In case you missed it, it snowed in California this weekend and, more specifically, it snowed in Southern California. I got several texts asking me if it was snowing where I lived, and my answer to each was no. Because I did not see the snow. I saw the hail, I saw the rain, but I did not see the snow. If it did snow where I lived, it was before I woke up.
My mother called me and asked if I was sure I lived in Southern California because all of her weather sources were telling her snow, but I was not. So, yes, my mother thought I was LYING to her because I wasn’t filming snow from my patio door. (This is mostly a joke.)
Group text was lit, tho.
Text from the photo says:
[picture of snowy landscape with a link title “Desert snow: Rare snowfall accumulates in Palm Springs during SoCal storm“
Person 1: This is wild.
Me: Welp. It’s the end times
Me: Nice knowing you all
Me: We’ll see which of us gets left behind shortly, I guess
Also, I know it’s feeling real fifth season-y, but it has snowed in Los Angeles before.
So maybe the end is only a little near.
I also read some books since my last post:
Serendipity: Ten Romantic Tropes, Transformed by Marissa MeyerMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I liked this book more than I thought I would. I read the first two stories and was thinking the book wasn’t for me, but then I loved the unexpected turn of the third one so kept going, and overall I’m glad I did. This is a short story collection, though, so let’s get into the short stories.
“Bye Bye, Piper Berry” (fake dating) by Julie Murphy – I don’t think Murphy’s writing is for me. The best part of this for me was that one (or both? I couldn’t really tell) of the love interests is plus size. The characters were fine, the story was fine and I believed the ending, but something about it just didn’t work for me. – 2 stars
“Anyone Else But You” (stranded together) by Leah Johnson – I liked the characters here, I liked the transformation generally speaking (and like Johnson’s writing in general), but I didn’t believe the ending – 2 stars
“The Idiom Algorithm” (class warfare) by Abigail Hing Wen – Yeah, I was not expecting that plot twist and I was here for it. I thought the characters were well drawn, and I was invested. – 4 stars
“Auld Acquaintance” (best friend love epiphany) by Caleb Roehrig – I forgot what this story was about (I finished this last week), but it was a pleasant read – 2 stars
“Shooting Stars” (one bed) by Marissa Meyer – I love Meyer’s writing, so this one worked for me. It was appropriately awkward – 4 stars
“Keagan’s Heaven on Earth” (the secret admirer) by Sarah Winifred Searle – This one is memorable because it’s told in comic form. I liked that it had a nonbinary character and featured cosplay – 3 stars
“Zora in the Spotlight” (grand romantic gesture) by Elise Bryant – I loved this one because I think it best transformed the trope. Easily my fave. – 5 stars
“In a Blink of the Eye” (trapped in a confined space) by Elizabeth Eulberg – Eulberg understands that the best ‘ship is friendship, and I am here for it. This one also transformed the trope really well. – 4 stars
“Liberty” (the makeover) by Anna-Marie McLemore – I liked this one, loved the characters. Another good transformation – 4 stars
“The Surprise Match” (matchmaker) by Sandhya Menon – I am not that familiar with matchmaker stories, but I don’t think this one was a big stretch in terms of transformation. Rosie is one of the more memorable characters in the book, though, so props for that – 3 stars
I will say that I think my enjoyment of the stories hinged on how well I thought they transformed the trope, thus living up to the collection title. I will also say that I really want to check out both Elise Bryant and Abigail Hing Wen‘s books now based on their stories, which I think speaks to the strength of their entries. I also want to revisit Eulberg, so there you go.
3.3 stars is the average rating, so three stars it shall be
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Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle ZevinMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
What is a game? […] It’s tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow. It’s the possibility of infinite rebirth, infinite redemption. The idea that if you keep playing, you could win. No loss is permanent, because nothing is permanent, ever.”
Gabrielle Zevin got the memo that the best ship is friendship, and I am here for it.
My favorite thing about this book is that both main characters are excessively difficult in their own unique ways and there is something brash and unlikeable about both of them. It’s nice to go on a journey and kind of want to punch them both in the face because isn’t friendship also like that sometimes? I don’t know about you, but when I was in my twenties, I loved my friends so much that their choices often made me angry, and that’s how I felt about both Sam and Sadie at various points in the book. Their choices made sense for their characters, but they also just made sigh. It helps that, generally speaking, they both mean well.
That said, I actually liked the book quite a lot. This book came to me highly recommended by several friends, and it did not disappoint. I didn’t mind the gaming talk that much because it was important to the characters and didn’t seem like too much. I like books about difficult people, especially difficult women, and I liked the span of time it covered. The book was compulsively readable, so much so that I found myself reading for large swaths of time without meaning to.
I also liked that sometimes we got to see what other characters were up to. Plus, part of it is set in the ’90s! What’s not to love?
Some quotes:
“Maybe I don’t believe in marriage,” Sadie said.
“There is no believe, Sadie. It’s not like God, Santa Claus, or whether Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. It’s a civic ceremony with a piece of paper.”
It was easy to dislike the man. It was harder to dislike the little boy who existed just below the surface of the man.
His pain, a mortifyingly psychosomatic weathervane
I have found that most intimate relationships allow for a great deal of privacy within them.
The most important thing is finding someone you wish to play with.
Also, perfect cover is perfect.
4.5 stars, rounding up
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Frizzy by Claribel A. OrtegaMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is a great look at Black hair politics and anti-Blackness for the middle grade crowd. I like that Ortega specifically named it for what it is, and I love that the family was depicted with varying shades of skin and hair tones. My only complaint is this statement: “Even though our whole family is Black or has Black ancestors, sometimes people don’t like that part of themselves.” I wish it had been “Even though our whole family is Black, sometimes people don’t like or claim that part of themselves” because acknowledging both that (a) the blond, fair skinned people in the family as Black and that (b) many of them would rather call themselves White/align themselves with Whiteness would really blow some people’s minds.
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Have a great week, everyone!
The Englishist 
Haha your mom said if you didn’t see it, then you must not live there lol perfect mama response.
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