One of the biggest fights you'll witness in a bookstore is between the tween who feels ready to dive into more "grown-up" books and the adult who is terrified that they will read something too mature for them. As a children's bookseller, I'm often the referee in that fight. It isn't easy. I sympathize with… Continue reading “Is That Age Appropriate?” : Tweens and YA
Author: torikierstenfrost
Bookseller, book lover, goth, gay, and aspiring writer.
The #WickedSpellbook
Earlier this year I started a project to make a prop spellbook based on the blood mage spellbooks from the novel Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan. I decided to upload some of the photos of the completed pages here on my site for ease of access. You can find the whole Twitter thread at… Continue reading The #WickedSpellbook
On the Unlikables
(Disclaimer: I am a white, queer cis woman. The books I am discussing in this post are mostly about white, queer cis girls and women. There is a lot that can be said about books by and about queer women who are trans, PoC, disabled, and more, but since I am not, I do not… Continue reading On the Unlikables
What’s Ahead in 2019
Happy New Year, friends! 2018 is (finally) behind us and I'm feeling excited to start new projects while that 20-BI-teen energy is still flowing. Because I haven't been on this blog much over the last two years, I wanted to give you guys a preview of what's ahead for me and this space in 2019.… Continue reading What’s Ahead in 2019
Top 18 of ’18
Long time, no see! We're on the home stretch of 2018, which means it's the perfect time to reflect on books we loved this year (and say a prayer for all the booksellers trying to send them home with readers this holiday season.) There were a lot to choose from, but I have narrowed it… Continue reading Top 18 of ’18
A Book Like Summer
The weather is warm, school is officially over, and the season of lounging in the backyard with a good book and a glass of lemonade is upon us. Summer is a great time for fun, flirty stories that make you feel as bright and happy as a day at the beach. Below you'll find some… Continue reading A Book Like Summer
My (Six Month) Absence and Creative Fatigue
Hey readers, however many of you there may be! I wanted to write and explain why I've been completely off the radar for the last six months. Despite having read a great many books and holding a great many opinions about all of them, I've found it increasingly difficult to find the time and spoons to… Continue reading My (Six Month) Absence and Creative Fatigue
Review: Now I Rise
(This review was originally written in November 2016.) I needed this book today. I wrote my review for the first book in this trilogy, And I Darken, a few days before the Pulse shooting in Orlando, FL. The review went live on the book's release date, as scheduled, and I remember looking at… Continue reading Review: Now I Rise
“But what about our sons?”
The morning after the election, I took the bus to work. It was a surreal morning. California was, as always, sunny and pleasant. Students were out on Stanford campus with "free hugs" signs. A gaggle of doctors, nurses, and construction workers were playing a pick-up game of soccer on the hospital lawn. There was tension… Continue reading “But what about our sons?”
Review: A Shadow Bright and Burning
Release Date: September 20th, 2016 Author: Jessica Cluess Website: http://jessicacluess.com/ ISBN: 9780553535914 Review: As soon as I read the name "Henrietta Howell," I knew I was going to like this book. The novel as a whole is a lot like that name -- frank, charming, and old-fashioned, with a big heart and a lot of whimsy. Oh, and… Continue reading Review: A Shadow Bright and Burning
