some things I read

[aamcnamara]

Protector of the Small series, Pierce, reread: Kel is one of my favorite Tamora Pierce heroines. She is stubborn and tough and she knows what's right. She also has little truck with magic or gods or prophecies. ... Until Lady Knight, which predictably is the one of these that I like the least. I would be totally fine with reading a book just about Keladry running a refugee camp, really.
Wild Magic, Pierce, also reread: Daine is one of my other favorites. I'd forgotten a bunch of plot points, because I hadn't read this in yeeeears. I still like her, and also all her animals. Also also, the Queen's Riders.
The Essential Dykes to Watch Out For, Bechdel, reread: Reads very differently when you've been at a women's college for two and a half years. And also when you're 20 as opposed to--17? 18? as I was when I got it. I know more of these people now. Probably when I come back again in a few years, I will know even more of them. A good example of Some Things Never Change (becoming an adult, trying to find work, trying to reconcile political ideals with the realities of the world, identity politics).
Steampunk!, edited by Link and Grant: Quite a few of these stories suffer from "this is a YA anthology, and hence there must be romance!" However, there were some really nice ones. "Steam Girl", by Dylan Horrocks, was neat; so was "Nowhere Fast", which was Christopher Rowe (post-collapse sustainability steampunk!); while I didn't love "Gethsemane" by Elizabeth Knox, I always really like the tone of her writing...
Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Laini Taylor: Skimming the first chapter or two, I was wavering on whether or not to buy this, until I came to the line where the protagonist's magical guardian informs her to not put "anything unnecessary" into her body, including "inessential penises", to which the protagonist replies, "Is there any such thing as an essential one?" Sold! Later in the book, the extended flashback sequence kinda lost me, but I'll still probably read the sequel.
Thief Eyes, Janni Lee Simner: Quick little novel, with big concepts lurking in the background, set (mostly) in the modern day using Norse mythology as its jumping-off. I enjoyed it a lot, until the ending, at which point I really enjoyed it a lot. (Spoilers: love triangle resolved in a way that made me have more respect for all the participants, not less.)



Reading books makes me a happy Alena. Today perhaps I will finally dig into research for my summer project proposal, and tomorrow even (gasp) go outside. If I want to see people while I'm back, I should probably schedule things, too...