” which came out this summer, they’re surely building up to something…something! But in the meantime, I’m just pleased to be getting new music from this burgeoning talent every few months. They’re like little spooky, rock treats.

That being said, “midori” feels slightly weaker than some of their other singles. It’s not bad by any stretch—the fact that this is weak for mary in the junkyard is a testament to how consistently good they are—but it feels like it could’ve been one of the songs from this old house – EP. It’s a double-edged sword: it could’ve been a great addition to last year’s EP, but I fear that at their worst, this song doesn’t stray as far from their older ones. On the other sides of their discography, “drains” took their sound to an extreme and “this is my california” took it in a softer, more introspective direction. Granted, they have an EP and a handful of singles to their name, so I hesitate to really call it a formula—only nine songs doesn’t really give anybody the full idea of their sound or what they have left in store.

And even if they’ve got a formula (which, again, very hesitant to say), it’s a damn good one. I say that as if I’m not eating up pretty much everything they do…mary in the junkyard are proving themselves to be masters of their atmospheric craft. Their electric guitars sound like they’ve been draped in a decaying bridal veil and left to get haunted for a century or so—everything echoes and brims with an untold history. “midori” was written entirely about plants coming out of concrete, and Clari Freeman-Taylor manages to transform the subject into the angstiest thing possible: “Could you help it?/With no god to bow down to/And no soil to grow down in/Could you help it?” Feeble sprouts become desperate, mewling spirits in her hands, and the echoing guitars and strings turn urban nature into a sweeping and creeping epic, shrouded in ivy with leaves wilting at the tips. It gives the air of something waiting to be free—you can just barely hear some squealing sounds in the background, the sound of something desperate to claw free—exactly the kind of fare mary in the junkyard expertly deals in.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

The Maid and the Crocodile – Jordan Ifueko – “Though I am concrete-bound/I am fragrant/I get old and get out/I am fake and dead…”

Since this post consists entirely of songs, consider all of them to be today’s song.

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

Posted in Sunday Songs

Sunday Songs: 6/23/24

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

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

This week: I wouldn’t hold out hope for the tape deck…or the Creedence.

Enjoy this week’s songs!

SUNDAY SONGS: 6/23/24

“Soul Love” (Demo) – David Bowie

This week on me being incredibly predictable: needless to say, I’m a wreck again. The demos. The David Bowie demos. They got me…………..

As if I wasn’t already eviscerated by what I’ve heard of Divine Symmetry (see: “Quicksand” [Demo]), we’re already back at it again with Rock n’ Roll Star!, a collection of demos, rarities, and live recordings from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. For me, an album is one of the few things that isn’t ruined by seeing all of the moving cogs inside of its stomach; seeing the nymphs of what would become rock classics makes the process even more admirable—and more human, knowing how many costumes each song had to try on before debuting. A piece of “Moonage Daydream” was once less than two minutes, much less spacey, and called “So Long 60’s”; “Lady Stardust” went through several vocal changes before coming out the other side. Most of these were changes that were necessary for the songs to shine.

And yet, the demo version of “Soul Love” feels like the proper way that the song should have been all along. On Ziggy Stardust, it serves to ground the grandiose, anguished lament of “Five Years,” calming the album in vignettes of grief and young lovers. This demo includes some of Bowie’s notes—you can hear him telling his producers that he envisions the final products with lots of saxophone, which it eventually gained. There was no way that “Soul Love” would have ever made it onto Ziggy Stardust in its sparse, acoustic form; there’s no room for that kind of true quiet on an album that’s not only so lofty in its story, but unabashedly theatrical and glam rock. “Soul Love” was always intimate, but in isolation, with only Bowie and his acoustic guitar, the intimacy feels exactly how it was intended. In such a soft, enclosed space, the secrecy of “A boy and girl are talking/New words/That only they can share” and the silent mourning of “She kneels before the grave/A brave son/Who gave his life to save the slogans.” In the landscape of the Ziggy Stardust narrative, “Soul Love” is the period after the announcement of Earth’s impending doom, where fleeting images of people are shown in private, emotional moments—lovers embracing in the darkness, and a mother grieving her fallen son, but thinking also of the future—was it for the best that he was slain before the calamitous end of the world? That privacy is what makes the acoustic version feel much more fitting to the true intent of the song; the performance itself is as secretive and soft of a moment as the very vignettes that Bowie describes; hunched over his guitar, for the first time, you understand the purpose with which he sings “all I have is my love of love,” solid against his beating heart like loose change in his breast pocket.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

Madman Yearbook ’95 – Mike Allred – pure love and David Bowie references abound. Might just be my favorite comic of all time…

“Little Bird” – Lisa Hannigan

The more I listen to “Little Bird,” the more I’m tempted to just copy and paste the lyrics here in lieu of actually writing something, because how else could I do justice to this song? When you’ve got the talent to open a song like this, how do you describe it any better than her?

“Your heart sings like a kettle/And your words, they boil away like steam/And a lie burns long, while the truth bites quick/A heart is built for both, it seems/You are lonely as a church/Despite the queuing out your door/I am empty as a promise, no more.”

One verse. One verse, and I can already feel my chest caving in. Christ. You can dress your story with all the metaphors you like, but Hannigan places them so intentionally that they were never throwaways to make anything more purple or flowery; there’s a quiet tragedy to them, like the squeal of a tea kettle as its contents boil. And it’s not just tying objects like teakettles and churches—thinking to make words disappear in a flush of steam and making the pinnacle of isolation a church is what makes them dig so deeply; it’s Hannigan gives new eyes to these metaphors that turn them into such gut-wrenching poetry. It encapsulates a sensation I often felt as a child, and on occasion now that I’m older: that of being in such a large crowd of people, and everything seeming to collapse into silence and loneliness around you, even though you’re as surrounded and secure as can be. Loneliness, homesickness, lovesickness—the more company it has, the more it aches, I find. Whatever the opposite of claustrophobia is how “Little Bird” is—the feeling of being in an enclosed space, but such a large and unfurnished one that it makes your body instinctively crouch into a small shape. It’s the caldera of loneliness as you grapple with the space one filled by someone, but now occupied by the tug-of-war between whatever made you stay and what made you let them go: “When the time comes/And rights have been read/I think of you often/But for once, I meant what I said.” But the paper-thin, lead-heavy lyrics would not be the same without their messenger—nothing brings it sailing back home like Hannigan’s solemn, wavering warble, each tremble never failing to give me full-body tremors.

In case that wasn’t enough to elicit a good cry, here’s her performance of it on her Tiny Desk Concert (skip to 2:32):

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

The Raven and the Reindeer – T. Kingfisher – “I was salted by your hunger/Now you’ve gone and lost your appetite/And a little bird is every bit as handy in a fight….”

“We The People…” – A Tribe Called Quest

Of course I came back to this song in an election year. I distinctly remembering “We The People…” coloring the deep-rooted anxiety and turmoil of 2016, what with the hate machine that was Trump’s election campaign and eventual presidency. I really, really want to say that “We The People…” sounds dated, but nothing about it is. First off, A Tribe Called Quest are just that talented, but more importantly…nothing about this song’s politics is dated. Here we are in 2024, and Trump is back, and spewing the exact same rhetoric, now with callbacks to Hitler that aren’t even trying to hide it anymore. In his reelection campaign, the only change to his status are the impeachments (PLURAL, remember) and the 34 felony charges. Predictably, that’s done next to nothing to sway his rabid fanbase. I really wish I could say that this song was a product of its time. Maybe in 20 years, when all of this is behind us, it will be. But no, in eight years, nothing’s really changed. A Tribe Called Quest stripped the desires of Trump and his supporters down to the bone, and eight years later, it makes me ill to think that we’re trapped in this same cycle again.

But you know what else hasn’t changed? Our anger. Back in 2016, we knew the dangers of letting such a raging, narcissistic bigot with no political experience into the White House, and now we’ve survived it, and we’re bent on making sure it won’t happen again. The anger and determination of “We The People…” rings the same, but with more tenacity. It may be disheartening to be stuck in this hell time loop, but at least we have high-quality protest music whose wit (and infectious beat) hasn’t dulled in almost a decade. Thanks, Tribe.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

No Gods, No Monsters – Caldwell Turnbull – political unrest and injustice in modern America…now with more monsters.

“Aikea-Guinea” – Cocteau Twins

For the Cocteau Twins, the song’s title is often more important than the lyrics; it’s a placeholder for the abstract feeling that Elizabeth Fraser and company string together, an anchoring point for attempting to describe their lattice-like melodies. In Fraser’s own words, “aikea-guinea” is Scottish slang for “flat shells that have been bleached and smoothed out by the sea and the sand. I’ve just ruined it for you by telling you what it’s all about, haven’t I?”

I really don’t think it has, not at all. In fact, it only sharpens the image that “Aikea-Guinea” conjures as it fizzes like waves dissipating on a rocky shore. By 1985, gated reverb was king (and likely growing overused, at least in mainstream music…and remember, kids, we have “Intruder” to thank for it), but the Cocteau Twins knew just the way to use it to their advantage. By cloaking all of their percussion in it, “Aikea-Guinea” dissolves in your ears like fizzing candy, or more accurately, like crackling sea foam birthed from a freshly-broken wave. Like “Oomingmak,” it’s swathed in mist, but this mist comes from the aftermath of a storm out at sea, the air full of nostril-tingling salt and faint coldness making goosebumps prickle on your bare arms. With each punch of percussion, such seashells that Fraser described tumble through the water, colliding with each other as time and water erode them. Fraser’s voice, which bobs and balloons like frogs after nightfall, is as transient as plankton in the water, spiraling like the trails of bubbles that carry each shell through the currents of time.

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

The Light at the Bottom of the World – London Shah – a fitting soundtrack to an underwater England of the future.

“Lookin’ Out My Back Door” – Creedence Clearwater Revival

I’m not even that ardent of a Creedence Clearwater Revival fan—my knowledge doesn’t extend much past the hits—but I firmly believe that this is one of those songs, like David Bowie’s “Kooks,” that every kid should have in their life. The only crime about this song is that it wasn’t released in the same key as the music video, which, in my opinion, makes the lighthearted daydream of it feel all the more daydream-like. And speaking of daydreams…usually, I don’t get all up in arms when a given song gets interpreted as being about drugs, but oh my god. Please. “Oh, it’s about tripping, the spoon is an allusion to cocaine, the—” SHUT UP!! SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! JOHN FOGERTY WROTE THIS SONG FOR HIS THREE-YEAR-OLD SON, YOU EDGELORDS!!! IT’S NOT AN ACID TRIP, THE LYRICS WERE INSPIRED BY DR. SEUSS!!! For fuck’s sake, man…of all the lyric interpretation cop-outs, this has to be one of the most offensive for me. Just because it was written in 1969 doesn’t mean that it’s about acid…

I guess what tweaks me so much, other than how much of a mainstay of my childhood that “Lookin’ Out My Back Door” was, is that people automatically see silly, nonsensical imagery and automatically attribute it to acid. Do none of you have any imagination? What, did you forget how you got bored in your childhood and started imagining happy creatures dancing on the lawn? Is that how out of touch you are with your inner child?? Okay, I’m getting far too worked up about that, but god. It genuinely gets under my skin that a song of such purity still gets misinterpreted like this. Just goes to show you how we treat childlike wonder and imagination.

Anyway. All that said, no amount of misinterpretation will ever sully this song to me; there’s a joyous warmth to it that really can only be the product of happy creatures dancing on the lawn. I remember imagining them somewhere along the lines of Mercer Mayer’s Little Critter books, and that’s the beauty of it. This song, like Dr. Seuss, was made to be a picture book: the language is simple enough for a child to understand, but there’s so much silliness and vibrance abound that, just like a peeling, well-loved board book, they’ll be asking to hear “doo, doo, doo, lookin’ out my back door” time and time again.

On another note: I’d planned on including “Lookin’ Out My Back Door” this week anyway, but putting it on the heels of rewatching The Big Lebowski recently was only fitting:

…AND A BOOK TO GO WITH IT:

And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street – Dr. Seuss – see above—this is the specific Dr. Seuss book that inspired the lyrics.

BONUS: an update to 6/2/24…they finally “Wuthering Heights”-‘d this shit up!!!!!

Since this post consists entirely of songs, consider all of them to be today’s song.

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

Posted in Books

Series I Need to Finish Soon (Somebody remind me…)

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Thursday, bibliophiles, and for those of you in the U.S., Happy Thanksgiving! I’m thankful for all of your support, and I’m so thankful to have such a welcoming community here. 💗

I think this was a topic for Top Ten Tuesday a few weeks back, but I don’t usually do those since I do my book reviews that day. But it reminded me of a problem I often have—really enjoying a book, then never getting around to finishing the rest of the series. Too often, the sequel(s) immediately go on my TBR, and then…just disappear into oblivion and stay there for a few years. So this post is to call attention to some fun series—trilogies and duologies alike—that I need to finish, and a reminder for myself to finish said series.

Let’s begin, shall we?

SERIES I NEED TO FINISH SOON

Light the Abyss – London Shah

I had so much fun with London Shah’s unique take on dystopia, The Light at the Bottom of the World, so I was eager to read the sequel! Book 2 came out last year, and the sad part is that I regularly saw it at my local library and never got around to picking it up. Someday…

For my review of The Light at the Bottom of the World, click here!

Into the Crooked Place – Alexandra Christo

A lot of people didn’t seem to be as much of a fan of Into the Crooked Place as I was; I understand the sentiment that it was too similar to Six of Crows (Wes certainly was…), but I think it had a really inventive and twisty take on the YA heist fantasy genre. City of Spells came out last year, and it’s been sitting on my Libby wishlist for far too long…

For my review of Into the Crooked Place, click here!

Skin of the Sea – Natasha Bowen

I sort of have an excuse for having not finished this series yet, since Soul of the Deep only came out about two months ago, but I can’t wait to finish Natasha Bowen’s incredible mermaid duology!

The Bright Sessions – Lauren Shippen

I haven’t even listened to the podcast that these books were based on (although I’ve heard it described as “X-Men if they got therapy,” so you’ve sold me there), but I’ve had so much fun exploring Lauren Shippen’s tender, superpowered world. Some Faraway Place came out last year, and I’ve been meaning to put it on hold for so long…

For my mini review of The Infinite Noise, click here!

The Aurelian Cycle – Rosaria Munda

One of my best friends got me hooked on these fantastic books, and they’re proof that fantasy writers just don’t do nearly as much as they should with dragons. DRAGONS!!! (Also a protagonist that I imagine looking like a fantasy Black Widow…love Annie) Furysong came out this August, and I’m patiently waiting for it to be available on Libby…

The Gilded Wolves – Roshani Chokshi

Another incredibly inventive and twisty heist fantasy, The Silvered Serpents left me on a devastating cliffhanger, and now that The Bronzed Beasts is out, I might be able to get some closure at last…

Tell me what you think! What are some series that you want to finish, but haven’t? Are the sequels I’ve listed worth the hype? Let me know in the comments!

Today’s song:

I need to listen to this album, don’t I

That’s it for this bookish post! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Books

Start ‘Em Young: YA Books to Transition Younger Teen Readers into YA Literature

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Monday, bibliophiles!

I’ve been an avid reader from a young age. I read voraciously throughout my pre-teen years, but as I got older, I began reading “older” books—I had been introduced into the wonderful world of YA literature. But it wasn’t quite as smooth as I thought; although young adult books generally encompass a teenage experience, there can often be a wide range of content. While some YA books are lighter and more suitable for younger teens, many range into the “older” teen spectrum that often deals with heavier and more mature subject matter. For me, at least, I think it’s good to have “transition” books for younger YA readers—books that are distinctly “teen,” but aren’t quite as graphic for someone who isn’t mature enough to handle certain topics. I’m doing my best not to make generalizations about the maturity of younger teenagers here, since I was one not so long ago, but I feel like it’s not the best idea to start an 11 or 12 year old on something as dark as Six of Crows or Illuminae. So for those reasons, I’ve decided to compile some books that I think would be great to introduce younger readers to the wide world of YA literature.

Let’s begin, shall we?

📖BOOKS TO TRANSITION YOUNGER TEEN READERS INTO YA 📖

Sorcery of Thorns – Margaret Rogerson

GENRES: fantasy, high fantasy, romance

Sorcery of Thorns had the feel of a lot of middle-grade fantasy novels—not enough magical libraries in YA literature, such a shame 😤

For me, this novel had the perfect balance of whimsy and complexity, and presented a beautiful fantasy world full of magical books and demons!

The Kingdom of Back – Marie Lu

GENRES: historical fiction, fantasy, magical realism

Marie Lu’s books tend to stray on the darker side, but The Kingdom of Back is the perfect standalone for any reader to get into her books. This one is a favorite of mine—such a beautifully-crafted fairytale!

Sisters of the Wolf – Patricia Miller-Schroeder

GENRES: historical fiction

Sisters of the Wolf wasn’t my favorite book, but part of what stood out to me about it (apart from the amazing research that went into the prehistoric setting) was that it hit the perfect balance between middle grade and YA—it’s dark enough to be separated from middle grade, but still palatable for a younger reader transitioning between the age groups.

The Soul Keepers – Devon Taylor

GENRES: fantasy, paranormal, horror

Like Sisters of the Wolf, The Soul Keepers is the perfect bridge between middle grade and YA; even though most of the characters are written as older teens, the level of dark elements struck the perfect balance between younger and older teen readers.

Curses – Lish McBride

GENRES: fantasy, retellings, romance

Nothing like a good fairytale retelling to introduce a reader to YA! Lish McBride’s sense of humor never fails to make me smile, and Curses was a continuously clever and hilarious retelling of Beauty and the Beast. If there’s any Beauty and the Beast retelling to start a reader on, it’s this one.

The Tiger at Midnight – Swati Teerdhala

GENRES: fantasy, high fantasy, romance

The Tiger at Midnight has all of the elements of a classic YA fantasy book, and it’s the perfect choice for introducing a reader into the vast world of YA fantasy! I don’t know why I haven’t picked up the next few books—book 1 was a lot of fun!

Geekerella – Ashley Poston

GENRES: fiction, romance, rom-com

For a reader who wants to jump into romance, the Once Upon a Con series is a perfect starter! Plus, what’s not to love about comic cons, books, and tons of pop culture references?

Once & Future – A.R. Capetta and Cory McCarthy

GENRES: LGBTQ+, science fiction, retellings, romance

Speaking of retellings…here’s one for readers who are keen on Arthurian legends! Once & Future presents one of the most inventive Arthurian legends I’ve read in a while—space, corporations, curses, and more! It’s wonderfully queer all around as well.

The Light at the Bottom of the World – London Shah

GENRES: dystopia, science fiction, romance

There are a lot—and I mean a lot—of astoundingly mediocre and ridiculous YA dystopias that tried to jump on the Hunger Games train, so why not start off a reader with something that’s genuinely fun and inventive? The Light at the Bottom of the World is a stand-out, action-packed and creative, with a determined protagonist that you can’t help but root for!

I Love You So Mochi – Sarah Kuhn

GENRES: fiction, romance

Here’s another light and sweet romance! I Love You So Mochi is the perfect feel-good romance, and it doubles as a spectacular coming-of-age story about finding your passion and your place.

TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! What are some other books that you’d recommend for younger teens who are just starting to read YA? Have you read any of these books, and if so, what did you think of them? Tell me in the comments!

Today’s song:

this is such a fun album!! not a bad song here

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

Posted in Monthly Wrap-Ups

March 2021 Wrap-Up 🧦

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Wednesday my dudes bibliophiles!

I refuse to believe that it’s almost April…one year since the original quarantine, nope…

GENERAL THOUGHTS

March has been…an interesting month, I guess. Definitely had its ups and downs, and it was super cold. It’s usually a really snowy month here in Colorado, and we got dumped on in the middle of the month…not quite the #Snowmageddon that everybody was saying it was going to be, but we got about two feet at my house. A lot, but we’ve had worse…

School’s been a bit rough, but I’m at least glad that everything had time to wind down before Spring Break. I have my SAT test coming up in April and my AP exams in May, so heads up, I’ll probably be less active in the next two months.

Other than that, I’ve definitely made some great progress! Mostly with my writing; I wrote my short story for the writing contest, shared it with family and close friends, got some feedback, AND I SUBMITTED IT ON MONDAY! AAAAAAAAAAAH

Screaming Cowboy GIF by Jason Clarke - Find & Share on GIPHY

I also started on Falcon & The Winter Soldier (I didn’t like episode 1 very much, but 2 got better), watched the Snyder Cut, and drank lots of tea and hot chocolate. Here’s hoping that April will be a bit better. Not that March was awful, but I could’ve done without…y’know, precalc. I’ve been listening to the new Julien Baker a lot too, as well as more Mother Mother, thanks to a playlist my friend made for me.

Also, I rewatched Fargo in its entirety. I’ll admit to curling into the fetal position and sobbing several times.

Rabbi Milligan | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs | Tumgir
[aggressive tissue-blowing intensifies]

And I’m SO CLOSE to 400 followers! I LOVE YOU ALL 🥺

READING AND BLOGGING:

I managed to read 23 books this month! (24, if you count reading a certain B.P.R.D. twice.) I’ve definitely had a great reading month; I re-read a few favorites, and I discovered several awesome reads! And I had very few books that I didn’t like, so that’s a plus. Here’s everything…

2 – 2.75 stars:

The Absolute Book: A Novel: Knox, Elizabeth: 9780593296738: Amazon.com: Books
The Absolute Book

The Absolute Book – Elizabeth Knox (⭐️⭐️)

3 – 3.75 stars:

Amazon.com: The Future Is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin: A Library of America Special Publication (9781598535808): Yaszek, Lisa: Books
The Future is Female!

Sisters of the Wolf – Patricia Miller-Schroeder (eARC) (⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Roman + Jewel – Dana L. Davis (⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Girl, Serpent, Thorn – Melissa Bashardoust (⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Hellboy: Oddest Jobs – Christopher Golden, Mike Mignola et. al. (anthology) (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Chlorine Sky – Mahogany L. Browne (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

The Good Father – Noah Hawley (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75)

A Closed and Common Orbit (Wayfarers, #2) – Becky Chambers (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75)

The Light at the Bottom of the World (Light the Abyss, #1) – London Shah (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75)

The Future is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin – Lisa Yaszek (anthology) (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75)

4 – 4.75 stars:

I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness: Channing Brown, Austin: 9781524760854: Amazon.com: Books
I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness

A Phoenix Must First Burn – Patrice Caldwell et. al. (anthology) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

B.P.R.D., vol. 3: Plague of Frogs – Mike Mignola, Guy Davis (read twice) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Remote Control – Nnedi Okorafor (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Life and Deaths of Frankie D. – Colleen Nelson (eARC) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Desolations of Devil’s Acre (Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children, #6) – Ransom Riggs (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Things They Carried – Tim O’Brien (read for school) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

The Black Flamingo – Dean Atta (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

To Be Taught, If Fortunate – Becky Chambers (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Other People’s Weddings – Noah Hawley (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Fox 8 – George Saunders (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness – Austin Channing Brown (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Once & Future – A.R. Capetta and Cori McCarthy (re-read for book club) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.75)

5 stars:

Looks from Books: Fashion Inspired by Frankenstein - College Fashion
Frankenstein

Frankenstein – Mary Shelley (re-read) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

FAVORITE BOOK OF THE MONTH (not counting re-reads): Fox 8 – 4.5 stars

Amazon.com: Fox 8: A Story (9781984818027): Saunders, George, Cardinal, Chelsea: Books

SOME POSTS I’M PROUD OF:

POSTS I ENJOYED FROM OTHER WONDERFUL PEOPLE:

DID I ACTUALLY FOLLOW THROUGH ON MY MARCH GOALS?

You betcha - GIF on Imgur
  • Finish my short story for the writing contest (since the deadline is early April…): done! Shaking, but done.
  • ACTUALLY review Little Oblivions: done! Click here to read it.
  • Read at least 20 books: read 23!
  • Review all of the eARCs sitting on my Kindle: all done! Here are my reviews for Sisters of the Wolf and The Life and Deaths of Frankie D.

GOALS FOR APRIL:

How to Prepare for Exam Season Before It Even Starts | TalentEgg Career Incubator
  • Read at least 20 books
  • Take some time to study for the SAT (you got this!)

So let’s hope that April won’t be so chaotic.

Today’s song:

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

Posted in Book Review Tuesday, Books

Book Review Tuesday (3/30/21) – The Light at the Bottom of the World

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Tuesday, bibliophiles!

I’d had this novel on my TBR for a good two years or so, but I forgot about it until I saw it on display at my local library. I picked it up as soon as I could, and man, I’m so glad I did! I’ve started to lose faith in a lot of YA dystopian novels, but London Shah shows us all the way to do it almost exactly right.

Enjoy this week’s review!

Amazon.com: The Light at the Bottom of the World (Light the Abyss, 1) (9781368036887): Shah, London: Books

The Light at the Bottom of the World (Light the Abyss, #1) – London Shah

London, 2099. The entire city has been swallowed by the rising oceans, and humankind ekes out a living, in fear of the evolved creatures of the sea and the genetically-modified Anthropoids who lurk alongside them.

Leyla McQueen makes a living as a submersible racer, and when she enters a prestigious competition, she doesn’t enter for the fame or the fortune – all she wants to do is save her father, who was imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. But after the Prime Minister refuses her pleas after she wins the competition, she sets out on her own to find him, leading her through a dark, watery world of secrets and lies.

♡.∙∘❀○‿✿⁀♡Pinterest: adisyaamadea♡‿✿⁀○❀∘∙. | Finding nemo, Finding nemo 2003, Bee and puppycat

TW/CW: graphic violence, frightening situations, animal injury, incarcerated parent

This book wasn’t perfect, but man, I’d do anything to have a debut as good as this! London Shah restored my faith in dystopian literature, and The Light at the Bottom of the World is practically a guidebook on how to do dystopian YA right.

Shah’s worldbuilding is what stood out most to me. There’s rich history in every chapter, presenting a post-apocalyptic world swallowed by rising oceans, where the last pockets of humanity war with the deep and corrupt governments tighten an iron fist around the needy. I loved seeing how the inhabitants of this drowned London eked out a living, from the submersible races to the ruined architecture.

Leyla McQueen was also the perfect protagonist for this book! Besides having great #OwnVoices British-Muslim rep, she was just the kind of main character that we could root for – quick-witted, clever, sassy, determined, and fueled by a love for her father and a flaming desire to make things right. Her chemistry with Ari was great, and she was so spirited and authentic in a way that most dystopian protagonists aren’t. Plus, I may not be a dog person, but Jojo was so adorable and must be protected at all costs 🥺

The only pitfall about The Light at the Bottom of the World for me was the writing. It wasn’t bad, per se, but it just felt a bit lacking. Everything was quick and to the point, without much metaphor or dressing. Now, I’m not saying that it needed to be bright purple prose, but I feel like it could have used a bit more vivid imagery and language. The plot made up for it though; I truly felt the adrenaline of the characters for the whole book, whether it was in the breakneck submersible races or a daring prison break.

Either way, a fantastic YA dystopia with a lovable cast of characters and a fascinating world swallowed by the waves. 3.75 stars, rounded up to 4!

There's always a bigger fish - Album on Imgur

The Light at the Bottom of the World is London Shah’s debut novel, and it is the first in the Light the Abyss duology, followed by Journey to the Heart of the Abyss, which is slated for release on October 26, 2021.

Today’s song:

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

Posted in Weekly Updates

Weekly Update: March 22-28, 2021

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles! Whew, it feels like I haven’t done an update in a while…

Luckily, this week has been fairly light school-wise, seeing as it was the last week before everything let out for Spring Break. It was one of the interim weeks where I checked out whatever feels right from the Kindle library before my physical library books came in, but everything that I read (and re-read) was great! March has been a great month for reading, for the most part. Perfect time for it, too – we’ve had a super snowy March this year, so all the better to stay inside and read.

Reading Night — Amita Sevellaraja

I’ve had more time to post stuff here too, and I’ll definitely be doing more over Break before I have to prepare more for the SAT, so that’s been a lot of fun. I have a whole bunch of book tags laying dormant in my blog sticky note, so…

AND THE AURORA’S END COVER REVEAL! AAAAAH!

Other than that, I’ve been drawing a bit, working out the kinks on my short story, watching Falcon and The Winter Soldier (alright? I guess?) and the first half of the Snyder Cut of Justice League (AAAAH), and volunteering at the library. I definitely need a break…

Tired Give Up GIF by Boomerang Official - Find & Share on GIPHY

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Frankenstein – Mary Shelley (re-read) (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Looks from Books: Fashion Inspired by Frankenstein - College Fashion

I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness – Austin Channing Brown (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness: Channing Brown, Austin: 9781524760854: Amazon.com: Books

Girl, Serpent, Thorn – Melissa Bashardoust (⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Amazon.com: Girl, Serpent, Thorn (9781250196149): Bashardoust, Melissa: Books

The Light at the Bottom of the World – London Shah (⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Amazon.com: The Light at the Bottom of the World (Light the Abyss, 1) (9781368036887): Shah, London: Books

Chlorine Sky – Mahogany L. Browne (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5)

Chlorine Sky by Mahogany L. Browne: 9780593176399 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

POSTS AND SUCH:

SONGS:

CURRENTLY READING/TO READ NEXT WEEK:

Other People’s Weddings – Noah Hawley

Other People's Weddings: Noah Hawley: 8601417156438: Amazon.com: Books

Salvaged – Madeleine Roux

Salvaged by Madeleine Roux: 9780451491831 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

The Future is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin – Lisa Yaszek et. al. (anthology)

The Future Is Female, Edited by Lisa Yaszek • Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews

These Violent Delights – Chloe Gong

Amazon.com: These Violent Delights (9781534457690): Gong, Chloe: Books

Today’s song:

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