#vicki murakami

[saltdrinker]

It's finally here everyone!

Since my inbox is open, feel free to stop by and ask Vicki + her friends anything!

But before going into my inbox, I will have to lay down some ground rules...

You are free to ask Vicki and/or her friends anything (dares, requests, questions, etc) 

Keep the questions pg-13! Most of them are still minors :/

No discriminatory or offensive comments/asks (racially motivated, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, etc) 

Please keep roleplay scenarios with your ocs to a minimum (it’s fine if it’s a one-time thing per person, but that's all I will allow)

(Just a heads up, it may take a bit for Vicki and her friends to respond to asks so please be patient with them. And you may get to see Vicki's other friends in the future ^^)

Other than that...

GO HAVE FUN!

#ask vicki revival #ask blog #twst mc #twst ocs #twst wonderland #mc oc #twst art #twst yuu #yuu oc #twst ace #twst deuce #vicki murakami #campanula beraht #If ask vicki gets enough asks i will make a separate blog

[mollymurakami]

she's clueless

#fanart #stranger things #robin buckley #robin x vickie #ronance #clueless #molly murakami

[revivemyreverie]

Slides in

Just wanted to say I feel partial to your oc jiahiao totally not because I’m soft for chinese ocs and get excited over the slightest bit of chinese rep

Congrats on the 500 and if ya don’t mind, my baby:

https://www.tumblr.com/saltdrinker/727413632233766912/my-mc-vicki-murakami

i luv her color pallette....so simple yet saur warm ❤（っ＾▿＾）

#twst oc #ask #500 celebration

[jiangwanyin]

aw no im not sure my last ask went through :( well now i don't want to say it twice but i will- hogy vagy ?

oh it absolutely did, don't worry but if you ask in hungarian you receive a hungarian answer and get to mess around with google translate as your reward and you have only yourself to blame 😌 anyways sziaaa nem fogom újra begépelni az egészet amit az előző válaszomban már leírtam többek között azért mert úgy túlságosan megkönnyíteném a helyzetedet :) de egyébként tényleg jól vagyok köszi, kissé kimerülten és semmi időm nincs lakástervezésen kívüli dolgokra nem mintha ennek ellenére nem töltenék el napi ki tudja hány órát itt de az részletkérdés asdglfsd amúgy el is felejtettem mondani de még múlt héten végre megérkezett a két könyv amit korábban rendeltem úgyhogy amikor lesz időm végre és lelkileg is felkészültem rá végre el tudom tényleg kezdeni olvasni az a little life-ot!!!

remélem te is megvagy és nincs túl sok dolgod iskolával stb és azért tudsz pihenni egy kicsit és van időd valami jót csinálni 🥺💖💕

#asdfsgjd sorry i hope that isn't going to be too difficult to decipher but it's what you get for spamming✨ also hey it's basically a #free lesson and a bunch of new words for your vocabulary so 😌 #the other book was murakami's norwegian wood and i'm probably going to read that first (actually i should finish my silmarillion #reread first – oh talking about that have you seen the teaser picture they posted for the lotr amazon show??) but then i'll ready #myself for crying and start a little life because if it made you cry it's definitely going to break me too hfnsjf but i'm really looking #forward to reading it so 👉👈 #asks #anonymous #afklints #vicky tag

[coochiequeens]

PARIS, Feb 21 ― The World’s Best Restaurants ranking has honoured Japanese chef Natsuko Shoji with the title of “Asia’s Best Female Chef 2022”. A distinction that not only draws attention to the need to highlight women chefs, but also to women chefs of Asian origin in this professional environment, who rarely get the same visibility as their male colleagues.

In 2015, chef Vicky Lau, head chef of Hong Kong restaurant Tate Dining Room, was awarded the title of Best Female Chef in Asia by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants ranking. To announce this news, French-language blog Food & Sens, from the Pourcels, two chef brothers, wrote in the introduction to its article “She is a bit of an unknown entity among chefs, but if she received this title, we imagine that it is because she deserves it... let’s try to find out a little more about her... in any case, we can say that she already deserves a prize for her looks...”.

A statement that not only puts its foot in its mouth but that reveals much about how women continue to be perceived in the industry; female chefs find themselves in the position of demonstrating that their success is not down to their looks, but to their talent and professionalism.

The proof is in the pudding: Vicky Lau, who has become a true reference in fusion cuisine blending Chinese flavours and French techniques, was awarded two Michelin stars in 2021. In an interview with the South China Morning Post, this alumnus of the internationally renowned Le Cordon Bleu institute indicated that there is a long way to go to achieve parity in the male-dominated culinary world.

Another leading chef in Hong Kong, Peggy Chan, one of the first to offer vegetarian haute cuisine in Hong Kong, revealed to Chopstix & the City that “Unfortunately, there’s only a very rare breed of women who are capable of making it through the hours, the screams, the heat and physical pain, the sexist comments, foul language and very often feeling belittled.”

The place of Asian women in the kitchen is complex. In China, “they are still considered pillars of the family,” said DeAille Tam last year when she won the Asia’s 50 Best Female Chef award. “There are certain expectations of how much time they need to spend with the family and sacrifices have to be made,” said the chef who runs the gourmet restaurant Obscura in Shanghai.

The struggle for recognition of female chefs in Japan

In Japan, too, the task is difficult for women who want to succeed in professional kitchens, especially behind the counter of a sushi restaurant. In the Land of the Rising Sun, where the preparation of these bite-sized seafood dishes is a true culinary art, the idea “that women’s hands are too warm to keep raw fish fresh, or that their periods alter their sense of taste,” persists even among sushi chefs, and prevents many women from being seriously considered for the job, AFP correspondent Natsuko Fukue found out. The share of women who have managed to become sushi chefs in Japan is less than 10 per cent, although there is no official data.

This disparity when it comes to female chefs in the top eateries in Japan can even be spotted in the list of the 22 top starred women chefs in Asia, drawn up by the Michelin guide in March 2021. Only three Japanese women chefs are listed. Only one of them runs a restaurant dedicated to kaiseki cuisine, the traditional Japanese gastronomy that is executed around small portions including broth, sushi, sashimi, steamed vegetables. This is Akemi Nakamura, who heads up Nishitemma Nakamura, located in Osaka.

The awarding of the title of best female chef this year by Asia’s 50 Best to Natsuko Shoji is therefore not insignificant. The chef, who has already hosted stars such as David Beckham and famous artist Takashi Murakami in the past, has already been lauded with the title of best pastry chef. She runs a gastronomic dining establishment in Tokyo called Eté (French for summer), where she maintains a close connection between cuisine and the fashion world with creations that are jewel-like.

The chefs that paved the way

Compiled by Debbie Yong, editorial director of Michelin’s digital strategy in Asia, the “list” of 22 influential women chefs reveals a trend: more women chefs from Thailand and South Korea are in the spotlight. Some of them have paved the way by making their mark with a certain culinary style or even a whole new vision of food.

In Thailand, Supinya Junsuta, who is often called by her nickname, Jay Fai, the name of her food stall, is famous around the world because she managed to obtain a Michelin star in the Thailand guide with culinary repertoire of street food.

But it’s neither her unique recognisable look with aviator goggles nor her age of 76 that is the main reason for her popularity. Visitors and locals alike are willing to wait hours for her crab omelet. Just watch the episode featuring her in the documentary series Street Food Asia, broadcast on Netflix, to understand the influence of this cook in the Thai culinary sphere.

In South Korea, it is Cho-Hee-sook who has strived for greater recognition of her native cuisine. First as a chef at the Korean Embassy in Washington, the woman who is often referred to as the “godmother of Korean cuisine” has been instrumental in promoting her country’s national gastronomic culture throughout the world, paving the way for a generation of young chefs.

“At the beginning of my career, it was very difficult to try new things ― breaking away from tradition was discouraged. But as time went by, Korean food started to fuse with Western food, and modern Korean cuisine started to rapidly spread, led by the globalization of Korean gastronomy,” she told Asia’s 50 Best, on the occasion of being named Asia’s best female chef in 2020. The chef has made her mark by focusing on seasonal products, techniques and daring new ingredients. ― ETX Studio

#Asia #sexism in the professional kitchen #Women in the restaurant business

[elisabethdenis]

To continue on yesterday’s vein, here’s my eternally stretching books-that-moved-me list:

1. Silences - Gilles Vigneault

2. Strange Pilgrims - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

3. Je viens d’ailleurs - Chahdortt Djavann

4. Franz Kafka - Letters to Felice

5. A personal matter - Kenzaburo Oe

6. Tranformation - Joyce Tenneson (photography)

7. Grapefruit - Yoko Ono (a book of instruction)

8.Can you ever forgive me? - Lee Israel

9. Cesare Pavese - The business of living (diaries 1935-1950)

10. Letters to father - Franz Kafka

11. The diaries of Franz Kafka

12. Letters to Milena - Franz Kafka

13. Ashes and snow Book No.1 - Gregory Colbert (photography)

14. Norwegian Woods - Haruki Murakami

15. Just kids - Patti Smith

16. Silk - Alessandro Baricco

17. The unknown craftsman: a Japanese insight into beauty -  Yanagi Sōetsu

18. Americanah -  Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

19. Small country -  Gaël Faye

20. Deep water - Patricia Highsmith

21. La bulle d’encre - Suzanne Jacob

22. The writing life - Annie Dillard

23. A field guide to getting lost - Rebecca Solnit

24. Teaching on love - Thich Nhat Hanh

25, The stranger in the woods - Michael Finkel

26. The trial - Franz Kafka 

27. The dinner - Herman Koch

28. In Cold blood - Truman Capote 

29. In the country of last things - Paul Auster

30. The bell jar - Sylvia Plath

31. She’s come undone - Wally Lamb

32. The catcher in the rye - J.D Salinger

33. Amititau! Parlons-nous! - Laure Morali

34. Document 1 - François Blais

35. Demian - Herman Hesse 

36. All these wonders - The moth

37. Cave in the snow - Vicki Mackenzee

Yes, this is me, in a tree, with Gilles Vigneault resting in my hand.

Share if we share most-loved bookies.

Tell me what your favorite books are. 

#books and libraries #books #reading #franz kafka #gabriel garcía márquez #literature #sylvia plath #murakami #yoko ono #list #photography #film camera #trees

[godzilla-reads]

The Big List of Cat Literature

Nonfiction Books About Cats

“The Tribe of Tiger” by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas

“On Cats” by Doris Lessing

“Cat Sense” by John Bradshaw

“The Cat: A Natural History” by Sarah Brown

“Secrets of the Cat” by Barbara Holland

“Cathedral Cats” by Richard Surman

“Cat Confidential” by Vicky Halls

Catty Children’s Books

“Splat the Cat” by Rob Scotton

“Six Dinner Sid” by Inga Moore

“Millions of Cats” by  Wanda Gág

“Comet’s Nine Lives” by Jan Brett

“The Tale of Tom Kitten” by Beatrix Potter

“Kitten’s First Full Moon” by Kevin Henkes

“Pete the Cat” by Eric Litwin and James Dean

“They All Saw a Cat” by Brendan Wenzel

“Mog the Forgetful Cat” by Judith Kerr

“The Chinese Siamese Cat” by Amy Tan

Middle Reader Books for Cat Lovers

“Warriors: Into the Wild” by Erin Hunter

“Adventures of a Cat-Whiskered Girl” by Daniel Manus Pinkwater

“Travels of Suki the Adventure Cat” by Martina Gutfreund and Leigh-Anne Ingram

“Royal Rescues: The Naughty Kitten” by Paula Harrison

“Varjak Paw” by S.F. Said

“The Cat Who Came in Off the Roof” by Annie M.G. Schmidt

“Catlantis” by Anna Starobinets 

“Crenshaw” by Katherine Applegate

“Catwings” by Ursula K. Le Guin

“The Witches of Worm” by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

“Carbonel: The King of the Cats” by Barbara Sleigh

Feline Classics

“Classic Cat Stories” edited by Becky Brown

“The Cat in the Hat” by Dr. Seuss

“Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” by T.S. Eliot

“The Guest Cat” by Takashi Hiraide

“The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe

“The Cats of Ulthar” by H.P. Lovecraft

“Jenny and the Cat Club” by Esther Averill

Cat Literature

“Tailchaser’s Song” by Tad Williams

“Felidae” by Akif  Pirinçci

“Thomasina: The Cat Who Thought She Was God” by Paul Gallico

“How to Tell if Your Cat is Plotting to Kill You” by The Oatmeal

“The Cat Who Could Read Backwards” by Lilian Jackson Braun

“The Book of Night With Moon” by Diane Duane

“Catfantastic” edited by Martin H. Greenberg and Andre Norton

“The Incredible Journey” by Sheila Burnford

“Alfie” by Rachel Wells

“Of Cats and Men” by Sam Kalda

True Cat Stories

“Homer’s Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale” by Gwen Cooper

“Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World” by Vicki Myron and Bret Witter

“The Dalai Lama’s Cat” by David Michie

“A Street Cat Named Bob: How One Man and His Cat Found Hope On the Streets” by James Bowen

“Cat Stories” by James Herriot

“Making Rounds with Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat” by David Dosa

“Casper the Commuting Cat: The True Story of the Cat Who Rode the Bus and Stole Our Hearts” by Susan Finden

“Oscar the Bionic Cat” by Kate Allan

“The Cat Inside” by William S. Burroughs

Cat Poetry

“Hate That Cat” by Shannon Creech

“The Owl and the Pussy Cat” by Edward Lear

“I’m Not Sorry: Poems by Cats” by Rosa Silva

“Poetry for Cats: The Definitive Anthology of Distinguished Feline Verse” by Henry Beard

“Cat Poems” by Elizabeth Bishop

“The Great Cat: Poems About Cats” edited by Emily Fragos

“On Cats” by Charles Bukowski

Three Cat Documentaries on Netflix

The Tigers of Scotland (2017)

Catwalk: Tales From the Cat Show Circuit (2018)

#CATS_The_Mewvie (2020)

Famous Authors’ Cats

Mark Twain and Bambino

Ernest Hemingway and Snowball

Stephen King and Smucky

Alice Walker and Frida Kahlo

Doris Lessing and El Magnifico

William S. Burroughs and Smoke

Haruki Murakami and Sundance

#godzilla reads #cats #the big list of cats #the big list of cat books #cat books #books and cats #cats and books #classic cat books #cat literature #cats and literature #book blog #book blurb #reading list #booklist #reading reference #reading resources #bookblr #booknerd #booklover #booklife #booklr #bookworm #bookish

[kolajmag]

THIS WEEK AT KOLAJ MAGAZINE

Februllage, Flesh, and the Auto Show

COLLAGE EVENT Februllage 2020: The Scandinavian Collage Museum and Edinburgh Collage Collective

COLLAGE BOOKS Our Flesh Of Flames by Theodore A. Harris and Amiri Baraka

KOLAJ INSTITUTE NEWS Artist Archive Resident: Zach Collins

COLLAGE ON VIEW The Auto Show at United Contemporary in Toronto, Ontario, Canada 

COLLAGE ON VIEW Archeology of the Soul: Nancy Turner, Ginger Owen-Murakami, and Vicki VanAmeyden at Yavapai College Prescott Art Gallery in Prescott, Arizona

SCHWITTERS ARMY Un tra traat tat by Tanja Ulbrich SA066TU20ART. Madrid, Spain.

SCHWITTERS ARMY Magick Tricks, Puzzles and Joker Novelties by Tom Amoretti SA050TA20ART. London, United Kingdom

Read the full update

*****************************

Kolaj Magazine, a full colour, print magazine, exists to show how the world of collage is rich, layered, and thick with complexity. By remixing history and culture, collage artists forge new thinking. To understand collage is to reshape one’s thinking of art history and redefine the canon of visual culture that informs the present.

SUBSCRIBE | CURRENT ISSUE | GET A COPY

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#collage #collageart #collageartist #kolajmagazine #artmagazine #art #artist #artshow #artexhibition #collagebook #collageshow #contemporary artist #contemporary art #mailart

[lightgreyartgallery]

Tasteful Nudes Innuendo # LOVESONA RSVP HERE ••• February 22nd from 7-10pm at Light Grey Art Lab Free and open to the public Prepare your senses, and your heart, for a steamy collection of the suggestively quirky and the salaciously spicy. Like a sip of red wine on satin sheets, Light Grey Art Lab’s February exhibition promises to be a perfect event for a romantic rendezvous or self-love celebration. Concepts of love, the body, and art have always coexisted - with great emotion comes great art, and naturally, creators frequently work to find unique ways to express these complex and beautiful facets of being a human. The 3 new collections opening this February at Light Grey Art Lab feature an eclectic range of original illustrative works and artist produced goods, featuring the aesthetics of the figure, the humor of taboo, and a collection of illustrated dating profiles. Tasteful Nudes: The delicate curves of a body emerge through the settling dust of chalk pastel. The artist peers over their drawing board at a trusted model, reclining elegantly on their vintage lounge sofa. Their masterpiece is complete… An exploration capturing the inherent beauty of the human form. The Tasteful Nudes Exhibition includes 50+ creatives and is a celebration of the sensual, the subtle, and the sensory aspects of the human form. From sexy self-portraits and boudoir-esque paintings, to romantic reclining poses, to suggestive silhouettes, 'Tasteful' is the key word! Works include original drawings, digital illustrations, and more. Innuendo: It’s 7th period in high school, you’re in health class, and the teacher brings out the inevitable props… A banana, a donut, and all sorts of properly conservative allusions to the body. The class snickers, and for the rest of the day, innuendos are passed from friend to friend under the probing ears of the teachers. Innuendo is a collaborative exhibition of artwork and goods featuring playful allusions to the lewd and salacious. The 80 featured artists have come together for Light Grey Art Lab’s yearly swap event, in which each artist creates enough of their chosen artwork or object to share with their fellow exhibitors. Participants have created a range of limited edition art objects including pins, postcards, stickers, zines, patches and more that dance around taboo subjects with humorous imagery. Limited quantities of each item will also be available during the opening reception and on Light Grey Art Lab’s online store. # LOVESONA: Are you a creative, looking to get out of the studio and into the Dating Sphere? Do you have a creative friend who would be a perfect partner, and you want to let the world know? Introducing # Lovesona! This February, we want to put a spotlight on the beautiful and unique singles that make up the creative community. Creatives have a unique way of looking at the world and themselves, and we want to celebrate what makes them great partners. Participants in the # Lovesona project draw a portrait of themselves or a creative friend, write a bio about their/their friends’ deepest passions and interests, and then post it with the hashtag # lovesona! Along with these profiles, we’ll also be creating interactive content and activities on the Lovesona instagram, to help people dive deeper into what makes their Lovesona unique. Throughout the month of February, Light Grey will be reposting these profiles on our @my.lovesona instagram, where we hope people will connect and, who knows, maybe even fall in love... Tasteful Nudes Artists: Lillian Duermeier, Carmen Chow, Rachel Quast, Christine Griffin, Varsam Kurnia, Kring Demetrio, Grace Kim, Patricia Thomasson, Kristin Vogel, Kristen Acampora, Ashley Floréal, Sarah Hudkins, Paige Carpenter, Jesse Lindhorst, Reiko Murakami, Gica Tam, Chelsea Harper, Chrissy Curtin, Cleonique Hilsaca, Shelby Hacker, Aimee Fleck, Laura Galli, Caroline Dougherty, Ejiwa Ebenebe, Chelsea Marquette, Sandra Brandstätter, Rafael Mayani, Jo Yeh, Diana Van Damme, seosamh, Christopher Hegland, Kristin Siegel-Leicht, Sara Pace, Helen Mask, Daniel Gray-Barnett, Tidawan Thaipinnarong, Lydia Guadagnoli, Savannah Schroll Guz, JB Casacop, Jasmin Dreyer, Jimmy Malone, Jess Schultz, Micaela Dawn, Adriana Bellet, Lucas Durham, Stephen Wood, Saleha Chowdhury, Nadia Rausa, Sheena Klimoski, Victoria Roden, Natalie Shaw, Primary Hughes, Calvin A. Innuendo Artists: Ama Teibel, Andrea Pereira, Angela Bardakjian, Anne Passchier, Anouk van der Meer, Ashley Nordan, B. Mure, Bomani McClendon, Brian Gilman, Caroline Dougherty, Carson McNamara, Cassandra Mazur, Caytlin Collins, Cecilia Palacios, Chelsea Harper, Chrissy Curtin, Christopher Payne, Claire Kho, Clarisse Tanjo, Crystal Chang, Dani McCole, Deena So'Oteh, Derek Meier, Diogo Lando, Elam Bonebright, Elizabeth Jean Younce, Em Roberts, Emily C., Francisco Santoyo, Gabriela Lutostanski, Hallye Webb, Heidi Phelps, Hunaid Taj, Isabela Cruz, Jaime Chong, James Turowski, Jamie Loughran, Jennifer Bilton, Jenny Wells, JK Phan, Josh McKenzie, Joy San, Kaley McCabe, Karen Krajenbrink, Kashmira Sarode, Kels Lund, Kendall Quack, Lachlan Herrick, Laura Loch, Lauren Franklin, Leon Lee, Lillian Duermeier, Lindsay Tebeck, Lucinda Wei, Lucy Comer, M. Amneus, Molly Stanard, Patricia Thomasson, Raven Jones, Rose Bousamra, Sage Coffey, Sam Sherrill, Savannah Schroll Guz, Scott Michael Walling, Shafer Brown, Shannon Kao, Siyin Tse, Susan Lin, Sydney Long, Tasli Shaw, Valerie Von Rubio, Vicky Leta, Yessenia Rodriguez, Yetunde Ekuntuyi Featured # LOVESONA Artists: Gica Tam, Alison Kreitzberg, Yinfan Huang, Caroline Dougherty, Chelsea Marquette, Blok Magnaye, Charis Loke, Xiao Qing Chen, Camille Chew, Iris Monahan (creating profile for a friend), Lindsay Nohl (creating profile for a friend), Kelalani Jankowski, Alex Conkins, Daniel Shaffer, Theo Stultz, Victoria Pickford, Niky Motekallem, Cristina Vanko, Sherry He, Victoria Skellan, Edie Voges

#light grey art lab #lgal #exhibition #art show #february #love #lovesona #art #illustration #art event #minneapolis

[waywardfeathered]

because nobody asked, a tiny little bookshelf tour of the heli!

top-left front: poetry and nonfiction.

kiltin kapina by hanna-maija valjanen the melancholy death of oyster boy by tim burton no plot? no problem! by chris baty on writing by stephen king why time flies by alan burdick in search of schrödinger’s cat by john gribbin seven brief lessons on physics by carlo rovelli dance of the photons by anton zeilinger kotona maailmankaikkeudessa by esko valtaoja the ethical slut by janet w. hardy and dossie easton the threesome handbook by vicki vantoch

top-left behind: random fiction?

11.22.63 by stephen king the gunslinger by stephen king under the dome by stephen king it by stephen king heart-shaped box by joe hill the guitar by michel del castillo 恋空 parts 1 & 2 by 美嘉 turtles all the way down by john green looking for alaska by john green the fault in our stars by john green how to be a time lord by whoever

upper mid-left: mostly hardbacks because i rarely buy them

life lessons from winnie-the-pooh by janette marshall the anxiety et phobia workbook by edmund j. bourne full dark, no stars by stephen king the sandman omnibus i by neil gaiman the sandman omnibus ii by neil gaiman the sandman: overture by neil gaiman and j.h. williams iii death note: another note - the los angeles bb murder cases by nisioisin not before sundown by johanna sinisalo 1q84 by haruki murakami

lower mid-left, front: some classics?

little women by louisa may alcott jane eyre by charlotte brontë the bookshop by penelope fitzgerald 1984 by george orwell the hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy by douglas adams emily of new moon by l.m. montgomery sophie’s world by josten gaarder

lower mid-left, behind: mostly finnish translations

one hundred years of solitude by gabriel garcia marquez the wind in the willows by kenneth grahame korppi ja kultakuoriainen (a short story collection i have no idea what the title is in english) by edgar allan poe pretty baby by mary kubica naive. super by erlend loe the supernaturalist by eoin colfer the thousandth floor by katharine mcgee kädettömät kuninkaat ja muita häiritseviä tarinoita by johanna sinisalo the lord of the rings by j.r.r. tolkien her fearful symmetry by audrey niffenegger angels and demons by dan brown

top-right front: random fiction faves and stuff i wanna display

altered carbon by richard morgan broken angels by richard morgan woken furies by richard morgan number9dream by david mitchell slade house by david mitchell they both die at the end by adam silvera the hate u give by angie thomas the astonoshing colour of after by emily x.r. pan this savage song by v.e. schwab our dark duet by v.e. schwab never let me go by kazuo ishiguro

top-right, behind: random japanese? and fiction

japanese textbooks hi kafka on the shore by haruki murakami the wind-up bird chronicle by haruki murakami ready player one by ernest cline when marnie was there by joan g. robinson the seven husbands of evelyn hugo by taylor jenkins reid the reality dysfunction by peter f. hamilton divergent by veronica roth insurgent by veronica roth allegiant by veronica roth

#long post for ts #; mun #; outofgrace

[baciepesche]

19 20 21 thanks!

19. favorite fictional characters?indiana jones (from “indiana jones”), rick o’connell and anck su namun (from “the mummy”), malèna scordia (from “malèna”), maría elena (from “vicky cristina barcelona”), mimi (from “bittermoon”), shelly and audrey (from “twin peaks”) and the list is infinite.20. do you read a lot? what are your favorite books?i need it to survive, it’s everything to me! unfortunately now that i’m working i don’t really have enough time and that’s another reason why i’m so stressed. i need a book. my favorite writers are haruki murakami, paulo coelho, isabel allende and others.21. how would you describe your style? greek temples, angels, red lipstick and gold jewelry, lemons, hearing jazz from the streets of cuba, eating pastries to celebrate something with my family, the smell of basil and basilicata, moroccan wraps and bread, inspiring women, living la dolce vita.

#answered #thank you for asking 🙏🏼

[saltdrinker]

I'M FINALLY DONE WITH THIS DUMB REFERENCE SHEET I ACTUALLY FINISHED IT YALL

coughs Now for my baby's official introduction...

My MC: Vicki Murakami

Birthday: June 21

Age: 16

Height: 160cm (5′ 3″)

Dominant hand: Right

Homeland: Unknown

Family: Akio Murakami (father)

Best Subject: Arts

Club: None

Hobbies: Arts and Crafts, DIY around ramshackle when the birdman lets her have time for that

Talents: Does beast taming count?

Likes: Japanese Cheesecake/fluffy desserts

Dislikes: Black Licorice

VA: Atsumi Tanezaki

Nicknames: Vic or Vivi (Adeuce), Herbivore (Leona), Henchman no.2 (Grim), Petite trickster (Rook), Shrimpy (Floyd)

The (Vice) Prefect of Ramshackle Dorm, Vicki never imagined her life would get turned upside down for the second time when she found herself isekaied into Twisted Wonderland. Having been a Junior in her old high school, She finds herself as a 1st year in NRC, navigating her way through this new world as she makes new unlikely friends along the way.

Vicki isn't an extrovert nor is she an introvert, though she may seem like the latter at first due to her not being very talkative. Most of the time, Vicki doesn't know how to talk to her peers due to her overthinking a lot. She tends to look distant and uninterested at first, but get to know her and she shows her cheeky and chaotic side. As much as she would like to relax and enjoy her new chance at high school life and stay out of trouble, trouble seems to find her wherever she goes. At least she has the Adeuce duo to watch her back.

Sometimes she tenses up and suddenly acts defensive and curt, mainly around certain individuals and strangers. Case in point, Vicki doesn't like being casually touched by people she isn't familiar with, often backing away if possible or taking their hands off of her. She tends to be dodgy when confronted with personal/nosy questions, giving brief answers or avoiding answering altogether. Being pushed to give answers will result in Vicki getting angry, sending a glare as a sign to stop. Despite these flaws, she is very loyal to her friends and wouldn't dare think about abandoning them in any situation. She is quick to think on her feet, coming up with spontaneous solutions in dire situations. Vicki can be impulsive at times, but it doesn't compare to both Grim's and Adeuce's tomfoolery.

Extra trivia

Vicki is Japanese-American

She is twisted from Morgan (Enchanted + Disenchanted)

She can speak some Japanese.

She used to practice writing in Hiragana and Katakana when she was younger

While Vicki does do arts and crafts, she loves origami the most

Her dad was the one who taught her origami, as it gave her a connection to her roots and was their favourite activity to do together

Vicki loves making paper cranes and will give them to her friends as gifts

Just like Silver, she can talk to animals

Everyone thinks she's magicless due to her inability to use various types of magic (This will be explained later)

#this whole post took way too long to write #BUT I CAN FINALLY SHOW MY BABY SO WORTH IT HEHEHE #twst wonderland #twst oc #twst mc #twisted wonderland oc #ramshackle #disney twst #twst yuu #yuu oc

[malte1mj-blog]

2008 Movie Awards

Best Picture: The Dark Knight Milk Rachel Getting Married WALL-E The Wrestler HONORABLE MENTION: Doubt, The Class, Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father, Burn After Reading, Wendy and Lucy, Man on Wire, Hunger, Ballast, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Happy-Go-Lucky, Synecdoche New York Best Director: Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler Jonathan Demme, Rachel Getting Married Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight Andrew Stanton, WALL-E Gus Van Sant, Milk HONORABLE MENTION: Laurent Cantet, The Class; Ethan Coen & Joel Coen, Burn After Reading; David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Lance Hammer, Ballast; Charlie Kaufman, Synecdoche, New York; Kurt Kuenne, Dear Zachary; Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky; James Marsh, Man on Wire; Steve McQueen, Hunger; Kelly Reichardt, Wendy and Lucy; John Patrick Shanley, Doubt Best Actor: Michael Fassbender, Hunger Richard Jenkins, The Visitor Ben Kingsley, Elegy Sean Penn, Milk Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler HONORABLE MENTION: Francois Begeaudeau, The Class; Michael Cera, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist; Robert Downey Jr., Iron Man; Colin Farrell, In Bruges; James Franco, Pineapple Express; Brendan Gleeson, In Bruges; Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt; Philip Seymour Hoffman, Synecdoche New York; Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon; Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Michael Pitt, Funny Games; Alejandro Polanco, Chop Shop; Jason Segel, Forgetting Sarah Marshall; Micheal J. Smith Sr., Ballast; Anton Yelchin, Charlie Barlett Best Actress: Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky Kristin Scott Thomas, I've Loved You So Long Meryl Streep, Doubt Michelle Williams, Wendy and Lucy HONORABLE MENTION: Amy Adams, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day; Kate Beckinsale, Nothing But the Truth; Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Rebecca Hall, Vicky Cristina Barcelona; Scarlett Johansson, Vicky Cristina Barcelona; Nicole Kidman, Australia; Melissa Leo, Frozen River; Frances McDormand, Burn After Reading; Frances McDormand, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day; Tarra Riggs, Ballast; Jess Weixler, Teeth; Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road Best Supporting Actor: James Franco, Milk Bill Irwin, Rachel Getting Married Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight Eddie Marsan, Happy-Go-Lucky Brad Pitt, Burn After Reading HONORABLE MENTION: Russell Brand, Forgetting Sarah Marshall; Josh Brolin, Milk; Brady Corbet, Funny Games; Liam Cunningham, Hunger; Aaron Eckhart, The Dark Knight; Ralph Fiennes, In Bruges; Danny McBride, Pineapple Express; Liam McMahon, Hunger; Mos Def, Cadillac Records; Gary Oldman, The Dark Knight; Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire; Haaz Sleiman, The Visitor Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona Viola Davis, Doubt Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married Samantha Morton, Synecdoche, New York Evan Rachel Wood, The Wrestler HONORABLE MENTION: Hiam Abbass, The Visitor; Amy Adams, Doubt; Patricia Clarkson, Elegy; Vera Farmiga, Nothing But the Truth; Ari Graynor, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist; Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Anjelica Huston, Choke; Beyonce Knowles, Cadillac Records; Sophie Okonedo, The Secret Life of Bees; Freida Pinto, Slumdog Millionaire; Tilda Swinton, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler; Debra Winger, Rachel Getting Married; Elysa Zylberstein, I’ve Loved You So Long Best Original Screenplay: Burn After Reading - Ethan Coen & Joel Coen Hunger - Steve McQueen & Enda Walsh Milk - Dustin Lance Black Rachel Getting Married - Jenny Lumet WALL-E - Pete Docter, Jim Reardon & Andrew Stanton HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, Ballast, Charlie Barlett, Chop Shop, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Happy-Go-Lucky, In Bruges, I’ve Loved You So Long, Pineapple Express, Synecdoche New York, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, The Visitor, The Wrestler, Zack and Miri Make a Porno Best Adapted Screenplay: The Class - Francois Begaudeau, Robin Campillo & Laurent Cantet The Dark Knight - David S. Goyer, Christopher Nolan & Jonathan Nolan Doubt - John Patrick Shanley Elegy - Nicholas Meyer Slumdog Millionaire - Simon Beaufoy HONORABLE MENTION: The Counterfeiters, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Iron Man, Let the Right One In, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Speed Racer, Wendy and Lucy Best Ensemble: Burn After Reading The Class The Dark Knight Milk Slumdog Millionaire HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Funny Games, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Rachel Getting Married, Speed Racer, Synecdoche New York, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Zack and Miri Make a Porno Best Limited Performance - Male: Andre Blake, Rachel Getting Married Justin Long, Zack and Miri Make a Porno Denis O'Hare, Milk Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road J.K. Simmons, Burn After Reading HONORABLE MENTION: Alan Alda, Flash of Genius; Michael Caine, The Dark Knight; Tom Cruise, Tropic Thunder; Bill Hader, Pineapple Express; David Rasche, Burn After Reading; Victor Rasuk, Stop-Loss; Mark Rendall, Charlie Barlett Best Limited Performance - Female: Patricia Clarkson, Vicky Cristina Barcelona Hope Davis, Synecdoche, New York Karina Fernandez, Happy-Go-Lucky Amy Ryan, Changeling Robin Weigert, Synecdoche, New York HONORABLE MENTION: Heather Burns, Choke; Zoe Kazan, Revolutionary Road; Jennifer Jason Leigh, Synecdoche New York; Lena Olin, The Reader; Amy Sedaris, Snow Angels; Sigourney Weaver, Vantage Point; Dianne Wiest, Synecdoche New York; Kristen Wiig, Ghost Town Breakthrough Performance: Ari Graynor, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist Alejandro Polanco, Chop Shop Tarra Riggs, Ballast Micheal J. Smith Sr., Ballast Jess Weixler, Teeth HONORABLE MENTION: David Kross, The Reader; Lina Leandersson, Let the Right One In; Charlie McDermott, Frozen River; Gabe Nevins, Paranoid Park; Esmeralda Ouertani, The Class; Freida Pinto, Slumdog Millionaire; Rachel Regulier, The Class; Brandon Walters, Australia Best Film Editing: The Dark Knight - Lee Smith Hunger - Joe Walker Rachel Getting Married - Tim Squyres Slumdog Millionaire - Chris Dickens The Wrestler - Andrew Weisblum HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, Ballast, Burn After Reading, Chop Shop, The Class, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Dear Zachary, Doubt. Funny Games, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Iron Man, Let the Right One In, Man on Wire, Milk, Paranoid Park, Pineapple Express, Speed Racer Best Cinematography: Australia - Mandy Walker Ballast - Lol Crawley The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Claudio Miranda The Dark Knight - Wally Pfister The Wrestler - Maryse Alberti HONORABLE MENTION: Burn After Reading, Changeling, Chop Shop, Doubt, Elegy, Funny Games, Hunger, Let the Right One In, Milk, Paranoid Park, Rachel Getting Married, The Reader, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire, Synecdoche New York, Wendy and Lucy Best Original Score: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Alexandre Desplat The Dark Knight - James Newton Howard & Hans Zimmer Milk - Danny Elfman Slumdog Millionaire - A.R. Rahman WALL-E - Thomas Newman HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, Burn After Reading, Changeling, In Bruges, I’ve Loved You So Long, Kung Fu Panda, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Revolutionary Road, Speed Racer, The Visitor, Waltz with Bashir, The X-Files: I Want to Believe Best Original Song: High School Musical 3: Senior Year - "I Want It All" - Matthew Gerrard & Robbie Nevil Slumdog Millionaire - "Jai Ho" - Gulzar & A.R. Rahman Synecdoche, New York - "Little Person" - Jon Brion & Charlie Kaufman WALL-E - "Down to Earth" - Peter Gabriel & Thomas Newman The Wrestler - "The Wrestler" - Bruce Springsteen HONORABLE MENTION: Australia - “By the Boab Tree”; Bolt - “Barking at the Moon”; Cadillac Records - “Once in a Lifetime”; High School Musical 3: Senior Year - “High School Musical”; High School Musical 3: Senior Year - “A Night to Remember”; My Blueberry Nights - “The Story”; Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist - “Ottoman”; Sex and the City - “All Dressed in Love”; Slumdog Millionaire - “O Saya”; Trouble the Water - “Trouble the Water”; Twilight - “I Caught Myself” Best Art Direction: Australia - Beverly Dunn & Catherine Martin Changeling - Gary Fettis & James J. Murakami The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Donald Graham Burt & Victor J. Zolfo Revolutionary Road - Debra Schutt & Kristi Zea Synecdoche, New York - Mark Friedberg & Lydia Marks HONORABLE MENTION: Burn After Reading, The Counterfeiters, The Dark Knight, Frost/Nixon, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, High School Musical 3: Senior Year, Iron Man, Milk, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Pineapple Express, Sex and the City, Slumdog Millionaire, Speed Racer, Vicky Cristina Barcelona Best Costume Design: Australia - Catherine Martin The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Jacqueline West Milk - Danny Glicker Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day - Michael O'Connor Sex and the City - Patricia Field HONORABLE MENTION: Burn After Reading, Cadillac Records, Changeling, The Counterfeiters, The Dark Knight, Doubt, Frost/Nixon, Happy-Go-Lucky, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Iron Man, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire, Speed Racer, Synecdoche New York, W., The Wrestler Best Makeup: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Frost/Nixon Hunger The Wrestler HONORABLE MENTION: Cadillac Records, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Iron Man, Let the Right One In, Milk, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Saw V, Sex and the City, Slumdog Millionaire, Speed Racer, Synecdoche New York, Tropic Thunder, Twilight, W. Best Sound Mixing: The Dark Knight Iron Man Pineapple Express Speed Racer WALL-E HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, Cadillac Records, Cloverfield, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Get Smart, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, High School Musical 3: Senior Year, The Incredible Hulk, Kung Fu Panda, Let the Right One In, Mamma Mia!, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Slumdog Millionaire, Tropic Thunder, The Wrestler Best Sound Editing: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Iron Man Speed Racer WALL-E HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, Cloverfield, Get Smart, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, The Incredible Hulk, Kung Fu Panda, Pineapple Express, Saw V, Slumdog Millionaire, Tropic Thunder, The Wrestler, The X-Files: I Want to Believe Best Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Hellboy II: The Golden Army Iron Man Speed Racer HONORABLE MENTION: Australia, Cloverfield, Eagle Eye, Get Smart, The Incredible Hulk, Tropic Thunder Best Foreign-Language Film: The Class - Laurent Cantet The Counterfeiters - Stefan Ruzowitzky I've Loved You So Long - Philippe Claudel Let the Right One In - Tomas Alfredson Waltz with Bashir - Ari Folman HONORABLE MENTION: JCVD Best Documentary: Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father - Kurt Kuenne Man on Wire - James Marsh Taxi to the Dark Side - Alex Gibney Trouble the Water - Carl Deal & Tia Lessin Young@Heart - Stephen Walker Honorable Mention: HONORABLE MENTION: Bigger Stronger Fast, Encounters at the End of the World, Religulous, Standard Operating Procedure, Waltz with Bashir Best Animated Film: Bolt - Byron Howard & Chris Williams Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who - Jimmy Hayward & Steve Martino Kung Fu Panda - Mark Osborne & John Stevenson WALL-E - Andrew Stanton Waltz with Bashir - Ari Folman Every 2008 Film I've Seen: Ranked

[jiangwanyin]

aand ooh i still need to read norwegian wood,, i think i started the first page last month but haven't gotten to it</3

poor norwegian wood</3 it's so good though, obviously i wholeheartedly recommend it also for when you do get round to reading it i have a playlist with all the songs mentioned in it if you're looking for something to listen to as you go along!

#i still don't know how you do the whole reading with music thing and manage to concentrate on the book instead of just singing #along to whatever you're listening to but good for you hdnsjd also it's actually supposed to be a generic murakami playlist #but i haven't read anything new from him since i read that rip and i abandoned kafka on the shore after starting a reread too so</3 #asks #anonymous #afklints #vicky tag

[list-of-literature]

25/03/2016

The Woman in the Dunes, Kobo Abe Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe The Jolly Postman or Other Peoples Letters, Janet & Allan Ahlberg The Wolves Of Willoughby Chase, Joan Aiken The Wanderer, Alain-Fournier Commedia, Dante Alighieri Skellig, David Almond The President, Miguel Angel Asturias Alcools, Guillaume Apollinaire It's Not About The Bike - My Journey Back to Life, Lance Armstrong Behind The Scenes At The Museum, Kate Atkinson The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood Jonathan Livingstone Seagull, Richard Bach Go Tell It on the Mountain, James Baldwin The Ghost Road, Pat Barker Carrie's War, Nina Bawden Molloy; Malone Dies; The Unnamable, Samuel Beckett Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett The Adventures of Augie March, Saul Bellow G, John Berger Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman Mister Magnolia, Quentin Blake Forever, Judy Blume The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton Five On A Treasure Island, Enid Blyton The Enchanted Wood, Enid Blyton A Bear Called Paddington, Michael Bond Ficciones, Jorge Luis Borges The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, John Boyne The Snowman, Raymond Briggs Flat Stanley, Jeff Brown Gorilla, Anthony Browne The Good Earth, Pearl S. Buck The Pilgrim's Progress, John Bunyan A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess Junk, Melvin Burgess Would You Rather?, John Burningham The Soft Machine, William S. Burroughs The Way of All Flesh, Samuel Butler Possession, A.S. Byatt The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot If on a Winter's Night a Traveler, Italo Calvino Invisible Cities, Italo Calvino The Stranger, Albert Camus Oscar and Lucinda, Peter Carey Nights at the Circus, Angela Carter Looking For JJ, Anne Cassidy Journey to the End of the Night, Louis-Ferdinand Céline Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China, Jung Chang Papillon, Henri Charriere The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer "Clarice Bean, That's Me", Lauren Child I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato, Lauren Child Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Pierre Choderlos de Laclos Disgrace, J.M. Coetzee Waiting for the Barbarians, J.M Coetzee Princess Smartypants, Babette Cole Nostromo, Joseph Conrad The Public Burning, Robert Coover Millions, Frank Cottrell Boyce The Power Of One, Bryce Courtenay That Rabbit Belongs To Emily Brown, Cressida Cowell House Of Leaves, Mark Z. Danielewski The Black Sheep, Honoré de Balzac Old Man Goriot, Honoré de Balzac The Second Sex, Simone de Beavoir The Story of Babar, Jean De Brunhoff The Little Prince, Antoine De Saint-Exupery White Noise, Don DeLillo Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Joan Didion Sybil, Benjamin Disraeli Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy, Lynley Dodd The 42nd Parallel, John Dos Passos The Brothers Karamzov, Fyodor Dostoevsky An American Tragedy, Theodore Drieser The Name Of The Rose, Umberto Eco My Naughty Little Sister, Dorothy Edwards Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison The Horse Whisperer, Nicholas Evans The Siege of Krishnapur, J.G Farrell The Sound and the Fury, William Faulkner "Absalom, Absalom!", William Faulkner Light in August, William Faulkner Take it or Leave It, Raymond Federman Magician, Raymond E. Feist Flour Babies, Anne Fine Madam Bovary, Gustav Flaubert A Passage to India, E. M. Forster The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank Cross Stitch,  Diana Gabaldon That Awful Mess on the Via Merulala, Carlo Emilio Gadda JR, William Gaddis The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez Maggot Moon, Sally Gardner The Owl Service, Alan Garner In the Heart of the Heart of the Country & Other Stories, William H. Gass Coram Boy, Jamila Gavin Once, Morris Gleitzman The Conservationist, Nadine Gordimer Asterix The Gaul, Rene Goscinny The Tin Drum, Günter Grass Sunset Song, Lewis Grassic Gibbon Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears, Emily Gravett Lanark, Alasdair Gray The Quiet American, Graham Greene Life and Fate, Vasily Grossman The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time, Mark Haddon Jude The Obscure, Thomas Hardy The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway For Whom the Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway The Old Man And The Sea, Ernest Hemingway The Blue Lotus, Hergé The Adventures Of Tintin, Hergé The Glass Bead Game, Herman Hesse Where's Spot?, Eric Hill The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett The Odyssey, Homer High Fidelity, Nick Hornby Point Blanc, Anthony Horowitz Skeleton Key, Anthony Horowitz Dogger, Shirley Hughes Journey To The River Sea, Eva Ibbotson Little House In The Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving Goodbye to Berlin, Christopher Isherwood The Portrait of a Lady, Henry James The Ambassadors, Henry James Finn Family Moomintroll, Tove Jansson Lost and Found, Oliver Jeffers The Far Pavilions, M. M. Kaye A Confederacy of Dunces, John Kennedy Toole The Tiger Who Came To Tea, Judith Kerr One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey In Praise of Hatred, Khaled Khalifa Gate of the Sun, Elias Khoury It, Stephen King The Queen's Nose, Dick King-Smith The Sheep-Pig, Dick King-Smith Diary Of A Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney Kim, Rudyard Kipling I Want My Hat Back, Jon Klassen Darkness at Noon, Arthur Koestler The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera The Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook, Joyce Lankerster Brisley Women in Love, D.H. Lawrence Seven Pillars of Wisdom, T.E Lawrence A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle The Golden Notebook, Doris Lessing Tristes Tropiques, Claude Lévi-Strauss Pippi Longstocking, Astrid Lindgren The Call of the Wild, Jack London Nightmare Abbey, Thomas Love Peacock Under the Volcano, Malcolm Lowry The Good Soldier, Ford Madox Ford The Cairo Trilogy, Naguib Mahfouz The Naked and the Dead, Norman Mailer Man's Fate, Andre Malraux The Magic Mountain, Thomas Mann Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel The Road, Cormac McCarthy The Kite Rider, Geraldine McCaughrean The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, Carson McCullers "Not Now, Bernard", David McKee Tent Boxing: An Australian Journey, Wayne McLennan No One Sleeps in Alexandria, Ibrahim Abdel Meguid A Fine Balance, Rohinton Mistry The Cruel Sea, Nicholas Monsarrat Private Peaceful, Michael Morpurgo Beloved, Toni Morrison Song of Solomon, Toni Morrison The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Haruki Murakami Under the Net, Iris Murdoch The Worst Witch, Jill Murphy Pale Fire, Vladimir Nabokov A Bend in the River, V.S Naipaul Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston A Monster Calls, Patrick Ness The Knife Of Never Letting Go, Patrick Ness The Borrowers, Mary Norton Master And Commander, Patrick O'Brian The Silent Cry, Kenzaburo Oe My Name is Red, Orhan Pamuk Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake Night Watch, Terry Pratchett The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett The Truth, Terry Pratchett Witches Abroad, Terry Pratchett Truckers, Terry Pratchett Life: An Exploded Diagram, Mal Prett Paroles, Jacques Prévert The Shipping News, Annie Proulx In Search of Lost Time, Marcel Proust The Ruby In The Smoke, Philip Pullman Eugene Onegin, Alexander Pushkin Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon Live and Remember, Valentin Rasputin Witch Child, Celia Rees Mortal Engines, Philip Reeve Clarissa: Or the History of a Young Lady, Samuel Richardson How I Live Now, Meg Rosoff I Want My Potty!, Tony Ross Portnoy's Complaint, Philip Roth The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie Holes, Louis Sachar Blindness, Jose Saramango Being and Nothingness, Jean-Paul Sartre Nausea, Jean-Paul Sartre Austerlitz, W.G. Sebald Revolver, Marcus Sedgwick Where The Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak The Silver Sword, Ian Serraillier Katherine, Anya Seton Come over to My House, Dr Seuss Daisy-Head Mayzie, Dr Seuss Great Day for Up!, Dr Seuss Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!, Dr Seuss Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories, Dr Seuss Hunches in Bunches, Dr Seuss I Am NOT Going to Get Up Today!, Dr Seuss I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! and Other Stories, Dr Seuss I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew, Dr Seuss My Book about ME, Dr Seuss My Many Colored Days, Dr Seuss "Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!", Dr Seuss On Beyond Zebra!, Dr Seuss The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories, Dr Seuss The Butter Battle Book, Dr Seuss The Cat's Quizzer, Dr Seuss The Pocket Book of Boners, Dr Seuss The Seven Lady Godivas, Dr Seuss The Shape of Me and Other Stuff, Dr Seuss What Pet Should I Get?, Dr Seuss You're Only Old Once!, Dr Seuss Dr Seuss's Book of Bedtime Stories, Dr Seuss Special shapes: A flip-the-flap book, Dr Seuss Dizzy days: A flip-the-flap book, Dr Seuss The Tale of Genji, Murasaki Shikibu A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith "The Gulag Archipelago, 1918-1956: An Experiment in Literary Investigation", Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Memento Mori, Muriel Spark The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Muriel Spark Heidi, Johanna Spyri The Making of Americans, Gertrude Stein The Charterhouse of Parma, Stendhal "The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman", Laurence Sterne Driving Over Lemons: An Optimist in Andalucia, Chris Stewart Goosebumps, R.L. Stine Ballet Shoes, Noel Streatfeild The Home and the World, Rabindranath Tagore The Arrival, Shaun Tan The Secret History, Donna Tartt The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell Fathers and Sons, Ivan Turgenev Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain Froth on the Daydream, Boris Vian Creation, Gore Vidal Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut Breakfast of Champions, Kurt Vonnegut The Color Purple, Alice Walker Scoop, Evelyn Waugh The War Of The Worlds, H.G. Wells The Time Machine, H.G Wells The Once And Future King, T.H. White Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson The Illustrated Mum, Jacqueline Wilson The Dare Game, Jacqueline Wilson Bad Girls, Jacqueline Wilson Lola Rose, Jacqueline Wilson Girls In Tears, Jacqueline Wilson Sleepovers, Jacqueline Wilson Secrets, Jacqueline Wilson Girls Out Late, Jacqueline Wilson Dustbin Baby, Jacqueline Wilson The Code of the Woosters, P.G. Wodehouse Native Son, Richard Wright Going Native, Stephen Wright The Day Of The Triffids, John Wyndham The Dream of the Red Chamber, Cao Xueqin Red Sorghum: A Novel of China, Mo Yan Revolutionary Road, Richard Yates We, Yevgeny Zamyatin Germinal, Emile Zola Amazing Grace, Mary Hoffman & Caroline Binch Horrid Henry, Francesca Simon & Tony Ross Meg And Mog, Helen Nicholls & Jan Pienkowski Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, Mem Fox & Helen Oxenbury The Elephant And The Bad Baby, Elfrida Vipont & Raymond Briggs The True Story Of The Three Little Pigs, Jon Scieszka & Lane Smith

[nicolebrewerwrites]

I read 22 books in 2016.

I just discovered that apparently my goal was 30 books, but I failed to note that anywhere that I’d see it, and I must have nearly immediately forgotten about it. It’s not a lot of books, 22. There were some super heavy-hitters (like A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing, which took me 2.5 months to finish), and there were some lightweights (I read a few really lovely YA books, my first return to YA since I was about 12). I also read a few manuscripts, as usual, and hundreds of submissions. But 22 books.

This is not even many more books than last year (19), and I’d be lying if I said I weren’t a little disappointed. But I looked back over my last few years of reading, and I discovered something. My highest year was 2012, when I read 46--I was still in university, and many of those were course texts. My final months of university were in 2013, and that year I read 24. 2014 dipped to 18 books, and 2015, like I said, I read 19.

So I’m improving, is what I discovered. I’m still figuring out how to fit reading into a non-school schedule, around full-time work, around going to the gym, around running a small press and publishing a magazine every other month. Around living with my partner, having a dog, generally being an adult. Figuring it out, practicing, and improving.

In 2017, I’m aiming to read 365 short stories and at least 20 books. I’d actually like to read 25, but I’m putting the short story goal front and center, so I’ll be happy with 20. I’m hoping to do short writeups on at least some of the short stories, mostly for my own sake. I’m excited for this project! Anyway, below are a few of the highlights from my 2016 reading.

Man Walks Into a Room and Great House by Nicole Krauss | it was an absolute joy to discover Nicole Krauss last year, and her writing strikes a chord in me and makes me feel absolutely at home. I’ll admit I lost my focus about 2/3 of the way through each of these books, but I enjoyed them nonetheless and her writing style is now one of my favourites.

How to Get Along With Women by Elisabeth de Mariaffi | just, holy shit. Even though I’m a short story writer, I’ve had a hard time finding collections that I enjoy cover to cover, but as soon as I finished this one I just wanted to start it again. It spoke simultaneously to the feminist and the writer in me more than any other book I’ve read so far, and I’m grateful for it.

What is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi | Oyeyemi is definitely in my top ten favourite writers right now, for her beautiful magic realism and her ability to layer a story without it seeming pretentious. Her writing is quick, simple, clear, and easy in a way that makes the stories, characters, and strangeness shine. I will always recommend her books to everyone.

A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing by Eimear McBride | I wrote a hole other blog post about this. To summarize: this book is unrelentingly difficult in its subject matter, and absolutely stunning in its style.

Testament by Vickie Gendreau, translated by Aimee Wall | this book got into my head and broke me down in a way I hadn’t experienced before. I can’t really describe it, and I can’t even say it was pleasant, but I was floored by the writing, the story, and the experience. I feel like it was necessary. This review sums up exactly what I would have written if I’d been able to write about it.

The Best Kind of People by Zoe Whittall | I, like everyone else, was blown away by this book. I loved it when I started it, and read it in two days. I can’t honestly say that I still love it, or even that I liked it, but I don’t blame the book. It was too real for me. The ending was just fucking life, and I get it, I get why this book is important and I love that it’s popular, but that part of life just fucking sucks, you know? Well maybe you don’t know, if you haven’t read it yet. So, I was unprepared. I was sad. No, I was crushed. But the book, the writing, the purpose--yes, amazing, I admit.

The Strange Library by Haruki Murakami | what a delight to return to Murakami’s strange, strange world. An eerie and beautiful little novella.

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein | I’m probably the only person who hadn’t yet read this, and it was delightful. It’s narrated by a dog. It’s wonderful. It’s also dark and heavy as hell in the middle, which I was fully unprepared for. I won’t lie: I cried.

The Short Story Advent Calendar 2016 | not a book, but I figured 25 short stories was enough to count as a book. Fucking great idea that inspired me to set my 365 story goal for 2017. I will definitely be buying the 2017 one come November.

#2016 #books #reading