Sunday, 21 April 2019
Flowers in the Sun
The sudden awe-striking weather in England has brought out these in bloom in my garden. Sun magic!
Must be a daisy chain!
Must be a daisy chain!
Saturday, 20 April 2019
Scribble #93
I am the Empress of Bed sheets. If only I could get to sleep easy.
The only pea under my mattress is my restless mind.
The only pea under my mattress is my restless mind.
I'm ill and tired today, mostly thanks to my long and stressful work hours yesterday, and just before my holidays. Why does that always happen?
Lovely Easter weather, though, all of a sudden. If only I didn't ache all over. So I'll be taking it easy on the reading, and sleep more. Hopefully after my holiday I'll be well and right as rain again, ready to dive into the pages.
Take care, and good health, everyone xx
Lovely Easter weather, though, all of a sudden. If only I didn't ache all over. So I'll be taking it easy on the reading, and sleep more. Hopefully after my holiday I'll be well and right as rain again, ready to dive into the pages.
Take care, and good health, everyone xx
Non-Fiction Book Review - 'The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One (Women Are Some Kind of Magic, #3)' by Amanda Lovelace
2023 EDIT:
Reread: Sadly, I'm just not feeling it this time. It's like I've read an entirely different poetry book than I did before, years ago. Most of these "poems" confuse me, and they don't make much sense. At least, the story they tell as they "progress" don't make a lot of sense to me. They're hardly about mermaids or fairy tales at all, even metaphorically. Can these verses even be called poetry anymore, or merely repetitive ramblings? Repetitive life advice?
I still love and own the first two 'women are some kind of magic' books, but from 'the mermaid's voice returns in this one' and onwards, it goes downhill a bit, and they all begin to read the exact same; with the exact same message.
Regardless, I won't leave a harsh rating, due to these books being very, wholeheartedly, achingly personal to the author, whom I admire and respect.
Final Score: 3/5
Original Review:
'i have a terrible habit of writing myself braver than i'll ever be, & i'm not sure which of us i'm trying to convince--you, or me.'
'it should be safe for little girlsto ride their little yellow bikes around the block without someone ending up in handcuffs.-- wanted.'
'the first time you take me home & introduce me to your parents, your father takes one look at me & says, "that girl looks like she's much too smart for her own good." -- why wasn't i smart enough to stay away from you?'
'he told me he was fond of broken girls like me & i didn't so much as blink an eye. later, i thought to myself, if only they had taught me how to recognize the warning flares instead of wasting their time teaching me how mistake them for flattery.'
'with his pocketknife, he sheared offmy her hair while she slept curled as a quiet comma into his side, only for him to glue it all back to the ends so he could show her everything he could do to her & still manage to get away with it. -- maleficent.'
'what if he just does it to another girl? -- this is why i can't go.'
'at this point, staying with you is nothing more than muscle memory.'
'& so she did what any rational woman would do--ever so calmly, she reached out & tore the stars apart.'
'I. when they say "no." II. when they can't say "no." -- they're both assault.'
'you don't get to say it's my fault for staying. it's his fault for making me afraid to stay or go.'
'i don't write what i write to hurt you -- i write what i write to heal me.'
'i am magic all the days i am a woman & i am magic all the days i am not. -- demigirl/demigoddess.'
'i tucked my story into the folds of silence in order to put other people at ease. -- no more.'
'i am my reason for recovery.'
'"be stronger than the villains. be every storybook heroine come to life". -- mother knows best III.'
'a chorus of mermaids cried out to her then, "DON'T BE AFRAID TO SING. BELT IT OUT. YOUR VOICE COULD SINK SPACESHIPS."'
'the reason they tell us we cannot have it all is because they fear we will become even more dangerous than we are, & we are already such forces to be reckoned with.'
And these are just the few of the verses of poetry in this, the final collection of Amanda Lovelace's 'women are some kind of magic' trilogy.
'the mermaid's voice returns in this one' - like the others, it deals with sexual assault, abuse, trauma, depression, victimhood and survivorhood, and self-esteem. Plus; reading, fairy tale books, different scenarios for Romeo & Juliet (including him loving her and respecting her boundaries as an asexual, and them parting and pairing up with someone of the same sex, and remaining friends), friendships, and motherly advice.
And above all, the poems are about healing.
Life isn't a fairy tale, but you can take control of your own life, your own storybook; be the heroine of your life, and don't let anyone else define you. While it takes time, learn to let go of the past to survive in the mercies of the present and future, full of possibilities. As long as you are alive, there is always a chance of surviving every day. Take your own time. Sadness doesn't last forever.
Find your voice. Use it any way you want. You can do it.
'the princess saves herself in this one' is still my favourite, and 'the mermaid's voice returns in this one' doesn't always make sense, but these outpourings from the bloody heart, into unconventional poetry, are important.
Save the women of the world. Give them the chance to save themselves. To heal themselves. Let them live.
They can be happy in this world of ours, if only we let them.
They don't have to be real princesses, queens, witches, mermaids, goddesses, or dragon slayers to be seen as worthy of respect.
Thank you for expressing yourself, giving yourself the chance to heal yourself, through all of this, Amanda Lovelace. May you inspire others to do so as well.
Final Score: 4.5/5
Reread: Sadly, I'm just not feeling it this time. It's like I've read an entirely different poetry book than I did before, years ago. Most of these "poems" confuse me, and they don't make much sense. At least, the story they tell as they "progress" don't make a lot of sense to me. They're hardly about mermaids or fairy tales at all, even metaphorically. Can these verses even be called poetry anymore, or merely repetitive ramblings? Repetitive life advice?
I still love and own the first two 'women are some kind of magic' books, but from 'the mermaid's voice returns in this one' and onwards, it goes downhill a bit, and they all begin to read the exact same; with the exact same message.
Regardless, I won't leave a harsh rating, due to these books being very, wholeheartedly, achingly personal to the author, whom I admire and respect.
Final Score: 3/5
Original Review:
'i have a terrible habit of writing myself braver than i'll ever be, & i'm not sure which of us i'm trying to convince--you, or me.'
'it should be safe for little girls
'the first time you take me home & introduce me to your parents, your father takes one look at me & says, "that girl looks like she's much too smart for her own good." -- why wasn't i smart enough to stay away from you?'
'he told me he was fond of broken girls like me & i didn't so much as blink an eye. later, i thought to myself, if only they had taught me how to recognize the warning flares instead of wasting their time teaching me how mistake them for flattery.'
'with his pocketknife, he sheared off
'what if he just does it to another girl? -- this is why i can't go.'
'at this point, staying with you is nothing more than muscle memory.'
'& so she did what any rational woman would do--ever so calmly, she reached out & tore the stars apart.'
'I. when they say "no." II. when they can't say "no." -- they're both assault.'
'you don't get to say it's my fault for staying. it's his fault for making me afraid to stay or go.'
'i don't write what i write to hurt you -- i write what i write to heal me.'
'i am magic all the days i am a woman & i am magic all the days i am not. -- demigirl/demigoddess.'
'i tucked my story into the folds of silence in order to put other people at ease. -- no more.'
'i am my reason for recovery.'
'"be stronger than the villains. be every storybook heroine come to life". -- mother knows best III.'
'a chorus of mermaids cried out to her then, "DON'T BE AFRAID TO SING. BELT IT OUT. YOUR VOICE COULD SINK SPACESHIPS."'
'the reason they tell us we cannot have it all is because they fear we will become even more dangerous than we are, & we are already such forces to be reckoned with.'
And these are just the few of the verses of poetry in this, the final collection of Amanda Lovelace's 'women are some kind of magic' trilogy.
'the mermaid's voice returns in this one' - like the others, it deals with sexual assault, abuse, trauma, depression, victimhood and survivorhood, and self-esteem. Plus; reading, fairy tale books, different scenarios for Romeo & Juliet (including him loving her and respecting her boundaries as an asexual, and them parting and pairing up with someone of the same sex, and remaining friends), friendships, and motherly advice.
And above all, the poems are about healing.
Life isn't a fairy tale, but you can take control of your own life, your own storybook; be the heroine of your life, and don't let anyone else define you. While it takes time, learn to let go of the past to survive in the mercies of the present and future, full of possibilities. As long as you are alive, there is always a chance of surviving every day. Take your own time. Sadness doesn't last forever.
Find your voice. Use it any way you want. You can do it.
'the princess saves herself in this one' is still my favourite, and 'the mermaid's voice returns in this one' doesn't always make sense, but these outpourings from the bloody heart, into unconventional poetry, are important.
Save the women of the world. Give them the chance to save themselves. To heal themselves. Let them live.
They can be happy in this world of ours, if only we let them.
They don't have to be real princesses, queens, witches, mermaids, goddesses, or dragon slayers to be seen as worthy of respect.
Thank you for expressing yourself, giving yourself the chance to heal yourself, through all of this, Amanda Lovelace. May you inspire others to do so as well.
Final Score: 4.5/5
Thursday, 18 April 2019
Scribble #92
I am so quiet. Yet my head is so full and noisy I wonder how I unconsciously compartmentalize all my thoughts - and which do I let out already? My mouth wouldn't be able to keep up. My tongue keeps tripping over itself, like a dusty, unseasoned carpet. With my untold imagination and daydreams, I am like the moon: seemingly simple, faraway and irreproachable, keeping to myself, capriciously changing shape and sides with the seasons, but I shine all the same. I try to shine brightly, like silk and pearl droplets, on others in the darkest times.
Book Review - 'Prince & Knight' by Daniel Haack (Writer), Stevie Lewis (Illustrator)
Beyond beauty. Boundless beauty. A beautiful picture tale, for all the world.
LBGTQ prince and knight fall in love while stopping a dragon from destroying the prince's kingdom. They save each other's lives. They are brave in more than one way.
Like the warrior maiden and the princess in 'Maiden & Princess', the prince and the knight in 'Prince & Knight' are queer to the stars and back.
And like 'Maiden & Princess', theirs is a story of rich acceptance. Of rich, pure love.
The art is perfect for something so adorable and precious. As is the poetry.
An abundance of luxury is to be found in these pages.
'Prince & Knight' - for all ages.
There, a short and sweet review for a short and sweet little fantasy book, that doesn't have to be a fantasy.
Final Score: 5/5
LBGTQ prince and knight fall in love while stopping a dragon from destroying the prince's kingdom. They save each other's lives. They are brave in more than one way.
Like the warrior maiden and the princess in 'Maiden & Princess', the prince and the knight in 'Prince & Knight' are queer to the stars and back.
And like 'Maiden & Princess', theirs is a story of rich acceptance. Of rich, pure love.
The art is perfect for something so adorable and precious. As is the poetry.
An abundance of luxury is to be found in these pages.
'Prince & Knight' - for all ages.
There, a short and sweet review for a short and sweet little fantasy book, that doesn't have to be a fantasy.
Final Score: 5/5
Thursday, 11 April 2019
Book Review - 'Maiden & Princess' by Daniel Haack (Writer), Isabel Galupo (Writer), Becca Human (Illustrator)
What a lovely LBGTQ rhyming picture book for children. A warrior maiden is expected to wed her friend, the prince, but he is only like a brother to her. At the ball, alone and miserable on a balcony, she meets and falls in love with his sister.
I wasn't sure about the art at first, but it ended up being the best for this story. The maiden's adventures and battles are told in flashback and snippets as well. I like her little dragon companion, though, that grows bigger as the maiden and the princess grow closer together. Nice subtle touch there. Brilliant diversity too, with the POC leads.
'Maiden & Princess' - Short, simple, cute and relevant. Add it to kids' reading lists along with 'A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo' and 'Princess Princess Ever After'.
Now I have to wait for Daniel Haack's other LBGTQ picture book, 'Prince & Knight', from the mail. Get here already!
Final Score: 4/5
I wasn't sure about the art at first, but it ended up being the best for this story. The maiden's adventures and battles are told in flashback and snippets as well. I like her little dragon companion, though, that grows bigger as the maiden and the princess grow closer together. Nice subtle touch there. Brilliant diversity too, with the POC leads.
'Maiden & Princess' - Short, simple, cute and relevant. Add it to kids' reading lists along with 'A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo' and 'Princess Princess Ever After'.
Now I have to wait for Daniel Haack's other LBGTQ picture book, 'Prince & Knight', from the mail. Get here already!
Final Score: 4/5
Wednesday, 10 April 2019
Non-Fiction Book Review - 'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' by Linda Bailey (Writer), Júlia Sardà (Illustrator)
How does a story begin? Sometimes with a dream. From a dreamer.
It was a dark, stormy and spooky night, in a castle (okay a house, but it might as well have been a castle) of poets and writers, as eighteen-year-old Mary Shelley lay, tossing and turning, half-asleep, waking, yet dreaming all the same: about the monster that would become the impetus and subject of her own scary story; a creation soon to become a horror icon forever afterwards.
'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' is a lovely, gothic picture book for all ages. It is about Mary Shelley as a person, and how she came about writing 'Frankenstein', or 'The Modern Prometheus'. Linda Bailey puts much emphasis on Mary being a dreamer. Always reading, always off on her own imagined worlds, and writing only a smidgen of what those great worlds in her head are. As a girl who only knew her mother, a pioneer of feminism and also a writer, from her gravestone, and who learned to read and write there, it seemed Mary was destined for a life surrounded by the macabre and gothic horror.
She's a rebel and runaway who, on a night of group ghost story telling, was set a task by Lord Byron to write her own ghost story. But it appeared that for once she was stuck on ideas, despite inspirational imagery striking all around her. Until her imagination is unwittingly flared by the knowledge of new scientific discoveries and experiments on dead animals, that looked like they could be shocked back to life.
And from this imaginative girl's dreams came Frankenstein's monster, a creature stitched up of dead human body parts. It is a fear that she would share with the world.
Dark and thrilling for the creative type. 'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' isn't only about Mary Shelley's life; it is about the power of imagination and dreaming, for as Bailey says, writers dream when they are both asleep and awake. It quenches the thirst of any writer, especially writers of horror and grotesque fantasy.
The illustrations are wonderful. The art by Júlia Sardà is haunting enough by itself, but there are details hidden within: book titles, foreshadowing of the story of 'Frankenstein', and other creepy symbols in Mary's circle and life, some subtler than others.
Beautiful. And I don't even like 'Frankenstein'. I just love reading about women writers of fantasy and horror. From the 19th century, full of revolutionary scientific discoveries, and the barest of social changes (one negative aspect about the picture book is that it could have given further details about Mary's mother and her feminism; not to mention other women such as Mary's stepsister Claire). More remarkable is that Mary was eighteen-to-nineteen-years-old when she wrote the famous book. She met Lord Byron as well, linking 'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' to another picture book I own about a brilliant-minded woman of the 19th century, 'Ada Byron Lovelace and the Thinking Machine'; Ada Lovelace was Byron's daughter.
But enough about men. This is about the women.
This is about Mary.
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley: with a love of daydreaming, reading, words, symbolism, allegory, dark storytelling, and the beauty in the macabre and gothic, we may have a shared kinswomanship.
Final Score: 4/5
It was a dark, stormy and spooky night, in a castle (okay a house, but it might as well have been a castle) of poets and writers, as eighteen-year-old Mary Shelley lay, tossing and turning, half-asleep, waking, yet dreaming all the same: about the monster that would become the impetus and subject of her own scary story; a creation soon to become a horror icon forever afterwards.
'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' is a lovely, gothic picture book for all ages. It is about Mary Shelley as a person, and how she came about writing 'Frankenstein', or 'The Modern Prometheus'. Linda Bailey puts much emphasis on Mary being a dreamer. Always reading, always off on her own imagined worlds, and writing only a smidgen of what those great worlds in her head are. As a girl who only knew her mother, a pioneer of feminism and also a writer, from her gravestone, and who learned to read and write there, it seemed Mary was destined for a life surrounded by the macabre and gothic horror.
She's a rebel and runaway who, on a night of group ghost story telling, was set a task by Lord Byron to write her own ghost story. But it appeared that for once she was stuck on ideas, despite inspirational imagery striking all around her. Until her imagination is unwittingly flared by the knowledge of new scientific discoveries and experiments on dead animals, that looked like they could be shocked back to life.
And from this imaginative girl's dreams came Frankenstein's monster, a creature stitched up of dead human body parts. It is a fear that she would share with the world.
Dark and thrilling for the creative type. 'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' isn't only about Mary Shelley's life; it is about the power of imagination and dreaming, for as Bailey says, writers dream when they are both asleep and awake. It quenches the thirst of any writer, especially writers of horror and grotesque fantasy.
The illustrations are wonderful. The art by Júlia Sardà is haunting enough by itself, but there are details hidden within: book titles, foreshadowing of the story of 'Frankenstein', and other creepy symbols in Mary's circle and life, some subtler than others.
Beautiful. And I don't even like 'Frankenstein'. I just love reading about women writers of fantasy and horror. From the 19th century, full of revolutionary scientific discoveries, and the barest of social changes (one negative aspect about the picture book is that it could have given further details about Mary's mother and her feminism; not to mention other women such as Mary's stepsister Claire). More remarkable is that Mary was eighteen-to-nineteen-years-old when she wrote the famous book. She met Lord Byron as well, linking 'Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein' to another picture book I own about a brilliant-minded woman of the 19th century, 'Ada Byron Lovelace and the Thinking Machine'; Ada Lovelace was Byron's daughter.
But enough about men. This is about the women.
This is about Mary.
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley: with a love of daydreaming, reading, words, symbolism, allegory, dark storytelling, and the beauty in the macabre and gothic, we may have a shared kinswomanship.
Final Score: 4/5
Sunday, 7 April 2019
Book Review - 'The Princess and the Fangirl' by Ashley Poston
2023 REREAD: Infectious, addictive, geeky fun, all set at a con. Heavenly, almost otherworldly, and so ridiculous and too good to be true (impossible universe or not), you got to love it. This series is passionate towards all things geek.
Final Score: 3.5/5
Original Review:
I wasn't going to read this, but I've been in kind of a slump, and any book with the words "Princess" and "Fangirl" in its title, plus the promise of geeky fun and feminism, sounded just what the book fairy godmother ordered and blessed.
'The Princess and the Fangirl', the sequel to an enjoyable guilty pleasure of mine from last year, 'Geekerella', as part of the new 'Once Upon a Con' series by Ashley Poston, is as fun, delightful and relevant as you'd expect. It can be read in less than a day and, like its predecessor, will speak to a number of modern geeks, nerds, cosplayers, fan artists, and internet and Hollywood stars and starlets. It's a love letter to fandom while also showing its dark, toxic side, especially in the sci-fi community. It goes deeper into these issues than in 'Geekerella', while we go along with the refreshing star-studded journey of self-discovery, love and happiness with relatable and adorable characters.
I am not that familiar with Mark Twain's 'The Prince and the Pauper' that 'The Princess and the Fangirl' is loosely based on. It's not another fairy tale retelling, that's for sure. But it uses the same basic premise... in a contemporary, starry, geeky twist:
A young actress, Jessica Stone, also from 'Geekerella', desperately tries to get away from a sci-fi reboot franchise, 'Starfield' and its impending sequel, where she plays a space princess, to avoid being typecast so she can star in "smart" Oscar contender movies. Mean, overwhelmed, tired, and a little condescending, Jessica Stone is like Robert Pattinson and Carrie Fisher, as well as other typecast actors known in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. Not helping her career and self-confidence are the thousands of internet trolls with nothing better to do in their lives constantly harassing her on Twitter and Instagram, no matter what she says, does, and looks like. Conventions can be friendly and passionate places, but it is the negativity that sticks to you the strongest.
Jess ends up switching places with a lookalike fangirl, Imogen Ada Lovelace (great name, love that reference in particular), at a con, ExcelsiCon. Imogen, also known as "Mo", and affectionately as "Monster", has low self-esteem, and wants to save her favourite fictional character, Princess Amara, Jess's role in 'Starfield', from being fridged. She will impersonate Jess in panels, while the real actress, masquerading as Mo, searches for the person who is leaking the 'Starfield' sequel script online - the script that she had carelessly thrown away and someone else had found. Someone who will gleefully out the script as being hers.
It is a race against time - for Jess to save her career, and Imogen to save the intergalactic princess who should be able to save herself. Not merely from her own classic sci-fi story, but from toxic nostalgia online trolls, and male film executives and directors who are afraid of change and the wrath those changes will blow up on them by said trolls.
The two teenage girls are polar opposites. Tough-as-nails and cool Jess doesn't understand fandom culture at all; she sees it as pointless and childish, and hates conventions. On the other reflection of the rainbow, these things are Imogen's life, her reason for connectivity and self-worth. But they are both women, who are part of the sci-fi community, one way or another, so they share similar experiences, and more in common than they thought. By the end, can they understand the other's life better once they live it for even a short period? And more than the princess - can they save each other?
Can they, the actress and the fangirl, both insecure and self-conscious, let themselves go? To truly be themselves, to belong, and be happy?
'The Princess and the Fangirl' is set at a con and takes place within a few days, so it is like 'Queens of Geek' by Jen Wilde. I don't think it is as good as that, however. The plot and its setup contains a lot of contrivances in order for it to work; like how Jess and Imogen bump into each other in a restroom, happen to look alike, happen to wear pretty much the same clothes, and how no one of this internet age, where everyone has a phone and a camera and can be paparazzi now, notices that Imogen isn't Jess. Lucky that fangirl Imogen looks like her favourite character as played by Jess, and they meet at the exact time and place when they'd need to. It is indeed an "impossible universe", where a girl named Elle can live exactly like Cinderella and be called Geekerella and date a famous actor who plays a space prince, where young people can fall in love within a couple days of knowing each other, and hopes and dreams for a progressive future for fandom and Hollywood can come true, simple as that, no consequences for highly questionable activity.
Fairy tales? Maybe, but it's nice to hope. To be optimistic.
There are scatterings of a love triangle - go deeper and you get a love quintangle, or pentagon - but this is light and not so annoying. There's a hate-you-deeply-then-love-you-you-insufferable-so-and-so romance between Imogen and Jess's assistant and childhood best friend, Ethan Tanaka, but again even that grew on me. The romance parts are rather sweet and feel genuine (and hunky, on Ethan's part).
What I'd like a clear answer to, now that I think about it, is: What does Imogen do, aside from starting the #SaveAmara campaign and selling pins at the con? What does she want to do? Will she take over her mums' pop culture figurine business? How has impersonating Jess affected her prospects for the future; a "nobody" like her? Is it left ambiguous? She reminds me of Elle, with the snark, quick temper and quick judgement of others, except she's shier and with a pink pixie cut. And I'm not sure why Mo is viewed by her family as a troublemaker, enough to earn the "Monster" nickname, unless being a little unlucky and having a short temper counts.
A few continuity and pop culture reference errors at the beginning (the Dalek catchphrase is "EXTERMINATE!", not "ANNIHILATE!") also bugged me. 'The Princess and the Fangirl' needed further proofreading.
Diversity: Jess falls for a girl fan artist, Imogen's internet friend Harper Hart, and mentions having fallen for another girl in the past. How bold that it is the famous actress who is LBGTQ (it's never stated if anyone is gay or bi or in any other spectrum in the book) and not the fangirl, so it is the actress who has a lot more to lose if she comes out. Harper is dark-skinned and queer. Imogen's brother Milo has a boyfriend, Bran, who is also a POC. Added bonus is that Imogen and Milo have two mums. Ethan is Japanese-American. And of course, there are Darien Freeman, Sage and her girlfriend Calliope from 'Geekerella', who are much more than cameos. These characters are precious; especially in the scene where Elle and Jess (disguised as Imogen) first meet, and Elle asks the thawing jaded ice queen Jess to take a picture of her and other Princess Amara cosplayers, of different genders, sexualities, races, and ages, posing. One of the best, most heartwarming moments of the book - simple yet effective.
One of the things that marks 'The Princess and the Fangirl' below 'Queens of Geek', however, is the lack of mental health and disability representation. Specifically how certain members of the fandom community relate to what they love.
Despite this:
Love the sexual harassment portrayal - it is treated as the big deal that it is. The guy, a famous YouTuber and "pro-gamer", who gropes a girl gets banned from the con. No ifs, no buts about it. It is what we need to see happen often. Jess is aware that, as a white and straight-passing actress, she doesn't receive nearly as much scrutiny and vitriolic, toxic hatred as women of colour in sci-fi filmography. They're driven off the internet just for daring to exist. Not sure, though, that I like that one of the antagonists, a ridiculously good-looking, conceited, manipulative, press-loving, and womanizing playboy pretty boy actor, is an Evil Brit archetype.
I can't not mention the references. So many! Superhero films, comics, TV, anime, video games, shippings, character revivals, Netflix, ramen, the lot! They don't feel random, tacked on or soullessly listed in either. They have relevance, especially in light of the 'Star Wars' and 'Ghostbusters' toxic fandoms, and they add great humour and comedic effect to 'The Princess and the Fangirl' ("Holy George Clooney's bat nipples" is just one of them. Also random line: "I think my ovaries are exploding."). I didn't expect to find this many 'Yugioh!' references, or a 'Yugioh! Abridged' reference. These make me smile and laugh throughout, as well as reflect.
Special shout-out to Natalia Ford, Princess Amara's original TV actress, who I can't stop picturing as looking like Nichelle Nichols for some reason, and who is doing well for herself, despite what Jess had initially thought of her "nonexistent" career. Praise Stubbles, her hairless demon cat. Thank you for not making the original Amara a villain, Ms. Poston!
There are some surprises in this book. I didn't expect the reveal of the leaker of the 'Starfield' sequel script at the end, and yet it made a kind of twisted sense. Nice that YA can still ambush me, in a good way.
Last bit of review Easter egg: The name of Imogen's mums' business is called Figurine It Out. Bloody brilliant.
Well that's it. 'The Princess and the Fangirl' was what I needed. Modern geek books can cheer me up, and make me hope.
Sci-fi, fantasy, and superhero films can mean as much if not more to people than any Oscar bait drivel (the Oscars are an outdated sham, anyway), and any story can mean anything to anyone, because it is theirs. It is theirs in interpretation, in representation, in heart, in relating to its characters, in a galaxy constellation of ways. All stories can belong to anyone. All characters can belong to anyone. No one is taking anything away from you in stories and fandom. They can't. You will always have your stories, your characters, your love for them, as you love yourself. That love and connection can last for the rest of your life, or from childhood onwards. Sharing that love with others, making friends through love, which is more powerful and longer-lasting than hate, and thus belonging, is one of the best feelings in the world.
That is the joy of fandom community.
What else can I say, except: "Screw the rules, I have pink hair."
Final Score: 4/5
Final Score: 3.5/5
Original Review:
I wasn't going to read this, but I've been in kind of a slump, and any book with the words "Princess" and "Fangirl" in its title, plus the promise of geeky fun and feminism, sounded just what the book fairy godmother ordered and blessed.
'The Princess and the Fangirl', the sequel to an enjoyable guilty pleasure of mine from last year, 'Geekerella', as part of the new 'Once Upon a Con' series by Ashley Poston, is as fun, delightful and relevant as you'd expect. It can be read in less than a day and, like its predecessor, will speak to a number of modern geeks, nerds, cosplayers, fan artists, and internet and Hollywood stars and starlets. It's a love letter to fandom while also showing its dark, toxic side, especially in the sci-fi community. It goes deeper into these issues than in 'Geekerella', while we go along with the refreshing star-studded journey of self-discovery, love and happiness with relatable and adorable characters.
I am not that familiar with Mark Twain's 'The Prince and the Pauper' that 'The Princess and the Fangirl' is loosely based on. It's not another fairy tale retelling, that's for sure. But it uses the same basic premise... in a contemporary, starry, geeky twist:
A young actress, Jessica Stone, also from 'Geekerella', desperately tries to get away from a sci-fi reboot franchise, 'Starfield' and its impending sequel, where she plays a space princess, to avoid being typecast so she can star in "smart" Oscar contender movies. Mean, overwhelmed, tired, and a little condescending, Jessica Stone is like Robert Pattinson and Carrie Fisher, as well as other typecast actors known in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. Not helping her career and self-confidence are the thousands of internet trolls with nothing better to do in their lives constantly harassing her on Twitter and Instagram, no matter what she says, does, and looks like. Conventions can be friendly and passionate places, but it is the negativity that sticks to you the strongest.
Jess ends up switching places with a lookalike fangirl, Imogen Ada Lovelace (great name, love that reference in particular), at a con, ExcelsiCon. Imogen, also known as "Mo", and affectionately as "Monster", has low self-esteem, and wants to save her favourite fictional character, Princess Amara, Jess's role in 'Starfield', from being fridged. She will impersonate Jess in panels, while the real actress, masquerading as Mo, searches for the person who is leaking the 'Starfield' sequel script online - the script that she had carelessly thrown away and someone else had found. Someone who will gleefully out the script as being hers.
It is a race against time - for Jess to save her career, and Imogen to save the intergalactic princess who should be able to save herself. Not merely from her own classic sci-fi story, but from toxic nostalgia online trolls, and male film executives and directors who are afraid of change and the wrath those changes will blow up on them by said trolls.
The two teenage girls are polar opposites. Tough-as-nails and cool Jess doesn't understand fandom culture at all; she sees it as pointless and childish, and hates conventions. On the other reflection of the rainbow, these things are Imogen's life, her reason for connectivity and self-worth. But they are both women, who are part of the sci-fi community, one way or another, so they share similar experiences, and more in common than they thought. By the end, can they understand the other's life better once they live it for even a short period? And more than the princess - can they save each other?
Can they, the actress and the fangirl, both insecure and self-conscious, let themselves go? To truly be themselves, to belong, and be happy?
'The Princess and the Fangirl' is set at a con and takes place within a few days, so it is like 'Queens of Geek' by Jen Wilde. I don't think it is as good as that, however. The plot and its setup contains a lot of contrivances in order for it to work; like how Jess and Imogen bump into each other in a restroom, happen to look alike, happen to wear pretty much the same clothes, and how no one of this internet age, where everyone has a phone and a camera and can be paparazzi now, notices that Imogen isn't Jess. Lucky that fangirl Imogen looks like her favourite character as played by Jess, and they meet at the exact time and place when they'd need to. It is indeed an "impossible universe", where a girl named Elle can live exactly like Cinderella and be called Geekerella and date a famous actor who plays a space prince, where young people can fall in love within a couple days of knowing each other, and hopes and dreams for a progressive future for fandom and Hollywood can come true, simple as that, no consequences for highly questionable activity.
Fairy tales? Maybe, but it's nice to hope. To be optimistic.
There are scatterings of a love triangle - go deeper and you get a love quintangle, or pentagon - but this is light and not so annoying. There's a hate-you-deeply-then-love-you-you-insufferable-so-and-so romance between Imogen and Jess's assistant and childhood best friend, Ethan Tanaka, but again even that grew on me. The romance parts are rather sweet and feel genuine (and hunky, on Ethan's part).
What I'd like a clear answer to, now that I think about it, is: What does Imogen do, aside from starting the #SaveAmara campaign and selling pins at the con? What does she want to do? Will she take over her mums' pop culture figurine business? How has impersonating Jess affected her prospects for the future; a "nobody" like her? Is it left ambiguous? She reminds me of Elle, with the snark, quick temper and quick judgement of others, except she's shier and with a pink pixie cut. And I'm not sure why Mo is viewed by her family as a troublemaker, enough to earn the "Monster" nickname, unless being a little unlucky and having a short temper counts.
A few continuity and pop culture reference errors at the beginning (the Dalek catchphrase is "EXTERMINATE!", not "ANNIHILATE!") also bugged me. 'The Princess and the Fangirl' needed further proofreading.
Diversity: Jess falls for a girl fan artist, Imogen's internet friend Harper Hart, and mentions having fallen for another girl in the past. How bold that it is the famous actress who is LBGTQ (it's never stated if anyone is gay or bi or in any other spectrum in the book) and not the fangirl, so it is the actress who has a lot more to lose if she comes out. Harper is dark-skinned and queer. Imogen's brother Milo has a boyfriend, Bran, who is also a POC. Added bonus is that Imogen and Milo have two mums. Ethan is Japanese-American. And of course, there are Darien Freeman, Sage and her girlfriend Calliope from 'Geekerella', who are much more than cameos. These characters are precious; especially in the scene where Elle and Jess (disguised as Imogen) first meet, and Elle asks the thawing jaded ice queen Jess to take a picture of her and other Princess Amara cosplayers, of different genders, sexualities, races, and ages, posing. One of the best, most heartwarming moments of the book - simple yet effective.
One of the things that marks 'The Princess and the Fangirl' below 'Queens of Geek', however, is the lack of mental health and disability representation. Specifically how certain members of the fandom community relate to what they love.
Despite this:
Love the sexual harassment portrayal - it is treated as the big deal that it is. The guy, a famous YouTuber and "pro-gamer", who gropes a girl gets banned from the con. No ifs, no buts about it. It is what we need to see happen often. Jess is aware that, as a white and straight-passing actress, she doesn't receive nearly as much scrutiny and vitriolic, toxic hatred as women of colour in sci-fi filmography. They're driven off the internet just for daring to exist. Not sure, though, that I like that one of the antagonists, a ridiculously good-looking, conceited, manipulative, press-loving, and womanizing playboy pretty boy actor, is an Evil Brit archetype.
I can't not mention the references. So many! Superhero films, comics, TV, anime, video games, shippings, character revivals, Netflix, ramen, the lot! They don't feel random, tacked on or soullessly listed in either. They have relevance, especially in light of the 'Star Wars' and 'Ghostbusters' toxic fandoms, and they add great humour and comedic effect to 'The Princess and the Fangirl' ("Holy George Clooney's bat nipples" is just one of them. Also random line: "I think my ovaries are exploding."). I didn't expect to find this many 'Yugioh!' references, or a 'Yugioh! Abridged' reference. These make me smile and laugh throughout, as well as reflect.
Special shout-out to Natalia Ford, Princess Amara's original TV actress, who I can't stop picturing as looking like Nichelle Nichols for some reason, and who is doing well for herself, despite what Jess had initially thought of her "nonexistent" career. Praise Stubbles, her hairless demon cat. Thank you for not making the original Amara a villain, Ms. Poston!
There are some surprises in this book. I didn't expect the reveal of the leaker of the 'Starfield' sequel script at the end, and yet it made a kind of twisted sense. Nice that YA can still ambush me, in a good way.
Last bit of review Easter egg: The name of Imogen's mums' business is called Figurine It Out. Bloody brilliant.
Well that's it. 'The Princess and the Fangirl' was what I needed. Modern geek books can cheer me up, and make me hope.
Sci-fi, fantasy, and superhero films can mean as much if not more to people than any Oscar bait drivel (the Oscars are an outdated sham, anyway), and any story can mean anything to anyone, because it is theirs. It is theirs in interpretation, in representation, in heart, in relating to its characters, in a galaxy constellation of ways. All stories can belong to anyone. All characters can belong to anyone. No one is taking anything away from you in stories and fandom. They can't. You will always have your stories, your characters, your love for them, as you love yourself. That love and connection can last for the rest of your life, or from childhood onwards. Sharing that love with others, making friends through love, which is more powerful and longer-lasting than hate, and thus belonging, is one of the best feelings in the world.
That is the joy of fandom community.
What else can I say, except: "Screw the rules, I have pink hair."
Final Score: 4/5
Girl-Themed Yugioh! Cards part 4
20 New!
70 in my deck!
I now have all kinds of soldier, knight, elf, Valkyrie, snake/Medusa, vampire, demon, princess, and goddess female-themed cards.
Favourites include: Elementsaber Nalu, G.B. Hunter (so cool), Gemini Elf (totally a couple, don't try to tell me otherwise), Prinzessin (forget Cinderella; she's like a Rosalina and Elsa hybrid, I love it), the Puddingcess (WTF in the best possible way), and Fortune Lady Dark.
What? Oh, and something about a Creator God card with 12 stars...
70 in my deck!
I now have all kinds of soldier, knight, elf, Valkyrie, snake/Medusa, vampire, demon, princess, and goddess female-themed cards.
Favourites include: Elementsaber Nalu, G.B. Hunter (so cool), Gemini Elf (totally a couple, don't try to tell me otherwise), Prinzessin (forget Cinderella; she's like a Rosalina and Elsa hybrid, I love it), the Puddingcess (WTF in the best possible way), and Fortune Lady Dark.
What? Oh, and something about a Creator God card with 12 stars...
Tuesday, 2 April 2019
2019 Calendar Art - April
Dragon Witches, by Nene Thomas:
Moon Amethyst
The most gorgeous yet. And so me!
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