April 2025 Wrap-up

April TBR Pile (32/33):

Bookworms BC: (not reading)
Friend BC: The Secret Book of Flora Lee by Patti Callahan Henry ✓
Friend BC: Her Last Flight by Beatriz William ✓
Nerdy Bookish Friends BC: Dawn by Octavia Butler
Kid Book Club: (not reading)
Kid Read Aloud: Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo ✓
Kid Read Aloud: Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell ✓
Kid Read Aloud: Matilda by Roald Dahl ✓
Kid Read Aloud: Willodeen by Katherine Applegate ✓
Romance: The Demon’s Queen by Katee Robert ✓
Romance: Sweet Obsession by Katee Robert ✓
Romance: Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson ✓
Fantasy: Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett ✓
Nonfiction: Kinky History by Esme Louise James ✓
Nonfiction: Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green ✓
Comics: Sex Criminals Vol. 5 ✓
Comics: Sex Criminals Vol. 6 ✓
Comics: Parasyte Vol. 2 ✓
Comics: Parasyte Vol. 3 ✓
Comics: Parasyte Vol. 4 ✓
Comics: Parasyte Vol. 5 ✓
Comics: Parasyte Vol. 6 ✓
Comics: Parasyte Vol. 7 ✓
Comics: Parayste Vol. 8 ✓
Comics: Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 1 ✓
Comics: Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 2 ✓
Comics: Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 3 ✓
Comics: Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 4 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 01 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 02 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 03 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 01 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 02 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 03 ✓
Comics: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 04 ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal

Monthly Total: 8971 pages
Pages Remaining: 162,551pages

Current Read - Shiver by Junji Ito; The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books Bought/Received (3)

I preordered Katee Robert’s newest book, Sweet Obsession.

At Half Price Books, we sold a ton and I only bought two for myself

The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman
The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling

UnRead Shelf Progress

Starting Number: 300
Books Read: 4
Books Acquired: 3
Books Unshelved: 0
Finishing Number: 299

May TBR Pile: Because of our travel plans, I’m really going to wing my TBR this coming month. We’ll see what happens!

Movies Watched

The Trouble with Jessica
The Day the Earth Caught Fire
A Working Man
Captain America: Brave New World

TV Shows Watched

Last Week Tonight
Clone High (2022)
Below Deck: Down Under
Interview with a Vampire S1
Um, Actually
Alice in Borderland S1
Kingpin Katie
Mythic Quest S4
The Studio
Game Changer S7
Dimension 20 S2: Escape from the Bloodkeep
Leverage: Redemption
Doctor Who S
SKZ Code S1
Stray Kids Two Kids Room (2019) Vol. 4-5
Stray Cuts (2017)
SKZ The 9th (2018)
SKZ & SKZ (2018)
SKZ Talker (2018-2019)
SKZ Talker Go (2018-2019)
Finding Stray Kids (2019)
CHOISKZ (2019)
One Kid’s Room (2019-2020)
Two Kids Room+1 (2020)
Finding Stray Kids: God Edition (2020)
Mysterious Kitchen (2021)
Kingdom: Legendary War (2021)

Comments - Wow! I may have broken my reading brain, but I have really dove into manga and enjoyed the journey. I imagine that May will also be full of manga. And I watched a lot of Stray Kids content for my television time. A worthwhile month.

Next up on the TBR pile:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 4

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 4

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media

Genre: Manga

Pages: 405

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

The conclusion of the fight against the Pillar Men! It has been a long and perilous journey for JoJo and his allies. Many battles have been fought and many lives lost. Now the final showdown with Wamuu is at hand, and armed with the red-hot desire to avenge his fallen comrade, JoJo faces an evil being so powerful it staggers the mind. Find out who prevails in this explosive finale!

We come to the end of Part 2 and I found myself being over this entire series. I’m not a huge fan of the characters. The art can be confusing when paired with action. And I dislike a lot of the exposition dumps. We are planning on trying to watch the anime version, but I think I am done reading the manga.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4

Next up on the TBR pile:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 3

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 3

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media

Genre: Manga

Pages: 261

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

JoJo and Caesar face their most powerful foe yet—the leader of the Pillar Men! Armed with the ability to create a weapon from any part of his body, he is more than a match for JoJo and his allies. And now that his brethren have fallen, he’s got a score to settle. Prepare for a battle unlike any before!

Another volume where I really liked parts of it, especially the sections involving Caesar, and didn’t love other parts, mostly JoJo. While the first JoJo was arrogant at times, he also understand honor and responsibility. His grandson is just annoying and I found it hard to root for him. The only parts that saved this volume involved Caesar. Loved him!

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Stray Kids "Item"

Based on my new obsession, I decided to do a Top 10 series of my favorite Stray Kids songs. There are so many songs, but I keep coming back to the same ones again and again. (I’m focusing on songs featuring all 8 members; no subunit or solo songs.)

The video game feel of this song really gets stuck in my head all the time. I also love the changes in melody throughout.

And just for fun, here’s a live performance version.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #11

As I look outside my window: It’s a dreary day out there.

Right now I am: Making meatballs for tonight’s spaghetti.

Thinking and pondering: What clothes should I pack for me? The weather is going to be all over the place while we are in Indiana.

On my bedside table: I have a stack of Japanese horror manga just waiting to be read. Plus I have the retreat book selections ready to read next.

On my tv this week: Mostly a lot of Stray Kids content. J and I watched a few of our usual shows, but nothing overly exciting.

Listening to: Lots of KPop… that’s about it.

On the menu for this week:

Monday - Teriyaki Chicken
Tuesday - Blackened Salmon
Wednesday - Travel Day
Thursday - Travel Day
Friday - Indiana
Saturday - Indiana
Sunday - Indiana

On my to do list: I need to finish packing for Indiana. Mostly I just need to do my clothes. I also want to vacuum the house and get some random piles picked up to leave the house in a decent shape.

Happening this week:

Monday - Home Day
Tuesday - Home Day
Wednesday - Travel Day
Thursday - Chicago Day
Friday - Indiana
Saturday - Alex’s Graduation
Sunday - Indiana

What I am creating: Nothing right this second. I have to finish getting ready to travel to Indiana.

My simple pleasures: Stray Kids, New-to-me television shows, that after picking up a room feeling of peace

Looking around the house: Speaking of the house, I have a few tasks I want to finish before Wednesday so I can come home to a put together house.

From the camera: I found our wine (the club we have belonged to for over a decade) at Target the other day. Didn’t buy any because why would I? But it was still fun to see it outside of California.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 2

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 2

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media 1988

Genre: Manga

Pages: 361

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

The battle against evil takes a diabolical twist as more Pillar Men awaken! Now it is up to Joseph Joestar and his new ally Caesar Zeppeli to try and stop their nefarious plan! But these are creatures of unimaginable power, and JoJo and Caesar will have to get a lot stronger to even stand a chance!

Yeah, the story got better! We get to meet a new fun ally with Caesar and a master of hamon Lisa Lisa. Those two really helped round out Joseph’s faults to make him more interesting and likable. I loved seeing the story move to Italy and explore more mysteries of the Pillar Men. We get some really high tension sequences and a big cliffhanger.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4

Next up on the TBR pile:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 1

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency Volume 1

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media 1988

Genre: Manga

Pages: 361

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

The beginning of the Battle Tendency Arc! The Joestar family is called upon to do battle against evil again! This time, it’s Joseph Joestar, the grandson of Jonathan Joestar! And his enemies are more powerful and diabolical than ever! Behold! The terror of the Pillar Men!

When started JoJo, I didn’t realize that we would be switching main characters between the parts. Once I recalibrated, I dove into this second part story and hoped to see some fun adventure. I must say that Joseph Joestar was a very arrogant and grating character in this volume. I wasn’t super excited about him, but was interested to see Pillar Man and how he is connected Dio. But the first volume was a bit more lackluster.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 2 Battle Tendency

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4

Next up on the TBR pile:

Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson

Title: Love in the Time of Serial Killers

Author: Alicia Thompson

Publisher: Berkley 2022

Genre: Romance

Pages: 352

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf; Read Around the USA - Florida

Where I Got It: Under the Cover, Kansas City, June 2024

Spice Rating: 4

PhD candidate Phoebe Walsh has always been obsessed with true crime. She's even analyzing the genre in her dissertation—if she can manage to finish writing it. It's hard to find the time while she spends the summer in Florida, cleaning out her childhood home, dealing with her obnoxiously good-natured younger brother, and grappling with the complicated feelings of mourning a father she hadn't had a relationship with for years.

It doesn't help that she's low-key convinced that her new neighbor, Sam Dennings, is a serial killer (he may dress business casual by day, but at night he's clearly up to something). It's not long before Phoebe realizes that Sam might be something much scarier—a genuinely nice guy who can pierce her armor to reach her vulnerable heart.

I grabbed this at the retreat last year hoping for a great witty, steamy, slightly dark romance. Instead, we got a very slow-moving, low-steam, traditional romcom romance. I couldn’t really connect to the pairing of Phoebe and Sam. They started out with a silly meet cute, but then went into a holding pattern for most of the book. The story is really focused more on Phoebe and her unease with her life than the romance aspect. It read more like women’s fiction than romance. And Phoebe grated on my at many points in the story. She was just a fairly unlikeable character. I really got bored about halfway through the book. I pushed through, but even the ending did not bring it back up for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood Volume 3

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood Volume 3

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media 1988

Genre: Manga

Pages: 339

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series; Books to Movies

Where I Got It: Library

The legendary Shonen Jump series, now available in English for the first time, in a deluxe edition featuring color pages and newly drawn cover art! JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a groundbreaking manga famous for its outlandish characters, wild humor and frenetic battles. A multigenerational tale of the heroic Joestar family and their never-ending battle against evil!

The conclusion of the Phantom Blood Arc! Jonathan Joestar and his mentor Zeppelli continue their pursuit of the villainous vampire, Dio! But to get to him, they must first face down his murderous henchmen! In battle after bloody battle, JoJo and Zeppeli are pushed to their limits and beyond!

And we close out the Phantom Blood story arc. I enjoyed how the story went overall. It was a fun big adventure story between good and evil. But I must say the confusing art panels during action pulled me out of the story sometimes. My biggest complaint is actually that many times throughout the story, the author tells instead of shows. There was weird exposition panels mostly narrated by Speedwagon. With the ending in this volume, I wonder where the bigger story is going to go next.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3

Next up on the TBR pile:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood Volume 2

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood Volume 2

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media 1987

Genre: Manga

Pages: 319

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

The legendary Shonen Jump series, now available in English for the first time, in a deluxe edition featuring color pages and newly drawn cover art! JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a groundbreaking manga famous for its outlandish characters, wild humor and frenetic battles. A multigenerational tale of the heroic Joestar family and their never-ending battle against evil!

As if Dio wasn't diabolical enough, now he's an immortal vampire with incredible strength! But Jonathan Joestar's not one to back down, even when it seems like victory is impossible! It's a classic battle! Good versus evil! Grit and determination against power and arrogance! Who will win?!

Thankfully we get into the supernatural, bizarreness of this story in this volume. We see the big setup between JoJo and Dio and the beginning of their ultimate fight. We get some random fun characters introduced including Jojo’s random sidekick Speedwagon. I was slightly distracted by some of the art panels. During the high action sequences, the actual workings got a little confusing. We’ll see how this plays out.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3

Next up on the TBR pile:

Sex Criminals Vol. 6: Six Criminals

Title: Sex Criminal Vol. 6: Six Criminals

Author: Matt Fraction, Chip Zdarsky

Publisher: Image 2020

Genre: Comics

Pages: 136

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

The grand finale! The big finish! The climax! We speak, of course, about this, the end of the award-winning, boundary-pushing, taste-challenging SEX CRIMINALS. Suze and Jon have sex, stop time, and rob banks. The bank went after them. Now Suze and Jon finish off the bank, the Sex Police, and the bad guys all in one pop, hoping to dodge a huge load of trouble before it explodes in their faces.
Collects SEX CRIMINALS #26-30, 69

Finally this story wraps up and I am just really nonplussed about the entire thing. I loved the conceit and setup of the story, but then it just felt like we wandered around for many many issues. I just couldn’t seem to care about the characters. Oh well, I finished the series.

Sex Criminals

Next up on the TBR pile:

Sex Criminals Vol. 5: Five-Fingered Discount

Title: Sex Criminal Vol. 5: Five-Fingered Discount

Author: Matt Fraction, Chip Zdarsky

Publisher: Image Comics 2018

Genre: Comics

Pages: 128

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

Suzie and Jon have that special something—when they have sex, they freeze time and do crimes. Well—they HAD that special something. In the aftermath of what would appear to be a breakup, where do our two love-crazy time-freezing sex-having bank robbers go? REBOUND AHOY! Also everything gets more dangerous and complicated? But it's okay. Collects SEX CRIMINALS #21-25

After the events of volume 4, I was a bit reluctant to continue the series. I was just a bit bored by the schtick. Suzie and Jon seem to be just wandering around the world completely lost. And this volume keeps at it. I just was bored with this. We get some movement of the big mystery plot, but I still felt like I was going through the motions with this one.

Sex Criminals

Next up on the TBR pile:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood Volume 1

Title: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood Volume 1

Author: Hirohiko Araki

Publisher: VIZ Media 1987

Genre: Manga

Pages: 245

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

The legendary Shonen Jump series, now available in English for the first time, in a deluxe edition featuring color pages and newly drawn cover art! JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a groundbreaking manga famous for its outlandish characters, wild humor and frenetic battles. A multigenerational tale of the heroic Joestar family and their never-ending battle against evil!

Young Jonathan Joestar’s life is forever changed when he meets his new adopted brother, Dio. For some reason, Dio has a smoldering grudge against him and derives pleasure from seeing him suffer. But every man has his limits, as Dio finds out. This is the beginning of a long and hateful relationship!

I don’t exactly know what I was expecting with this series. But it shows up on all the greatest manga series lists and I had to put it on our list. The first volume was slightly disappointing. I realize that we had to set up the entire series and main characters. But I was expecting the supernatural and the bizarre to have more of a presence. Instead, we get a very slow moving story at first. By the end of the volume, I am still going to keep reading, but I really hope that it gets better.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Phantom Blood

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #6

Reading: My reading brain is still a bit broken and so I’m all about horror manga right now. I checked out so many Junji Ito story collections for the next few weeks.

Watching: Working my way through all the Stray Kids content. I’m up to early 2021. Still far behind, but loving the journey.

Listening: Still love my Stray Kids, but I have branched out in the Kpop world. BabyMonster and BlackPink (and Jennie, Lisa, and Rose’s solo albums) are on current rotation.

Making: We’re heading to Indiana next week for Alex’s graduation. I haven’t started actively packing, but you better believe that I have travel piles around the house.

Feeling: Sleep has been elusive lately. I am tired.

Planning: Co-op Field Day is coming at the end of the May and it’s a big to-do. Thankfully this year I have a cohost to help me pull this off. It’s a big project, but years of doing it has helped me create a workflow.

Loving: After falling down the K-Pop hole, I’m slowly converting a friend to a STAY. Beyond the fun SKZ content I send her, we have an ongoing fun message exchange on Insta. Her messages are always a bright spot of my day.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W29: A Normal Week I Guess

What We Studied

We pushed through and finished a pretty normal week for us. My body decided to make me cancel Friday’s hike, but we did engage in a few other activities this week.

Literature and Poetry

Arthur is primarily using Hearth and Story G5 for his language arts this year. Arthur started and finished the June Co-op Book Club selection. I was feeling in the mood for some good adventure fantasy and this one looked perfect. Arthur ended up not loving the second half, but I did. We also covered more grammar and extra language arts assignments.

Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

Quentin is primarily using Blossom & Root G1 for his language arts this year. We will pull some elements from Build Your Library Level 2 and random books that we have around the house. We continued reading a classic.

Poetry: Fresh-Picked Poetry: A Day at the Farmer’s Market by Michelle Schaub
Matilda by Roald Dahl

Math

Arthur is using Singapore’s Math in Focus Course 1. Effectively this is Singapore’s 6th grade math text. We got back into our math textbook and completed a chapter about Statistics. Only one more chapter to go!

Math in Focus Course 1 Book B

Quentin is using Singapore’s Primary Mathematics Common Core edition 2B and 3A. We moved onto 3A starting slow to easy back into our lessons. Taking it slow but moving along.

Singapore Primary 3A
Primarily Logic

Social Studies

Arthur is using Curiosity Chronicles Early Modern History Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 this year. Beyond random documentaries and museum visits, we will be pausing our history study until August.

Quentin is using History Quest Middle Times with Build Your Library Level 2 as his main history curriculum. We will be pausing history until August.

Science

Arthur finished his RSO Biology 1 course with the end of the academic co-op. We switched gears a bit and covered a few BookSeeds from Blossom & Root.

Quentin finished RSO Earth & Environment and RSO Astronomy 1 as a base. He started a side unit about oceans. We got through multiple topics and watched a few episodes of Blue Planet to reinforce.

A First Book of the Sea by Nicola Davies
Ocean by Stacy McAnulty
Oceans by Peter Benoit
Ocean Anatomy by Julia Rothman
DK Earth's Incredible Oceans by Jess French
DK Ocean
Discover the Oceans: Southern Ocean by Emily Rose Oachs
Discover the Oceans: Pacific Ocean by Emily Rose Oachs
Discover the Oceans: Indian Ocean by Emily Rose Oachs
Discover the Oceans: Atlantic Ocean by Emily Rose Oachs
Discover the Oceans: Arctic Ocean by Emily Rose Oachs
How Deep is the Ocean? by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld
Otis and Will Discover the Deep: The Record-Setting Dive of the Bathysphere by Barb Rosenstock and Katherine Roy
Diving Deep: Using Machines to Explore the Ocean by Michelle Cusolito
Sandy Feet! Whose Feet? Footprints At the Shore by Susan Wood
Seashores by Cathryn Sill
DK Shell
Seashells: More Than a Home by Melissa Stewart
A Nature Walk at the Beach by Louise and Richard Spilsbury
Tide Pool by Louise Spilsbury
A Turtle's View of the Ocean Blue by Catherine Barr
Coral Reefs by Precious McKenzie
One Night in the Coral Sea by Sneed B. Collard III
Coral Reefs by Cathryn Sill
Seagrass Dreams by Kathleen M. Hanes

Enrichment Co-op

We covered our third week of co-op. The transition to a new park worked well. The classes seemed to go really well. Arthur learned about sugar chemistry. Quentin learned about the scientific method through experiments with Peeps.

Art and Music

Art will be very sporadic this year, but we do have some fun excursions planned. And I will incorporate art projects into a lot of other subjects and unit studies.

For music, we are using Music Lab: We Rock! as our spine. Each week we will be learning about a different rock musician and focus on a particular song. I have also created Spotify playlists so we can listen on the go. We listened to Fleetwood Mac to finish the New Rock Sound chapter. The boys were not huge fans (I do not understand this sentiment). We moved onto the New Wave chapter with Roxy Music and Devo. Boys weren’t super excited about these bands but we had fun discussing how different they are from the last chapter’s bands.

Music Lab: We Rock!
DK Music and How it Works
DK The Arts

Field Trip/Activities

Wednesday we had our monthly exploration at Joslyn Art Museum. The kids focused on light and shadow by taking pictures in the outdoor sculpture gardens. I think Arthur had more fun chatting with friends than taking pictures, but it was a lovely day to look at some art.

High

We got so much schoolwork done this week. We are in a great position to take off from school the two weeks we are in Indiana. And when we come back, our load will be light.

Low

Very sad to miss our Friday hike at Platte River State Park. My body was revolting and I just couldn’t bring myself to drive down there and then hike.

Next Week

Reading more literature
Moving forward with our math textbooks; very close to being done
Exploring the ocean (Q) for science
Listening to Blondie and David Bowie for music!
Transitioning to a more summer routine of activities and schoolwork

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Nothing More "We're All Gonna Die"

Loving the new song from a favorite band of mine.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 4

Title: Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 4

Author: Gege Akutami

Publisher: VIZ Media LLC 2019

Genre: Comics

Pages: 200

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Finishing the Series

Where I Got It: Library

In a world where cursed spirits feed on unsuspecting humans, fragments of the legendary and feared demon Ryomen Sukuna have been lost and scattered about. Should any demon consume Sukuna’s body parts, the power they gain could destroy the world as we know it. Fortunately, there exists a mysterious school of jujutsu sorcerers who exist to protect the precarious existence of the living from the supernatural!

While investigating a strange set of mysterious deaths, Itadori meets Junpei, a troubled kid who is often bullied at school. However, Junpei is also befriended by the culprit behind the bloody incident—Mahito, a mischievous cursed spirit! Mahito sets in motion a devious plan involving Junpei, hoping to ensnare Itadori as well.

Hmmm…. I really assumed that Junpei would be a character that would hang around for longer in this series. I thought we were going to get a bit more emotional conflict with Itadori and Junpei being on opposite sides. But we quickly get rid of Junpei and focus back on the conflict between Mahito and the Sorcerers. I am interested in the lore that was revealed and how this will play into the larger storyline.

Jujutsu Kaisen

Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4
Volume 5
Volume 6
Volume 7
Volume 8
Volume 9
Volume 10
Volume 11
Volume 12
Volume 13
Volume 14
Volume 15
Volume 16
Volume 17
Volume 18
Volume 19
Volume 20
Volume 21
Volume 22
Volume 23
Volume 24
Volume 25

Next up on the TBR pile:

Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green

Title: Everything is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection

Author: John Green

Publisher: Crash Course Books 2025

Genre: Nonfiction - Science, History

Pages: 208

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf; Nonfiction Reader

Where I Got It: Preordered in 2025!

Tuberculosis has been entwined with humanity for millennia. Once romanticized as a malady of poets, today tuberculosis is seen as a disease of poverty that walks the trails of injustice and inequity we blazed for it.

In 2019, author John Green met Henry Reider, a young tuberculosis patient at Lakka Government Hospital in Sierra Leone. John became fast friends with Henry, a boy with spindly legs and a big, goofy smile. In the years since that first visit to Lakka, Green has become a vocal advocate for increased access to treatment and wider awareness of the healthcare inequities that allow this curable, preventable infectious disease to also be the deadliest, killing over a million people every year.

In Everything Is Tuberculosis, John tells Henry’s story, woven through with the scientific and social histories of how tuberculosis has shaped our world—and how our choices will shape the future of tuberculosis.

I really appreciate John Green’s ability to weave hard science and history with emotional human stories and somehow not make it seem trite or manipulative. We get a comprehensive history of tuberculosis, its place in society, and current state. We get some beautiful and tragic human stories weaving in and out. I really loved hearing personal stories of dealing with the disease. Along the way, Green also includes his own commentary about his obsession with tuberculosis. I absolutely loved this short book.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams

Title: Her Last Flight

Author: Beatriz Williams

Publisher: William Morrow 2020

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 400

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf; Read Around the USA - Hawaii

Where I Got It: Won on Goodreads

In 1947, photographer and war correspondent Janey Everett arrives at a remote surfing village on the Hawaiian island of Kauai to research a planned biography of forgotten aviation pioneer Sam Mallory, who joined the loyalist forces in the Spanish Civil War and never returned. Obsessed with Sam’s fate, Janey has tracked down Irene Lindquist, the owner of a local island-hopping airline, whom she believes might actually be the legendary Irene Foster, Mallory’s onetime student and flying partner. Foster’s disappearance during a round-the-world flight in 1937 remains one of the world’s greatest unsolved mysteries.

At first, the flinty Mrs. Lindquist denies any connection to Foster. But Janey informs her that the wreck of Sam Mallory’s airplane has recently been discovered in a Spanish desert, and piece by piece, the details of Foster’s extraordinary life emerge: from the beginnings of her flying career in Southern California, to her complicated, passionate relationship with Mallory, to the collapse of her marriage to her aggressive career manager, the publishing scion George Morrow.

As Irene spins her tale to its searing conclusion, Janey’s past gathers its own power. The duel between the two women takes a heartstopping turn. To whom does Mallory rightfully belong? Can we ever come to terms with the loss of those we love, and the lives we might have lived?

I was excited to read this book based on a few previous Williams’ books. Unfortunately, this one did not really land for me. I was intrigued by the topic of female aviators. The idea that this was partially based on Amelia Earhart pulled me in also. But then I started reading it and was immediately turned off by the main characters. Irene and Janey are in turns annoying and infuriating. I don’t always need to have amazing characters to connect with, but these two were really frustrating. Beyond those two characters, I didn’t ever buy the “romance” between Irene and Same. It just seemed like they were two people in close proximity, but no real relationship was shown. And don’t get me started on the big “twist” revealed near the end. I just wasn’t into this book at all.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

Exploring the local art museum with other homeschool families is always so delightful. It helps that it was a beautiful day yesterday.
Finally going beyond just Stray Kids in my Kpop obsession. But don’t worry, I still love my Stray Kids so much.
I really need to focus on a brain dump this week to help get it all out. I have so many projects in progress and need to organize a bit.
Went to the Asian Market yesterday for kimchi and came out with my new favorite treat: Green Tea Samanco! So good!

Next up on the TBR pile: