Pretty Awesome!

In the Role of Brie Hutchens was not only great because our hero Brie watches All My Children (reruns, the book the set in current times, I am pretty sure) and she uses Bianca's coming out to Erica as an audition monologue, it is SO real and so faith-based and just lovely.  And real and fresh.

The List of Authors Everyone Loves

Rebecca Stead is on that list!  The List of Things that Will Not Change is her latest.  And I did like it.  But for some reason I just can't really get into Stead.  I loved the love.  I heart-broken about Mission.  I thought the relationship between the two main character and her soon to be sister was very real.  I just thought the whole cousin thing wasn't needed.  I am not sure why it just seemed so out of place for me.  But the big secret surrounding Bea and her cousin...it just didn't fit for me and really did a lot of take away from my experience with the book.  

An LBGTQ Dystopian Western!

One million stars for originality for Upright Women Wanted!  If Sarah Gailey hadn't made her characters librarians I would have given it five stars.  Remember, these are not REAL book reviews, these are just my opinions.  I am not a big fan of books about librarians.  I know I am a librarian, but I just don't like librarian books!  So putting the whole librarian thing in there...which I totally get, because the librarians were really supposed to be the censors in this dystopian, fascist world, and so that was totally funny and cool, but it just took the joy out of it. 
I don't want to go into the whole librarian thing but I do want to say I LOVE the librarian job that I have and I HAVE LOVED ALL of the librarian jobs I have had! 
Anyway...I do love westerns.  I didn't think I would but then I accidentally read one!  I had ordered the latest Robert B. Parker and when I got it, well it wasn't Spenser and it wasn't Sunny and it wasn't Jesse and it wasn't even a detective or cop novel!  I was disappointed...but then...wow!  Once I met Cole and Hitch I was hooked.   I went on to read other westerns, too but C and H are my favorite.  So I liked the neo-western theme.  I loved the characters, too.  And it wasn't too long.  It was just the whole librarian thing!  But if you don't have a problem with books about librarians, this one is five star fun (and serious). 

The Guy

with whom I pastor has a daughter who did her undergrad at Greenville University in Greenville, IL where The Best at It is set.  She then went on to Princeton Theological Seminary and is now an ordained American Baptist pastor, serving as chaplain at the Vandalia Correctional Facility.  You can read a cool interview with her here.
Thing is, Erika is 18 years younger than I am.  I was the Associate Pastor at the church in which she was raised.  I don't know what kind of impact I had on her life, but I can tell you she has made a huge impact on mine.
First of all, when she was going through the process of being ordained, she was firm in her commitment to our siblings in Christ who are members of the LBGTQ community.  She fought for her right to say proudly and with assurance that gay people are no different from straight people when it comes to being children of God and therefore their rights, marriage and otherwise, she upholds and affirms.  In this corner of the world, there are still people who don't seem to get this.  And there was push back, but Erika stood firm.
I did not.  Back when I was ordained in the mid-90s, I stood before my ordination council and said what they wanted to hear, not what I really believed and not what is true in God's eyes.  I was asked if marriage should only be between a man and a woman.  And I said yes.  How wrong I was and how I regret that.  But here was Erika, probably the same age that I was (mid to late 20s) and standing proudly for with God on her side, promoting God's word, not the word of the world.  Proclaiming love, not the hate and fear and ignorance of people who are still struggling to hear the loving, inclusive word of God.
On Sunday I was preaching at a nursing home in the South Hills of Pittsburgh and her mom and her grandmother (who is a resident there) were in attendance.  I was honored to be able to tell Erika's grandmother what an example the Rev. Erika Spring is to me.
Oh I do go on, don't I?
Let me get back to the book, and thank you for letting me share about one of my heroes in the faith!
The Best at It is a beautiful story about young Indian-American boy coming of age and discovering that he is gay.  The book isn't just a preachy "this is a story about a gay kid" kinda book, the characters are real and racism is addressed and bullying and all that kids and we deal with in the world.
Funny in places and it will make you laugh and cry. I highly recommend The Best at It.  The author, Maulik Pancholy can certainly say that he is doing what he loves and we readers are all the better for it!

Happiness is

I remember this little Peanuts book that we had at our house when I was little. I loved that book!  It was one of the first books I read on my own!  The Other Half of Happy by Rebecca Balcárcel is just outstanding.  Finding a book like this is happiness.  Just. Excellent. 

HGS

I have been a fan of Holly Goldberg Sloan since Counting By 7s.  I really loved To Night Owl from Dogfish.  Meg Wolitzer is an author of primarily adult books, but this book proves she can write for any audience.  One of the many things that I loved about this book is that it contains a love story (more than one, really) and it just happens to be two men.  But it's not a big deal that they have the same body parts.  I have a dream that all books will deal with this "issue" in this way someday because they will be reflecting reality.  Where society is like God, not caring WHOM we love, just THAT we love.  Great book. 

LOVE THIS!

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit was just soooo good.  It was just the perfect kind of book for me, as it showed people who follow Jesus, and in case, even professionally minister in His name, actually acting like Jesus!  And toward people who love people with the same body parts, even!  Can you imagine!  Heaven on earth!
And it also was honest in showing how some people who claim to be following Jesus aren't quite there yet when it comes to understanding that God does not care WHOM we love, God cares THAT we love!
Complicated, but simple and sweet and funny and heart-breaking and beautiful.

The Tricky Thing about Short Stories...

is that sometimes they are uneven, especially when written by different authors.  I have to say that was NOT the case with Black Enough:  Stories of Being Young and Black in America.  It was edited by Ibi Zoboi and I have read two of her books and one of her short stories and I loved them all.  I also loved so many of these stories...like the guys growing up the south and falling in love.  This was just such a great collection of voices that not only need to be heard but man...the world is so much better when they are. 

Up Up Up!

On the Come Up is the second book by Angie Thomas who wrote the amazing Hate U Give.  I loved HUG a LOT but I loved OTCU even more.  What a great, honest, original book.

This is a book

that makes me want to jump and shout!  Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World was just awesome.  Just awesome.
Ivy is a fantastic character, and so is June.  Although I did keep thinking of Faith, Hope and Ivy June every time I heard their names! 
Just so good.  So good.  I loved Ivy's best friend, too.  This book is one of the best books I have ever read about LBGTQ issues, but it is WAY more than that because it is just one of the best books I have ever read for middle grades on any topic, with any kind of characters.  Ashley Herring Blake has that way of just getting into the young mind/character, etc. like Andrew Clements, she just puts you THERE.  So good highly recommended and so NOT predictable and more of the same old same old. 

Really Something

I didn't have SUPER GREAT expectations for Nate Expectations. I had decent expectations.  I did enjoy the first two.  Especially the first one, but the second one not as much.  So I figured the third would be as good or maybe even a little less good than the second one, but I was so wrong.  I really, really loved NE.  Very much!  Start with the first one, but the whole series is a keeper! 

I Think

that in the future, and perhaps not in the too-far future, books will be more like What If It's Us? in that relationships between people who happen to have the same body parts will have romantic relationships and it will be no big deal that they have the same body parts.  It will simply be a love story, as if they had different body parts.  And love will just be love.  It all of it's imperfections and perfections! That's what this is.  And I love it.

No Fault

There seems to be a new trend in book descriptions as provided by the publisher.  Have you seen this:  "for fans of Gone Girl" or "in the tradition of The Fault in Our Stars" or for those who loved "The Color Purple"  that kind of thing?  And I get why.  I mean, when I am helping someone find a book I start with, "What was the last book you loved?" and try to figure out their tastes from that.  But that's just a starting point because sometimes people want to branch out.  And either way is fine!  But when I personally read a blurb that says right away, "in the tradition of" or "for fans of" I worry that it means the book is just a cheap knock off of another book.  Which is bad for a bunch of reasons.  It doesn't give full credit to the author of the new book.  I don't know...I see both sides. I have to say I figured that Five Feet Apart was going to be a TFIOS knock off, albeit a bit late.  And it was actually the lateness of it that made me read it because I figured well, maybe not because this whole trend is kinda over.
Well, that was a tangent.  And Five Feet Apart was very good and not a knock off of TFIOS and I would recommend it!  So sorry for the tangent!  But if you were thinking about not reading FFA because you thought it was, don't be afraid!  Read it, it's good! 

Broken

Broken Things was a book I probably would have given five stars to if there had been two different narrators instead of one.  I had a hard time knowing who was telling their story.  Of course, maybe that is because I didn't find the story as compelling as some stories.  So I am not sure.  Not to say I won't recommend this book, because I will.  I think that Lauren Oliver is great.  It was she who really started my foray back into YA lit with Before I Fall, which I loved. 

Fresh!

Even though I had read some of these short stories, Fresh Ink: an anthology was very good.  Some I really loved.  Some I didn't like at all, but could really appreciate that others might really love them.  And they are important.  And I highly recommend this book. 

One Day

LBGTQIA relationships will be written about like this.  You know, where the LBGTQIA part of it is not THE part of it.  Where it is just part of who the characters are.  Where all will realize that love is love is love is love.
Everything a Leads to You was just a really, really, really good story and love story.  Really liked this a lot.

Thoughtful

Heretics Anonymous was  very well done and thoughtful look at faith and the lack of it and questioning of it.  It MIGHT be offensive to some people, but I can't really imagine too many people being offended.  Well, on the other hand, I can't really imagine anyone who claims to follow Jesus Christ supporting our current President, but I have been proven wrong over and over again.  So maybe some will be offended.  Great book though, great discussion starter. 

Really, Really Good

When Elephants Fly is not an easy book.  It doesn't have a fairy tale ending either.  It is so well done.  There is a LOT going on here, but it is all so well, well done.  I know I read another book in which a mom who is mentally ill tries to kill her child...but I can't remember what it is.  And I need to find out!  Anyway, this was a very, very, very good read. 

Time Was...

when I would feel bad if I didn't know when one of my favorite authors was coming out with a new book.  I felt like I was "slipping."  Well, I KNOW I am slipping!  So that doesn't bother me anymore.  Also, it was actually an awesome surprise to see Harbor Me sitting on the desk at my local library!  And then an even GREATER surprise to see that the audiobook available for download.  And then NO SURPRISE that Jacqueline Woodson has written another beautiful, incredible book.  This was timely and timeless.  Very typical of Woodson in her atypical ability to write like that.  That is what makes her such an incredible author. 

Another Sign of the Times

P.S. I Miss You is another example of the ways in which people of faith are shown as following Jesus and loving those who love differently.  It is really, really good and really makes one think about the dangers that come when we don't live as Christ calls us to live.
Incredible book.  Very surprising resolution.