What Stars Are Made Of - Sarah Allen 

When Libby learns that her older sister is pregnant, she is ecstatic at the thought of a new baby. But then come all the worries, what if the baby has the same problems she's had? Nonny's husband recently lost his job, how will they cope? Then she comes up with an audacious plan that will solve everything, if she can pull it off.

I absolutely loved Libby right from the start. I just wanted to give her a big hug and protect her from the world. She's so smart and determined, with a slightly hyper-active mind and a thousand thoughts a minute. The library is her best friend, but she also has tons of friends in her head. All the lesser known, underestimated, scientists and contributors to the world that she hears about.

I used this mug at work and it made me think of Libby, when you've read the book you'll know why...

I loved how the details about Libby are revealed gradually, ensuring you never see Libby as anything but a girl like any other. She's going through many of the things all young girls go through, albeit with some additional challenges. But she never lets anything stop her. She even delays reading about something in case it tells her she's not supposed to be able to do things. She's much more interested in the many things she CAN do.

This was such an incredible story, I just can't express how wonderful this book is! I got emotional way too many times and learnt some great new words such as Kintsugi. I also really want to learn more about Cecilia Payne. I think it is brilliant for teaching younger readers (and older ones) about acceptance. It really makes you think about how you see people and what can be going on in their lives that you just don't know about. The author's acknowledgement at the end is really touching. All about wanting to reach out and write about others like her.

Kintsugi

The art of filling in cracks in ceramic with liquid gold rather than throwing them away. 

In this way the flawed becomes even more beautiful.

I made a Blue Star to go with the book. Shake 1.5 shots gin, 3/4 shots Blue Curacao, Martini Extra Dry & fresh orange juice with ice. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Retelling Challenge

As you probably know if you've been following me a while, I love getting involved in reading challenges. It's fun matching books to different prompts or themes, discussing your reading with others doing the challenge and best of all it's an incentive to increase my reading.

One of the challenges I'm really excited about this year is the 2020 Retellings Reading Challenge run by Cornerfolds. Any retellings count towards your goal but to make it even more fun there's a bingo board to go with the challenge, with 24 prompts and one free square.

Here are a few of the books I've matched to prompts:

Mulan - Unravel the Dusk by Elizabeth Lim

Author Duo - A Crown of Talons by Katharine Corr & Elizabeth Corr

POC Author - Cinder & the Prince of Midnight by Susan Ee

Sherlock Holmes - The Holborn Toy Shop and other Stories by Maurice Barkley

German Myth/Fairy Tale - The Sisters Grimm by Menna Van Praag

Sirens or Mermaids - The Surface Breaks by Louise O'Neill

There are 5 challenge levels and I am attempting the hardest one, Fairest of Them All: 21-25 books. So far I've read 4 books for the challenge, 3 of which actually fit the bingo prompts. 

If you want to get involved just click here to go to the Challenge page and sign up. I'd love to know what you'll be reading. Do you have any favourite retellings? Are you attempting any reading challenges? Let me know in the comments.