powisamy

  * I am reviewing this book which I was gifted for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own. * Title: This Train Is Being Held Author:  Ismée Williams Publisher: Amulet/Abram & Chronicle  Source: From Publisher/Netgalley ( Bookshop UK |  Hive |  Goodreads  |  Storygraph ) Book Summary: When private school student Isabelle Warren first meets Dominican-American Alex Rosario on the downtown 1 train, she remembers his green eyes and his gentlemanly behaviour. He remembers her untroubled happiness, something he feels all rich kids must possess. That, and her long dancer legs. Over the course of multiple subway encounters spanning the next three years, Isabelle learns of Alex’s struggle with his father, who is hell-bent on Alex being a contender for the major leagues, despite Alex’s desire to go to college and become a poet. Alex learns about Isabelle’s unstable mother, a woman with prejudice against Latino men. ...

So as of three weeks ago, I officially have a Masters degree. In ten days, I will no longer be a university student. For the first time in my life, I am no longer a student in an education setting. To put it mildly, I already need to find my feet in the big wide world. A lot of this has made me really anxious. Even though we are in the middle of a pandemic, I want to move on really badly even though I know that it is scary. I know that the pressure should be lessened because of the toll that it has taken on so many people, I believe this is the right step for me.  And I think this is why. Because I am really out of practice. Being in the same job for two almost three years means that CVs, interviews and job applications are but distant memories. And this makes me really apprehensive. As someone with anxiety, the rejection and the sense of being viewed only by my accomplishments means that fear is getting the best of me. To put it lightly: I'm being comfortable. Because I have a job...

  * I am reviewing this book which I was gifted for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own. * Title: Dry Author: Neal & Jarrod Shusterman  Publisher: Walker Source: Publisher ( Bookshop UK |  Hive |  Goodreads  |  Storygraph ) Book Summary: Everyone's going to remember where they were when the taps ran dry. The drought—or the tap-out, as everyone calls it - has been going on for a while. Life has become an endless list of don’ts: don’t water the lawn, don’t take long showers, don't panic. But now there is no water left at all. Suddenly, Alyssa’s quiet suburban street spirals into a warzone of desperation and violence. When her parents go missing, she and her younger brother must team up with an unlikely group in search of water. Each of them will need to make impossible choices to survive.   Book Review: I have always been a massive fan of Neal Shusterman since I read her Unwind series so I always try to...

  * I am reviewing this book which I was gifted for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own. * Title: Last Bus To Everland Author: Sophie Cameron  Publisher: My Kinda Book  Source: Netgalley ( Bookshop UK |  Hive |  Goodreads  |  Storygraph ) Book Summary: EVERLAND: AN ADDICTIVE MAGICAL PLACE WHERE YOU DO YOU. Brody has had enough of real life. Enough of the bullies on his block, of being second best to his genius brother, and of not fitting in at school or at home. Until he meets Nico. Colourful, confident and flamboyant, Nico takes Brody to Everland, a diverse magical place. A place where he can be himself, where there are no rules, time doesn't pass, and the party never ends. You could lose yourself there forever... Book Review: Having loved Out Of The Blue by Sophie Cameron, I was super excited to read her newest book. Even though it took me a little longer than anticipated, I had a lovely time in the world...

   * I am reviewing this book which I was gifted for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own. * Title: With The Fire On High Author: Elizabeth Acevedo Publisher: Hot Key Books  Source: Readers First ( Bookshop UK |  Hive |  Goodreads  |  Storygraph ) Book Summary: Ever since she got pregnant, seventeen-year-old Emoni's life has been about making the tough decisions - doing what has to be done for her young daughter and her grandmother. Keeping her head down at school, trying not to get caught up with new boy Malachi. The one place she can let everything go is in the kitchen, where she has magical hands - whipping up extraordinary food beloved by everyone. Emoni wants to be a chef more than anything, but she knows it's pointless to pursue the impossible. There are rules she has to play by. And yet, once she starts cooking, and gets that fire on high, she sees that her drive to feed will feed her soul and dreams ...

So I don't really mention it online but I have a disability.  Due to complications at birth, I developed a type of cerebral palsy called left-sided hemiplegia, which is a weakness that affects the left side of my body, especially my left hand. I don't have it severely and my condition is a lot better than some people.  Because of this, I don't really mention that much. For much of my life, I have tried to hide my disability because I always compared myself to others. A lot of the time, I didn't identify with the label. My condition and I have a complicated relationship.  That is until I read Disfigured by Amanda Leduc.  OK. I'm not going to say that this book changed my life and the way that I explored my own disability but it illustrated so much of what I felt in my brain.  I have grown up not really having someone to look to up in terms of my disability. No one I knew had the same condition as me until I was 17 and one of my sister's friend had it. This is str...

  * I am reviewing this book which I was gifted for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own. * Title: Keeper Of The Dawn  Author: Diana Gunn Publisher:  Book Smugglers Publishing Source: From Publisher ( Goodreads  |  Storygraph ) Book Summary: All Lai has ever wanted is to become a priestess, like her mother and grandmother before her, in service to their beloved goddess. That’s before the unthinkable happens, and Lai fails the trials she has trained for her entire life. She makes the only choice she believes she can: she runs away. From her isolated desert homeland, Lai rides north to the colder, stranger kingdom of Alanum—a land where magic, and female warriors, are not commonplace. Here, she hears tales about a mountain city of women guardians and steel forgers, worshipping goddesses who sound very similar to Lai's own. Determined to learn more about these women, these Keepers of the Dawn, Lai travels onward to find ...