The Friday 56 (135) & Book Beginnings: Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

A satiric look at another planet which gives us a fresh look at our own.

Beginning: "I call our world Flatland, not because we call it so, but to make its nature clearer to you, my happy reader, who are privileged to live in Space."

56: "At this period, square houses were still everywhere permitted, though discouraged by a special tax."

Comments: I borrowed my sister's copy of Thrilling Tales: Science Fiction Short Stories just so I could read Edwin A. Abbott's Flatland. This story is ridiculous. But it's also a great read. My 56 comes from section 2. What are you reading this week?

Quarterly Recap: April-June

It feels like it was just yesterday when I sat down to write the last quarterly recap post, even though I know it was three months ago. So much has gone on, but I feel like I’m reading less—specifically, I’m having a harder time finding books I want to read. I do have to say that the books I finished reading were ones I really loved. So, that counts for something. Anyway, on to the recap!

April Reviews:

• Ace of Shades
• How To Break Up With Your Phone
• The Collapsing Empire

May Reviews:

• Heroine Complex
• The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
• Aggretsuko

June Reviews:

• Heroine Worship
• Bruja Born
• Heroine's Journey

Other April Posts:

• I Watched Jupiter Ascending Again
• Quarterly Recap: January-March
• Upcoming Music and Recent Releases
• In Which I Forgot About The Blogiversary

Other May Posts:

• Acrylics #2
• We're Gonna Talk About Romance Tropes

Other June Posts:

• Mid-Year Resolution Check-In
• I'm Now On Instagrm

I want to get back into the habit of reading more often; although, this one depends on what books I come across. Currently, I have some eARCs that I’m excited to dive into, including Jasmine Guillory’s The Proposal, and Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett. I also want to make some more art related posts since I really enjoy putting them together....

Music Monday (49) Icon For Hire, and Hidden Citizens

   Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: Over the weekend, I started listening to Icon for Hire again, particularly their second album which is self-titled. Don’t get me wrong, I still like Scripted (first album) a lot. I also love the sound of the second album because of songs like Sugar and Spice, Nerves, Pop Culture, Hope of Morning, and Rock and Roll Thugs among others. So, my pick for today is Watch Me. It’s a good song. I like the combination of pop and rock sounds on this track due to how seamlessly it blends together. The end result is pretty awesome…

Adri: Wait, I'm back. I have something to talk about. I’ve been listening to Hidden Citizens for quite some time. There are so many songs I want to talk about such as Stay Alive, Heroes Fall, and Immortalized... However, for today, I decided on my current find and the one that introduced me to the group. My picks are Down Come the Rain featuring Adam Christopher and Moonlight Sonata.

What are you listening to this week?

I Made A Sketchbook...

In my mid-year resolution check-in post, I mentioned that I wanted to get a smaller sketchbook so my goal of finishing one was more manageable. In the end, I chose to make a sketchbook since I wanted to try out a different technique of binding the signatures together instead of using staples. There are a number of good tutorials on youtube, but the best ones I found were Following the White Rabbit DIY journal/sketchbook tutorial series that you can find HERE. The steps were straightforward, and the visual/ real-time tutorial made it easier to pick up on what had to go where and when. . . .

Supplies I used...

• Hand sewing needle
• Scissors
• Turquoise blue/green embroidery floss
• Pink Card stock
• Regular old tape
• Ribbon (black and pink)
• Artist’s Loft 70 sheet count drawing pad; 11 in x 14 in

I had a lot of fun with this project. It was easier than I thought it was going to be. What I mean by that is that I way overestimated the difficulty of it, because it’s not difficult at all. The paper I chose was just some sketch paper I had. Because of the size, I cut the sheets in half at the center before folding them three or four at time to create my signatures. The actual binding part took a little bit of
time to get used to, but once I did, it was mostly smooth sailing from there.

After my signatures were bound together, I moved on to constructing the cover. I thought “oh hey, I’m just going to do something simple,” which was followed by “this is going to be quick.” No. that’s not how it turned out, because I added a pocket and a ribbon (to tie it shut) at the back. The cover itself was easy to put together since it’s literally three pieces cut from a single sheet of card stock, which I taped together with tape I had lying around my house. Where it got complicated was the pocket and the ribbon tie. I decided to braid the ribbon after spending at least ten minutes deciding how I wanted the pocket to look. I’m not complaining about the time I spent on it, because I like the look of it. And the skills I learned during the process will come in handy when I attempt to make another sketchbook.

Overall, I was happy with the results. If I do this again, I’ll probably use different materials such as stronger tape—preferably something with a pattern—and I would replace the card stock with cardboard and a fabric overlay as a finish. Also, my binding wasn’t as tight as I wanted it to be and it may have had to do with the type of string I used. It was quite thin. So, next time around, I might look into getting a different type that’s a little stiffer, like twine.

Have you considered making a sketchbook or journal?

ARC Review: Heroine's Journey by Sarah Kuhn

Title: Heroine's Journey
Series: Heroine Complex #3
Author: Sarah Kuhn
Source/Format: Netgalley; eARC
More Details: Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: DAW; July 3, 2018

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

The final book in the smart, snarky, and action-packed Heroine series completes the "Heroic Trio" as Bea Tanaka joins her sister, Evie, and diva Aveda Jupiter in their quest to free San Francisco from its demon portal problem...

If there's one thing Beatrice Tanaka never wanted to be, it's normal. But somehow, her life has unfolded as a series of "should haves." Her powers of emotional projection should have made her one of the most formidable superheroes of all time. And she should have been allowed to join her older sister Evie as a full-fledged protector of San Francisco, pulverizing the city's plethora of demon threats.

But Evie and her superheroing partner, Aveda Jupiter, insist on seeing Bea as the impulsive, tempestuous teenager she used to be--even though she's now a responsible adult. And that means Bea is currently living a thoroughly normal life. She works as a bookstore lackey, hangs out with best friends Sam Fujikawa and Leah Kim, and calms her workplace's more difficult customers. Sure, she's not technically supposed to be playing with people's mental states. But given the mundanity of her existence, who can blame her?

When a mysterious being starts communicating with Bea, hinting at an evil that's about to overtake the city, she seizes the opportunity, hoping to turn her "should haves" into the fabulous heroic life she's always wanted. But gaining that life may mean sacrificing everything--and everyone--she holds dear...

Heroine’s Journey didn’t disappoint me in any way. This book was as awesome as I was hoping it would be. In fact, it far surpassed my expectations. The story basically followed Bea on her quest to become a superhero like her sister. It was easy to get drawn into the story, because right from the start, there was this perfect balance between supernatural, superhero, mystery, and even some romantic elements. This book accomplished all of that with the same charm and whit that made the last two books so enjoyable. Needless to say, I was hooked.

One of the most appealing aspects of this series has always been the characters. They made the story, and it was no different in this book. There was a lot of character development done for Evie, Nate, Aveda, and of course, Bea. Heroine’s Journey is best described as a journey. It was as much a book about self-discovery as it was about being a superhero and what that really meant to Bea. It all tied together. In that way, Kuhn nailed the human aspect behind the capes and signature costumes—behind the superpowers and crime fighting.

I'm glad that there was finally a story from Bea's perspective, because it's by far my favorite of the series. One reason was that it delved more into the complicated relationship she had with her older sister, Evie. It was something that was always present in the stories, but it was from everyone else's perspective except for Bea. Bea and Evie had their share of issues. There was everything from communication shortfalls, misunderstandings, and some issues caused by outside factors. And I liked the fact that Heroine’s Journey centered on that and expanded on what was already established. I also liked how the conflicts were handled, because Kuhn didn’t shy away from writing  difficult, messy, and emotional conversations. And it was great.

The secondary characters—like Rose, Leah, Shruti, Lucy, and others—were also cool. They weren’t just part of the background. I liked them mostly because they were so individual and interesting. They felt like proper characters with personality and backstories separate from that of the main character.

And while I was happy with how Heroine’s Journey ended, there were some lingering mysteries and potential for other stories. All in all, Heroine’s Journey was a fantastic read. Kuhn is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, and I look forward to reading whatever she writes next. And if you enjoyed any of the books in this series, then Heroine's Journey is a must read.

About the author...

Sarah Kuhn is the author of Heroine Complex—the first in a series starring Asian American superheroines—for DAW Books. She also wrote The Ruby Equation for the comics anthology Fresh Romance and the romantic comedy novella One Con Glory, which earned praise from io9 and USA Today and is in development as a feature film. Her articles and essays on such topics as geek girl culture, comic book continuity, and Sailor Moon cosplay have appeared in Uncanny Magazine, Apex Magazine, AngryAsianMan.com, IGN.com, Back Stage, The Hollywood Reporter, StarTrek.com, Creative Screenwriting, and the Hugo-nominated anthology Chicks Dig Comics. In 2011, she was selected as a finalist for the CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment) New Writers Award.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by DAW via NetGalley for free in exchange for an honest review.