Cultural Studies and Discourse Analysis

By Chris Barker and Darius Galasiński

Nonfiction

Paperback

176 pages + references 

This was another book I picked up from my friend's classroom. This one also looked like a good read for my dissertation. 

Not going to lie, it was pretty dry. I know, big surprise. 

It was a worthwhile read though - intellectually stimulating if not emotionally engaging. 

for example - pondering the nature of identity. We are products of our context and also self-actualized. 

We tell the stories of our own realities, and we make choices about which details to include, exclude, emphasize, and diminish. 

Depending on how you view knowledge and whether there is Truth (capital, one, concrete, knowable) or truth (lowercase, myriad, contextual, unknowable) and what the relationship is between them.

For my study, I'll be looking at school culture and structures.

I've always maintained that language is the most powerful force. It shapes and guides our thoughts, biases, perceptions, impossibility, and possibilities. This is one of the reasons I became an English teacher. Because words are power. 

But, to end on a less serious note, they referenced one of my favorite movies. 

❤

Amethyst: Princess of Gemworld

By Shannon Hale & Dean Hale

Art by Asiah Fulmore

Paperback

158 small pages

Kids Comic 

Graphic Novel

It's not a retelling of the original comics, it's set in the world, and with some of the same characters and story elements, but also totally its own thing. 

It's a pretty book

It was a very cute story- took less than an hour to read, but of course I had to buy it to add to my collection. 

author info

I wouldn't have know this book existed if I hadn't gotten a preview version at Awesome Con last year. The book itself i found at Target! Smaller than I expected. I guess since the preview was comic sized, I expected that rather than the little format, but it's a great size for kid hands. 

Truth, Lies, and Second Dates

By MaryJanice Davidson 

Fiction

301 pages

Paperback

Borrowed from Library 

So the library barcode obscures a good chunk of the synopsis, so I'm prevented from doing it the lazy way and have to type up something myself. Ah well. 

 Captain Ava Capp, commercial airline pilot, doesn't like going back to her hometown where her parents died and her best friend was murdered. However, twin brothet of aforementioned victim happens to be on Captain Capp's plane one day, as they are heading into aforementioned hometown, convinces Capp to attend 10 year anniversary memorial for victim. 

Doctor Tom Baker (medical examiner, not two hearted alien) is fascinated by the cold case and, when he runs into Capp and really drunk twin brother after the memorial, the physical attractiveness of Capp. 

Capp might still be in danger. Crimes are unsolved. You see where this is heading...

Davidson writes books that are very easy to read (I got to chapter 5 while my child was reading MAD Magazine. They don't let you check those out, but you can sit in the library and read them.) and have a lot of humor. 

This is the third book in a series, but they seem to be related, not sequential. So, even though I haven't read the other two, it didn't seem to matter.  

A funny book was desperately needed, as it’s seem to have taken about 2.5 weeks after the end of the school year to stop constantly clenching my jaw. I probably need a new job. 

One thing that Davidson did was compile a list of 60 tropes that she engaged with during the construction of this novel. 

Page 1 of the list:

For the most part, this novelists works are an anomaly in the range of books I typically enjoy; however, I continue to enjoy each one I've read. 

And I only got home with this book less than 17 hours ago, so it was a fast read two. 

Off to find books 1 & 2. 

(But not really, right now, because my tbr pile is tall.)