What I'm Reading
Hey! Like the Playing and Watching pages, this is a collection of everything I'm currently reading, from books to webcomics. As the newest page, it's still under construction, but I'll get it up to par in a few days.
Favorites
A list of my favorite written and illustrated works! This is slowly being added to as the days go by.
Alphabetical by title:
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
I read this when I was like, idk, fourteen? A little too young to fully grasp it, but I did enjoy the way it used its medium, as well as the concept of the house. I should probably give it a reread sometime soon so I have more to say.
The Improbable Rise of Singularity Girl by Bryce C. Anderson
I thought the title and premise was interesting, so I bought it as an ebook, and once I had read it, ordered a physical copy. My opinions on it are more mixed now, but as someone who was very interested in the concept of uploading your brain into a digital world, as well as the immortality aspect of that, I loved it when I read it, so I'm adding it to my favorites.
Unicorn Jelly by Jennifer Diane Reitz
Unicorn Jelly is a webcomic that ran from 2000 to 2003. I read this after it was already completed when I was around eleven or twelve years old, and it definitely changed me. I was plotting my own universes and how they functioned for years afterwards. You may have issues with parts of it–it is a webcomic from the 2000s, after all–but I think it's very powerful, and I could write essays on the complex characterizations and messages.
Where's the Mother?: Stories from a Transgender Dad by Trevor MacDonald
A memoir written by a trans man about his experiences with pregnancy, giving birth, breastfeeding, and everything else that comes along with fatherhood. He finds a lot of humor in his situation, and his choices made me feel like pregnancy as a trans person was possible for me. A wonderful book about people supporting each other that's not afraid to deal with messy reality.
Webcomics
Links to the webcomics I enjoy!
Dumbing of Age | Read it here!
Dumbing of Age is a college webcomic. I enjoy it! Nearly everyone in it's large cast of characters is well-rounded and developed over the course of the decade+ the strip has been running. I will say that, while there's nothing on its website that legally requires an 18+ label, it does deal with adult situations such as alcoholism, assault, and sex. You'll see some naked bodies with speech bubbles carefully placed as censor bars. Just FYI 'cause I know I've got teens reading this website.
Kevin and Kell | Read it here!
Kevin and Kell holds the title of the longest continuously running webcomic in history, updating near-daily since September 4th, 1995. It's a furry webcomic in a world where all life is intelligent, and predation is a normal fact of life. The strip follows Kevin, a large rabbit, and Kell, a wolf, who after meeting online, fall in love and marry each other, facing judgement and discrimination from everyone who can't understand why a predator would marry prey. I read this in high school and recently got back into it.
Order of the Stick | Read it here!
Order of the Stick is the first webcomic I ever read, about a stick figure DnD party going on an adventure to kill a lich, and ending up ensnarled in the secret of a world-ending threat. It was introduced to me back in my early days of high school, and, believe it or not, it's still going! Getting close to its end, actually! People say the early comics didn't age well, and yeah, some of the jokes feel cruel, but personally I think it holds up really well, with nothing so egregious as to ruin the experience.
Paranatural | Read it here!
I like Paranatural a lot, though I don't have much to say about it. I like the direction it's going in with its storytelling format of "mostly text with some images;" not only was this a decision for the creator's health, but I personally really like it LOL.
Sleepless Domain | Read it here!
Sleepless Domain is great! I have so many theories! The world is interesting! The characters have fun designs! IDK what else to say it's really good.
Book Log
From 2023, these are the books I've finished, as well as short opinion of them, starting from the most recent.
June 2023
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
My boyfriend wanted me to read this, and while I struggled for a while to actually take the time to read it, once I made it midway through the book I could not put it down until it was done. A fantastical world of architecture and characters that are grounded in reality. I enjoyed it!
May 2023
I didn't read any books this month and I'm a little sad about it.
April 2023
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
I was intrigued by this book thanks to tumblr describing it as, "Sure, it's about lesbian necromancers in space, but that's like describing Everything Everywhere All At Once as 'a woman tries to do her taxes.'" So I read it! A fascinating world that I slowly grasped more of over the course of the book. I've got to get my hands on the next book in the series.
What's Next?
Unsure! I'm not a huge reader. There's a couple on my list, though…