Tag: readers
Top Ten Tuesday: Ten books that celebrate diversity/diverse characters
Helllllo readers and happy Tuesday; this week is already dragging as it always does but this week’s Top Ten Tuesday is a little special and that’s because it’s a list that “Celebrates Diversity/Diverse Characters.” I’ve picked a number of books that touch on the subject and a couple I’m thinking of reading in the next coming months.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon.
This is a wonderful tale that follows fifteen-year-old Christopher who is trying to solve the mysterious death of a neighbourhood dog all the while exploring his struggle with Autism.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.
This book looks at Stephen who is grappling with two traumatic experiences from his past that have caused him to struggle with depression and PTSD. A stunning tale of recovery and acceptance.
The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick
This book, narrated through the eyes of Pat Peoples, a former history teacher who has moved back to his childhood home in Collingswood, after spending a considerable amount of time in a psychiatric hospital. The book documents his life on the outside and his difficulty to understand the break-down of his marriage. A wonderfully told tale and one I very much enjoyed.
Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman
As a younger reader I adored this series of books and the diversity elements it manages to coerce into the book. The author flips race discrimination on its head and instead we see a dystopian society, where instead we see that white people face prejudice. A stunning tale.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
One of my most recently read books I adored this tale. The novel, set in the Deep South during the 30’s and tells the story of a lawyer who defends a black man charged with rape, but told through the eyes of his daughter Scout. An intriguing tale and one I think everyone should read.
Dirty Beautiful Words by Brooklyn Brayl
This wonderfully written book is a collection of poems that look at the transitioning period for a trans-woman and the difficulties and struggles that happen during this time; both mentally and physically. I have never read anything like this book before and I am so happy that Kris forwarded on the release for me to take a peak because I have wanted to read a book looking at the transgender community and I haven’t found anything quite as beautiful and moving as this.
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Cath is a character I really relate to at times; her struggle with social anxiety as an extrovert is beautifully written and I thought this book was brilliantly devised and written. Definitely worth a read.
Every Day by David Levithan
So here starts the books that I really want to read. I’ve seen this doing the rounds on wordpress and as far as I can tell this book questions how to define love and the ways in which we define love whether it is straight (I openly dislike that word) homosexual, bisexual or transsexual. It seems like an intriguing read.
Made You Up by Francessa Zappia
I saw a review of this book on a blog on my wordpress reader and thought it sounded like something that could be quite educational. The main character has schizophrenia and has trouble distinguishing between what is a hallucination and what is reality.
Paperweight by Meg Haston
Finally I have picked Paperweight by Meg Haston which features Stevie who suffers from an eating disorder which causes her to think about ending her life. I think this could be an utterly heart-breaking read but one that sounds fascinating.
Ten books that focus on diversity although I struggled collating the list as a whole. I need to read more books that focus on mental health/race/diversity as a subject I think because there are so many more books out there that do just that. As always comment, queries, criticisms pop them in the comments box belowww.
I have always imagines that paradise will be a kind of library: Jorges Luis Borges
Happy New Year…
So I spent a lot of time thinking about my post today on New Year’s Eve. See, I’m not the biggest fan of this holiday and that’s because it always feels a little negative. It’s notably because we’re constantly looking to the future and trying to perfect ourselves, sure that it will reflect on the next year. New Year is all about change and I’m not sure that I want to. 2014 has been a year of change, but I’m the happiest I’ve been in a while. When I was looking at all the New Year posts deciding what to write and what to say I found this quote and it speaks volumes to me,
We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives… not looking for flaws, but for potential. ~Ellen Goodman
I think that is probably the most wonderful quote to sum up my thoughts on New Year. Why do we sit wishing for a better year. I’m going to take it day by day, taking each new experience as it comes. This year I’m not setting any resolutions, but instead I’m going to remember why 2014 was so wonderful, and how I, can enjoy 2015 even more.
One rainy Sunda…
One rainy Sunday when I was in the third grade, I picked up a book to look at the pictures and discovered that even though I did not want to, I was reading. I have been a reader ever since.
Beverly Cleary