Posts Tagged: Own voices

Thursday, May 31, 2018

A Delightful Summer Read for Your TBR: The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo

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I received this book for free from Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

A Delightful Summer Read for Your TBR: The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene GooThe Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo
Published by Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers on May 8th, 2018
Genres: Contemporary, YA
Source: Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers
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four-stars

From the author of I Believe in a Thing Called Love, a laugh-out-loud story of love, new friendships, and one unique food truck.

Clara Shin lives for pranks and disruption. When she takes one joke too far, her dad sentences her to a summer working on his food truck, the KoBra, alongside her uptight classmate Rose Carver. Not the carefree summer Clara had imagined. But maybe Rose isn't so bad. Maybe the boy named Hamlet (yes, Hamlet) crushing on her is pretty cute. Maybe Clara actually feels invested in her dad’s business. What if taking this summer seriously means that Clara has to leave her old self behind? 

With Maurene Goo's signature warmth and humor, The Way You Make Me Feel is a relatable story of falling in love and finding yourself in the places you’d never thought to look.

I Believe in a Thing Called Love was one of my very few five star reads of last year so I was eagerly anticipating the release of The Way You Make Me Feel. While The Way You Make Me Feel was not a five star read for me, it was still absolutely delightful.

Clara Shin is the class clown. Her life revolves arounds making snarky remarks and pranking her enemies. When her prom prank results in the school almost being burned down, both her and her arch nemesis are suspended. Clara’s dad is able to negotiate a deal that may just be worse. She has to spend the entire summer working on her dad’s food truck with her arch nemesis Rose and use her earnings to pay the school back for damages.

Now, I am not necessarily a fan of makeover stories but I don’t know if The Way You Make Me Feel would really count as a ‘personality makeover’ story but honestly, Clara’s character arc is delightful and I loved seeing her bloom into someone who was more driven and aware of her worth while retaining her wit and charm.

The Way You Make Me Feel is a story about family, friendship and first love, but at its heart it is really a love letter to LA and LA food culture. The food truck aspect of the book was definitely something I was intrigued by and was glad that it wasn’t just vaguely in the background but actually a significant part of the book. I really felt like I could imagine not just being in the food truck with Clara and Rose but in LA itself. I know world building isn’t really considered a characteristic(???) of contemporary novels but there is something to be said about how an author brings a real/fictional setting to life in realistic/contemporary novels. If I can imagine breathing the same air as the characters, that’s a good sign right?

Anyway. It’s summer which means there are a truck load of summer reads coming out, and many that might try to grab your attention as you start figuring out all your poolside summer reads. The Way You Make Me Feel is worthy of being on your summer reading list. It is filled with lots of good vibes, good parent(s), new friendships, cute boys and FOOD THAT WILL MAKE YOU HUNGRY.

four-stars

4 Hot Espressos

The Royal Romance I Didn’t Know I Needed: A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole

Posted by on 02/15/2018 • 2 Comments

If you have ever read or enjoyed a romance novel, this book needed to be on your TBR yesterday. I was over the moon when I was approved to read an advanced copy and the book held up to every single one of my expectations + more.

REASONS TO READ Naledi Smith is in grad school studying to be an epidemiologist Spam emails that aren’t really spam from the assistant of the Prince of Thesolo Cocky Prince who doesn’t really know how to function outside of a castle but learns to impress a girl Some cooking experiments when said cocky prince is trying to impress Ledi Angst but like good angst Swoony romance with hate-to-love vibes. Discussion of socio-economic privilege Discussion of what it’s like to live in a non-western…

A Graphic Novel That You Most Definitely Need: Pashmina by Nidhi Chanani

Posted by on 11/03/2017 • 2 Comments

I’ve been waiting for Pashmina since I first heard it existed so when my friend got a copy, I dove into hers while I was visiting and also ended up coming home to a precious copy of my own (#SHOUTOUT.) I’ve already read it twice and there is a very huge possibility I’ll have read it a third time before the end of the year (and even the end of the month, tbh.) SO. I THINK it’s safe to say that I love Pashmina.

It’s already being marketed as such but I also just think Pashmina is perfect for fans of American Born Chinese. The books share so many wonderful qualities and parallels but Pashmina is still its own story and so so SO heartfelt at that. I mean, it even has Gene Luen Yang’s stamp…

Might Have Been Better In Verse: Wait for Me by An Na

Posted by on 11/02/2017 • 0 Comments

Wait for Me was a new-to-me title when it showed up on my (metaphorical) doorstep. I hadn’t heard much about it but upon some research found out it was being republished with a pretty new cover and all. I dove into the book not entirely sure what to expect but ready to meet new characters and enjoy a new story.

This review is a hard one to write because upon finishing, I am not entirely sure how I feel about Wait for Me. I am divided on it because there are parts of it I enjoyed and other parts that really made it hard for me to finish the book feeling like I had read something worthwhile.

I think the number one issue I had with the book was just the pacing…

A Poignant Novel That Deals With Immigration: The Lines We Cross by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Posted by on 06/16/2017 • 2 Comments

Maybe you know or maybe you have no idea who I even am or how you ended up on this site but Randa Abdel-Fattah changed my life when I was a kid. On more than one occasion, I’ve talked about how Does My Head Look Big In This is one of the three most important books in my life that helped redefine how I felt about my identity and about myself as a human being. So, when I heard that she had a new book coming out, I was over the moon. Of course, this was ages ago and this was when the book was coming out in Australia and I was all the way here, sad because I didn’t think I’d get to read the book. Then I found out…

Author Interview: Sandhya Menon

Posted by on 06/02/2017 • 0 Comments

HELLO and welcome back to this fancy feature that Nick (Nick & Nereyda’s Infinite Booklist) and I are collaborating on! This month I am sharing an interview I did with Sandhya Menon! So PLEASE GIVE HER a virtual round of applause.

1. If Dimple and Rishi’s romance could be set to only one bollywood song, which one would it be?

Tujh Mein Rab Dikhta Hai from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, definitely. 🙂

2. What is one book you think the world would just not be the same without?

Ahhh, really, just one?! Hmm…I guess I’d pick The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.

3. If Dimple and Rishi were a food pairing, what would they be? (I AM JUST CURIOUS, OKAY)

Haha, this is an amazing question! I’d say…sea salt and…

Review: The Go-Between by Veronica Chambers

Posted by on 05/17/2017 • 2 Comments

The Go-Between is part fluff and part social commentary. It is this incredible feel good book about a girl has to leave her home country behind to move to America because her mom has landed a roll in American TV. What The Go-Between really tries to break down intersectionality and explore various privileged and oppressed identities.

How does Cammi’s life change when she moves from Mexico City to LA? Her family still has enormous socio-economic privilege but her life does change. The way her classmates interact with her changes and the way she is perceived and stereotyped by her classmates completely changed. Without even getting the chance to introduce herself, her new rich, white classmates craft an identity for her based on racist stereotypes.

And yet even though for the first time…

Heartfelt Coming of Age Novel: That Thing We Call a Heart by Sheba Karim

Posted by on 05/12/2017 • 1 Comment

Sometimes there are books you read and you love and then sometimes there are books you read and FUCKING LOVE. As you might be able to gather given my subtle opening line, That Thing We Call a Heart falls into the latter category for me.

I honestly don’t even know how to express all the love I feel for the book into this review because I doubt that is even possible. Perhaps I might use this gif:

Or I could use words but as I told my prof the other day when he suggested I do a creative writing project, I am not a writer so if this review is completely incoherent, know that I honestly tried.

That Thing We Call a Heart is a book that needs to be in…