Tag: we are okay

April Wrap-Up 2017

chicnerdreads30 Comments

Hi everyone!!! I’m always late to the monthly wrap-up party but they do say better late than never right? I had a way better month reading-wise in April than in March. Whereas in March, I read no books due to my book being released April 4th and I was a ball of mess and stress. With getting things ready and formatting the e-book of my poetry book, it was hard. In April I read tons of Poetry books because it was National Poetry Month, let’s get started on the books I read in April!

What I Read:

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Walking Through the Forest by Elizabeth Ann ★★★★★
Genre: Poetry
This debut poetry book is definitely worth the word. It’s about divorce, pain, healing, and self-love. I wrote a review for it here.

 

 

 

 

 

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Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately by Alicia Cook ★★★★★
Genre: Poetry
From this book being self-pub to now published via Andrews McMeel.  This poetry book is about grief, love, and loss. Divided into two parts, Side A and Side B the remixes. I have a full review here.

 

 

 

 

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Hummingbird by Sophia Elaine Hanson ★★★★★ 
Genre: Poetry
A small poetry book about break-up, being heartbroken, and finding yourself. I have a mini-review here.

 

 

 

 

 

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We Are Okay by Nina Lacour ★★★★★ 
Genre: YA Contemporary, LGBTQ+
This book was so perfect and amazing. A book about a girl who suddenly moves from one the west coast to the east coast and completely changes her life, leaving everything behind, even the people she loves the most. Till her best friend from her old life comes to visit and has her face everything. I wrote a mini review for this 5 star read here.

 

 

 

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Poems I Found in my Closet by Evette Blue ★★★★★ 
Genre: Poetry
goodreads synopsis: I found poems I wrote during the late 90s to early 2000s buried deep in my closet. Perhaps they should have stayed there. These writings explore teenage and early adulthood angst, love, and loss. I wrote these poems during a time when I felt lost, full of hormones, and thought that every setback was the end of the world. It was also before I diagnosed with a mental illness. It turns out that it wasn’t the end of the world. Nearly 20 year later, I’m still standing.
The following poems won’t be the greatest poems you’ve ever read. I just hope they’re not the worst you’ve ever read.
These are artifacts from my life. Laugh. Cry. Cringe. Relate. Drag me on Goodreads. Experience every emotion possible.

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Love Poems I Found in my Closet ★★★★★ 
Genre: Poetry
goodreads synopsis: Technically I didn’t find these poems in my closet. They were on my flash drive. They were a part of the first very draft of a bestselling book I wrote under a different pen name. As the book took another direction, I felt like some of these writings didn’t have a place in the collection anymore.
Like the first volume, these poems explore love and loss. It’s about falling in love, falling into bed, and falling apart. I wrote these poems around 2007-2008 after falling in love and experiencing the perils of unrequited love.
Again, the following poems won’t be the greatest poems you’ve ever read. I just hope they’re not the worst poems you’ve ever read.
These are more artifacts from my life. Laugh. Cry. Cringe. Relate. Drag me. Experience every emotion possible.

 

Poems I Found in my Closet and Love Poems I Found in my Closet do not have reviews because they’re short and honestly both of them would be me gushing over them on how much I love them so much.

Some poems I posted:
is this the part where i apologize?
counting backwards from 10

things have been a little hectic since my poetry book released, in a good way. i’m slowly adjusting to change and i do plan on posting more poems here like i used to ❤

Things That Happened in April:

On April 4th, my poetry book both in paperback and e-book version released!! I have gotten so much love and great feedback, thank you for all those that have been supporting me through this journey. I have a whole post about my book release here:

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my poetry book may be purchased in Amazon (worldwide), kindle unlimited, Barnes & Noble (online), and Book Depository.

I also was invited to do a podcast on April 30th and it was uploaded a few days ago. I talk about my book, being Latina, diversity in books, amongst other things. Thank you to the wonderful Valeria Flores for having me! If you would like to listen to it, check it out here:

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And that is it for the month of April! What have you all been up to? I would love to chat in the comments! Hope you all have a lovely day =)

Instagram: @chicnerdreads
Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)

Mini Non Spoiler Review: We Are Okay by Nina Lacour

chicnerdreads29 Comments

Title: We Are Okay
Author: Nina Lacour
Genre: YA Contemporary, LGBTQ+
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
Format: Hardcover
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Synopsis from Goodreads:

You go through life thinking there’s so much you need…

Until you leave with only your phone, your wallet, and a picture of your mother.

Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend, Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit, and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.

 

I usually separate my reviews with summary/plot, writing, characters, and thoughts. However, this book is really short and I feel like I would give everything away by going into detail.

This is my first Nina Lacour book and I have to say that I now want to read everything by this author. Her writing is phenomenal. But!!!! I have to slow down on my book buying and read the ones I have on my shelf first lol. So maybe by Fall, I’ll buy her other books.

We Are Okay is very melancholic. The tone is set from the very first page till the last page. I had tears in my eyes! This story is about a girl, Marin, who one day leaves everything from her old life behind. Till her best friend from her old life, Mabel, comes to visit. And Mabel isn’t coming over to just check on her but also to confront her (not in a bad way at all).

This book is told in alternating chapters of present and past time. The setting also takes a big role with the tone. Winter snowstorm in a big university campus that Marin happens to be alone because everyone is on Christmas/New Year vacation (present chapters). Summer with Marin who is a completely different person, happier (past chapters). With each page turned, I was filled with more questions of what had happened to Marin. Why did she up and leave? Slowly but surely everything started clicking and making sense.

This story is about loss, tragedy, and grief. About the hard parts in life that shape you. About how sometimes you end up abandoning yourself when something bad happens to you. I loved how raw this book is. And the profound message Nina Lacour had hidden within the conversations of Marin and Mabel. That’s what made this book an instant fave. I’ve said this a million times before but I love when books make you think.

This book is not entirely plot driven but more character driven. I also loved how we have queer characters and WoC but it wasn’t used as plot device, it wasn’t even spoken about. The story is an everyday story and I appreciate that so much. As a WoC and part of the LGTBQ+ spectrum, THANK YOU NINA!!

I loved both Marin and Mabel oh so much. Best friends since young and the relationship they have with one another is so beautiful, raw, and honest. We also get to meet Mabel’s parents and they’re amazing as well. I love how Mabel’s parents were very active in their daughters life whereas in other YA novels, I feel like we don’t see that too often.

This is a simple, gorgeous, sad read but I would highly recommend it to everyone.

have you read this? thoughts? let’s chat in the comments!

Instagram: @chicnerdreads
Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)

WWW Wednesday

chicnerdreads43 Comments

Hi everyone! I thought I would participate in WWW Wednesday today. This meme is hosted by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. You can link your blog post to Sam’s website that way we can interact and find other bloggers =)

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The questions are:
1. What are you currently reading?
2. What did you recently finish reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

what are you currently reading?

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Been on a reading slump for some of February and so far all of March. I tried reading like 4 different books but none of them caught my attention. I swam and drowned in the reading slump till my friend/blogger buddy Debby @ alwaysbooking surprised me with 2 books!! I still can’t believe this and thank you again Debby!!! One of the books are We Are Okay by Nina LaCour. After reading the synopsis again and seeing how small and short the book is in person, I decided to give it a chance. AND MY SLUMP IS OUT THE WINDOW!!!!! WOOOOOOO!!!!! I am so enjoying this book!

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend, Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit, and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.

what did you recently finish reading?

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I “recently” finished…more like my last book I read many weeks ago was It Starts Like This by Shelby Leigh and I have a full review here. This is a debut poetry collection and I thought it was great! 5 out of 5 stars ❤

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

what do you think you’ll read next?

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I’ll be reading another poetry book! I’ve been really in the mood to read this one next. And that is Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately by Alicia Cook. Another poetry collection! I got the self-published version but now that she is signed to Andrews McMeel Publishing, her book will be re-released with brand new poems and a brand new take on April 11th!

Synopsis from Goodreads:

In Alicia Cook’s second poetic effort, designed in the style of an old mixtape, she sets her thoughts to a nostalgic tune. There is no Table of Contents. Instead, there is a “Track List,” making it easy to refer to them to your friends with a, “Hey did you read track seven?!” There are no chapters. Instead, the book is divided into two parts, or as one would say in the 90’s, two “sides.” Side A holds poetry that touches on all aspects of the human condition like life, death, love, moving on, evolving, growing up, hometowns, family dynamic, life after trauma, and make-ups and breakups. Side B holds the “remixes” of these poems, in the form of blackout poetry, also known as “found poetry.” Side B gives the material a fresh twist by creating new poetry out of Side A. There is also a very special surprise at the end of each track. 

thoughts on these titles??? have you read any of these books? let’s chat in the comments!

Instagram: @chicnerdreads
Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)