Micro Fiction Monday: Dot, Dot, Dot

Sometimes, in cartoons, the artist likes to use an ellipsis to portray an awkward encounter. You know, that little “dot, dot, dot” thing? Cartoonists will leave it hanging in the middle of a panel, with no speech bubble or narration box or anything. It emphasizes the silence—it makes it louder, more awkward or tense, et cetera.

If my life were a cartoon—which, sometimes, I swear it is, because it is just so ridiculous—there would be one big, fat ellipsis staring me in the face right now. Like, I can practically see it. In my entire life, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered such an awkward silence in my life.

And all I said was, “Hi.”

Okay, back up. How do I explain this as briefly and as clearly as possible? Long story short: I had a best friend. Once. Past tense. But we were pretty good—I dare say amazing, together. We had the telepathy thing going on, the whole shebang. You wanted gross fast food at 2:30 in the morning? You had someone to drive you there, without question.

And then I, the genius I am, decided to move away. I chose a different school a million miles away, and suddenly, that was that. No more telepathy. No more late night take out. No more 3 AM emergency phone calls.

Nothing.

I’ve long since acknowledged that what happened was my fault. I picked the school over him. I chose studying over him. I chose my new friends over him. And eventually, I became his second choice, too.

Fast forward to now—I’m a college graduate. I’m back in my hometown, if only for the summer. And there he is—four years older, but still just the same.

He says hi.

I say hi.

Dot.

Dot.

Dot.

Micro Fiction Monday: Stay Super

We conquered the world, you and I. We faced the devil together. We fought him together, and we won. We rose from the ashes, hand in hand, and faced a new world. We’re a team.

We were a team.

One moment we were supeheroes, facing the universe and all it had in store for us, head-on and without fear. We were indestructible, until all at once we weren’t.

Somewhere down the line, our hands slipped. You were no longer beside me; I couldn’t even see you anymore. I didn’t know if you were behind me or ahead of me, or if you were defeated altogether. We’re not two halves, but two wholes. And maybe that’s a good thing.

I still call your name, sometimes. Maybe you can hear me. Maybe you can’t. But I hope I find your hand again.

And if I don’t, I hope you stay super without me.

Review: All I Know Now

WARNING: The following blog posts contain spoilers for the novel under review, ranging from mild to heart wrenchingly major. If you have yet to read this novel and dislike being spoiled, leave now and return upon completion.

If you HAVE read this novel (or just don't give a crap about spoilers), then continue on.

But don't say I didn't warn you.

~~

HELLO, FRIENDS! This week I've got a book written by one of my favourite online personalities--All I Know Now by Carrie Hope Fletcher!

THE PLOT-Y BIT

For many, Carrie Hope Fletcher is already a familiar name. She's touched the hearts of thousands, through chilling performances as Eponine in Les Misérables, her quirky and charming YouTube videos, and her long-running blog entitled All I Know Now, rightfully earning her the title of everyone's honourary big sister.

Now, she's ready to conquer the literary world, as her ever popular blog becomes a work of published nonfiction. From dating to friendship, bullies to the ever-terrifying future, this 22-year-old offers advice as she reflects back on her own teen years, what she thought she knew, and all she knows now.

She may not know everything, but who really does?

THE REVIEW-Y BIT

Another nonfiction book! Who'd have thought, eh?

I've been looking forward to this book for quite some time! I've been actively watching Carrie's videos for upwards of two years now, and she rarely disappoints! Her videos never fail to put a smile on my face and improve my mood immensely. So, needless to say, when I heard that her boundless energy was going into a book, I was extremely excited!

Confession time: I cheated a bit to get my hands on this book. It was released in the UK--and only the UK--in late April, whereas the North American release isn't scheduled until September. We all know that I suck at waiting, so waiting an extra four months while so many others were already displaying it proudly on their shelves simply wasn't gonna fly. So while my fellow North Americans lamented over the wait, I went on to the Book Depository and sneakily ordered my copy online.

(I'm sure some other people did this, as well. The UK-based, free-shipping-worldwide website isn't exactly a secret. But I felt sneaky nonetheless.)

Knowing ahead of time that it is an advice book, I went into it not expecting to find use in everything, and I was right. Like any advice, you should take what you need and leave the rest--I had no need for advice on friendship or how to deal with bullies. But even so, I genuinely believe that there's something in here for everybody--I, for one, rather enjoyed the section on following your dreams. Carrie has become somewhat of a role model for me, and hearing her advice and thoughts on a subject that is rather important to me was something to take inspiration from. 

So even though this is marketed towards teens, don't be afraid to pick this up if you're a "grown up". I'm sure you'll still enjoy it!

The only real issue that I had with this book was the chapter length. More often than not, I felt like the chapters were too small, and they felt too compact for my liking. I also thought a lot of them had rather abrupt endings; they could have used a couple extra closing thoughts before moving on to the next chapter.

Even so, Carrie's anecdotes were wonderful, and her narration style made it feel like I was reading transcripts from her actual videos--very natural and well done!

THE STAR-Y BIT

If you need a gift for a teen or young adult, this book is definitely the way to go! I give it a solid four stars.

Be sure to leave your own thoughts on this week's book in the comments below!

Until later,

- Justyne