This one was horrific. Not the writing or the book itself, but the subject matter. I remember watching the movie and being horrified at the end, and so when I read the book I knew the ending, but the detail that books will give you always outshine the details and backstories that movies do, so it hits home harder that they are children. And the writing feels like a cross between written for adults, but in a way that is simple enough for younger children to read, which makes the premise of children waging wars more terrible.
I do wish to continue the series.
4/5.
Wonderful South Asian fantasy set in modern times. A shopkeeper trained in the Magic of Spices has to choose between her Craft and her Love for an American man.
Beautifully written. Not a fluffy read, but not a difficult read.
5/5
The suggestion is to write something that happened that was awesome on a slip of paper and put it in a Jar of Awesome. Every. Day.
We had a Memory Jar. We donated it after years of no use, so I'm not sure that this one is going to work for me.
A notebook, maybe? The Curation planner itself?
I do love this idea. It's a little more nuanced than Daily Gratitude, I think, because sometimes the things that you're grateful for aren't always the awesome thing that happened to you.
I feel like this one has a lot of pressure attached to it, to be honest. And I think that to remove some pressure off of having an awesome thing happen to you every day, you're going to have to learn to lower your expectations of what is Awesome. Like, maybe the best thing that happened to you today is that you got through the day. The Awesome thing is maybe you got dressed, or remembered to eat. Felt the sun on your face.
I had a gym coach that always says "Have the best day" when you're leaving the gym. If every day is the best day, that's a lot. Sometimes I'm happy with a good day, or even a mediocre day. Every day can't be the Best day, can it?
This book wasn't bad; it was decently written. Took a while to get really into it. It read like a million things were going on, and the stuff that happens in the description on the back of the book is so late in the book it's like a spoiler.
On a scale of 1-5 where 1 is super easy to put down and 5 is I got no sleep, I'd rate it a 1 in the first half and a 3 in the second half.
Easy read.
List some 10 minute or less feel-good activities in your self-care menu. Categories are mind, body, and soul.
Naps. Short ones.
Slowly savouring a square of quality dark chocolate.
Listen to a song with my eyes closed. Warm Shadow by Fink or Afterglow by Ed Sheeran are the go-to's, but not the only ones.
Walk dog. Pet the dog. Pet the cat.
Yoga.
Give and receive hugs.
Massage my toes.
Wash my face.
