Here's what I'm celebrating today...
—I have a day off from The Store. Of course, that day off isn't until November 1st, but at least I know it's out there (and, conveniently, the first day of NaNoWriMo!). I also have a half day of work coming up this next week. It's the day #1 Boss's boss is coming for a visit, and for some reason, #1 Boss doesn't want me around when she gets here. Can't imagine why...
—I read on Entertainment Weekly's website that the U.S. premiere of season three of Sherlock has been set for January 19th at 10pm!!!!! I'm so excited by this news that I am forced to re-use this gif:
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Sorry, but this gif just cracks me up. |
—My beloved Red Sox (you knew this was coming, right?) won the first game of the World Series in a very exciting fashion. I had hoped to be writing about how they had won the first two games of the World Series, but that didn't quite work out. Still, I'm celebrating the fact that we're there at all. And that the Yankees aren't.
Up next on My Pet Blog, is the latest installment of the Armchair Squid's Cephalopod Coffeehouse (I'm pleased to report that I can now almost spell 'cephalopod' without looking at the badge to the right. Almost.) where participants post about the best book they read over the previous month. Click on the link above or the badge on the right for a complete list of participants.
The book that I've chosen to feature this month is Fault Line by Christa Desir. Here's the synopsis, courtesy of Goodreads:
Ben could date anyone he wants, but he only has eyes for the new girl — sarcastic free-spirit, Ani. Luckily for Ben, Ani wants him too. She’s everything Ben could ever imagine. Everything he could ever want.
But that all changes after the party. The one Ben misses. The one Ani goes to alone.
Now Ani isn’t the girl she used to be, and Ben can’t sort out the truth from the lies. What really happened, and who is to blame?
Ben wants to help her, but she refuses to be helped. The more she pushes Ben away, the more he wonders if there’s anything he can do to save the girl he loves.
So, I've been thinking about this book ever since I finished it (almost a week ago, now) because it's the kind of book that stays with you. And I want to write a beautiful and eloquent review of this story because it truly deserves it. However, I doubt my ability to do it justice because whenever I attempt to write a proper review, I get a tad emotional—the kind of emotion which causes water to leak from my eyes— and I have to go hide in a cave until I can once again deny that I have emotions other than angry and angrier.
(I do like to pretend I'm a badass. Pretend being the key word.)
This novel is dark and raw and emotional and doesn't pull any punches. And though I love it for that—really love it for that—it broke my heart. It still breaks my heart. It presents a difficult subject, a sensitive subject, and I suspect there will be readers who won't be able to finish the book because of these things.
But I want people to read it and talk about it. I want teenagers to read it and talk about it. I've long been a supporter of dark YA because I feel the world is a messy place and avoiding that which is uncomfortable does no one any good, and maybe—just maybe—these dark books with their taboo subjects can lead to understanding.
Fault Line is a brave novel, and I think author Christa Desir is both amazing and brave for writing it.
So that's gonna do it for me today. What are you celebrating and/or reading?
Have a great weekend, everyone, and thank you for stopping by!