Welcome to Litsy!

Based on 1 of the darkest Malaysian history, it‘s about Melati, a 16 years old with OCD mental illness. Her turbulent ride during the emergency from losing her best friend to finding her mom, it was a harrowing ride indeed. I‘ve enjoyed the book overall despite being reminded of those horror incident way back then. This is my pick for February #bookspin #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

The racial riots of May 13, 1969 were such a dark blot in Malaysia's history that we still can't talk about it without official sanctions, & the death toll (of the minority Chinese population, especially) is contested. I'm glad that this YA novel set during that time exists, & that the protagonist is an unconventional young girl afflicted with OCD. My main complaint about this is that it suffers from a similar problem that books about Malaysia ⬇️

A character referred to violence as "hanky-panky." That's, uh, that's not what that word means. ??

"By the time school ends on Tuesday, my mother has died seventeen times."
Today in notable first sentences.

#MagnificentMarch Day 5: The story is set in 1969, when racial tension between the Chinese & Malays has reached fever pitch in Malaysia, resulting to genocide & brutal slayings perpetrated by one ethnic group against another. Amidst this historical backdrop, the reader is introduced to a young & guileless teenage voice, Melati Ahmad, who is suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder. #AboutMentalIllness. My review: https://wp.me/pDlzr-k2C

Yay #bookmail
It Would Be Night in Caracas by Karina Sainz Borgo - a work of translated fiction by a Venezuelan-born writer.
The ebook is You Beneath Your Skin by @damyantig and is set in New Delhi and promises a tale of murder and corruption. Its main character is a single mother with an autistic teenage son.
My friend sent me this copy of The Weight of Our Sky who was at the Asian Festival of Children‘s Content in Singapore.

This is not a lighthearted book (shout out to the author for including trigger warnings) but so incredibly impactful & moving. Melati is a teen struggling w severe OCD in 1969 Kuala Lumpur when the race riots that ended in the murder of between 160-600 people began. Determined to reunite with her mother, she sees the best & worst of humanity over the span of a week as a Chinese family takes her in and she learns to trust herself and her instincts.

#BFC week one update! I read a bunch of books at ALAAC19 (six in total, including the tagged book), walked a ton, did a bunch of yoga, and ran when I got home. Next week, I‘ll have a normal schedule, so I should get in plenty of runs and yoga practices! It‘ll also be the start of summer vacation slash freelance copy editing. All in all, a good first week of #BookFitnessChallenge!

A well researched and unique story of the post election race riots of 1969 as seen through the eyes of a teenage Muslim girl. It follows Melati, who shows strength to overcome her mental illness during the harrowing week when she got separated from her mother as the street riots and curfew took over. There‘s a lot of humanity among the destruction and violence.👇 (cont.)

#Booked2019 #MuslimAuthorOrMC

(Trigger: graphic violence, racial slurs.)

#30JuneBooks #Bookstack

A stack I put aside for my reading this month. A couple of books for buddy read, one current read, and the rest may or may not be read this month, depending on my mood then.

Currently reading- appreciated the author's note/trigger warning.

Set during a pretty horrific week of Malaysian history. The main character has OCD, which reads annoying/frustrating at times, but I figure that's the point. Also, very much trigger warning for violence, both invasive thoughts of the main character and actual actions of several characters.

#goodreads (27 | 80)

Have had a rough weekend and spent what I could just sinking into books. This is tonight‘s read.

This is the rest of today‘s #indie #bookhaul. 😍😍 #retailtherapy #booktherapy

I love that they had journals with a pit bull (it says “beware of pit bulls, they will steal you heart” and a chihuahua so I got one for me and one for @dsfisher 😁

Traveled all the way to Malaysia for lunch, dessert, and a 2-hour aromatherapy massage (Johor Bahru, specifically). One of the many perks of living in Singapore, making day trips like this super convenient, fast, reliable. Naturally, I had to buy a local title that has gone international: setting is in Kuala Lumpur in 1969! Plus, it‘s one of our picks for my #IRL Book Club. Looking forward to reading this one. #WomenReadWomen2019

Probably a new favorite of mine. Extremely import read between history most of us don‘t know and the way mental illness is handled so well it‘s just an amazing read. Gory and violent but still really amazing.

Okay I know I've done a lot of book roundups for the beginning of the year, but there are just so many great new books coming out this year that I can't help getting hyped for. So anyway, here are 50 more of the YA variety:

https://bookriot.com/2019/01/04/50-ya-books-for-2019/