I Must Admit I Am Charmed By These Little GR Reading Challenge Bookmarks, I Just Wish The Categories

Do you lay bread on your tongue and think of me [...] do you swallow it like a sacrament, do you still get down on your knees?

Sophie Mackintosh, from 'Cursed Bread'

(...) but the skin remembers, the body holds everything inside itself, the bones can stiffen to claws.

Sophie Mackintosh, excerpt from Cursed Bread

We Do Not Part || Han Kang ★★★★★ Started: 08.05.2025 Finished: 21.05.2025 One morning in December, Kyungha is called to her friend Inseon’s hospital bedside. Airlifted to Seoul for an operation following a wood-chopping accident, Inseon is bedridden and begs Kyungha to take the first plane to her home on Jeju Island to feed her pet bird, who will quickly die unless it receives food. Unfortunately, as Kyungha arrives a snowstorm hits. Lost in a world of snow, she begins to wonder if she will arrive in time to save the bird – or even survive the terrible cold that envelops her with every step. But she doesn't yet suspect the darkness which awaits her at her friend's house. There, the long-buried story of Inseon's family surges into light, in dreams and memories passed from mother to daughter, and in a painstakingly assembled archive, documenting the terrible massacre seventy years before that saw 30,000 Jeju civilians murdered. I went into "We Do Not Part" with incredibly high expectations, owing to the overwhelmingly positive reviews it had garnered, and I can wholeheartedly say, they did not lie. Han Kang's latest novel is nothing short of remarkable. It's heavy, it's emotionally impactful, it is, in one word, extraordinary.

★★★★☆ “She gazes at Agamemnon and says, “I do not forget.” As far as post-Madeline Miller myth retellings go, this is fairly good. Sure, Helen is still a frail waif, but this novel isn't about her, per se, so I can't take much issue with that, not with how Clytemnestra is written - brutal, unforgetting, unforgiving. Testament to how much a story is set to gain if authors choose to give their mythical heroines a spine, truly. Much like in Daughters of Sparta, I would have loved for the story to cover her death, especially since I have a feeling Casati would do the scene justice, but nevertheless, Clytemnestra was a worthwhile experience.

A Few Rules for Predicting the Future: An Essay || Octavia E. Butler ★★★★★ Started: 09.02.2025 Finished: 09.02.2025 Originally published in Essence magazine in the year 2000, Octavia E. Butler’s essay “A Few Rules for Predicting the Future” offers an honest look into the inspiration behind her science fiction novels and the importance of studying history and taking responsibility for our actions if we are to move forward. Organized into four main rules, this short essay reminds readers to learn from the past, respect the law of consequences, be aware of their perspectives, and count on the surprises. Citing the warning signs of fascism, the illusive effects of fear and wishful thinking, and the unpredictable nature of what is yet to come, Butler shares realistic but hopeful suggestions to shape our future into something good. If I was on the fence about reading "Parable of the Sower" before, I'm bumping it right towards the top of my TBR now. Butler's writing is just that good. Thank you, Goodreads Challenges!