A Handful of Mini Book Reviews from the Archive
From childhood favorites to speedy pop-sci to the Stoic I do not love as much as Marcus Aurelius.
Forgive the graphic array and divergence in styles over the course of this roundup, but I was cleaning out some of my design folders this afternoon—digital hygiene!—and found a bunch of old reviews and blurbs that needed dusting off.
My problem as a book blogger of almost 15+ years is that I have dozens upon dozens of graphics and review assets; I just never actually post them. Words Like Silver has always been at-will and a key to its longevity (I think) is that I’ve never actually tried to police myself too heavily in my rhythms. I nearly always want to write and read and post about it practically daily, but I could be much better about adhering to algorithmic whims for the sake of my own growth and security.
With my 15-year book blog anniversary approaching on April 15, it’s a goal of mine to resurface and schedule some of my old stuff even if I feel like it’s not as good or fleshed out as my reviews now. These feature a lot of older reads too, but I generally always view that as a positive because I love to champion the backlist or books that have endured in my canon; I’m not often posting about the trendiest books. Some of these might also be fleeting blips that weren’t necessarily memorable enough for a thousand-plus-word review. (Some are reads I will swear by, up and down.)
I’ll pepper in some commentary if I feel my handwriting is difficult to read, or if distance has required some additional context. Realistically, this won’t be the first or the last compilation of mini reviews from my archive; I’ll probably even post one tomorrow (and the graphics will probably be better, as my taste has evolved.)
At any given time, you can check out what I’m currently reading, reference my broader review archive, stalk my book blog, or follow me on social media.
So without further ado, some book blurbs collected over time:
Eerie, dark, fully-fledged. This is what most people would call an ambitious book—a historical and paranormal blend that’s commanding and immersive. I read it when I was younger and didn’t appreciate it as much as I should have; I went back to it a year or two ago and was blown away by the scale.
This book kickstarted some of my interest in a particular flavor of con-artist reading. Think Maria Konnikova’s The Confidence Game (LOVE her) or John Carreyrou’s Bad Blood (fascinating.) This one delves into Fyre Festival and the like, making it an engaging read. From what I remember, it goes on a weird tangent about COVID-19 towards the end. But it’s a fun one.
Horror is having a romance in YA (and overall—see the emergence of horroromance), but I think the beauty of Anna Dressed in Blood is that it was one of the original trailblazers. Even if it mostly felt paranormal (I think plenty YA billed as horror nowadays is also just paranormal, and that they can be synonymous), this embraced the full-on horror aesthetic “before that was cool.”
Shine by Lauren Myracle
I recently reread this one and it didn’t hit quite as hard as beforehand. But as a teen, I remember finding it so moving, and I still love its setting.
In the opposite vein, Fablehaven is probably the book series that’s most lived up to time for me. It’s the type of book you read flat-backed on the floor of your childhood bedroom on a spare afternoon when you’re cleaning, and love so much you devour the whole series in a weekend. It’s incredibly clever, vivid, and twisty, and I actually typed up a full review that’ll go live shortly. Bonus: I recently found out they’re attempting to make a Fablehaven movie, which thrilled me to pieces.
Vampire Academy is one of those series whose title makes me flinch because it’s one of my absolute favorites and I assume people will judge it from its name. If you have reluctant readers to cater towards, especially teen boys, the action and mythology are phenomenal. While it benefited from the ‘00s boom and sold millions of copies, got all the adaptations and star treatment, etc.—I still think more people should pick it up. I wish I could read it for the first time again. I reread probably once a year.
This was on my shelf for forever, but I finished it in an afternoon and highlighted so much. As you might be able to tell from my reading lists and curiosities, I’m often questioning the amount of visibility required for my career, and ambitious enough to care about doing it right even as I flinch away from the idea. I’m always obsessed with psychology, and when I understand the why behind something, I’m much more likely to tailor my behavior accordingly, so I was curious whether this one would yield any good insights for me. I do love knowing we get a hit of dopamine from sharing our opinions with the Internet, hence my 15-year tenure as a book reviewer.
Relatedly, although I write about and share plenty on the Internet in terms of volume, I think I’m actually pretty private online—and there are some topics I won’t venture towards at all. Being an identical twin is largely one of them. Hannah and I both read this one. I don’t agree with all of it, but it pokes in the right ways.
I was told I’d like Seneca because I love the Stoics, but I’m more of a Marcus Aurelius gal. But that’s because I might secretly think Marcus Aurelius embodies the same energy as a Tumblr poet2 (and I love Steinbeck referencing Meditations in East of Eden, which is one of my favorite books.)
I’ll have to check whether mobile makes these images wayyyy too small to read.
I do have a graphic explanation of what I mean by this but—another time.