Tag: lgbt

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Book Review | Unicorn Tracks by Julia Ember

MichelleLeave a comment

I really enjoyed Unicorn Tracks by Julia Ember.  It seamlessly combines elements of our world with the fantastical to create a place full of excitement and wonder.

Both of the main characters are interesting and well rounded. I found myself rooting for Mnemba from the first and was desperate to learn more about her life before becoming a guide for her cousin’s business.  Kara took a little longer to warm up to, but I enjoyed how independent and curious she was… even with the mermaids, lol.

Unicorn Tracks doesn’t shy away from the topic of rape or the aftermath of it.  While Mnemba’s attacker was punished for his crimes against her, she still ended up leaving her home because of the judgement and expectations of those who would claim he was a good man and this was a one-time incident.  It was an especially heartwarming moment when her father said that he would kill Mnemba’s attacker if ever he were set free.

Her relationship with Kara was slow going, as they figured out how to work past the trauma of the past, but it was all the sweeter when they were finally able to connect.  At the end of the story, Mnemba isn’t “over” what happened to her, but she is able to keep moving forward with the support of her lover, friends, and family.  ❤

I would suggest this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy, adventure, or alternate histories.  It’s a quick read, but a darned good one!

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Book Review | George by Alex Gino

MichelleLeave a comment

Written by Alex Gino, George is the story of a child who is struggling in a world that doesn’t see her for who she is.  All they can see is a boy when George knows in every part of her that she is a girl.

Early on, we learn that George’s greatest wish this school year is to play Charlotte in the fourth grade production of E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web.  She struggles against a teacher who believes that George’s audition is a joke, a classmate who is vicious and cruel, and a mother who doesn’t know what to do with a son who says he is a girl.

Throughout the story, George finds strength and encouragement in her best friend Kelly.  The daughter of a musician, Kelly takes the revelation that George is a girl quite well.  She still needs some time to think things through, but is ultimately both accepting and supportive of her friend going so far as to allow George to wear some of her clothes on a trip to the zoo and calling her Melissa, as George has requested.

Ultimately, George is able to take on the role of Charlotte, a performance that is surprisingly well-accepted by her peers and most of the school faculty.  A blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment is when the Principal quietly lets George know that her door is always open if George should need someone to speak to.  Support like that is hard to find in the cis world and is nigh impossible to come across in the trans world.

While I could feel my heart breaking from the first moment that George has to hide in the bathroom with her girl magazines and the way she is subtly disgusted with her own body, this story has a happy ending that will leave readers with a sense of hope in the future.

One of the things I liked most about this story is that it is told from George’s point of view and George never once sees herself as a boy.  From the beginning of the book all the way to the last page, George is a girl.  Readers immediately understand that this is a girl who just happens to be in the body of a boy and, hopefully, will encourage tolerance and understanding in those who read this story.

This is a fairly short book, easy to read through in one sitting, and is perfectly relatable to the audience it was written for…  It is of note that George is the first book of its type to be written for middle grade readers.  It was an enjoyable read for me, as an adult, and was a great way to read about a child transgender character.  The author has written an amazing book that will appeal to reader’s of all ages, but one that is also accessible to children and that presents the transgender topic in a way that is easy to understand.

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Book Review | A Tale of Two Daddies by Vanita Oelschlager

MichelleLeave a comment

One of my favorite things about A Tale of Two Daddies were the illustrations…  Many of the playground pieces that the children use throughout the story are things that I used when I was a kid and which I remember quite fondly.

After watching the short film Credence (you can read my review by clicking HERE), this title felt like the perfect addition.

Told through a daughter’s voice and explained as only a child can, this story is not about gay couples, it is about family and this family is a happy one. At the end of the day, what more can a family ask for?

The simple way that the little girl explains to her friend what each of her daddies do is both sweet and undeniably real. It was nice to see that both Poppa and Daddy had individual things that they were able to provide to their daughter and then there were things that they were both good at.  🙂

All in all, a cute story about family and friends. This picture book would be a wonderful addition to any library collection.

A copy of this title was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Movie Review | Credence

MichelleLeave a comment

Credence is a crowdfunded science-fiction film that just happens to be about a family with two fathers and their struggle to do what is right for their daughter. Two years in the making, Credence breaks through any preconceived notions one might have of an LGBT film and shows just how moving the story of family and sacrifice truly is.

“Because we’re all just made of stars… shining with what we remember.”

Please note that this post will contain spoilers.
If you have not yet seen the film, you may want to skip this post.

Continue reading “Movie Review | Credence” →
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Book Review | Ghost by Carole Cummings

MichelleLeave a comment

If there is one pet peeve I have when reading, it is when an author has created so many different terms and names that you NEED a glossary just to keep track of everything.  I much prefer when an author builds the world around you, rather than throwing you into the deep end without a flotation device.

That being said, I really enjoyed the story that Carole Cummings has written in Ghost, the first book in the Wolf’s-own series.  It is a well planned and wonderfully executed fantasy novel.  The world building happens from page one and is hyper-speed-paced, which is why you need the glossary, but it is also a vivid world with characters, locations, religions, and more that drew me right in!

Now, fantasy is one of my all-time favorite genres to read, but Ghost has a refreshing complexity to it that I just can’t get out of my mind.  Even when I wasn’t actively reading about Malick and Fen, I found myself worrying about the events happening around them and how things would turn out in the end.

One of the Jin people, it was foretold that Fen would become an Untouchable (Ghost).  As an Untouchable, Fen is able to hear the voices of his people’s Ancestors and can only wait for the day that those voices inevitably drive him insane.

Taken from his family as a child, Fen is trained as an assassin by Asai, the man who rules his life and who is also a powerful member of the Adan people (who keep the Jin).  But Asai’s plans for Fen and his people are darker than anything he could ever have imagined.  When he discovers just how far Asai is willing to go, Fen rushes to rescue and hide his twin brother and younger siblings, but is unable to save his mother.  Soon afterwards, Fen is ambushed by Malick and the group of mercenaries/assassins that he leads.

Unable to escape, Fen is pulled into Malick’s scheming and will soon have to decide if he wants to forever be a pawn in the games of others or if he will choose his own path and embrace the power that only he can wield.

An interesting part of the story is that Fen has learned that he can ignore the voices of the Ancestors by cutting himself.  As someone who lives with a diagnosis of self-injury, cutting in particular (though I’ve been SI free for years now), this was something that made Fen all the more real to me.  I was able to connect with his character, because I know what it’s like to want the voices to stop.

Ghost pulled me right in and made me want desperately to know what would happen next and how Fen and Malick’s relationship would grow.  However, be warned that this book ends in a cliffhanger and you’ll be dying to read book two.  Make sure you have it on hand!

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Book Review | The Course of True Love (and First Dates) by Cassandra Clare

MichelleLeave a comment

The Course of True Love (and First Dates) is a short novella written by Cassandra Clare and is a part of the larger Bane Chronicles.  It shows Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood’s first date and the chaos that ensues, in addition to a glimpse at how Magnus views Alec.  It was an interesting read, but mainly left me wanting both better writing and a better story for these two characters.

While there were some really good bits in this novella, it mostly felt rushed and untidy, as if Cassandra Clare was struggling to meet a deadline.  I was left wanting the rough edges polished and smoothed out.

The following is one example of how good Clare can be with words.  It reads just like poetry, as if she were painting with words.

“If Jace was gold, catching the light and the attention, Alec was silver: so used to everyone else looking at Jace that that was where he looked to, so used to living in Jace’s shadow that he didn’t expect to be seen. Maybe it was enough to be the first person to tell Alec that he was worth being seen ahead of anyone in a room, and of being looked at the longest. And silver, thought few people knew it, was a rarer metal than gold.”

I’m working through the Mortal Instruments books and they seem to be better written and much less rushed, for which I am glad because I really wanted to enjoy the series.

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Book Review | On Fire by Drew Zachary

MichelleLeave a comment

There is so much that I like about On Fire by Drew Zachary that I can’t even cover it all.

If there is one thing that will instantly draw the eye, it would be Firefighters or other officers of the law in uniform.  Regardless of why they are drawing your eye, you’ve got to admit that a person just looks good in uniform.  Am I right?  Yeah, I know you’re agreeing with me.

There a moment where Sam allows Robert to hurt him because the older man himself is hurting from things that happened at work and Sam thinks it will help him.  Usually this would be a hard-stop for me, but its such a brief, one-time moment that I was still able to enjoy reading this book.

Sam is a bouncy, genuinely like-able character (even if he has WAY too much energy in his small body, it makes me tired just reading about it, lol) and Robert is the kind of settled, solid guy people dream of settling down with.  Luckily for Sam, that’s exactly what he gets to do.  And the epilogue is a perfect glimpse into Sam and Robert’s future together.

I’ll let you in on a secret, the sequel is really good too.  🙂