Tag: 5 stars

Know My Name – Chanel Miller

You took away my worth, my privacy, my energy, my time, my safety, my intimacy, my confidence, my own voice, until today.

Chanel Miller was raped on Sunday, 18 January 2015.

I was raped three days earlier (80 hours before Chanel was, if you take time zones into account). Once I saw that date in print and realised how little time separated our experiences, I couldn’t help but see her story personally. So this is going to be a different review than I would usually write. Feel free to skip the bits where I talk about me.

Chanel learned what happened to her at the same time as the rest of the world. She was treated in a hospital, endured the indignity of a rape kit and spoke to a detective who believed and didn’t judge her. This sexual assault gained worldwide attention but it was Brock Turner’s name we knew; Chanel’s identity was erased. The trial resulted in guilty verdicts on three counts but, in my view, the punishment did not fit the crime; it may as well have been a slap on the wrist.

The detective who ultimately decided I would not step foot in a court room reviewed my statement and asked me, “How is that even possible?!” They didn’t make contact with the man who raped me but did phone my psychologist to ask if I have a mental illness that would cause me to make up something like this and oh, by the way, the description I told the police matched the description I told my psychologist. I also privately reported the rape to two other relevant institutions in the hope that speaking up would prevent this from happening again. Those two institutions told the man who raped me what I had said; this resulted in two threats from him to take legal action against me. For telling the truth. In Australia, where defamation laws are beyond insane.

I didn’t follow the story of Chanel’s sexual assault in the media. Even still, I knew the words Standford, rape, swimmer. My introduction to this book was via a publisher’s emailed newsletter, which is how I learn about so many of the books I need to read. I wasn’t sure it was for me though, until I ugly cried my way through I Am With You. I needed to know more about this intelligent, creative woman.

Still, I waited patiently for my library to purchase a copy. I made it all the way to page 23 before I finally figured out I needed my own copy, one I could highlight to my heart’s content and return to as often as I needed. I don’t know if I’m more grateful or sad that I found this book so relatable.

This is Chanel Miller’s story.
Author.
Artist.
Daughter.
Sister.
Friend.
Girlfriend.
Survivor.
A woman who has experienced raped, but who is so much more.

This is an attempt to transform the hurt inside myself, to confront a past, and find a way to live with and incorporate these memories. I want to leave them behind so I can move forward. In not naming them, I finally name myself. My name is Chanel. I am a victim, I have no qualms with this word, only with the idea that it is all that I am.

Although our stories are vastly different, so much of Chanel’s story resonated with me. While I hurt for her and was furious on her behalf as I read about her experiences, I was also lifted by her strength, determination and resilience. I had trouble reading some parts, either because they reminded me too much of my own story or, oddly enough, because they didn’t. I needed to step away and distract myself with a children’s book or play with Lego at times, but my overall takeaway from this book is hope.

The hope of words reaching out to me and encouraging me to hold on when difficult times find me:

You have to hold out to see how your life unfolds, because it is most likely beyond what you can imagine. It is not a question of if you will survive this, but what beautiful things await you when you do.

The hope that comes in the form of a narrative that doesn’t sugar coat what recovery from trauma looks and feels like:

As a survivor, I feel a duty to provide a realistic view of the complexity of recovery.

The hope that therapy can offer:

It feels better when the story is outside myself.

Although I don’t know Chanel I feel like I got to know her as I read her story; this is a woman I would want to be friends with. I loved being introduced to Chanel’s family and friends, and want to personally thank every single person who has supported, encouraged and validated her. My heart grew several sizes as I read about professionals who exuded empathy and compassion. Sure, there were others I wanted to slap, but the ones who went above and beyond reminded me that there are people out there who can soften the blow when trauma finds you.

Chanel truly is a writer. She can paint a scene so vivid that I felt I was inside it. She took me on an emotional journey with her; I may have felt it more because I was revisiting my own at the same time but I think I would have felt the highs and lows regardless.

I want to recommend this book to everyone, but especially to those whose professions bring them into contact with victims of sexual assault, whose responses can either provide validation or add to the trauma.

This book does not have a happy ending. The happy part is there is no ending, because I’ll always find a way to keep going.

If I were Chanel I don’t think I would ever want to read another word written about me. I’m just so proud of her though. Chanel, if you ever read this, please know that I believe you and I am with you.

Although I’ve never attempted anything like what Chanel has accomplished here I have needed to write statements that include the details of sexual assault and know how impossible it can feel both to find the right words and to revisit memories with sharp edges. Chanel has done an incredible job and I’m really look forward to reading whatever she writes in the future.

You can search for resources in over a hundred countries at:

Please know that it was not your fault, you are not alone and I believe you. 💜

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

The riveting, powerful memoir of the woman whose statement to Brock Turner gave voice to millions of survivors. 

She was known to the world as Emily Doe when she stunned millions with a letter. Brock Turner had been sentenced to just six months in county jail after he was found sexually assaulting her on Stanford’s campus. Her victim impact statement was posted on BuzzFeed, where it instantly went viral – viewed by eleven million people within four days, it was translated globally and read on the floor of Congress; it inspired changes in California law and the recall of the judge in the case. Thousands wrote to say that she had given them the courage to share their own experiences of assault for the first time.

Now she reclaims her identity to tell her story of trauma, transcendence, and the power of words. It was the perfect case, in many ways – there were eyewitnesses, Turner ran away, physical evidence was immediately secured. But her struggles with isolation and shame during the aftermath and the trial reveal the oppression victims face in even the best-case scenarios. Her story illuminates a culture biased to protect perpetrators, indicts a criminal justice system designed to fail the most vulnerable, and, ultimately, shines with the courage required to move through suffering and live a full and beautiful life.

Know My Name will forever transform the way we think about sexual assault, challenging our beliefs about what is acceptable and speaking truth to the tumultuous reality of healing. It also introduces readers to an extraordinary writer, one whose words have already changed our world. Entwining pain, resilience, and humour, this memoir will stand as a modern classic.

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Kind Mr Bear – Steve Smallman

Mr Bear is always helping out the other animals in the forest and has been doing it for so long they have begun to take him for granted. When he becomes ill there’s no one there to take care of him. Until the other animals realise that when you’re friends with somebody giving is just as important as receiving.

This is such a sweet story but it’s the illustrations that have made me return to this book so many times. The animals are so expressive and I love the colour palette.

In one illustration Mr Bear is reading a book to the children so naturally I had to check it out because I thought there must be a reason that specific image was used. The cover matches one of the author’s other books, Batmouse, so it turned out to be a fun Easter egg!

I want to keep looking at the illustrations and I’m keen to get my hands on more books by this author.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and QEB Publishing, an imprint of Quarto Publishing Group, for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Kind Mr Bear is very kind. He does everything he can to help people. But the animals in the forest start to take him for granted, and when he gets sick, he finds himself all alone in his cave. Will anyone help him?

This touching story from award-winning author/illustrator Steve Smallman shows that when it comes to true friends, kindness is something to give as well as receive.

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Rules for Vanishing – Kate Alice Marshall

Spoilers Ahead!

FIND THE ROAD. FIND THE GATES. FIND THE GIRL.

That was one seriously compulsive read! I just-one-more-chaptered my way through this book and I’m left feeling slightly panicked, knowing I almost didn’t read it at all. Too many books arrived at the library at once so some will have to be sent back unread. I know me and if they are returned unread, no matter how noble my intentions, they will disappear into the ‘I’m going to read that one day’ void.

It was only because this book was almost due and someone else wanted it so I was unable to renew it that I gave it a try. I’m so glad I did because it was so much better than I hoped, but I’m now thinking about all of the other books I could be getting to know and am having bookish anxiety about all of the potential winners that may slip through my grasp. I need to read all the books!

All I hear are the last words my sister spoke, muttering into her phone. On April 18, one year ago. We know where the road is. We’ve got the keys. That’s all we need to find her. I’m not backing down now. Not after everything we’ve done to get this close.

Everyone in Briar Glen, MA knows the legend of Lucy Gallows. On 19 April, 1953, 15 year old Lucy Callow (yep, her name morphed a little during the creation of the legend) went missing in the forest. Legend says that one day each year a path appears in the forest. This time last year Sara’s sister, Becca, disappeared.

On 17 April, 2017, every Briar Glen High School student received the text message.

DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHERE LUCY WENT? SHE WENT TO PLAY THE GAME. YOU CAN PLAY, TOO. FIND A PARTNER. FIND A KEY. FIND THE ROAD. YOU HAVE TWO DAYS.

Sara is determined to find her sister and in two days she will play the game. Joined by eight others, Sara will seek out “The Massachusetts Ghost Road”.

I know Becca didn’t run away. That leaves one possibility and one impossibility, and I long for the impossible. Because if she isn’t dead, if she’s only been taken, she can be brought back.

13 steps.
7 gates.
9 potential victims players.

“Don’t break the rules. Bad things happen when you break the rules.”

This book includes interviews, written testimony, emails, transcripts of messages, phone calls and videos, descriptions of photos and other evidence pertinent to file number 74 of The Ashford Files. Naturally, because this was file 74, I wanted unrestricted access to all of the preceding files as well as any that have been created since.

Sometimes narratives that rely on multiple formats to tell the story cause me to disconnect from both its characters and storyline, but here it completely sucked me in. I kept finding myself planning on putting the book down at the end of a chapter of written testimony, only to need to read the transcript that followed, which then made me need to read the following chapter to see how it all fit together. Compulsive and so much fun!

There are things I am not supposed to tell you. There are things I don’t remember. There are things I don’t know.

I couldn’t get enough information about the gates and the paths between them. At times I got the sense I was experiencing what I expect a hallucinogen would feel like. As I read I kept thinking that I would love to see these strange visuals outside of my imagination and was thrilled to read an article that told me there’s going to be a movie! I can’t wait to see it!

“But the monsters aren’t the only thing you have to be afraid of here.”

My main frustration showed up right at the end of the book; I definitely need to know what it was that Miranda gave to Ashford. Hopefully the movie or perhaps another book detailing another Ashford File will give me this much needed closure.

While I read a library copy of this book I definitely foresee a copy of my own and a reread in the not too distant future.

“lt’s coming.”

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

In the faux-documentary style of The Blair Witch Project comes the campfire story of a missing girl, a vengeful ghost, and the girl who is determined to find her sister – at all costs.

Once a year, the path appears in the forest and Lucy Gallows beckons. Who is brave enough to find her – and who won’t make it out of the woods?

It’s been exactly one year since Sara’s sister, Becca, disappeared, and high school life has far from settled back to normal. With her sister gone, Sara doesn’t know whether her former friends no longer like her … or are scared of her, and the days of eating alone at lunch have started to blend together.

When a mysterious text message invites Sara and her estranged friends to “play the game” and find local ghost legend Lucy Gallows, Sara is sure this is the only way to find Becca – before she’s lost forever. And even though she’s hardly spoken with them for a year, Sara finds herself deep in the darkness of the forest, her friends – and their cameras – following her down the path. Together, they will have to draw on all of their strengths to survive. The road is rarely forgiving, and no one will be the same on the other side. 

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Now Entering Addamsville – Francesca Zappia

How could you convince people of the truth when they had already decided what version of the story they wanted to believe?

When George Masrell’s home is engulfed in fire in the middle of the night, with 80 year old George inside, Zora quickly becomes the town’s prime suspect. Zora is a Novak and in Addamsville Novak’s are well known, but not for anything good.

And when your mom disappears, your dad goes to jail, and the whole town hates you on sight, sometimes you get it in your head to start doing stupid things to ease that anger. Stupid things like hunting firestarters alone.

Unfortunately for Zora, she has a history with fires (but not the way the townspeople think) and recently had an argument with George so people aren’t exactly lining up to defend her. To make matters worse, the cast and crew of the TV series The Dead Men Walking are coming to film in Addamsville, and tagging along are their groupies. While there are ghosts, they’re not the most dangerous things in Addamsville.

I absolutely adored this book! It’s been on my radar for months and now that I’ve finished it I want to dive straight into a reread, which I probably would have if I hadn’t read a library copy that someone with impeccable taste wanted to read once I was done. More on that later.

There was so much I loved about this book and I don’t want to be a gushy mess nor do I want to spoil it for you so I’m going to try to restrain myself. First, I have to mention that cover! If my eyes were capable of speech the colours would have made them say, “Gimmee!” before I even knew what the book was about. Then the illustrations inside were so darn cute! I got a sense of who each character was from the pictures in the beginning and I loved the illustrations at the end of some of the chapters, particularly the axe and the Chevelle.

Speaking of the car, it practically was its own character in this book. It certainly had its own attitude anyway. The 1970 Chevelle was Zora’s mother’s car and she now drives it.

And if we’re talking about attitude, Zora was awesome! She’s tough, she’s rude, she’s smart, she’s angry, she faces her fears, she kicks butt when she needs to. She’s got the entire town either actively hating her or at least suspicious of her, yet she still puts one foot in front of the other. Anyone who continues to try to do the right thing when everyone expects the opposite from them earns my respect. She’s also asexual and I cannot tell you how happy that made me; I’ve found so few asexual characters in books so she got bonus points from me for that.

I loved or loved to hate almost all of the other characters. Sadie, Zora’s sister, and Grim, Sadie’s boyfriend, were the most adorable couple. Bach was intriguing and mysterious and I wanted to see him on every page. History nerd, Artemis, was a pleasant surprise; I initially thought she’d be a boring character but I really had fun getting to know her.

I had the urge to hiss at a couple of characters whenever I encountered them and it was actively hating Zora’s main opponents that spoke more to me about how invested I was in the story than anything else. Well, except for the fact that I chose to forfeit my annual ‘have to watch Halloween on Halloween night’ tradition to finish it.

I loved idea of the “Bell of Shame” at Happy Hal’s Ice Cream Parlor and I cheered Zora on when she used it to call out one character’s slimeball behaviour. I think we could all do with a “Bell of Shame” in our lives that we can ring to announce bad behaviour to those around us.

Some questions remain at the end of the book and I’d love the opportunity to visit this town again. I definitely need to inhale this author’s other books.

So, now we’re up to the later part of the review, which is essentially a whinge, so you’re quite welcome to bypass this bit. I have been so keen to read this book and was eager for someone to take my money so I could highlight to my heart’s content on my Kindle. Unfortunately this is just another in a long list of books my Kindle is hungry for but because it lives outside of the Promised Land, it’s/I’m not allowed to have it yet.

On the upside, thank goodness for libraries! I asked mine to buy a copy for me and, woohoo, they did! I’m still going to buy a copy for my Kindle as soon as the Kindle gods deem my country worthy but at least I don’t have to hold my breath to read it for the first time any longer. Thank you, lovely librarians!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Zora Novak has been framed.

When someone burns down the home of the school janitor and he dies in the blaze, everyone in Addamsville, Indiana, points a finger at Zora. Never mind that Zora has been on the straight and narrow since her father was thrown in jail. With everyone looking for evidence against her, her only choice is to uncover the identity of the real killer. There’s one big problem – Zora has no leads. No one does. Addamsville has a history of tragedy, and thirty years ago a similar string of fires left several townspeople dead. The arsonist was never caught.

Now, Zora must team up with her cousin Artemis – an annoying self-proclaimed Addamsville historian – to clear her name. But with a popular ghost-hunting television show riling up the townspeople, almost no support from her family and friends, and rumors spinning out of control, things aren’t looking good. Zora will have to read between the lines of Addamsville’s ghost stories before she becomes one herself.

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Slash – Hunter Shea

This was bloody fun! So much blood! So much fun! Well, it was fun for me as a reader. I don’t think any of the characters were enjoying themselves as I cheered on from the sidelines during their bone crunching demise.

Ashley is a final girl, the lone survivor of the Hayden Resort massacre five years ago. Since that night she has lived with debilitating PTSD and the nightmare continues for her, inescapable whether she’s awake or sleeping.

Ashley preferred the silence, for within the soundless void, she would be able to hear … things, if they came near.

Ashley’s story may have concluded with her death by suicide (this is not a spoiler – it’s in the blurb) if not for her fiancé, Todd. He only knows snippets of what Ashley and her friends endured at the hands of the Wraith but Todd is convinced Ashley has left clues that will enable him to figure out the Wraith’s identity.

Todd and some friends take it upon themselves to visit the “thousand acres of crumbling resort” to investigate further. I bet they wish they hadn’t.

This is my first Hunter Shea novel but it will definitely not be my last. I adore slasher movies so having those scenes in book form, where my imagination can take the descriptions of what the characters are experiencing and run with them, was something I’ve been looking forward to. I was not disappointed. I love visceral horror deaths and they were not in short supply here!

I was pleasantly surprised by the emotional depth conveyed alongside the gore. I had expected lots of running, frantic dialogue and some good ol’ slicing and dicing. That was all there but there was also an authentic representation of PTSD with Ashley’s character and gut wrenching grief from Todd’s.

Whenever I encounter any stories with the potential for a final girl/guy I play a game of Who Will Survive? Because this is my game and I’m weird, I have rules about how this is played. As quickly as possible after meeting each character I have to decide, based on the limited information I have at that time, whether I think they will still have a heartbeat at the end of the story or not. I’m not allowed to change my vote, regardless of how much information I come across that contradicts my initial assessment.

“Try not to get us killed. Okay?”

Naturally I played Who Will Survive? while reading Slash. Even though I now know who bled out during this “night of horror and impossibilities” I haven’t edited my first impressions to match the outcomes, so you’ll have to read the book to find out who’s still breathing.

So, with that said, who are our victims contestants?

Todd – fiancé of the previous final girl and a man on a mission. Even though he wanders into horror no-no territory by saying, “I’ll be right back”, he’s the main character. Surely he lives to tell the tale, right?

Heather – Ashley’s best friend before she died. She’s caring and a good friend to both Ashley and Todd. I want her to survive so she and Todd can support one another after the blood dries.

Vince – Heather’s husband. I want him to survive because Heather is so lovely and I don’t want her to experience any more grief. However, I doubt both Heather and Vince will survive, so I’m expecting Vince to die at Hayden.

Jerry – Law enforcement don’t usually fare so well in horror stories. Jerry is a misogynist cop so he may die twice, if possible.

Bill – a gambler on a diet. Depending on how strict his diet is, he may not have sufficient energy to outrun a murderer. I think his odds are fairly slim.

Sharon – her older sister, Sheri, didn’t survive the previous massacre. She’s angry and impulsive, which could work for or against her. I’d hate for her parents to lose another child to this killer but I fear she’s going to leap before she looks at an inopportune time.

Elvira – the cat. The Wraith can kill all the humans they want, as long as they don’t hurt the cat. I want to believe Elvira is still purring at the end of this book.

Taylor – not part of the core group. He’s toast!

Kaitlin – also a stranger. Sorry, Kaitlin, but you don’t stand a chance.

“You think they’re all right?” Vince asked. “No one’s screaming. That seems to be the best way to assume things are okay in this place.”

If I wasn’t currently in danger of a TBR pile avalanche I would have already started rereading this book. I’m definitely going to be on the hunt for more Hunter Shea books.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for the opportunity to read this book. Five blood soaked stars!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Five years after Ashley King survived the infamous Resort Massacre, she’s found hanging in her basement by her fiancé, Todd Matthews. She left behind clues as to what really happened that night, clues that may reveal the identity of the killer the press has called The Wraith. 

With the help of his friends, Todd goes back to the crumbling Hayden Resort, a death-tinged ruin in the Catskills Mountains. What they find is a haunted history that’s been lying in wait for a fresh set of victims. The Wraith is back, and he’s nothing what they expected. 

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The Institute – Stephen King

‘Did you see the dots?’

‘No.’

‘You will.’

I love the King-dom! I felt the same way after finishing this book as I did the first time I read Carrie; I need to read every book Stephen King ever writes.

After being kidnapped in the middle of the night, Luke awakens in a bedroom that’s almost identical to his own. He’s in the Front Half of the Institute and that’s where his nightmare really begins.

‘I know as long as they’re testing you, you stay in Front Half. I don’t know what goes on in Back Half, and I don’t want to know. All I do know is that Back Half’s like the Roach Motel – kids check in, but they don’t check out. Not back to here, anyway.’

I was always going to adore Luke. He’s beyond genius level smart but he’s also a wonderful friend and someone I’d enjoy talking with. He’s an avid reader, so even if he had nothing else going for him, I’d be wanting to hang out with him for that reason alone. I related to him when his reading habits were described:

He read the way free-range cows graze, moving to wherever the grass is greenest.

but it was this passage that confirmed I would read any book ever written that followed any part of this kid’s life:

Luke Ellis was the guy who went out of his way to be social so people wouldn’t think he was a weirdo as well as a brainiac. He checked all the correct interaction boxes and then went back to his books. Because there was an abyss, and books contained magical incantations to raise what was hidden there: all the great mysteries.

Fortunately (or not, depending on how you look at it), Luke’s not alone in Front Half. There are a revolving door of kids and the core group of these become somewhat of a found family (I love found family stories!), supporting one another as they attempt to navigate their bizarre new reality. My favourite kid was 10 year old Avery, but I also wanted to adopt Kalisha, George, the class clown and Nicky, the rebel. Okay, so maybe I wanted to adopt them all.

Great events turn on small hinges.

I’m always ready to cheer on a group of people who are railing against injustice. The fact that this group were kids with telekinetic or telepathic abilities who had been kidnapped and experimented on only served to add more oomph to my armchair cheerleading.

I loved to hate most of the Institute’s staff, with the exception of Maureen who, despite the fact that she’s older than me, I also wanted to adopt. It’s easy to despise anyone even tangentially involved in harming children. However, it always amazes me that Stephen King can add greys to what I know to only exist in black and white.

While I was appalled at their treatment of the children under the “care”, I was intrigued by the psychology that had to play out within the individual staff members; what was it about them that made them behave the way they did? What unknown overarching purpose of the Institute could possibly warrant them believing the methods they used were anything close to approximating okay?

No one who fully grasped the Institute’s work could regard it as monstrous.

I could almost see Mulder and Scully in the periphery of this book. This investigation would be right up their alley. Naturally Mulder would lose his gun at some point and Scully would blink at the exact moment the truth was laid bare.

I can’t wait for my next King fix! I’m all in for an author who can make sentences that on the surface appear like harmless fun make me want to cringe when I know their true meaning.

“We’re having a movie this evening, you know. And fireworks tomorrow.”

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents – telekinesis and telepathy – who got to this place the same way Luke did: Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and ten-year-old Avery Dixon. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.”

In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs. Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. There are no scruples here. If you go along, you get tokens for the vending machines. If you don’t, punishment is brutal. As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.

As psychically terrifying as Firestarter, and with the spectacular kid power of It, The Institute is Stephen King’s gut-wrenchingly dramatic story of good vs. evil in a world where the good guys don’t always win.

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The Art of Breaking Things – Laura Sibson

Skye dreams of being an art major at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) when she graduates.

I love to draw and create projects for the people I care about, but I’ve never considered that my art could create change.

Skye is the daughter of an absentee father and a mother who is frequently emotionally unavailable and/or drunk.

“Other families are there for one another.” I can hear the tears clouding her whisper. “Other families are normal. Ours isn’t. Ours sucks.”

Skye is basically a second mother to Emma, her younger sister.

Sometimes I wish I could go back to her age. Before … everything.

Skye tells everyone she’s fine.

“I’m fine.” Fine. My go-to nothing word.

Skye is not fine. Why? Mostly because she has a secret. One she’s been keeping inside for years.

I wonder how many girls finally tell their secrets and what happens when they do.

This is such an important book and I hope it makes it into the hands of those who need to know they’re not alone. Skye’s story felt authentic to me, from what she has experienced to her emotions and behaviour. I found it gut-wrenching and difficult to read at times but I also experienced validation whenever Skye expressed feelings or thoughts that have mirrored my own throughout the years.

Comparisons could be made between this book and Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak. Both feature main characters who have experienced sexual assault, been silenced and find their voices through art, but Melinda’s story is not Skye’s. Sexual assault is not one size fits all; it takes many forms and while there are often many commonalities in both short and long term effects, individual responses can vary greatly. Skye’s responses differ from Melinda’s in a number of ways, though they’re all understandable and relatable.

Do I exist? Do I speak out loud? Sometimes I wonder.

I loved that Skye’s creativity is explored throughout this book, particularly when she describes how she would capture moments in time through art. The titles she gives these imagined scenes were interesting and helped to convey Skye’s perceptions and emotions at the time. While I could easily visualise these scenes, I wanted to see many of the finished products. In particular, there is a mural that includes a tree that I need someone to create; if I ever learned this existed outside of my imagination I‘d buy a framed print so it would be the first thing I’d see each day.

While I would have loved for this story to end all wrapped up with a pretty bow, it’s a more realistic narrative because it doesn’t. As far as we know, the perpetrator hasn’t been spoken to by the police or seen the inside of a prison cell, Skye and her family have not had any trauma informed therapy (or any therapy at all) and Skye’s mother has yet to fully realise the impacts of her emotional distance and reliance on her eldest daughter to parent her youngest. However, given the current conviction rates for sex offenders, it’s unlikely this creep would face anything resembling what I’d consider appropriate consequences for his actions. Also, because this story only explores some of Skye’s early life, I am at liberty to continue her story in my imagination however I choose. And in my little imaginary world, Skye has some wonderful experiences to look forward to. 😊

P.S. If you are experiencing sexual assault or have in the past, please know that you are not alone. The full responsibility lies with the perpetrator; you are not to blame. There is help available and you are worthy of receiving it.

In America, the National Sexual Assault Hotline offers confidential, anonymous support to survivors 24/7/365. It’s never too late to get help. You can reach RAINN by calling 800.656.HOPE or online at https://hotline.rainn.org/online.

If you live outside America and don’t know who to contact, you can search for relevant help in your country at http://www.hotpeachpages.net.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

In the tradition of Laurie Halse Anderson and Sara Zarr, one girl embraces the power of her voice: rules are meant to be broken and she won’t stay silent.

Seventeen-year-old Skye has her sights set on one thing: getting the heck out of Dodge. Art school is her ticket out and she’s already been accepted to her first choice, MICA. All she has to do is survive her senior year, not get too drunk at parties, and be there for her little sister, Emma. Sure, she’s usually battling a hangover when she drives to pick Emma up, but she has everything under control. Until he returns.

When her mum’s ex-boyfriend slithers his way back into her family, it’s all Skye can do to keep the walls of her world from crumbling. Her family has no idea Skye has been guarding a dark secret about her past – about him – and she never thought she would have to face him again. She knows she has to get away from him at all costs. But how can she abandon Emma?

Skye’s heart is torn between escaping the man who hurt her years ago and protecting her loved ones from the monster in their midst. Running away from her fears isn’t an option. To save her sister – and herself – she’ll have to break all the rules.

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Phoebe and Her Unicorn #10: The Unicorn Whisperer – Dana Simpson

I really enjoyed this collection. While the previous couple of Phoebe and Her Unicorn books have still been fun to read, it also felt like I was largely reading about the same series of events in slightly different ways. This collection had a lot more variety and also introduced some new ideas and jokes to the usual reflection gazing and all round unicorn wonderment that makes this series both funny and heartwarming, with some enjoyable sarcasm and nerd points.

It’s a nice challenge, attempting to whittle down my numerous favourites and decide which ones to include here. We’ll start with an obvious favourite, when Phoebe’s love of reading overrides her need to do her homework.

Phoebe also makes a necessary improvement to her bedtime story.

While Phoebe is working on her history report (and no, it’s not allowed to be about unicorns again) Marigold catches up with Todd. Phoebe considers what her Halloween costume will be this year, begins to figure out her superhero origin story and gradually learns what her superpowers are.

Later Phoebe comes down with a case of sparkle fever and Marigold is offended during a game of Monopoly. Phoebe has a nightmare and Marigold has a good dream. Both attend a goblin opera and Marigold visits Concertina Lovelyflank’s Sugar Boutique.

Marigold regales Phoebe with some unicorn lore, including what happens if a unicorn stays too long at the beach and what unicorns believed shooting stars were. Phoebe learns the truth about the Tooth Fairy.

Marigold is always ready to lend some magic to help out her best friend, although the results can be quite unexpected.

I love that after all this time Marigold still has the ability to delight and surprise Phoebe (and myself).

Despite all of the magic this series remains relatable

and at its core lies a heartwarming interspecies friendship.

It’s lovely to take some time to remember the innocence of childhood and focus on the good, the funny and the magic that surrounds us, even if we aren’t lucky enough to have a unicorn as our best friend.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the opportunity to love this graphic novel early.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

For 9-year-old Phoebe Howell and her sparkling companion, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils, every day is an adventure. In this latest installation of Dana Simpson’s award-winning Phoebe and Her Unicorn series, Phoebe navigates the challenges of school life with a little help from her unicorn friend, who is always ready with the perfect spell for the occasion. But as the magic spells mount up, both Phoebe and Marigold find themselves wondering if sometimes they might be taking things just a little too far …

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Three Rancheros #3: Beverly, Right Here – Kate DiCamillo

I read the Three Rancheros series out of order. Louisiana’s Way Home was my first Kate DiCamillo read (ever) and it remains my favourite of the series. I absolutely adored Louisiana and every Burke Allen competed to become my favourite character.

When I read Raymie’s story I was introduced to this wonderful spitfire of a young girl called Beverly. I suspected at the time that Beverly would wind up being my favourite character of the series and couldn’t wait to read more about her. A little over three months ago I read her story and was shocked to discover that it was my least favourite book of the series at the time. I didn’t want to accept that so I decided a reread was in order. I’m so glad I tried again because I absolutely fell in love with Beverly’s story this time!

Before I go any further I want to share with you what is quite possibly my favourite passage of the entire series. It’s an excerpt of the author’s letter to the reader at the beginning of this book. It’s so beautiful that I keep rereading it. It makes me want to be a better person every time I see it.

Raymie Nightingale is about the saving grace of friendship. Louisiana’s Way Home is about deciding who you are. And Beverly, Right Here is about acting on that knowledge of who you are. They are all stories of becoming, I think. And all three of these books are about the power of community – the grace of someone opening a door and welcoming you in, and maybe most of all, having the courage to walk through that door once it’s open.

I get a little misty eyed even thinking about it. Anyway, without further ado …

It’s August 1979 and Beverly Tapinski is now 14 years old. Buddy, the one eyed “Dog of Our Hearts”, has died and Beverly has decided to leave home.

She had run away from home plenty of times, but that was when she was just a kid. It wasn’t running away this time, she figured. It was leaving. She had left.

Grieving the loss of her dog but determined not to cry, Beverly winds up at Seahorse Court. There she meets Iola Jenkins, an elderly lady who lives in a pink trailer with His Majesty, King Nod, an overweight grey cat.

In a crooked little house by a crooked little sea.

Pretty soon Beverly, who doesn’t like fish, is working in a seafood restaurant and eating tuna melts regularly. This child who believes she belongs to no one becomes important to some new friends and despite her best efforts not to let anyone into her heart, they find a way.

With a horse that takes you on a ride to nowhere, a determined and hopeful seagull and Christmas in July in August, this story cracked my heart wide open during my reread. I wanted to adopt both rough around the edges Beverly and quirky but loveable Iola, but my favourite character was Elmer. He’s polite, smart, sensitive and willing to step outside of his comfort zone, and he’s the type of friend that you know will be there for you no matter what. I adore him and would love to read about what happens to him in the years after this book finishes. Or he can just be my friend. Whatever comes first.

While I feel more satisfied after my reread and aren’t as desperate in my search for a nonexistent epilogue, I would love to one day learn that a fourth Rancheros book is being published, one that takes place 20 or 30 years later. It would be wonderful to catch up with this trio once they’re all grown up to find out what’s become of their lives and their friendship.

I’ve already read two of the Ranchero books twice and I loved both more the second time. I get the feeling that no matter how many times I return to them in the future I’m going to enjoy them more with every reread.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Candlewick Press for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Beverly put her foot down on the gas. They went faster still. This was what Beverly wanted – what she always wanted. To get away. To get away as fast as she could. To stay away.

Beverly Tapinski has run away from home plenty of times, but that was when she was just a kid. By now, she figures, it’s not running away. It’s leaving. Determined to make it on her own, Beverly finds a job and a place to live and tries to forget about her dog, Buddy, now buried underneath the orange trees back home; her friend Raymie, whom she left without a word; and her mom, Rhonda, who has never cared about anyone but herself. Beverly doesn’t want to depend on anyone, and she definitely doesn’t want anyone to depend on her. But despite her best efforts, she can’t help forming connections with the people around her – and gradually, she learns to see herself through their eyes.

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WeirDo #13: Weirdomania! – Anh Do

Illustrations – Jules Faber

The WeirDo series always makes me wish I could turn back the clock to enable me to appreciate them from the perspective of a child. Sure, adult me loves them but I’m certain kid me would have reread them so often my copies would be practically falling apart. Kid me definitely would have been in awe of their brilliant lenticular covers!

In Weirdomania!, Miss Franklin has asked her class to write about the jobs their parents have previously done. Weir’s mother currently works at the animal hospital and his father is a firefighter but he doesn’t know any jobs they’ve held before these ones.

Weir and his friend Bella learn interesting and funny new stories about their parents. They also discover their families share a love of wrestling, in particular a champion wrestler called ‘The Block’. (Hmm, that name sounds familiar …)

There are plenty of dad jokes to go around in this book, so many in fact that even the kids join in.

‘I guess I’m just a chip off the old BLOCK!’

Bella and her family are looking forward to seeing ‘The Block’ beat his opponent, Ka-Boom, at Wrestle-Crazia but Weir’s family don’t have tickets. Weir is hoping to win them by putting together the best costume for Funny Friday, but first he needs to think of a brilliant idea.

It all works out in the end and everyone has a great time at Wrestle-Crazia,

where things go even better than expected!

I really enjoyed this story. I loved finding out the occupations of some of the parents of Weir’s classmates. Weir’s imagination was working overtime coming up with so many funny and unusual ideas for costumes, all of which came to life in the illustrations. I even learned something new about one of Weir’s family members.

The jokes are always so corny in this series but I still can’t keep the smile off my face whenever I read another book. Even the animals think this book’s funny!

As usual, Jules Faber’s illustrations enhance the humour, complimenting Anh Do’s story perfectly.

I would be quite happy to go back to the very beginning and binge reread the entire series. I love Weir and his family and I can’t wait to find out what they’re going to be doing next!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

What’s a sheep’s best wrestling move? The LAMB CHOP! 

Everyone is going nuts for WRESTLE-CRAZIA the coolest wrestling show around! Can Weir come up with an awesome idea to WIN tickets for his whole family to see the show? It wont be easy … but it will be FUNNY!

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