5 Stars - 34 / 100 for 2024 - eBook / Annotated - Everything to me has a story, a feeling, a thought and a memory, and this is how I cook on a daily bas5 Stars - 34 / 100 for 2024 - eBook / Annotated - Everything to me has a story, a feeling, a thought and a memory, and this is how I cook on a daily basis. I am governed by how I feel and what mood I am in. The same dish can be created from totally differing feelins of nostaglia, happiness, homesickness and so many other emotions, but the reality is, the food always makes me feel at peace when I am eating. - Palestine on a Plate:Memories from my Mother's Kitchen is a beautifully written cookbook, i always love when cookbooks and recipes have stories to them. It makes the food mean so much more, I knew very little about Palestinian food / food related culture before reading this and learning the methods and ingredients and history was so interesting. A bit like poetry, cookbooks are hard to review. For me the recipes are clear and explanatory, the photos of the food are beautiful and the tidbits of history and personal experiences make it a really fun read. I cannot wait to make some of these recipes, in particular the Yaffa Orange Cheesecake and Makloubeh (Upside-Down spice rice with lamb) - Makloubeh is a traditional Palestinian dish that consists of meat, rice and friends vegtables placed in a pot, which is then flipped upside down when served hence the name, Makloubeh which translates literally as 'upside down'. We often make this dish for important events such as Eid, Ramadan and family birthdays as it is a labour of love......more
1 Stars - 14 / 100 for 2024 - Listened via Spotify TW/CW: Discussions of homophobia, transphobia, aphobia, heteronormativity, allonormativity, amatono1 Stars - 14 / 100 for 2024 - Listened via Spotify TW/CW: Discussions of homophobia, transphobia, aphobia, heteronormativity, allonormativity, amatonormativity, hate crimes, anxiety, vomiting, coming out, sex, purity culture, racism and albeism - Thanks, I hate it. I hadn't really heard much about this from people, so when I found it on Spotify, I decided to save it for the crushculturereadathon I hosted on Instagram, aspec voices are so often overlooked even now when LGBT+ books are really coming into their own in online spaces. First off this isn't really a book as much as it a chaptered podcast which was immediately something I wasn't a fan off, I knew the authors were podcasters so I suppose I should have seen this style choice coming but it really threw me off. Listening to this was really hard, I had no idea who was talking most of the time and whilst I usually enjoy books told in a conversational style, this just did not work for me. - This was pretty standard, a very simple look into asexuality / aromantisism, nothing in this hasn't be said before better by other aro / ace people. I appreciate they are speaking from their own experiences a lot, but there are other books that do this so much better (currently reading Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex by Angela Chen and the difference is night and day, please read that instead of this) I wasn't really enjoying it and then we just HAD to bring up HP / JKR didn't we? LGBT+ books published after 2018 that have HP references irritate me to no end. J K Rowling is a TERF, amoung other things, who is actively harming trans people. I find it rediculous that two cis women would think their comments are important enough to mention this is and with little to no need for it at all? Please tell me what this has to do with the aro / ace community:
JK Rowling’s views on gender do not take away from the hope and comfort so many trans people have gotten out of the Harry Potter books, films, and resulting communities, nor does it mean that the themes of her books which trans folks have felt paralleled their own experiences are no longer valid...We are by no means trying to tell anyone that they must stick with something upon revisiting it and finding holes in it. If leaving it behind seems like the right course of action for you, do it. But utilizing your aspec glasses to their fullest extent sometimes means putting things in a larger context. The bad is still bad even if the good outweighs it, but if we tossed aside every piece of media that didn’t pass some aspec version of the Bechdel test, we’d be left with almost nothing.
With the greatest respect in the world, shut the f*ck up. Yes trans people were comforted by her world and then she showed her true colours and has since been a supporter of the Tory governments plan to OUT TRANS KIDS TO THEIR PARENTS, shown support and donated to the LGB alliance whose slogan is 'LGB without the T' and who cut up progress pride flags (who are mostly made up of cis / het people BTW) and despite claiming to be a feminist remain completely silent on a huge amount of issues facing young women in the UK. Cisgender people within the LGBT+ community who are J K Rowling apologists should speak to some actual trans people about how they feel instead of saying 'hey we know she's harming you as a minority but HP is so good and maybe we should just live and let live' - Hard to have this view as a trans person in the UK who J K Rowling would more than happily see disappear all together. You cannot 'live and let live' when you are being actively told not to exist. - I really wouldn't recommend this, you want some asexual books that ACTUALLY help? Try these: - Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex by Angela Chen - Refusing Compulsory Sexuality: A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture by Sherronda J. Brown - I Am Ace: Advice on Living Your Best Asexual Life by Cody Daigle-Orians...more
5 Stars - 25 / 100 for 2024 - Kindle (Owned / Annotated) - TW/CW: Discussions and depictions of occupation and war / Violence / Murder / Death / Guns an5 Stars - 25 / 100 for 2024 - Kindle (Owned / Annotated) - TW/CW: Discussions and depictions of occupation and war / Violence / Murder / Death / Guns and bombs / Grief / Survivors guilt - in December 2023 Dr. Rafaat Alareer and several memeber of his family were killed by Israli forces. May he rest in peace, in memory: https://electronicintifada.net/conten... - YOUR REMINDER TO CONTACT YOUR REPS / MPS - YOUR REMINDER TO SHARE EVERY POST YOU CAN, LIKE AND SAVE, NEVER STOP TALKING ABOUT IT - YOUR REMINDER TO BOYCOTT COMPANIES SUPPORTING THIS (FULL LIST CAN BE FOUND ONLINE) IT IS YOUR DUTY AS A HUMAN. DO WHAT YOU CAN. #CEASEFIRENOW #FROMTHERIVERTOTHESEA - Gaza Writes Back' provides conclusive evidence that telling stories is an act of life, that telling stories is resistance, and that telling stories shapes our memories. This was beautiful, it destroyed me mentally and everyone needs to read this. These stories are acts of resistance and defiance, proclaiming the endurance of Palestinians and the continuing resilience and creativity of their culture in the face of ongoing obstacles and attempts to silence them. The fact this was published initially in 2014 yet this is still relevent, maybe even more so right now, is truly heartbreaking. I am at a loss for words in regards to the genocide happening right now, I feel helpless and hopeless and everyday I am so unbelievebaly astounded at the bravery, compassion and humanity Palestian's have displayed in the face of the horrors surrounding them. I hope they know a majority of the world stands with and we're doing everything we can to demand a ceasefire. - Sometimes a homeland becomes a tale. We love the story because it is about our homeland and we love our homeland even more because of the story. Each story in this collection tells of different issue Palestian people face, from dealing with bombings and after affect of them, to the guilt of surviving when others did not, to just trying to receive healthcare it truly shows how blind the world has been to these people and there struggles. I wish had known what I do now, but I do know now and I will continue to read, share and uplift Palestian books, authors and voices. Please read this and understand this is ten years old and it is still happening. - Gaza tells stories because Palestine is at a short story's span. Gaza narrates so that people might not forget. Gaza writes back because the power of imagination is a creative way to construct a new reality. Gaza writes back because writing is a nationalist obligation, a duty to humanity, and a moral responsibility....more
5 Stars - 10 / 100 for 2024 - Listened via Spotify TW: SA, emotional abuse and manipulation, eating disorders (anorexia and bulimia), cancer, drug and 5 Stars - 10 / 100 for 2024 - Listened via Spotify TW: SA, emotional abuse and manipulation, eating disorders (anorexia and bulimia), cancer, drug and alcohol abuse, death, grief, mental illness, grooming. - Why do we romanticize the dead? Why can’t we be honest about them? I was completely blown away by this and am kicking myself for not picking it up sooner. I was planning to get this physically and annotate it, which I think I would still like to do, but when I saw the audiobook narrated by Jenette herself was available on Spotify I knew I had to listen. I adore autobiographies when they're read the person who wrote them, it gives a very intimate feel, almost like they're telling the story to you personally over coffee. Jenette's narration is brilliant, I love her writing style, it feels very conversational which I know some don't like when it comes to books like this, but I prefer it. There were moments in this book where you could hear Jenette's voice wobble and even break when talking about certain times in her life. - I had to pause this multiple times to take a breath, because it does not pull it's punches. The first chapter sets up the vive for the rest of the book perfectly, showcasing how horrifically manipalative and narcissistic her mother was and continued to be throughout Jenette's teenage years. I adored Jenette as I was growing up, I wanted to BE Sam Puckett. She was everything I wanted to be, funny, liked and so comfortable being herself even though she wasn't feminine in the way I felt I had to be. It breaks my heart knowing the utter hell she was experiencing during her time at Nickolodeon, I mean it shouldn't surprise me. Nickolodeon and Disney have dark as f*ck pasts and contracts and deals and things they have swept under the rug. But some brave people are now coming forward and talking about the things that happened and quite rightly calling these companies out for the way they treat their stars, especially teenagers. I remember when Sam and Cat was cancelled and I was heartbroken, the story that followed was that Jenette was unhappy her co-star Ariana Grande was getting paid more than her. This was not the case and blaming the cancellation on a young actor instead of addressing all the sexual harassment allegations. Whilst I understand Jenette and Ariana have since made up, there's still this cloud of judgement has followed Jenette throughout her career. - She wanted this. And I wanted her to have it. I wanted her to be happy. But now that I have it, I realize that she’s happy and I’m not. Her happiness came at the cost of mine. I feel robbed and exploited. - Her mother was a monster. She was damaged in her own and was in deseperate need of help but this cannot be used to defend her. She was an excessive hoarder, constantly verbally and physically abused her husband, forced her children to watch her farewell video she filmed when she thought she was going to die on a weekly basis, forced her pre-teen daughter (Jenette) into the acting business and then encouraging incredibly dangerous eating habits and body issues. She needed therapy herself and it's very sad she never got that help, that understanding. But the way she treated her family, especially Jenette, is utter horrific. Her manipulative behaviour had Jenetter from the age of eight feeling personally responsible for her mothers mood and joy. Debra McCurdy sexual assaulted her own daughter until she was seventeen years old, constantly made comments on her body resulting in Jenette have anorexia as a pre-teen and later developing bulimia, started a hate group online at one point to shame her daughter, blamed Jenette for cancer returning amoung other awful things. - Jenette's outlook on this abusive past after her mother passing was extremely difficult. The guilt and grief drove her to drink excessively and allowed her bulimia to completely control her. She eventually finds a therapist that helps her deal with this intense level of trauma and starts writing and starts moving on with her life, which brings us to this book. Told with a wicked dark sense of humour and brutal honesty, this may be one of the most eye opening autobiographies that has ever been published. This woman deserves an apology from so many people, I am so happy she was able to overcome this immensely difficult experience and brave enough to share it with us. I hope in future, she continues to write and finds some peace. So much of my life felt so out of control for so long. And I’m done with that being my reality. I want my life to be in my hands. Not an eating disorder’s or a casting director’s or an agent’s or my mom’s. Mine. ...more
‘We are going to die someday, and nothing can control it. Don’t take LSD. Go to the woods alone for three days…’
Wow, just wow. This might be one of mo‘We are going to die someday, and nothing can control it. Don’t take LSD. Go to the woods alone for three days…’
Wow, just wow. This might be one of most beautifully written books on writing I have ever read. I annotated the hell out of this! I needed some writing inspiration during NaNoWriMo and this worked. I could have read it a lot quicker but my priority in November was writing - This is a collection of short essays on writing, where to write, how to write, how to pour yourself into your work.
Really loved this - Will look back on my annotations for inspiration. ...more
I started this SUCH a long time ago and whilst it's entertaining enough I hit so many reading slumps last year.
So, I feel like I have very similar thI started this SUCH a long time ago and whilst it's entertaining enough I hit so many reading slumps last year.
So, I feel like I have very similar things to say about this book as many other reviewers have, that being eleven out of twenty-nine of the essays were by the editor, Laura Kate Dale, the essays are well written and serve a purpose, talking about pivotal moments for them during their transition. HOWEVER the introduction states that were several hundred submissions for this book, therefore really many the editor should have one or two essays, giving a voice to others with different stories to tell. I've read a lot of reviews for this book and everyone seems to agree we hear too much for Laura, no disrespect to them or their journey, but when the introduction talks about the lack of diversity and stories of 'gender euphoria' it kind of then makes the amount of essays by ONE person a glaring issue.
I found this enjoyable - As someone who has just started their transition this gave me some hope and after all that's why I picked it up in the first place. I think younger trans / non-binary / intersex / genderqueer people might find this really helpful. ...more
I have felt mega slumpy the last few weeks reading wise and everything else wise. Sometimes we need the wise words of someone we admire and trust to gI have felt mega slumpy the last few weeks reading wise and everything else wise. Sometimes we need the wise words of someone we admire and trust to get us through these hard times and this was what I needed. Neil Gaiman is my favourite author and one of my favourite humans in general. This is a collection of his thoughts on creativity, freedom in regards to art and working towards your goals and it honestly is really uplifting. I really enjoyed this and will keep it handy when I feel slumpy again....more
This book is about an island in Devon where I spent almost every summer holiday. I know the island and the beach so well, I’m not sure I would have liThis book is about an island in Devon where I spent almost every summer holiday. I know the island and the beach so well, I’m not sure I would have liked this as much if I hadn’t visited this place personally. The story told here is interesting, some amazing people have stayed at the hotel and the journey the owners went on to realise their dream is impressive, however...
Someone who hasn’t been here might not enjoy the book as much, also the owner Tony who wrote the book is oh so posh so sometimes it can feel like a very privileged thing to read. For instance, they had to sell their yacht to afford the island... Still an interesting read though. ...more
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