Review: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Edition: Balzer + Bray Hardback
Release Date: February 28th 2017
Pages: 464
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Source: Pre-ordered from The Book Depository
Links: Goodreads | Author's Website | Buy the book

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend, Khalil, at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, Khalil’s death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Starr’s best friend at school suggests he may have had it coming. When it becomes clear the police have little interest in investigating the incident, protesters take to the streets and Starr’s neighborhood becomes a war zone. What everyone wants to know is: What really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.
But what Starr does—or does not—say could destroy her community. It could also endanger her life.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is without a doubt the greatest, if not most powerful, book you will read this year. It is necessary, it is groundbreaking and it is topical. It is also one of the most overwhelmingly sentimental reads I have ever had the pleasure of reading and I truly feel so grateful to Angie Thomas for what she has brought into the world.

Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, The Hate U Give (T.H.U.G.) details the complex life of Starr, a black teenager who witnesses her unarmed friend Khalil, get shot by a police officer, changing her life as she knows it. Starr lives in two separate worlds, one with her family in Garden Heights (a predominately black neighbourhood permeated with gang wars) and the other at a private "bougie" school in Williamson Prep where Starr is one of the few black students. 

To me, The Hate U Give made every other book feel insignificant. It tackled issues such as police brutality, gang wars, white privilege, domestic violence, drug use and interracial relationships. The themes addressed were ones of great importance which are too often silenced in Young Adult fiction.  The politics of the book itself cannot help but provoke serious thought from its readers and it's potential to challenge mindsets is undeniable. Angie Thomas left no storyline undeveloped and over the course of 464 pages, it lays the perfect grounds for a movie. I could not stop turning pages, action and heartache were everywhere, activating every feeling within me. 

"Williamson Starr doesn’t use slang—if a rapper would say it, she doesn’t say it, even if her white friends do. Slang makes them cool. Slang makes her “hood.”"

One of the greatest things about T.H.U.G is that it basically silences the argument that diverse fiction is exclusive and unnecessary. It's compelling and influential narrative is diverse fiction and #ownvoices personified (it is so accurate and so authentic) and the message it leaves is clear. Angie Thomas brings forth some much-needed truths, dismantling a system which undervalues the lives of people of colour and reduces them to a hashtag, another statistic without justice. Her debut is revolutionary. 

As a biracial teenager (African American and Australian), this book did SO much for me. Having grown up with an African American culture that has greatly shaped my identity, I have never truly felt represented within YA fiction - an issue all too familiar to minority groups without a voice in literature. Sure, being white passing and Australian (I recognize the level of white privilege I have and the fact that it has shielded me from the systematic racism experienced by other Women of Colour) I have been able to relate to protagonists within YA fiction based on a few various characteristics or interests. However, it wasn't until reading T.H.U.G that I realised not only how it good it felt to see a huge portion of your identity reflected in a book but how badly I'd been craving it. 

"Funny. Slave masters thought they were making a difference in black people's lives too. Saving them from their "wild African ways". Same shit, different century. I wish people like them would stop thinking that people like me need saving."

My heart was overwhelmed with how much I found myself identifying with and rooting for Starr - despite her being way braver than me and admittedly living a reality quite different to mine. I resonated with Starr's need to accommodate and to a degree, assimilate. Carefully choosing what parts of herself she revealed to avoid being stereotyped and tokenized. I could relate to the feelings of irritation at microaggressions she dealt with, especially the way she bit her tongue when her friends casually made insensitive and sometimes downright racist comments. 

“It's dope to be black until it's hard to be black.” 

I related to her unconventional family, who were loving and protective fighters loyal to one another and dismissive of that whole half-sibling bull. They were a family. Tight-knit and ride or die. Ultimately, incredibly endearing and captivating. They reminded me so much of my own tribe and the way we were raised to be. Literally, I lose count of how many times I said to myself, "Oh my lord, my Mother says that to me all the god damn time" or "Oh my lord I feel that way all the god damn time". That's the power of diverse fiction right there. It's honestly indescribable. They were characters who talked, looked and behaved like me and my family. I want to protect, befriend and dance with them all. Argh, they are all so precious to me! This book is so precious to me! I can't imagine how moved other black readers felt when reading this. 

“People like us in situations like this become hashtags, but they rarely get justice. I think we all wait for that one time though, that one time when it ends right. Maybe.” 

There were so many dynamic subplots and secondary characters which really enriched the plot of the story. The unexpected involvement of Devante, the exploration of Starr's relationship with her white boyfriend Chris and the role of Starr's police officer uncle Carlos, were all subplots that really interested me. But then again, every facet of this book interested me. I never knew it was possible to fit so much into 464 pages - surprisingly, not long enough.

Yesterday T.H.U.G. debuted at number one on the New York Times Bestseller list, and no one has deserved that more than Angie Thomas. It is an amazing milestone for Women of Colour and for diverse fiction, a must within our community. Congratulations! Angie, I am making it my personal mission to ensure everyone reads your book - but with tissues in hand because it is so bloody emotive and raw! T.H.U.G. is dare I say...flawless. It's going to be the next big thing, I just know it. 

Thank you for providing me with more than just a new favourite book. Thank you for giving me a slice of representation. Thank you for giving People of Colour representation. Thank you for drawing attention to and educating others on the many black lives who did not receive the justice they deserved. To end, in the wise words of Tupac I quote, "The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody." 

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Required Reading: 5 Books to fuel your Feminism in 2017!

Unless you've been hiding underneath a rock, you'd have noticed that aside from the tragic Inauguration, the past two days have been filled with incredible badassery, strength and unity from women and men all over the world in the name of Women's rights. The #WomensMarch has seen what I can only imagine to be millions of feminists and allies, all over the world resisting the Trump presidency and supporting women's issues.

As a mixed woman, as a human and as a intersectional feminist, my heart and twitter timeline (obviously) is overwhelmed with joy and pride. I unfortunately could not make it to the Sydney March on account of work, but I stand in unity and in solidarity with all of the wonderful beings who marched for and despite those who couldn't or wouldn't.

Check out photos from the #WomensMarch here and look at the hashtag for some amazing tweets.

To plagiarise my twitter self: The magic of #WomensMarch has cleared my skin and extended my life by at least 5 years. Don't question it. I'm sure of it. 2017 is or should be, the year of empowered women and empowering women...and I'm so down for that.

In honour of today, I wanted to push that our feminism is always inclusive, always intersectional, always welcoming, always supportive and always evolving. Because... (to quote a fab sign from the marches that I saw on twitter) FEMINISM THAT ISNT INTERSECTIONAL IS JUST CISHET, ABLE BODIED WHITE SUPREMACY! Let's use the energy and momentum of this march to fuel our feminism, our resistance and our protest, today, tomorrow and the next day for ALL women, of ALL colours, sexualities, religions, demographics, backgrounds and more. 

In order to do this and to keep more informed, it's important that we continue to learn about feminism and the intersections of oppression which mean that other marginalised communities experience things differently than we do. So I want to recommend you 5 amazing reads which will fuel your feminism in 2017, reads which have been so invaluable and empowering to me, and should ultimately be required reading for everyone. Read, enjoy, share and discuss!

1. Ain't I A Women: Black women and feminism by Bell Hooks
2. Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock
3. Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center by Bell Hooks
4. Fight Like A Girl by Clementine Ford
5. I Call Myself A Feminist: The View from 25 Women Under 30 by Victoria Pepe (and others)

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Reflecting on 5 years of blogging!

On January 3rd 2011, a geeky little kid named Sunny who wanted nothing more than to spend all day reading Jacqueline Wilson novels, created a blog. 5 years later she is still geeky and this blog is still somewhat around.

When deciding what to write for my blogoversary post (which should have been published a week ago), I had zero idea. Because truthfully, 2016 wasn't a spectacular year on the blog and in realising that I felt shameful and untruthful. In fact, over here at A Sunny Spot it was a bit of a ghost town as school continued to be demanding and time consuming.

With the occasional post here and there in 2016, I think it's safe to say that 2017 holds bigger and better things in store. So whilst I don't have a long list of achievements to share, I finally snapped out of my glitch and realised that 5 years is a really cool milestone which deserves to be addressed, even if a week late.  

5 years! Wow! I'm quite amazed that what began as a way to pass time in the Summer holidays of 2011, has evolved into one of the most rewarding decisions I have ever made. Thank you to those who have continued to visit, comment and support my blog. To all of the publishers who continue to send me beautiful ARCS and all of the authors and bloggers whom I so fondly engage with on twitter. Thank you to friends and family who continue to ask about this blog's existence and always encourage me to continue expressing my views online.

I want to take this opportunity to say that if you want to create a blog, or have been pondering it for a while, (I pestered my mother for 2 years before she finally caved and helped me set one up) then just go for it! Don't be scared! Don't feel inexperienced and clueless! Because experience comes with time and the more you put yourself out there and experiment, the more you learn and the more you will be welcomed with open arms. I'm still learning!

I was very lucky in the sense that as an 11 year old girl with little knowledge of blogging and horrible grammar skills, I soon found a community of people who were just like me. Although I often feel fraudulent in calling myself a blogger, being a blogger has been the coolest and most rewarding choice I could have made as a kid. So take the time to research different platforms and to plan content because it's definitely worthwhile. If you are needing help with this, then hopefully my post of blogging tips can be of some use. 

Here's to 5 more years and another 5 on top of that! Thanks for sticking with me.

New photo's taken on my blogoversary in celebration of 5 years.

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Hearing your thoughts on Feminism!

Hi guys,
I'm currently beginning a research project for my Society and Culture class, on feminism. To complete this report I need to gather both primary and secondary research, so I've created a survey. It would be a massive help if you could complete and share the survey. It's open to people of all genders and ages and any completions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!
Create your own user feedback survey

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Letter to Jennifer Niven 2.0

Edition: Penguin Paperback
Release Date: October 4th 2016
Pages: 400
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Source: Received as an ARC from Penguin Random House Australia (Thank you)
Links: Goodreads | Author's Website | Buy the book

You are wanted. You are necessary. You are loved.
Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, but no one’s ever looked past her weight to see who she really is. Since her mum’s death, Libby’s been hiding, but now she’s ready for high school. I want to be the girl who can do anything.
Everyone thinks they know Jack Masselin too – sexy, aloof and too cool for school. But Jack’s swaggering confidence is hiding a secret he must keep at all costs. Be charming. Be hilarious. Don’t get too close to anyone.
Then Jack meets Libby. And their worlds change. Because sometimes when you meet someone, the whole universe just comes into focus.

Dear Jennifer Niven,

I wrote to you over a year ago when you had somehow managed to sink your claws into my heart and soul with the release of All the Bright Places – my favourite novel in the world. A lot of time has passed since then, yet my feelings towards the wonderful and raw story, that is Finch and Violet’s, remains the gooey “I will love you forever” kind. As long as I could ramble on about All the Bright Places, this letter isn’t about that. It’s about Holding Up the Universe.

Let me just say that my expectations for Holding Up the Universe were sky high. I had a year of waiting to stalk your twitter page for updates on potential new releases (and obviously to read your wonderful commentary on Supernatural – high five for being Sam girls), a year to reminisce about All the Bright Places and to recommend it to everyone and anyone, and a year to wonder what painful yet magical dish you were going to serve next. 

If I am honest, I was worried that when addressing issues such as being overweight and prosopagnosia (which I had no knowledge of prior to reading HUTU), and addressing those issues through two characters who were bound to fall for each other, that they would inevitably be romanticized - as all too commonly seen in many YA Novels. Especially when having protagonists who aren’t white, privileged or well off is a rarity in young adult, I so badly needed Holding Up the Universe to right all of the other novel’s wrongs. I didn’t want this to be one of those cliché and morally unsettling stories about a fat girl who only realizes her worth once a popular guy sees it in her. It wasn’t.

Why authors aren’t presenting more diverse and less explored voices in their literature has always bamboozled me. I mean you’d think more would considering the human population and subsequently the portion of that population which read, isn’t solely made up of those who are white, privileged and well off. But Holding Up the Universe earns a glittering gold star for it’s wonderful ability to handle these issues with integrity.

Holding Up the Universe is awesome. It’s the kind of awesome that has multiple layers of awesome which when combined, make up an even awesomer (forgive me literary gods for using this non-existent word) fusion of awesome. Does that make sense? Probably not. But I’ve just finished this book so my feelings are a little incoherent. 

In the acknowledgements for Holding Up the Universe you shared that your friend Margaret Harrison said, “to be honest, after All the Bright Places, I was kind of waiting for someone to get hit by a truck or something on the last page. I’m glad no one got hit by a truck”. Margaret Harrison, it’s like you articulated my exact feelings before reading Holding Up the Universe. But god bless your soul Jennifer Niven, because the feelings you evoked with your latest release were not ones of heartache and suffering, but instead ones of love and adoration. I don’t think my heart could have taken any more sadness after All the Bright Places. 

Immediately I fell in love with Libby. A girl who was previously “America’s Fattest Teen” confined to the walls of her home, now entering the world once more. Libby Strout may possibly, dare I say, be one of the greatest characters I’ve read in YA Fiction. She just oozes loveliness, even when others didn’t deserve it. You know how people like to channel their inner Beyoncé when they want to feel confident and cool? Well as undeniably amazing as Beyoncé is, I think I’m going to start channelling my own inner Libby Strout. She was a badass mofo and I’m dying to be her friend!

"Life is too short to judge others. It is not our job to tell someone what they feel or who they are. Why not spend some time on yourself instead? I don't know you, but I can guarantee you have some issues you can work on. And maybe you've got a fit body and a perfect face, but I'll wager you've got insecurities too, ones that would keep you from stripping down to a purple bikini and modeling it in front of everyone. As for the rest of you, remember this: YOU ARE WANTED. Big, small, tall, short, pretty, plain, friendly, shy. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, not even yourself."

Although life handed Libby more than her fair share of adversity to overcome, she was always brave, forgiving and resilient. Sometimes so forgiving, I myself wondered how she had it in her. I thank you for writing a novel starring a plus size protagonist, we need more of those and we need that to not be the only facet of their story. With Libby’s story, it definitely wasn’t it. She was full of personality, full of ambition and full of heart. 

I loved that Libby loved to dance more than anything else in the world, and that nothing could stop her from doing so. I could relate to her love of dancing as well as her love of literature and Supernatural. But particularly, her struggle with weight and self-esteem. I thank you for writing about a character who wasn’t stick thin and who wasn’t always comfortable in her own skin, but had the courage to work towards it. Her courage and confidence was admirable and infectious. A modern day superhero in my eyes. Just as she lifted up the characters in the novel, I too felt inspired by her positive and caring attitude to both herself and others. 

To be honest, I could go on and on about why Libby left such an impression on me and ultimately, stole the spotlight. When looking at a portion of YA contemporary novels, Libby is a ray of sunshine that stands out among an otherwise flat group. She had her issues and insecurities like the rest of us, but she never let that stop her from achieving her goals or being good to others. Libby kept it real and didn’t take sh*t from anyone and for that I am sending both her and yourself, a heap of squishy hugs. 

I also have to mention that the Supernatural references totally made my day! I’m admittedly super obsessed with Supernatural, so Libby’s love for it was just another perfect reason as to why she tops the list of character’s I’d love to lunch with. We would obviously have the greatest discussions about Sam, Dean and Castiel and which season they had the best hair.

Prosopagnosia: the inability to recognize the faces of familiar people, typically as a result of damage to the brain.

Jack on the other hand, was a character I didn’t expect to like as much as I did. It took some time but I was surprised by how much he grew on me. He could come across as a jerk but truthfully, he was a good guy with a complex personal life. I couldn’t help but sympathise with his struggles with prosopagnosia. I had never heard about it before Holding Up the Universe and probably wouldn’t have otherwise. You managed to convey his experiences and his reaction to being diagnosed in such a realistic and honest way. It was clearly evident throughout the novel that you put in a heap of research and it really paid off. His storyline was so thought provoking and fascinating, you’ve really urged me to learn more about prosopagnosia and the effects it has on the people diagnosed with it (perfect example of the power diversity in novels has). 

I also loved that Jack was black and his own identifier was his cool ass afro! It’s sad that we hardly see any POC as love interests so I was really thrilled to see that wasn’t the case in Holding Up the Universe. I’d love to see more in the future!

“We're all weird and damaged in our own way. You're not the only one.”

One of the many things that shines through about Holding Up the Universe is that both protagonists had their own individual story arcs that were equally as interesting and emotional. No character was favoured over the other, both of their stories were given justice and the dual perspective was really effective in telling both of those stories (and of course adding to my shipping of the unlikely but well matched pair). I never found myself wanting to skip chapters because a POV got tiring. 

Pretty much the minute I picked HUTU up, I couldn’t put it down. That hasn’t happened with a book in ages. It is beautifully written (I don’t expect anything less because we have established you are an amazing author), well paced and filled with a series of events that were often confronting and intense, leaving me wide eyed and slack jawed. There were some characters who made me so mad, but Libby or Jack sorted them out. Power team!

Essentially, my expectations for Holding Up the Universe were totally met and in ways that I couldn’t have imagined. It's going straight to the re-reads pile. Holding Up the Universe is very much different to All the Bright Places yet both are 5 star reads that are brilliant in different ways. Thank you for always being so clearly passionate about the stories you tell and the characters you write and the readers who read them. It really comes across in your stories and contributes to the overall “PLEASE JENNIFER NIVEN NEVER STOP WRITING” feeling you leave your readers with. In fact, I’ve decided that I’m a Jennifer Niven book addict and I’m not ashamed. 

Sincerely,

Sunny xx

HOLDING UP THE UNIVERSE IS OUT TODAY

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Let's Talk About Body Image

As a young female I am constantly exposed to the media’s often harmful portrayal of body image that is extremely influential to the way women view themselves and their bodies. I mean real talk, we live in a world that makes profit from pointing out our flaws (even the ones we didn’t know we had) and finding expensive and impossible ways to eradicate them. But guess what, women aren’t barbie dolls and we aren’t all from the same cookie cutter. Which is kinda awesome.

I know that on the rare occasion I post, it’s usually centred on a recent read but today I wanted to spice things up a bit. Because if you can’t rant about the media’s influence on female body image during adolescence on your own blog, then where can you? It is a subject that I am really passionate about and recently decided to research for a school assessment (I got full marks too). I learnt so much through my research that I’ve decided to adapt the same presentation to better suit a blog post so that I can share it with you all and maybe even inspire you to further question the unrealistic standards of our patriarchal society. So here goes!

Body image is the perception that a person has of their physical self, but more importantly the thoughts and feelings one experiences depending on what they think about their body. These feelings can be positive, negative or both.

During Adolescence we become more aware of our bodies, and form opinions about them that can affect us for the majority of our lives. Body Image is an important part of who we are and how we present ourselves in daily life, and an increasingly significant factor in forming our identities. Especially when heartbreaking studies conclude that more than half of girls as young as 6 to 8 think their ideal weight is thinner than their current size.

I’d like to recognize that Males also suffer from low self-esteem and are equally influenced by the media. However, I have decided to discuss female body image because that is my own experience.

Media in its many forms, is significantly powerful in communicating to the multitude. Through various means of mass communication such as radio, television, digital media, social media and print media, women are exposed to a socially constructed idea of beauty that is often unrealistic and unachievable – and it is my personal belief that the promotion of this ideal within the media heavily influences the way women view themselves and their bodies.

The media all too often amplifies the sexist and harmful voices within our society that are either set on telling us what we 'can't' be, or preventing us from embracing what we are; i.e. women who come in a myriad of shapes and sizes, all of which are beautiful. A blatant ignorance of this diversity is woven throughout most forms of media. Although we are gradually seeing a greater variety in shape and size celebrated in the media.

This socially constructed idea of beauty portrayed by the media targets every size and every woman, even those we see as perfect. We face societal pressures and standards and can even see them directed at famous women on the covers of magazines or comments on Instagram posts. From the ‘thigh gap’ to the Nicki Minaj booty, there is a clear distinction between the physical aspects society typically views as desirable, and the ones it does not. You just can’t win. Tina Fey perfectly describes the double standards and impossibility of this ideal when she says:

“Now every girl is expected to have Caucasian blue eyes, full Spanish lips, a classic button nose, hairless Asian skin with a California tan, a Jamaican dance hall ass, long Swedish legs, small Japanese feet, the abs of a lesbian gym owner, the hips of a nine-year-old boy, the arms of Michelle Obama, and doll tits. The person closest to actually achieving this look is Kim Kardashian, who, as we know, was made by Russian scientists to sabotage our athletes.”

It is important to acknowledge that there is nothing wrong with naturally having any of these or wanting to. However it is extremely damaging to women to present this image of beauty, as the only acceptable version of beauty. Especially when studies suggest that 80 percent of your weight and body shape is determined by genes, therefore rendering it physically impossible for some women to obtain certain features.

When low-self esteem and serious body dissatisfaction can have severe consequences such as harmful eating disorders and serious mental and emotional distress, it makes you wonder why we allow the media to hold such power over the way we view our bodies. The very temples that allows us to live and breathe each day 24/7, impacted by a forum that has little consideration for how confident we feel in that cute new dress.

To understand just how serious this issue is, I conducted a survey on the role of the media in influencing female body image and found that 100% of responders (99% of whom were female) had felt or were feeling self-conscious about their body image. The majority sharing that the features which majorly contributed to this low self-esteem included their legs, stomach, thighs and face. Additionally, 51% of respondents said they would call themselves confident whilst 39% stated that they would not.

Now I don’t know about you, but this is horrible and what makes it even more horrible is that these results were not at all surprising to me. I mean we live in a society where the usual feminine behaviour is to watch our weight and count our calories. But the thought of my beautiful class mates not feeling like the badass warriors they are, saddens me deeply.

Even Buzzfeed somehow missed the point with this headline, despite their article being pro body positivity.

Interestingly enough many of my responders noted mental state as massive contributor to their confidence or lack there of and many of the non-confident responders said their confidence could be improved with the help of clothes, makeup or hairstyles that made them beautiful. Well keep on wearing that lip gloss, because you deserve to feel like a queen!

I know you’re thinking, how is the media involved in all of this? Why are they suddenly the bad guys? And you know what, the media well and truly doesn’t totally suck. But they really gotta up their game when it comes to discussing women’s bodies as an overwhelming majority of 93% agreed that the media significantly influenced their body image.

One respondent said, “Yes, the media creates an ‘ideal’ body image based on the shape of a woman, which is ridiculous because every individual’s genetic makeup forbids one from having the same shape as another person”. Another respondent agreed to this sentiment but stated, “The media's influence has saturated my view of my body, so I sometimes feel as if my own body shape is inadequate or not the right shape”.

This feeling described in my results of not being the ‘right’ shape is in part provoked by the media’s representation of physical perfection and extreme thinness, which is reinforced through the use of digital manipulation – a form of editing just about present in almost every photograph of a model or celebrity. Photoshop is now allowing us to eradicate natural imperfections, change shape and size and distort things entirely so that an average woman appears physically perfect (in some cases baring no resemblance to their actual self). Say what? That’s crazy.

A member of the focus group I ran believed that airbrushing was okay to an extent however when over done, can be harmful. “Women are getting the impression that even models and celebrities need photoshopping - these people are looked up to as perfect, and if these 'perfect' people supposedly need photoshopping, what must 'normal' women think they need?”.  So basically the ladies in the magazines don’t even look like the ladies in the magazines!

The media also negatively influences our body image by failing to represent and appreciate a variety of body types. Consequently making us question where exactly we fit in, if we don’t fit the image of beauty the media presents. An example of this failure being the exclusion of plus sized models in mainstream media.

A member of my focus group said; “The presence of plus size models is important for girls who aren't a size 0 to see that their bodies are also appreciated. I'm sure it's also really encouraging for 'larger' girls who dream about modelling to see what they can achieve”.

Representation of larger models in the media is undoubtedly important (as is representing the sizes between and beyond) in promoting a message of self-acceptance for all sizes. As I noticed through my investigation, an overwhelming desire to be thinner. In fact when I asked my survey respondents what features made up their ideal bodies, 48% stated that they wanted to be skinner (particularly in their thighs and stomach).

Models who do a great job at promoting self-love: Mina Mahmood, Dounia Tazi, Diana Veras, Barbara Ferreira, Tess Holliday and Ashley Graham.

A clear lack of representation within the media can be partially blamed for this reoccurring unhappiness with weight. Especially when in some cases average sized woman are wrongly labeled plus size, causing larger women to feel misrepresented, rendering the label inadequate.

Meanwhile, some individuals argue that the label itself is just another way of segregating women and making them feel unnatural for not being thin. A survey response said, “I see what people call ‘plus size’ and they’re nowhere near so. Also, they trash gorgeous woman for being “fat” and that makes me think less of myself”.

A recent surge in the exposure of plus size modelling has allowed us to normalize things like stretch marks and cellulite, which are totally normal things yet hardly seen in the media. I know that seeing plus size models of varying shapes, sizes and ethnicities has really inspired me to work towards self-love so I think the media should really zone in on this diversity in order to encourage others to feel the same.

Gabi Gregg (GabiFresh) creator of the swimsuits for all range.

To combat the increasing number of body image issues, it is important that the media encourages body acceptance and diversity. Which although may seem difficult, 76% of my survey responders believed that it is possible to celebrate one type of body without discrediting the other. Wonderful campaigns such as Gabi Fresh’s #Fatkini movement, Aerie and its unretouched #AerieREAL campaign and Twitter’s #BodyPosi, are changing the way we perceive beauty and prove that it is possible to spread positive messages in the media. Because ultimately, beauty isn’t a size and that is the message we should be sharing.

*images are not my own

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4 Years + 1 Month: A Blogoversary sorta?

Hey ya’ll! Happy February, I hope this month is kind to you.
Today I’m excited to let you know that as of the 3rd of January 2016, A Sunny Spot turned four years old! Now you may be looking at your calendars and thinking “WTF Sunny that was a month ago”, and you’d be absolutely correct. However, it occurred to me that on the first day of my 4th year as a blogger, I was unable to celebrate it with you guys due to being away and a heap of other issues I won’t bore you with.

Anyhow, I feel like it would be such a shame to let this occasion pass without word so I’ve decided to celebrate this tiny but cool milestone with a 4 years and one month blogoversary giveaway. Your blog only turns four once, haha! Unfortunately my giveaway is for Australians only, but have no fear international readers because I’m working on someday hosting a giveaway that you guys can enter as well. It’s a goal of mine.

Before I leave you guys to enter away, I wanted to thank some people. Firstly, I’d like to direct a massive massive thank you to Bloomsbury and Allen and Unwin Australia for providing the wonderful books I’m giving away today. It wouldn’t have been possible without you so thank you x10. Secondly, I want to thank to the awesome book loving community in Australia. That includes authors, publishers and fellow bloggers, ones I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and ones I have not.

We really are an awesome group and I can’t thank you enough for not yet ruling me out every time I pull one of my infamous disappearing acts! Thank you! Especially thank you to the Sydney bloggers who I’ve seen throughout the past few years at various events, who still wave to me and have a chat, even if I’m being awkward and can only stay for a short period of time. Also Francoise, I don’t think I really need to tell you this but.. you’re my home girl, thank you for all your support.

Lastly, despite being bias to the wonderful Australian community, how could I not thank all of the bloggers and readers who comment on my posts and chat with me, from other countries? I've got to interact with some ridiculously cool and lovely people because of this blog and I appreciate you all! Fi, even though we almost talk about everything except for blogging (unless we're discussing our internal guilt), we met through blogging and I'm so glad we did. Ambivalently Yours, we also got to meet online and I've really appreciate all of our thoughtful conversations and all thats come of them.

PS. Also because I really just gotta, thank you Mom because at the end of the day this blog wouldn’t have been in creation without you, and nor would I.

I hope you guys enjoy this giveaway, there’s a tone of great books up for grab! May the odds be ever in your favour.

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Top Ten Books I've Recently Added To My TBR

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish, every Tuesday there is a different bookish theme for bloggers to participate in.

Happy New Year! Notice anything different? You guessed it, I've finally set up my shiny new blog url *launches confetti*. It's been a long time coming but I'm excited to say that this blog can now be found at this dashing new address -> www.asunnyspot.com.au

Anyhow exciting news aside, today I'm writing to share with you the "Top Ten Books I've Recently Added To My TBR". If any of you have read some of the books listed below, I'd love to hear your thoughts on said novels! I especially need some help deciding which one to read first. 

1. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.
As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it... or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

2. Asking For It by Louise O'Neill

It's the beginning of the summer in a small town in Ireland. Emma O'Donovan is eighteen years old, beautiful, happy, confident. One night, there's a party. Everyone is there. All eyes are on Emma.
The next morning, she wakes on the front porch of her house. She can't remember what happened, she doesn't know how she got there. She doesn't know why she's in pain. But everyone else does.
Photographs taken at the party show, in explicit detail, what happened to Emma that night. But sometimes people don't want to believe what is right in front of them, especially when the truth concerns the town's heroes... 

3. My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Winter Romances edited by Stephanie Perkins

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me . . .
This beautiful collection features twelve gorgeously romantic stories set during the festive period, by some of the most talented and exciting YA authors writing today. The stories are filled with the magic of first love and the magic of the holidays.

4. Fans of the Impossible Life by Kate Scelsa

Mira is starting over at Saint Francis Prep. She promised her parents she would at least try to pretend that she could act like a functioning human this time, not a girl who can’t get out of bed for days on end, who only feels awake when she’s with Sebby.
Jeremy is the painfully shy art nerd at Saint Francis who’s been in self-imposed isolation after an incident that ruined his last year of school. When he sees Sebby for the first time across the school lawn, it’s as if he’s been expecting this blond, lanky boy with mischief glinting in his eye.
Sebby, Mira’s gay best friend, is a boy who seems to carry sunlight around with him. Even as life in his foster home starts to take its toll, Sebby and Mira together craft a world of magic rituals and impromptu road trips, designed to fix the broken parts of their lives.
As Jeremy finds himself drawn into Sebby and Mira’s world, he begins to understand the secrets that they hide in order to protect themselves, to keep each other safe from those who don’t understand their quest to live for the impossible.

5. This Raging Light by Estelle Laure

Can the best thing happen at the worst time?
Her dad went crazy. Her mom left town. She has bills to pay and a little sister to look after. Now is not the time for level-headed seventeen-year-old Lucille to fall in love. But love—messy, inconvenient love—is what she's about to experience when she falls for Digby Jones, her best friend's brother. 

6. Did I Mention I Love You? by Estelle Maskame

When sixteen-year-old Eden Munro agrees to spend the summer with her estranged father in the beachfront city of Santa Monica, California, she has no idea what she’s letting herself in for. Eden's parents are divorced and have gone their separate ways, and now her father has a brand new family. For Eden, this means she's about to meet three new step-brothers. The eldest of the three is Tyler Bruce, a troubled teenager with a short temper and a huge ego. Complete polar opposites, Eden quickly finds herself thrust into a world full of new experiences as Tyler's group of friends take her under their wing. But the one thing she just can't understand is Tyler, and the more she presses to figure out the truth about him, the more she finds herself falling for the one person she shouldn't – her step-brother.
Throw in Tyler's clingy girlfriend and a guy who has his eyes set on Eden, and there's secrets, lies and a whole lot of drama. But how can Eden keep her feelings under control? And can she ever work out the truth about Tyler? 

7. The Boy Most Likely To by Huntley Fitzpatrick

Tim Mason was The Boy Most Likely To:
- find the liquor cabinet blindfolded
- need a liver transplant
- drive his car into a house
Alice Garrett was The Girl Most Likely To:
- well, not date her little brother’s baggage-burdened best friend, for starters.
For Tim, it wouldn’t be smart to fall for Alice. For Alice, nothing could be scarier than falling for Tim. But Tim has never been known for making the smart choice, and Alice is starting to wonder if the “smart” choice is always the right one. When these two crash into each other, they crash hard.
Then the unexpected consequences of Tim’s wild days come back to shock him. He finds himself in a situation that isn’t all it appears to be, that he never could have predicted . . . but maybe should have.
And Alice is caught in the middle.  

8. Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill

Where women are created for the pleasure of men, beauty is the first duty of every girl. In Louise O'Neill's world of Only Every Yours women are no longer born naturally, girls (called "eves") are raised in Schools and trained in the arts of pleasing men until they come of age. Freida and Isabel are best friends. Now, aged sixteen and in their final year, they expect to be selected as companions--wives to powerful men. All they have to do is ensure they stay in the top ten beautiful girls in their year. The alternatives--life as a concubine, or a chastity (teaching endless generations of girls)--are too horrible to contemplate.
But as the intensity of final year takes hold, the pressure to be perfect mounts. Isabel starts to self-destruct, putting her beauty--her only asset--in peril. And then into this sealed female environment, the boys arrive, eager to choose a bride. Freida must fight for her future--even if it means betraying the only friend, the only love, she has ever known. 

9. Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

It was Sloane who yanked Emily out of her shell and made life 100% interesting. But right before what should have been the most epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. All she leaves behind is a to-do list.
On it, thirteen Sloane-inspired tasks that Emily would normally never try. But what if they could bring her best friend back?
Apple picking at night? Okay, easy enough.
Dance until dawn? Sure. Why not?
Kiss a stranger? Um...
Emily now has this unexpected summer, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected), to check things off Sloane's list. Who knows what she’ll find?
Go skinny-dipping? Wait...what?

10. Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

Consumed by guilt and rage, Celaena can't bring herself to spill blood for the King of Adarlan. She must fight back...

The Immortal Queen will help her destroy the king - for a price. But as Celaena battles with her darkest memories and her heart breaks for a love that could never last, can she fulfil the bargain and head the almighty court of Terrasen? And who will stand with her?

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Hello, It's Me.

Hey guys! It’s me Sunny, the one who used to write on this blog until she abandoned it yet again. I know, I know. I promised many a time that I wouldn’t resort to old habits but I did, so I guess this is the blogging equivalent to the walk of shame. The guilt is real.

I guess I should probably start by saying that it wasn’t my intention to go totally M.I.A. these past few months, however I realise that’s what’s happened. My blog is basically covered in cobwebs and I reckon its definitely time to dust then off – oh and update my blog link, that too! Do I have an excuse for my inactiveness in the blogging community other than busyness? Not entirely. I just think truthfully, I haven’t had it in me. I don’t have much energy to do anything other than eat chocolate and re-watch Supernatural episodes these days.

I haven’t read much either (much to the disappointment of my bookworm heart) or should I say anything. It’s horrible, I literally look at my bookshelf and am plagued with guilt. It’s not because I don’t want to because my heart is aching for an incredible YA contemporary right about now, but there’s just something blocking me. And if you’ve been reading the few posts I’ve published this past year, you’ll know that there has been for a long time.

I feel disappointed but mostly guilty, because this is not the first time I’ve left only to briefly return with promises of change that I did not deliver. I feel like I owe it to myself and other bloggers to be a proper blogger again (whatever the definition of that may be). I want to be able to call myself a book blogger without thinking “oh well you used to be, not so much anymore”.

I haven’t quite figured out what it is that’s been blocking my creative juices, but I’ve realised that blogging and reading aren’t the only thing that’s been affected by “whatever” this is. *insert mystery music here*. So while I’m working on getting back to my old self, I just thought I’d just be truthful instead of making promises that I can’t keep. They do say that the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem, right?



So while I am here, I wanted to share with you some things that I have been doing. You know, gotta balance the bad out with the good. Make myself feel less guilty.

• Starting, catching up on and re-watching Supernatural; Why did it take me so long to jump on the SPN train? That show is my new religion, I could write essays on why Sam and Dean Winchester deserve all the happiness in the world and not just because they're unbelievably attractive.
• Completing my final exams for the year; All I can say is good riddance. 
• Working; *plays "For the Love of Money" by the O'Jays*
• Becoming grape friends (grape was intentional) with Fi from Books for Birds; You get weird when I compliment you so I'm not gonna but ily.
• Occasionally reading awesome and amusing as hell celeb autobiographies; Yes I’m looking at you, “You’re Never Weird on the Internet (almost)” and “Why Not Me?”. Sidenote: Read these books, they were seriously great. Felicia Day & Mindy Kaling need to befriend me stat. 
• Screaming my lungs out with 76,00 other Taylor Swift fans at the 1989 World Tour; I was reborn that night.
• Becoming a frequent Ice Coffee Frappé buyer at MacDonald’s; Shout out to the peeps at Maccas who make my Frappé's so delicious every time.
• Meeting Little Mix in October; Long story short, I died.
• Becoming even more Feminist AF (did I just say that?); I have a lot to say about the topic and if you’re bored enough to wanna hear some of it, click here. 
• Loving The Walking Dead Season 6; I told you suckers that _ _ _ _ _ was alive.

Before I go back to wasting time on netflix, I wanted to apologise again but also to say thank you for all of the bloggers and authors who still interact with me on twitter and the publishers who still send me books. You guys rule and inspire me to crawl out of hole and try again. Without promising anything, I'm gonna hopefully kick this slump in the behind and I'll see you next when I see you next. 

PS. Anyone have any books that are so awesome even book slump me will swallow it whole?

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