#orion is a complete himbo and nobody will ever convince me otherwise

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Discovering Hopepunk

Did y'all know that the best thing in the world is friends who teach you new words? Because it's thanks to a friend close enough to be a brother that I have a word for what Naomi Novik's incredible Scholomance trilogy is. Time to meet hopepunk.

Hopepunk is brand-spanking new on the literature scene, and the term itself is attributable to author Alexandra Rowland, who coined the term in 2017. Collins English Dictionary picked it up in 2019, which is how you know it had enough traction to be legit.

So what is the definition of hopepunk? Rowland described it as "the opposite of grimdark" that is composed of "one atom of justice, one molecule of mercy, and the empire of unsheathed knives." Collins Dictionary is a little more precise in their definition: "A literary and artistic movement that celebrates the pursuit of positive aims in the face of adversity."

Novik's Scholomance trilogy begins with the world's deadliest boarding school and concludes with the truth of how a maw mouth is made, and all of those elements should objectively combine into a grimdark trilogy. And yet. El, her himbo hero, and kickass girlsquad refuse to go quietly into darkness and despair. They embody hope, resilience, and resistance to the toxic social order they have been raised I and are expected to perpetuate if they survive graduation--and that is the furthest thing from a guarantee.

El's journey from furiously pissed-off outcast and loner to Golden enclave crusader is never not compelling, and the insistent kindness for its own sake and radical hope that spits in the face of literal monsters in the literal walls means that hopelessness never touches this narrative. Sometimes things are *really bad* but it wouldn't be a story otherwise. The difference is that while George RR Martin is determined to beat the hope out of both his characters and his readers, Novik and El will beat it into you if they have to.

#naomi novik #the scholomance #books & libraries #fantasy #fiction #hopepunk #a deadly education #the last graduate #the golden enclaves #books and novels #books and reading #ya fantasy #ya books #book recommendations #boarding school fiction #boarding school books #strong female lead #strong female characters #strong female protagonist #orion is a complete himbo and nobody will ever convince me otherwise