All teenagers go through a period in their life where they do not like something about themselves. In Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol. Anya does not like certain aspects about herself, such as her weight and where she comes from and that idea is highlighted many times. Through these insecurities, Emily is able to manifest her way … Continue reading The Perfect Person →

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily Danforth made me laugh and made me cry, which I could expect based solely off the description on the back cover. I did not expect this novel to fill me with as much rage as it did. It was infuriating to read about the blatant homophobia displayed by … Continue reading Homophobia and Gender Expression in The Miseducation of Cameron Post →

From the underrepresentation of female characters to toxic masculinity, gender stereotypes are prominent throughout literature. Something I was interested in prior to taking this course and hoped to gain more insight on is the similarities and differences in the portrayal of male and female adolescence. I was sure to find many biases and misrepresentation based … Continue reading The War on Gender →

From the time our country was founded, society has created a standard of what kind of people are “good” or “normal” and has punished people who are different. Throughout our nation’s history are many examples of groups of people being oppressed and discriminated against by other groups who believe they’re superior. This oppression and discrimination … Continue reading Opposing the Standard of What is “Good” and “Bad” →

Julien Gruber Dread Nation, by Justina Ireland is a wonderfully creative take on the classic zombie novel. As I first began the novel, I was wildly intrigued by the concept of a post civil-war zombie apocalypse and how race relations and limited technology would play a role in the story. I have previously read multiple … Continue reading Dread Nation: Contemporary takes in a civil war era zombie novel →

In both The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily Danforth and If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Danforth, the adolescents, Cameron and Lewis respectively, are forced to assimilate into a white, straight, Christian, male-dominated society.  Cameron is being forced to go to a gay conversion school while Lewis is sent to a … Continue reading Assimilation Starts With An Ass →

            Living in a negative environment can be tough to get through, but it can play a role as a major motivator to reach a better place; experiencing the bad leads to a relentless pursuit towards the good. In The House On Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros tells the story of Esperanza, a Mexican American adolescent … Continue reading Shedding Light on The Mexican American Experience →

  One text that I have yet to write about is The Miseducation of Cameron Post. I have not written about this text, because this book touches on a subject that I am not entirely familiar with. Although I have friends that identify themselves as homosexuals, I do not have any best friends that would put themselves … Continue reading The Education of Jason Rittman →

Anya’s Ghost is interesting, most obviously, for its medium. It’s not often you’re assigned a graphic novel for a college level English literature course; the first thing to come to your mind would probably be old novels set in Victorian England with a main character named something really conspicuous and written like the author was … Continue reading Getting Graphic →

The Lowell Offering, written by the Mill Women of New England between 1840 and 1845, really captured my attention earlier in the semester. I have been intimidated to write a long post about this collection of stories, even though I really enjoyed it and felt like I learned a unique perspective by reading it. It … Continue reading Reading “The Lowell Offering” and Confronting a Sad Reality →