“Some families are lucky enough to never experience a single tragedy. But then there are those families that seem to have tragedies waiting on the back burner. What can go wrong, goes wrong. And then gets worse,” (Hoover 31). Things aren’t looking good for Lowen Ashleigh. Her mother died a few months before, her books aren’t …
I received this book from The Next Best Book Club in exchange for an honest review. Historian and author Leah Angstman’s newest book, Shoot the Horses First follows a variety of character from different historical times, showing their struggles and the time they live with care and realism. From a young boy being inspected on the Orphan Train, a …
I could think of no saint more appropriate for the first post on Surprising Saints then the one and only Saint Guinefort (Geen, as in green, four), who was in fact a dog. Yes, a dog. A greyhound to be exact! I first learned about Saint Guinefort from artist Jessica Roux’s Woodland Wardens oracle deck in …
Nowhere, really I’ve been here. Unlike some times in the past, I’ve actually been doing a good job of keeping this site active. I changed the layout colours this year to something more me (though I do wish WordPress made it easier to customize colour themes. I pay for this domain, why can’t I customize …
I didn’t know what this book was about going in. The back of the book featured only a quote from another author praising Newborn, and another on Goodreads sharing a quote from the book. So I put together that there was a creek, that something was discovered there in a Stephen King coming of age way. So I went in blind, and I think you should do.
“Whether we realize it or not, we often find ways to alleviate feelings of existential aloneness through the seeking of unity…Food, entertainment, success, sex, relationships, busyness, gossip — there are plenty of ways to divert our attention from the unavoidable, terrifying aloneness of human existence,” (Bolz-Web, Nadia, 21). Sex has long been a taboo subject in …
I received this book from The Next Best Book Club in exchange for an honest review. “Your past is chiseled into the earth; your future is written in the air. Your time alive was precious because it was limited,” (Stickle 13, “Modern Ghosts”). I’ve never read or reviewed a chapbook before, so this should be fun! At …
I received this book from The Next Best Book Club in exchange for an honest review. “That morning he had waited at the station for the train to start running again, his head low, body shaking, and he understood why people killed, why people stopped feeling, why people stopped believing in God. He heard the first train …
“I fear that I’m bitter. I’m too young to be bitter. Especially as a result of a life that people supposedly envy. And I fear that I resent my mother. The person I have lived for. My idol. My role model. My one true love,” (McCurdy 120). Former child actor Jennette McCurdy reveals all about …
“The trick was not to let them see you suffering,” (Foss 142). There’s too much happening in middle-aged single parent Elin Henriksen’s life. Her distant mother’s health is declining, her teenage daughter Betts is planning on going somewhere but won’t tell Elin where, the new high school principal where she teaches disapproves of how she …
Sarah O'Connor 