Tying the Leaves

Tying the Leaves is a 2019 young adult novel by June Toher. It was published by Toher’s Tales in October of 2019. The novel is concerned with the subjects of climate change and environmentalism with elements of magical realism. I was provided with a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Tying the Leaves follows a timid Virginia boy named Jamie and his three friends, Tony, Raj and Keisha. After they travel seventy years into the future, they are horrified to find the Earth devastated by climate change and dirty energy pollution. They return to the present, determined to make sure that the future they saw doesn’t come to pass. They launch an international online kids organization to save the planet, team up with a U.S. senator on a controversial environmental bill, and fight the fossil fuel industry. All the while, the same industries the kids are fighting are contributing to air pollution that threatens the life of Jamie’s little sister.

Overall, I liked the novel. I found Jamie and his friends to be very well-written. Jamie begins the book as a shy twelve-year-old who lacks self-esteem, is struggling with grief and is terrified about his asthmatic sister’s health. In the process of trying to get others to pay attention to climate change, and trying to get others to listen and care about what’s happening, he becomes a much more confident person. The other three kids, Keisha, Tony and Raj have their own character arcs which center around other coming-of-age issues such as parental acceptance. Additionally, this story has an antagonist that’s incredibly realistic, in the form of a lobbyist for the fossil fuel industry.

While I liked the characters, I enjoyed the plot more. The story is told in a very up close and personal way. The kids journey from learning about climate change in school, to traveling to the future and upon their return, founding CAPE, Children Against Polluting Earth. The story depicts the trials and tribulations of starting an organization like that and trying to affect change. The kids don’t go from one high point to the next high point, there’s struggle and conflict, which adds an element of realism to this novel that not all young adult novels have. The conclusion of the story doesn’t show every problem being fixed, but instead focuses on things being on track for a better, brighter future. The struggles they face, and the main ideas about climate change and environmentalism are very topical right now and I feel like those issues and the arguments surrounding them were dealt with rather well in this story.

Tying the Leaves is a book with a very clear message, and that is what sets this novel apart more than characters or plot. Toher clearly did an extensive amount of research about climate change, renewal energy and other environmental issues in the process of writing this novel. It shows in the writing how knowledgeable she became about these topics, given that she’s able to display how the issue of climate change will affect the world as a whole, as well as its impact on individuals, as seen with Katie’s asthma and other lung problems. The issue of climate change is something she feels passionately about, which is reflected in her writing. She did a wonderful job of giving vivid detail to both the future Earth, ravaged by climate change, and the present Earth, in order to contrast the two. I enjoyed the imagery and the atmosphere of this story.

While I liked the plot and the characters as a whole, there are a few things about Tying the Leaves that didn’t quite work for me. None of them are major problems, but in order for this to be a balanced and honest review, I do need to address them. There are some stereotypes that are used that I wasn’t the biggest fan of, but those stereotypes were mostly to make characters have dimension and personality, so they didn’t take away from the story, but I did feel a little weird about them. Sometimes, the dialogue was a bit clunky or didn’t seem realistic. This mostly happened in regards to slang people were using, but there were other situations where the dialogue drew me out of the story. Some elements of the plot, especially around the climax, felt a bit unrealistic for an otherwise very realistic story. The antagonist does a few things in an attempt to stop the kids that don’t make sense with the rest of the story.

Typing the Leaves is a novel with a very important message. June Toher delivered that message perfectly. While it’s not perfect, the novel is good. This is a book that I think most young adults should read, mostly because it provides information about climate change that might be inaccessible to younger readers. It explains aspects about environmentalism in an easy to digest way. To any reader who is interested in fictional stories about the environment, I’d say to give this book a shot.

Rating: 3.6 Stars

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Let's Talk About Romantic Subplots

So, romance, its a thing. Not only is it a genre in its own right, it's also a trait that a lot of stories share. High-fantasy can have romance. Mystery can have romance. Adventure can have romance. In any fictional genre, you can find romance. However, just because romance can fit into the story doesn't mean that it should be in the story. I'd like to discuss my thoughts on romance, more specifically romantic subplots. (If I was slightly more organized, this post might've been up right after Valentine's Day. but I wasn't, so it wasn't, so I'm talking about it now.)

First, let me just say that I don't have anything against romances in general. I'm not a huge fan of the genre, but I'm not going to tell an avid romance reader that they're wrong or have bad taste. You read what you want, and I'll read what I want. I've actually read books with great romances and relationships that I liked. And, I've also read some where the romantic subplot was boring, or felt unnecessary or took up too much of the book. Now, I think I can divide my negative opinions about romance and romantic subplots into three categories: overdone, unnecessary and just problematic.

Overdone
I know a lot of people love Romeo and Juliet but I'm not one of them. I'm tired of books being adaptations of the play. Some retellings have been done very well, but there's an over-saturation. I like star-crossed lovers just fine, but star-crossed lovers where one or both have to die in order for the story to stick with you? It's been done to death, and I hate it. If you want your romance to be broken up because there needs to be some type of sacrifice, it doesn't have to be death. Imprisonment, exile, and even plot devices like "if I ever see you again, the world will explode" make the two characters splitting up much more impactful than one or both characters dying.

Also in this category, love triangles. There doesn't need to be one in every YA series. If yo're going to write about Girl Character not being sure if she wants Boy A or Boy B, fine. But the "triangle" can't just be the fact that both boys like her and she doesn't want to choose. Show why she's torn between Boy A and Boy B and why she should and shouldn't chose each one. Also, please don't make Boy A a childhood friend and Boy B a handsome new kid, because we know what's going to happen there. The reason why I don't like love triangles is that, if the book is not categorized as strictly romance, it can rob the story of its impact. For an example, The Hunger Games is about overthrowing an oppressive regime that forces children to fight to the death, but too many people turned it into Peeta vs. Gale.

Unnecessary
As mentioned above, not every story requires a romantic subplot. And, even if there is romance in the story, it doesn't need to be a huge focus. My favorite book on Earth is The Hobbit. There is no romance in The Hobbit because the story doesn't need it. The Harry Potter series has romantic elements sprinkled throughout, but you could cut out, or skip past those scenes, and it doesn't effect the story.

I've read so many books where 2/3 of the way through, I was enjoying the book, and then all of the tension turned from "stop the bad guy", "solve the crime" etc to whether or not two characters would get together and the main plot was shunted to the back. That ruined those books for me. I would also put last minute coupling in this category. If the main conflict has been resolved, and the rest of the book is just Character A and Character B admitting their feelings, I don't really need it. Especially if, prior to the conversation where they admit their feelings, there's been no indication that either character felt anything stronger than friendship for the other.

Problematic
I know a lot of people cringe at the term problematic, but romances that fit in this category make me cringe, which is why I'm using it. Some of these tropes are fine, just not my taste, while others I find very troubling.

First, the "not my taste" ones. I hate the trope of male characters that are jerks to their own love interests. I don't mean ones where they butt heads at first, or don't like each other at the beginning but slowly get closer and dislike turns into friendship and then love, by the way. I mean ones where the guy is a huge jerk, he stays a huge jerk, but his love interest still wants to be with him. Or thinks she can change him. Or knows that he's actually just damaged and that makes him act this way. Not a good romance, actually really toxic and I don't like it. To a lesser extent, this includes the "I was mean to you as a kid because I had a crush on you" plot, because again, that doesn't excuse the behavior.  Insta-love is another one that I'm just not a fan of. If I'm going to be invested in a couple, I want to actually see their relationship develop, not just read "he saw her and knew she was the one. The end".

Now, to the romances that I think are very troubling. One: killing off one or both members of the only gay, lesbian or bisexual relationship in the story. If you do that, you brag about how representative your story is, because its not. In a similar vein, if you write a bisexual character and they end up with someone of the opposite gender, that doesn't make them straight, so don't treat it like it does. (Basically, write happy, healthy non-straight relationships, okay?) Two: romanticizing abuse. I shouldn't have to explain this but there are still people who think the Joker and Harley Quinn dynamic is "goals". Emotional abuse, physical abuse, manipulation, its not cute and it's not romantic. Lastly, relationships involving one adult and one character who is not an adult. We have a word for that, and it's not romantic. Some might argue this one saying that "Character A is 15 and Character B is 18-21, its not that bad". No, it is. Because the author chose to make the characters those ages. They could've both been in their 20s, or both been teenagers, but they chose to have one be an adult and one be underage. Maybe it wasn't intended to be predatory, but it easily comes across that way.


Romance when written well adds a layer to the story being told. Sometimes, that simply raises the stakes. In other scenarios, it brings about a form of character growth. The problems arise when romance isn't handle well. If it's shoehorned it, or it distracts from the main story being told, then I take issue with it. As I said earlier, I don't have a problem with romance in general, just it being misused.

The Good Reading Habits Tag

I love doing book tags and I like getting tagged by other book bloggers in tags. I want to thank Mackenzie at Lit Lemon Books for tagging me.

Rules:

• Pingback to the creator’s post
• List some of your good reading habits, the things you think you do well
• Nominate some of your blogging friends

My Good Reading Habits

Setting aside reading time

This might sound like something that should be given, but I feel like I’m able to read as much as I do because I make a point to set aside time to read everyday. Not only does it make it easier for me to meet my reading goals, but it also means I have enough time to really read books as opposed to trying to rush through them.

Planning my reads

When I finish a book, I always know what my next read is going to be. This means I don’t waste time debating which book to read next or procrastinate on making a decision. This doesn’t always work out exactly as planned, but more often than not it does. It also makes me way less stressed because when I don’t have a plan, I tend to freak out.

Reducing my purchases of new books

This is a fairly new good habit I’ve picked up. I’ve focused on reading the books I already own as opposed to buying new ones. I’ve also taken advantage of my local library and services such as Kindle Unlimited to reduce my spending. In reducing the amount I spend, I’ve ended up reading a number of books I’ve owned for years but hadn’t “gotten around” to reading yet.

Those are my good reading habits. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

I Tag:

Leah at Leah’s Books and Cooks, Krista at The Bookish Hedgemom and anyone else who wants to give this tag a try!

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Children of Blood and Bone

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Children of Blood and Bone is a 2018 young adult fantasy novel by Tomi Adeyemi. It was published by Henry Holt Books for Young Readers and was the author’s debut novel. It is the first book in the Legacy of Orisha series. The novel debuted at number one on The New York Times best-seller list. The film rights were sold to Fox 2000 prior to the book's publication. Children of Blood and Bone can be purchased here from Bookshop.org 

The novel takes place in the land of Orisha, which is home to two distinct groups of people: diviners, who have the potential to become the magical maji, and the non-magical kosidan. Eleven years prior to the start of the story, Orisha’s king, Saran, discovered a way to render the maji powerless and ordered the slaughter of many defenseless diviners, including the mother of Zelie Adebola. Since that time, diviners have been severely oppressed and without hope. While in the capital, Zelie, a diviner, and her brother Tzain encounter a rogue princess, Amari, who has discovered a way to give magic back to the maji. They are pursued on their journey by the crown prince Inan, who is determined to eradicate magic for good.

As with any novel, there are many memorable characters, but I don't have time to talk about all of them, otherwise this review would be two or three times the length it currently is. Instead, I will focus on the five characters most crucial to the plot. Zelie is the heroine of the story, a maji with the ability to call forth the spirits of the dead, referred to in-universe as a Reaper. Having been ostracized and oppressed for most of her life because she's different from most of those around her, she welcomes the chance to resort magic to Orisha and give her people a way to protect themselves and fight back against their oppressors. I liked Zelie and her arc as a character. She's uncertain of herself, she struggles with her abilities and several times, wonders if she's able to fulfill the task that others say she's desperate for. Tzain is Zelie’s brother, who is one of the kosidan. He comes with her on her journey at their father’s request and serves as a voice of reason. Zelie can be brash and impulsive and he is usually the one who convinces her to find better solutions to a given problem. Amari is the princess of Orisha, who's escape from the palace with a magical artifact sets the story into motion. While she has been raised her whole life to be scared and wary of the diviners, she clearly doesn't believe that they're the monsters others say that they are.  She's a compassionate person, which many others see as a weakness, but her compassion is what drives her to join Zelie on her quest and try to make things better for the diviners. Amari begins the novel appearing to be very weak-willed and underestimated, but through the journey she takes with the Adebola siblings, she comes into her own and learns how to be comfortable with who she is. Inan is Zelie’s older brother and the heir to the throne. He's a very difficult character to talk about without spoiling a few things in the book, but let's just say he's an antagonist mostly just by circumstance. He's pursuing Zelie, Tzain and Amari on his father's orders. He wants to eradicate all magic because he's been told his whole life that if magic is allowed to exist, it will be the end of the kingdom and his family. It isn't until very late in the story that he is given a reason to want the things that he wants. I'll be honest, I spent a decent amount of the book annoyed at Inan because he was acting against his own self interests and, had he gotten what he wanted, he would suffer as a result. Lastly, there is the main antagonist of the story, King Saran. He makes very few appearances in the story, at the very beginning and in the climax. Other than his few appearances, most of his char activation comes from what's said about him by other characters. There isn't really much depth to Saran, no nuance to his goals. He hates the diviners, he hated the maji and wants to completely eradicate them altogether. He's a very simple villain and there's no attempt made to lessen how evil he comes off as. These five characters drive most of the plot and the dynamics between them created an engaging story. 

One of the aspects of this novel that I liked the most was the sources of inspiration the author drew from. While some of the sources she used are standard in fantasy, such as Harry Potter and An Ember in the Ashes, it was the inspiration derived from West African mythology and Yoruba culture that made this story and this world unique. It made the story refreshing. This was the first fantasy novel I read that had taken inspiration from West African mythology, or really any mythology that wasn't European. Adeyemi’s novel brings a new perspective and new ideas to the fantasy genre, which is never a bad thing. Fantasy, as with any genre, needs a wider diversity of storytellers.

This book delves into a number of complex themes, some of which I haven't read in fantasy before. One of the most obvious ones is its exploration of race. The maji are darker skinned than the kosidan. Given that the kosidan have enslaved parts of the maji population, it would be difficult to miss the message regarding how race and class can be used to divide a nation. Another theme regards the connection between power and brutality. By virtue of simply being the king, Saran already has power, but that's not enough for him. He feels the need to oppress and enslave the maji because he fears if they aren't oppressed, he and the other kosidan will lose control of the nation. Another recurring theme is characters’ responses to oppression. Zelie, as a result of watching her mother die and living every day in fear for her own life, is determined to resist and overthrow the current order that oppresses her. Another maji character doesn't want to overthrow the system, but use the eventual return of magic to unite the two groups and create a more peaceful country. Lesser themes include identity and the struggles with transitioning from adolescence to adulthood.

I don't have very much to say about the plot itself or the pacing of the story. I normally only talk about those things when I feel there's an issue with how the story unfolds or the speed at which it unfolds. The plot is solid, the elements that invoke foreshadowing do it deftly and it was easy to follow. The pacing was perfect, with scenes that needed to feel a little longer doing exactly that, while other, shorter scenes were given enough length without feeling rushed. The conclusion was amazing. I loved Adeyemi’s writing style itself and she's clearly a talented storyteller.

While I was a fan of the book as a whole, there is one aspect I didn't like. I wasn't a big fan of the romance between Zelie and Inan. The romance was the one aspect of the story that felt a little rushed. It felt a lot like “insta-love” in my opinion. I could see where it can be seen as following the “enemies to lovers” trope, but I don't think it really works here. Zelie develops feelings for someone who, at the beginning of the book, tries to kill her  and does a number of horrible things to people she cares about. It felt weird and contrived to me, so I find myself skimming through their romantic scenes in an effort to return to the parts of the story I did like. I might be the only one who didn't like this romance, but it really just didn't sit right with me.

Children of Blood and Bone is an exceptional story. Tomi Adeyemi is a wonderful writer and she deserves all of the praise this book has gotten. I haven't read the second book in this series, Children of Virtue and Vengeance, but it is definitely on my TBR now. I'd recommend Children of Blood and Bone to any young adult fantasy fans.

Rating: 4.8 stars

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Rapid Fire Book Tag

I was on Twitter the other day, and saw that The Bookish Hedgemom did this tag. I decided to do it because this tag looked fun and I've been trying to do more book tags. So, without further ado, I'm going to start doing the tag.

E-Books or Physical Book?

I like both, but I prefer physical books because I can bookmark certain parts easier. Also, I can be forgetful and my Kindle is usually dying because I forget to charge it. If I know I'm going to be travelling or spending a lot of time sitting around and waiting, I'll read an ebook, but if I have to choose, I'll pick a physical book every time.

Paperback or Hardback?

While I love hardbacks, most of the books that I own are paperback. I love hardbacks, mostly because I don't have to worry as much about keeping the book pristine, Hardbacks are harder to damage than paperbacks.

Online or In-Store Book Shopping?

Online shopping because it's easier to find what I'm looking for than in a physical store. There's also the fact that online stores will recommend other books based on what you search. Some books stores will have something similar, but I like that feature online.

Trilogies or Series?

I don't really have an opinion on this one. They're kind of the same thing in my mind. especially considering that most trilogies end up having other books added once the initial series ends. Series that have 47 books aren't my favorite, but trilogies, quadrilogies and pentologies are all the same in my mind.

Heroes or Villains?

For books, I have to say heroes. With other media, my answer would be different, but for books, I need to like the hero because if I don't like the hero/protagonist/POV character, I probably won't care enough about the story to have an opinion about the villain. The exception to this is the anti-hero.

A book you want everyone to read?

This could turn into a long list. If I have to pick just one, I'd say The Hobbit. Since a lot of people have read that, my next choice would be Where the Crawdads Sing

Recommend an underrated book?

I'd say Gathering Blue. The Giver is heavily praised, but I feel like Gathering Blue also deserves more recognition than it gets. Also, The Power by Naomi Alderman.

The last book you finished?

At time of writing, Eve: The Awakening by Jenna Moreci.

The last book you bought?

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman, because Norse mythology has apparently taken over my life, seeing as I've read a lot more Norse myths and Norse myth-related content in the last few months than I have in years.

Weirdest thing you've used as a bookmark?

A bag of M&M's. Other than that, I usually use receipts, sticky notes or pieces of paper. The bag of candy was only because I literally had nothing else on hand to use and didn't have time to find something better.

Used books: Yes or No?

Yes. I don't buy very many used books, but that's because I tend to read books that are self-published or newer releases. Still, I support buying used books and sell a lot of the books that I declutter to used books stores.

Top Three Genres?

• Fantasy
• Science Fiction
• Literary Fiction

Borrow or Buy?

Buy because I'm bad at remembering to return things. And I tend to procrastinate about heading to the library to return books.

Characters or Plot?

Honestly, both. A book needs both. If a book is entirely character-driven and has no plot, I won't like it. If a book has a great plot, but I don't care about any of the characters, that's also a problem. If I have to pick one, I guess I'd say plot because I want to be interested in the story and whether or not I like the characters can come second.

Long or Short Books?

Long books. I've got nothing against shorter books, but I love losing myself in a nice, long book.

Long or Short Chapters?

Long chapters. Short chapters make it feel like the story keeps stopping and starting while longer chapters give time for the story to progress.

Name the First Three Books You Think of?

Just in general? Okay...

• The Hobbit
• Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
• Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman.

Books That Make You Laugh or Cry?

Books don't really make me cry. I think the last time I cried was after Dobby died in the last Harry Potter book.

Our World or Fictional Worlds?

Fictional worlds. I have to deal with reality enough.

Audiobooks: Yes or No?

I support audiobooks in theory, but they don't really work for me. I find the narration to be a bit too slow and it's hard for me to pay enough attention to what's being read aloud. Every audiobook I've tried, I forget what's happening soon after it happens. I want to like audiobooks, but they're not for me.

Do you ever judge a book by it's cover?

I do sometimes. The saying is nice and all, but if a book has an interesting cover, I'm more likely to consider buying it than if it's boring or simple.

Book-to-Movie or Book-to-TV adaptations?

It really depends on what's being adapted. Trilogies with short books work as films, longer books/series work as TV shows. I've seen plenty of book-to-movie adaptations that work, and plenty that don't. Same for book-to-TV adaptations.

A movie or TV show you preferred to its book?

I can't really think of one. I almost always say the book is better, so the only one I can really think of is Breaking Dawn, and that's only because the ending of the book is incredibly anticlimactic.

Series or Standalones?

Again, I can't really pick one. For fantasy and science fiction, I like series. For literary fiction, I think standalones are better. It honestly depends on my mood.

I tag: Anyone who wants to do this tag. (I'm bad at tagging people, but if you come across this and want to do it, go nuts!)

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