Category Archives: Prose

The Transgender Child, by Stephanie Brill and Rachel Pepper

Posted on March 19, 2015 by Thistle

This is a handbook/parenting guide with regards to transgender and gender-fluid children, with special emphasis on the various concerns (medical, legal, educational, etc) involved in raising gender-variant children. Gender is and has always been a very fluid thing in my … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

The Birds and Other Stories, by Daphne du Maurier

Posted on March 13, 2015 by Thistle

This is a collection of six short stories by Daphne du Maurier: The Birds, Monte Verita, The Apple Tree, The Little Photographer, Kiss Me Again Stranger, and The Old Man. Note: This isn’t the cover of my copy. Mine is … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Body Keeps the Score, by Bessel van der Kolk

Posted on March 11, 2015 by Thistle

Subtitled: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. As was probably obvious from the title/subtitle, this is a book of psychology focusing on the physical, mental, and emotional aspects of trauma and how they affect everything in a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose, Wellness | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Thistle

Spoilers. Rachel is struggling. Her husband left her for another woman, she’s lost her job, and she’s an alcoholic. Every day, she takes the train into London to maintain the appearance of going to work, and every day, she passes … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 11 Comments

The Romanov Sisters, by Helen Rappaport (audio)

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Thistle

Subtitled: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra. I have long been fascinated by the Romanovs and their fate during the Russian Revolution. At the same time, I learned very little in school about Russia’s politics and … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Beyond Binary, by Multiple Authors

Posted on February 13, 2015 by Thistle

Subtitled: Genderqueer and Sexually Fluid Speculative Fiction Edited by: Brit Mandelo Okay. I’ve never been good at reviewing short story collections, so I’ll just start out by saying why I chose to read this book. For the past few months, … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Firefight, by Brandon Sanderson

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Thistle

Firefight is the sequel to Steelheart. I’m not going to summarize it because I don’t want to give away series spoilers. A good series opening summary is available at that link. Note: There are major book spoilers after that summary. Back … Continue reading →

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Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, by Susanna Clarke (audio)

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Thistle

This book is way too long and multi-plotted for me to try to describe on my own. I’d paste in the Goodreads synopsis, but that’s also extraordinarily long, so instead, if you don’t really know what this book is about, … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

House of Shadows, by Rachel Neumeier

Posted on January 30, 2015 by Thistle

When eight sisters are orphaned, two must enter contracts outside the home in order for the others to survive. Karah is taken in by the most prestigious and respected Flower House (think Geisha) in Lonne. Nemienne is apprenticed to a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Prose, Young Adult | Tagged | 2 Comments

Choose Your Own Autobiography, by Neil Patrick Harris

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Thistle

When I was a kid, I loved Choose Your Own Adventure novels. There’s one in particular, The Magic of the Unicorn, that I read over and over and over. Having always been a pragmatic, logical kind of person, I took … Continue reading →

Posted in 2015, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments