What Went Down: June 2016

Ah, June. The start of summer vacation and the anime binge-a-thons. I'm so happy to have time to write posts! Finally! I'll have a lot of posts for July.

But...onto the important stuff.

Eternal Book Devourer

I was in a bad, bad reading slump this month. I read only THREE books.

This is My Brain on Boys by Sarah Strohmeyer. I didn't really like this book. It was quirky? And really...different. But not a favorite. 3/5 

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo. This was an interesting LGBT+ book. (Which was pretty good for June which is Pride Month.) But I didn't really like it... 3/5

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab. I didn't like the start of this book. But it wasn't too bad overall. Pretty good. REVIEW TO COME. 4.5/5

I Am A Boss Blogger (And This Is Proof)

My Posts

I participated in The Crown's Game readalong, and I wrote a review for it! 

I started the switch to anime posts. So I have basically no new bookish posts. I might find a coblogger who does book posts. To get the Lit in Litaku covered.

I did THREE episode analyses for anime. 

Episode 9 of the spring 2016 anime Kiznaiver (Which I spelled wrong for the longest time...and is about friendship and troubled romance) 

Episode 17 of the fantasy anime Magi: Labyrinth of Magic (Which is about friendship)

Episode 13 of the tearjerking, heartwrenching, soul-sucking anime Your Lie in April (Which is about loving your mom...so yeah)

And I reviewed the anime Fate/Stay Night. And wondered...why?

Blogosphere Posts (Mostly book ones...)

Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight did this awesome thing where she got her readers to choose her next read!

Mish @ Chasing Faerytales wrote about LGBTQIA in children's lit. From her South Asian perspective. Intriguing.

Stefani @ Caught Read Handed wrote about her LGBTQIA display (She's a librarian) and recommended LGBTQIA books.

Jess @ Princessica of Books talked about a world without ARCs. GASP. But...maybe it's for the best?

Angel @ Avid Reader talked about Muslims in YA after the American Terrorist book annoucement. (It's a book that basically badmouths Muslims and generalizes them all as terrorists. Or so I see.)

Cait @ Paper Fury talked about how, again, we're fighting over adults reading YA.

Mish @ Chasing Faerytales interview ADAM SILVERA about his new books and LGBTQIA.

Amanda @ Nellie and Co unveiled her FREE blogger planner. Uh...yes please.

Event Stuff

We're about to announce the teachers/schedule for InterBlogCon. It's coming up, guys! It's on July 16 from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm EST.

And we started a Twitter! 

I Do Not Watch Too Much Anime (And Other Lies I Tell Myself)

I watched/finished NINE animes this month. Woot woot! (Guess how many that'll be back when school starts.)

The spring season is ending with Kiznaiver, Bungou Stray Dogs, and Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress coming to a close. As I write this, I've seen the last episode of Bungou but not Kiznaiver. SOON! And Kabaneri has one last episode. So far.

I watched:

• Fate/Stay Night. I felt like this was overrated...so. 3/5
• Magi: Labyrinth of Magic. This was sooo good. I loved the magic and the friendship. Team Ugo forever. 5/5

• Your Lie in April. This anime was one of the saddest I've seen. It's soooo sad. But it's gorgeous. Especially if you love music. 5/5
• Baccano. I felt like this too was overrated. I didn't really like it. It had a confusing story line, and I just couldn't keep up with the massive cast. 2.5/5
• Toradora. Most people love this anime. But I didn't? The love dodechedron was annoying. I hate thingsl like that. 2.5/5

And all the spring 2016/airing anime:

• Space Patrol Luluco. This was a cute and short anime. Reminisicnet of Hetalia... 3/5
• Kiznaiver. At first, I didn't like this anime. But it got better. It got sad and romance-y. But it was done really well. I haven't seen the last episode. So no rating. Yet.
• Bungou Stray Dogs. Agh. I can't believe this is over. It's an interesting anime with a plot twist at the end. Aka we need season two now. 4/5
• Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress. This is interesting. People say it's an AOT copy...which isn't true really. Sorta. Kinda. Maybe. But it's cool. And Ikoma is cool. It's cool. Plus, the OP is awesome. It's by the same group that did the Guilty Crown OST. So...I'm in love. I haven't finished it yet. So no rating!

And let's do something new!

Which anime do I recommend?

RECOMMENDATIONS

• Fantasy: Magi: Labyrinth of Magic. This anime has awesome magic. It's about Alibaba and Aladdin who are complete strangers but form a connection. I love that. The two of them go through a lot. The animation is pretty awesome, and I love all the characters. 
• Slice of life/shoujo: Your Lie in April. It's a sweet anime about love and first love. And about hurt and loss. And overcoming your fears. And, of course, music. Kousei's story is empowering and wonderful. I truly love it. Be warned that you might cry. A lot.
• Supernatural: Bungou Stray Dogs. This anime is good. I admit it. The animation is awesome. The OP is even better. You have Atsushi, a seemingly innocent boy, who joins a group of gifted people who solve crimes. But there's a sinister organization to defeat. And interesting powers.

Overall: Magi: Labyrinth of Magic. Just beautiful awesomeness. Why didn't I watch this sooner?

Daily Lives of High School Peoples (aka Wren)

• I helped out with a summer camp. And the kids dunked me with water. FUN. 
• I got a whole bunch of book mail. Which I love! Check out my unboxing here.
• I started this weight loss program. Which I don't like. Sorta. I don't eat breakfast. wich I don't do anyways. Yay for waking up late!
• I got Nishinoya. The Nendoroid I mean. He's sooo cute. He's sitting next to me right now. 

• I went to BFest. And I got ARCs and samplers. (Including History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera. WHO IS SUPER COOL.) I might do a booksfortrade soon. Maybe. And I saw Nicola Yoon! Eek!

What did you do this month? Enjoying summer break? What summer anime are you looking forward to?

ARC August Recap #2

Woohoo! August is almost over. (Aka ARC August is almost over!)

I have finally made headway in my ARC pile. -sighs in relief-

I read ALL my ARCs.
And I'm lazy and quite busy, so I won't attach my reviews to this. Heh heh.

I read:

 

ARC August Recap

Yo yo yo, everyone! 
Here's my recap of ARC August so far.

So far, I've read two ARCs. I feel so accomplished. It's not like everyone else has read a lot of their ARCs. (Heavy sarcasm.) 

I'm gonna say this, though. I wasn't in the US until the 14th of August. I didn't have access to Tonight the Streets Are Ours or The Rest of Us Just Live Here or Another Day. Those books are at home in the US. I had access to my NetGalley eARCs only. So yeah. I couldn't read the other ARCs I wanted to read for ARC August. 

They are:

The review will come out on August 18th. 
I was a little disappointed by this book. I really wanted it to be something special. Something fantastical and amazing. It wasn't terrible, but it didn't dazzle me as I expected. 

The review is here. 
I was definitely shocked by this book. It was surprisingly good. The friendships were interesting. The characters were complex. I definitely was interested in this book.

ARC August Sign-Up

ARC August is hosted by Read Sleep Repeat. You can sign up here! 

This month, I decided to accept the challenge of reading ARCs I got from BookCon and from NetGalley and from Goodreads First Reads! (Which is not a lot, mind you.)

Rules:

• It may be a physical ARC or eARC but it MUST be an ARC
• Yes it can be an ARC that has already released; as long as it’s an ARC I’m not going to nit pick really
• HAVE FUN WITH THIS! Feeling like you are being “forced” to read is the best way turn a fun event into a yucky obligation.
• Update post! I personally will do a post for each Saturday in August but that’s just me. You can update once a week, every other week or once for the whole darn event. This update can be in the form of a blog/tumblr post, vlog, link to your “ARC August 2015″ shelf or even an instagram pic! I want to make this as easy and low pressure as possible for you.

Personal Goal:

It'll be tough to read all these ARCs while I'm getting library books. In the month of August, there are eight books I need to read. And this is excluding the six books I didn't get to read during June and July! 

I never realized I had this many books on my TBR. 

But...

But I'm optimistic and excited for this challenge! 

I'll post on Twitter as I go along as well as biweekly updates! 

A Thousand Nights by EK Johnston 

To be Published Oct 6, 2015

From NetGalley

Lo-Melkhiin killed three hundred girls before he came to her village, looking for a wife. When she sees the dust cloud on the horizon, she knows he has arrived. She knows he will want the loveliest girl: her sister. She vows she will not let her be next.

And so she is taken in her sister's place, and she believes death will soon follow. Lo-Melkhiin's court is a dangerous palace filled with pretty things: intricate statues with wretched eyes, exquisite threads to weave the most beautiful garments. She sees everything as if for the last time.But the first sun rises and sets, and she is not dead. Night after night, Lo-Melkhiin comes to her and listens to the stories she tells, and day after day she is awoken by the sunrise. Exploring the palace, she begins to unlock years of fear that have tormented and silenced a kingdom. Lo-Melkhiin was not always a cruel ruler. Something went wrong.

Far away, in their village, her sister is mourning. Through her pain, she calls upon the desert winds, conjuring a subtle unseen magic, and something besides death stirs the air.

Back at the palace, the words she speaks to Lo-Melkhiin every night are given a strange life of their own. Little things, at first: a dress from home, a vision of her sister. With each tale she spins, her power grows. Soon she dreams of bigger, more terrible magic: power enough to save a king, if she can put an end to the rule of a monster.

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

To be Published Aug 27th, 2015

From BookCon

What if you aren’t the Chosen One?

The one who’s supposed to fight the zombies, or the soul-eating ghosts, or whatever the heck this new thing is, with the blue lights and the death?

What if you’re like Mikey? Who just wants to graduate and go to prom and maybe finally work up the courage to ask Henna out before someone goes and blows up the high school. Again.

Because sometimes there are problems bigger than this week’s end of the world, and sometimes you just have to find the extraordinary in your ordinary life.

Even if your best friend is worshiped by mountain lions.

Award-winning writer Patrick Ness’s bold and irreverent novel powerfully reminds us that there are many different types of remarkable. 

Breakaway by Kat Spears

To be Published Sep 15, 2015

From NetGalley

When Jason Marshall's younger sister passes away, he knows he can count on his three best friends and soccer teammates--Mario, Jordie, and Chick--to be there for him. With a grief-crippled mother and a father who's not in the picture, he needs them more than ever. But when Mario starts hanging out with a rough group of friends and Jordie finally lands the girl of his dreams, Jason is left to fend for himself while maintaining a strained relationship with troubled and quiet Chick. Then Jason meets Raine, a girl he thinks is out of his league but who sees him for everything he wants to be, and he finds himself pulled between building a healthy and stable relationship with a girl he might be falling in love with, grieving for his sister, and trying to hold onto the friendships he has always relied on. 

A witty and emotionally moving tale of friendship, first love, and loss, Breakaway is Kat Spears at her finest.

Tonight the Streets Are Ours by Leila Sales

To be Published Sep 15, 2015 

From Goodreads First Reads

From the author of This Song Will Save Your Life comes a funny and relatable book about the hazards of falling for a person you haven't met yet.

Seventeen-year-old Arden Huntley is recklessly loyal. Taking care of her loved ones is what gives Arden purpose in her life and makes her feel like she matters. But she's tired of being loyal to people who don't appreciate her—including her needy best friend and her absent mom. 

Arden finds comfort in a blog she stumbles upon called "Tonight the Streets Are Ours," the musings of a young New York City writer named Peter. When Peter is dumped by the girlfriend he blogs about, Arden decides to take a road trip to see him.

During one crazy night out in NYC filled with parties, dancing, and music—the type of night when anything can happen, and nearly everything does—Arden discovers that Peter isn't exactly who she thought he was. And maybe she isn't exactly who she thought she was, either.

Another Day by David Levithan 

To be Published Aug 25, 2015

From BookCon (Thank you to my friend who grabbed this for me!)

The eagerly anticipated companion to David Levithan’s New York Times bestseller Every Day

In this enthralling companion to his New York Times bestseller Every Day, David Levithan (co-author of Will Grayson, Will Grayson with John Green) tells Rhiannon’s side of the story as she seeks to discover the truth about love and how it can change you.

Every day is the same for Rhiannon. She has accepted her life, convinced herself that she deserves her distant, temperamental boyfriend, Justin, even established guidelines by which to live: Don’t be too needy. Avoid upsetting him. Never get your hopes up.

Until the morning everything changes. Justin seems to see her, to want to be with her for the first time, and they share a perfect day—a perfect day Justin doesn’t remember the next morning. Confused, depressed, and desperate for another day as great as that one, Rhiannon starts questioning everything. Then, one day, a stranger tells her that the Justin she spent that day with, the one who made her feel like a real person . . . wasn’t Justin at all.

Total: 5 Books 

BookCon Giveaway

The last two days of May (May 30 and 31) were BookCon.

I went to BookCon up in NYC. (I say up because I live in the South.)

I got a whole bunch of stuff. Ranging from books to bookmarks. ARCs to hardcovers. And posters and magnets.

Essentially, I got a lot of things. 

And, surprise, I don't want all these things. 

And this means...

GIVEAWAY TIME.

Whoop whoop!

You just gotta enter below.

Conditions:

1. You have to be in the USA. Sorry, international people. (I can't afford that expensive shipping.)
2. You must be 13+ or with parental permission. (Don't want the 'rents being surprised by packages from strangers.)

This giveaway will be open for two months. (Yes, two months.) So get your entries in! 

Here are EXAMPLES of things you MIGHT win: (If you win and see something you REALLY want, tell me. I might get it in your box. Maybe.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

a Rafflecopter giveaway