Jagged Little Pill was the first CD I ever bought and I’m surprised I didn’t wear it out playing it so much on my discman in 6th grade. Last summer I finally got the chance to see Alanis live on her Jagged Little Pill Anniversary tour. I’ve yet to see the broadway show, so when I saw there was a novel based on the musical, I had to read it.
I went in to reading this book having 0 idea about what the musical plot was – just very much so knowing the album. (There were a few easter eggs of lyrics here and there, I noticed.) Turns out it is about a family – Frankie is adopted and her brother Nick and their parents as well as some of the kids that they go to school with.
Each of them is dealing with their own struggles and trying to overcome them in a town in Connecticut that likes to keep all their troubles secret. Some of them end up coming to light and the story details how they all deal with them and help each other deal with them.
This was a pretty quick read but I really enjoyed it and am hoping all the more that I’ll get a chance to see the musical in the near future!
I received a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
Swallow it down—what a jagged little pill . . .
Jagged Little Pill: The Novel follows the intertwining lives of five teens whose world is changed forever after the events at a party.
Adopted Frankie struggles to see eye-to-eye with her mother—who would rather ignore a problem and preserve their “perfect” life than stand up for what’s right. Jo just wants her mom to accept her queer identity—and is totally crushed when Frankie, the only person who really gets her, finds herself infatuated with someone new. Phoenix tries to find his place at the new school and balance wanting to spend time with Frankie but knowing he also has to help out with his sick sister at home. Bella wants to enjoy the end of high school and just head off to college without a hitch. Everyone expects Frankie’s brother Nick to be the golden boy, but even though he just got into his dream school, he’s not even sure he’s a good person. Each of their stories intersects when Bella is sexually assaulted at a party, and it looks like the perpetrator might get away with it.
Moving, heartfelt, and raw, Jagged Little Pill: The Novel draws on the musical’s story and gives readers deeper glimpses of the characters. It’s a story about the power of voicing your pain, standing up for what’s right, and finding healing and connection.
The second weekend in March, 90s Con made its debut at the Hartford Convention Center in Hartford, CT. When it was first announced last summer, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be ok with going to a convention with such large crowds yet, but as they added more and more guests I ended up buying a Saturday ticket and would give it a go. About a week before, we found out that Joey Fatone wouldn’t be able to be there on Saturday, but that he would be appearing Friday and Sunday, so we opted to buy a Friday pass and I decided to add a pro photo op with Rider Strong so on Saturday whoever we ended up meeting, we’d meet and I wouldn’t be in panic mode all day.
Friday finally came, and as we were pulling into the parking garage, we got word that Joey’s flight had gotten canceled and he would not be making it Friday OR Saturday. We managed to get in an ADA entrance and grab a spot for the MMC panel at 5pm. They held it for a while because so many people were stuck in line getting their credentials checked for their covid vaccines and weren’t making their way inside yet. 6-7 was supposed to be our Joey hour, so we just kind of wandered around a bit and then 7 was my photo op with Rider. We didn’t hang around too much after that, but it was nice to get the layout. I should have probably tried for another photo Friday to knock more off of my wish list, but I am very much so out of con shape.
Saturday we got in early, but again just kind of wandered around and did a few of the photo ops and the Spice Girls display. At noon I made a voodoo doll and I started realizing time was running out if I wanted to meet everyone. We got in line for Will Friedle, and then my friends had their Full House photo op so I was off to meet Matthew and Joey Lawrence on my own. Danielle Fishel’s line got capped, so I got in line to see the Boy Meets World panel at 3 and was able to stay for the Full House panel at 4. After we went back downstairs, and Daneille’s line was capped once again. I did end up going in the order of how badly I wanted to meet them so I was ok with missing out on Danielle. (With any luck, next year they’ll be back AND with Ben so I can do a cast photo!)
Next year, I’m hoping to go again and I’ll have a better game plan figured out. And maybe I’ll stay on site as well to not have to drive back and forth an hour for 3 days straight. It sounds like it’ll be back in CT – just waiting on dates!
I’ve been on a bit of a murder mystery book kick lately, so it seemed only natural to add in a mystery that takes place with a band! The book follows Cath Edgley. She may seem like a boring school teacher, but her Mom is a punk legend and so was her Dad. After the man she believed to be her father is found dead, many believe he may have been murdered, including Cath.
Cath’s Mom, Betzy Blac, has been missing since Cath was 7 years old. No one knows if she just ran off or if she died. Cath decides she is going to get to the bottom of it all and starts receiving mysterious texts telling her to “trust no one”. Cath finds herself in and out of sticky situations but ultimately ends up suspended from her school teacher job and joins her Mom’s old band, Decollete, for a reunion of sorts. Cath thinks that if the band is back together, with her playing the part of Betzy, they can get the information they need to find out who killed Raven and where her Mom is.
There are a LOT of different (shady) characters in this book so it makes it a bit difficult to actually have a theory of “whodunit” and many think that Cath is just following a conspiracy theory and that the deaths aren’t at all connected. Once I got into the meat of this story, it was really hard to put it down, so many twists and turns as we followed Cath into trying to figure out what happened to her Mom. Quite the roller coaster of a book and if you’re into murder mystery and concerts, this ones for you.
I received a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley in order to write this review, I was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
Live music is in her blood, but as the death threats arrive, she fears there’s a Killer in the Crowd…
“Trust no one”
Cath Edgley is just a normal schoolteacher… until she hears the shocking news that fading rock star Raven Rain has been murdered. Because, to Cath, Raven Rain is more than just a picture on a magazine – he
was also the ex-lover of her missing mother, lead singer of ’80s punk girl band, Décolleté.
Warned by a string of mystery text messages to “trust no one”, Cath is inspired to solve the mystery of her mum’s disappearance, once and for all.
Cath finds herself thrust into the sordid underbelly of the ’80s music scene, when rock and roll played second fiddle to the sex and drugs.
Can Cath find the killers before she becomes their next victim?
Are the superstars she encounters all that they seem?
And what exactly happened to her mother, the punk superstar, Betzy Blac?
If you love mystery thrillers with a musical twist, then you’ll love this debut novel from journalist Phil Johnson.
Due to download constraints, I wasn’t able to review the full 100 days. The book separates out the 100 days by season, with 25 activities for Summer, Fall, Winter & Spring. While this book is geared towards children, a lot of the activities and learning can be done by anyone of any age! There are recipes, outdoor activities, ways to help your community and all sorts of fun activities included. Some of the summer activities I’d most like to try are: tying knots, making smores and kayaking! There are a lot of great ways to fill the days of summer vacation in the book. I also was able to get a sneak at some of the Fall activities as well – and my favorites of those that I checked out were: Make wax leaves, see a symphony concert, and a “day trip to another country” – which is essentially finding a neighborhood near you that might celebrate cultures different than your own.
If you have kids with adventurous spirit, I am sure they will find plenty to do within this book – I only was able to look at a portion of it, and it gave me plenty of ideas as well!
I received a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
Second-generation homeschooling mom Greta Eskridge shares 100 hands-on, learning activities for kids that will connect and enrich your family through adventures, small and big. Turn off the screen and turn on the creativity, curiosity, and love of nature as you have a meteor slumber party, attend a symphony concert, take a hike in the rain, preserve colorful fall leaves, make nettle pesto, and venture into the great, wide, real world.
In 100 Days of Adventure, children ages 6 to 10 will
unplug from electronics and explore the world, from backyard bugs to farmer’s market veggies and plants along the traillearn about nature, art, music, and themselves through STEAM projects and new experiencesbond with parents and siblings, learn new skills with individual investigations, or explore with friends in an educational or homeschool group
This full-color activity book for kids includes
100 indoor and outdoor activities, projects, experiments, crafts, recipes, and field trips, divided by seasonmany activities that are free or low cost, with options for different kinds of families and locationsstep-by-step directions, nature journal prompts, tips, and checklistsbeautiful photos and helpful illustrationsa note to parents with encouraging start-here guidance on growing a family culture of curiosity and adventure
Whether your family is looking for fun activities for school breaks at home, road trip vacations, or everyday ways to learn together, this collection of interactive educational activities will help your kids get creative, get into nature, and get closer to each other.
Don’t miss Greta’s essential guide for parents on building a connected and loving family through exploration, Adventuring Together: How to Create Connections and Make Lasting Memories with Your Kids.
Sex and the Single Panda: The Revolting Pursuit of Love in the Animal Kingdom. This book had me intrigued from the cover. And even more intrigued as I read the introduction and saw “You may see yourself in here. Or maybe you’ll recognize an ex. You may find yourself saying things like ‘I would have sex with the clownfish!'” and “Although everything in this book is what you might call ‘disgusting.’ I’ll ask you to remember that everything depicted here is 100% from nature, and nature can never be wrong.” Then I started wondering just what I got myself into by opening this book…
Turns out I’m a parasitic fly, so, there’s that… There’s also way too many spiders in this book for a book with a panda on the cover! And you will finish this book knowing way more about animals mating habits than you ever really wanted to, but hey, maybe they’ll come in handy as fun facts at parties?
This is a quick read, a little gross, a lotta fun and worth it if you have some time to kill. (and you might not be the only one?)
I received a free e-copy of this book to read from NetGalley and was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
All about the absurdities of animal courtship, Sex and the Single Panda: The Revolting Pursuit of Love in the Animal Kingdom is an illustrated humor book detailing the factual—and often disgusting—mating habits of a wide variety of animals gone wild—from big beasts to wee beasties.
Through a series of funny dating profiles, find out more about the unbelievably weird mating habits of a variety of bachelors, bachelorettes, and gender non-binary bachelorx, from capuchin monkeys and praying mantises to hyenas and hippos. Raunchy, yet informational, and packed with helpful infographics, guides, and more, this is a laugh-out-loud delight for animal lovers and comedy fans alike.
HILARIOUS YET EDUCATIONAL: The author’s bitingly funny, wildly imaginative dating personas of a wide variety of animals includes factual explanations of their oft-astounding mating habits.
AS FUNNY AS IT IS GROSS: This R-rated yet informational book will make a laugh-out-loud gift for animal lovers and comedy fans everywhere.
GREAT BIRTHDAY OR GALENTINE’S GIFT: Whimsical and witty yet informative, Sex and the Single Panda makes a great gift for any animal lover, science lover, or comedy enthusiast.
Feb and March 2020 – Finding Neverland and meeting Carrie Underwood. That’s all I managed to do before everything got shut down and canceled.
After Valentine’s Day I was looking for something a bit light hearted to read and I stumbled upon The 7 Rules of Moving On which was a novella so I thought it would be a quick and easy read. I must have picked it up at all the wrong times, because I fell asleep during reading it SO many times – even when my kindle said I only had 4 minutes left. In theory, the story line was great, but I guess it just wasn’t grabbing my attention like I had hoped. (But it WAS steamy as promised, so there’s that!)
Kissie and her best friend have a weekend getaway to help get her best friend’s mind off of her recent breakup. While away, she meets a really hot bartender. A couple of years later, they end up having ANOTHER getaway because this time Kissie was the one having the break up. The really hot bartender, Trig, has not stopped thinking about Kissie since she was last there.
But Kissie has 7 rules of moving on – and being with Trig wouldn’t be following, well, any of them. But it’s right around Valentine’s Day and Twin Hearts is the perfect place to be to find love. Or so it would seem.
Without giving too much away – there was some drama, some will they, won’t they, some thoughts about is going far away for a job that’s not your dream job worth it.. and just what kind of magic is in that pool that brings talking bears to it?!
Overall it was a fun Valentine’s Day read, but probably not my favorite quick read ever. I wanted to like it, but it was just tough to get into it and stay hooked. But if you’re looking for light hearted and steamy – this ones for you.
I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review, I was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
A lighthearted, low-angst, sweet and steamy Valentine’s Day novella perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey, Emily Henry, K. A. Tucker, and a little bit of magic with their romance!
For jingle writer Kissie Mitchell, rules are all that stand between order and chaos. Determined to move on from a breakup and a stagnant life, she heads to Mystic Hot Springs—a resort in the remote town of Twin Hearts, Montana—for a Valentine’s Day getaway with her best friend before embarking on a new job in Seattle and a more exciting life. She’s armed with a laminated list of rules to keep her heart safe and a simple plan: find a rebound guy, get lucky, put her ex behind her. Not part of her plan: the resort’s sweet and smoking hot bartender, Andrew Trig.
Trig, with his soulful brown eyes, thick beard, and Keanu Reeves good looks, is not no-strings-attached rebound material. He’s sell-all-your-stuff-and-move-to-the-middle-of-damn-nowhere-for-him material. Kissie is determined to keep her distance, but when he offers to act as her wingman for the weekend after her best friend gets sick in exchange for her help convincing Mystic’s owners not to sell the resort he loves, she can’t refuse.
The more time Kissie spends in Twin Hearts, she’s charmed by the town, by Mystic, and by Trig. As the sexual tension between them steams up the windows more than the hot springs water, Kissie will learn some rules are made to be broken. When a single night calls into question everything she thought she wanted, she’ll have to decide if big feelings will send her running away, or if sometimes moving on means staying right where you are.
Notes from Jess
Welcome to Twin Hearts! Where magic is in water, love is in the air, and talking bears play cupid.
Kissie and Trig came to me one night begging to meet. They were in the bar. Kissie was wearing a polka dotted mod dress and Trig was in jeans and a flannel. Kissie was all over the place, buzzing around and spilling her drink but absolutely convinced she had her life together. Trig was leaning against the door frame, arms crossed over his chest, grinning at her and thinking, “She is the woman of my dreams.” Literally. I adore these two love-struck goofballs and I sincerely hope you do as well. Stay tuned for book 2 this summer! If Ryan plays his cards right, he might finally get his redhead.
