What will 2019 be for you?

It’s hard to say goodbye

It's hard to say goodbye to a dream, To a ship that never set sail To a bird whose broken wing never healed. Even so, persevere. The power of flight doesn't end with one death Today, I'm facing a hard goodbye. A counselor's work is never without its hardships. I choose to honor my loss. …

On the Road to Healing

Healing takes communication. I'd like to be up front and say that, for now, I will be taking time to work on my trauma and center myself. Losing myself to grief wasn't on the agenda, but like every good writer, I push ahead. Sometimes the toughest choice is being open to asking for help. I …

Push – Book Review

Clareece Precious Jones is sixteen and pregnant, her first child born out of her father's sexual abuse and rape. Walking the vicious streets of Harlem is nothing for Precious. Her raging mother doesn't think that Precious is doing anything but wasting time by trying to get her G.E.D. Even with the ghetto before her and …

History is All You Left Me – Book Review

In his sophomore book, Adam Silvera examines grief and loss with devastating scrutiny. History is All You Left Me centers on Griffin, who is torn between a past where he's in love with his first boyfriend, Theo, and a present in which Theo drowned while swimming with his new boyfriend, Jackson. To make matters worse, …

Artistotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe – Book Review

Summary Far from star struck, fifteen year-old Aristotle Mendoza is weighted down by a strong sense of bitterness and boredom. It's 1987. His summer is uneventful as hell. He has a tender mom and war-stricken father looking out for him, but it's not enough. However, all that changes during a trip to the local community …

Wild – Book Review

Author Cheryl Strayed has lived up to her name. Self-described as "an ambitious overachiever and aspiring writer who hopped from one meaningless job to the next," Cheryl is also a soul pioneer. When life beats her to a pulp, Cheryl responds by leaving her old existence behind. With a fire in her spirit and wanderlust …

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men – Book Review

Summary David Foster Wallace is a titan among literary writers. Even in death, his works continue to offer countless readers one mind-bending and soul-shattering exercise after another. Such is the case with Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, an anthology of short stories, essays, media transcripts, and stream of consciousness accounts. These somewhat disparate entries come …

Infinite Jest – Book Review

Summary A sober living house, a tennis academy, and a futuristic nation fixated on entertainment cartridges. With a deft eye and scathingly black comedic tone, David Foster Wallace has woven a narrative that spans not only over a thousand pages, but also more than a dozen tortured and ultimately unforgettable souls. This is Infinite Jest. A …

House of Leaves – Book Review

Summary What lies at the heart of House of Leaves is a labyrinth, one carefully concealed inside a seemingly benign house. Or is it? After Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Will Navidson, his estranged partner, Karen Green, and their two children move into the house on Ash Tree Lane, they discover that the place is slightly bigger on the …