Author: Zakiya N. Jamal

Zakiya N. Jamal was born in Queens, raised in Long Island, and currently resides in Brooklyn. In other words, she’s a New Yorker through and through. She holds a BA in English from Georgetown University and a MFA in Creative Writing with a concentration in Writing for Children and Young Adults from The New School. She has been published in Romper, BuzzFeed, People.com, Thought Catalog, and more. Her non-fiction essay about her "Cuban Impostor Syndrome" can be found in the Latinx anthology, Wild Tongues Can’t Be Tamed. You can find her on Twitter at @ZakiyaNJamal.

Man Crush Monday: Magnus Bane

Posted on July 20, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

Magnus Bane, aka the High Warlock of Brooklyn, is so fine and so smooth. Shadowhunters crashing his party? Whatever. Vampires loosing their cool? Whatever. People trying to cramp his style? Lol. Nice try.

Magnus is gorgeous, and his a great combination of not giving an eff about anything but also really caring about the people that matter to him is fantastic. I’m only on book two of The Mortal Instruments and I’d have to say Magnus is probably my favorite character. I can’t wait to see more of him and his clear love interest.

Magnus, standing by the door, snapped his fingers impatiently. “Move it along, teenagers. The only person who gets to canoodle in my bedroom is my magnificent self.” – City of Bones

The Winner Is …

Posted on July 19, 2015July 19, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

After receiving offer a 100 entries into this giveaway a random winner has been chosen and the winner is … Erin Ellis. Congratulations! Please email me your address at toborroworbuy@gmail.com so I can send you all these amazing books and goodies.

Thank you to Kieran Scott, Katie Sise, Susan Ee, Elizabeth Eulberg, and Maria V. Snyder for contributing to this amazing giveaway and thank you to all who participated. This was a great first giveaway and I can’t wait to do it again.

POLL: Do You Judge A Book By Its Cover?

Posted on July 18, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

1377900993_SAgUiC58QC2wcN6KVafu_book_by_its_cover — via genius.com

I’m the type of person that needs to know what the book is about before I start reading it. I like to read the back or the flap and get a gist of what’s the book about. However, I know people that will pick a book solely because the cover looks interesting and that’s cool too. Plus, in general, I’ll bypass a book if I’m not pulled in by the cover right away. Working in publishing I’ve since learned there are art design teams specifically to make covers for this very reason, which I think is pretty cool.

So, does the cover really influence your book choice or does it not bother you at all? I’m pretty sure I know how this poll will go but who knows? Maybe I’ll be surprised.

Results of last week’s poll:

Do you reread books?

With an overwhelming majority of 90% the answer is a resounding yes and I’d have to agree. Happy rereading!

Where My POCs At: (The Lack of) Diversity in Books

Posted on July 16, 2015July 16, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

For my Man Crush Mondays and Woman Crush Wednesdays I try to make them more diverse because I honestly hate the lack of color on my blog, especially since I, myself, am a person of color.

That being said it’s difficult to find characters that are in fact POCs. I’ve recognized this problem in literature before but it becomes abundantly clear when you’re actively look for people of color in your favorite books and can’t find them.

When i first realized this problem my first thought was, “I need to read more diverse books.” Now, this is a fair thought and in the future I will make more of an effort to diversify my reading. But then I had another thought: “Maybe there just needs to be more diverse books.”

I’m not writing this blog post with any stats to back my claims but just on my own general experience the lack of diversity in books, fiction specifically, is sub par at best. And the books that do have a POC they’re almost never the main character. Instead they’re the secondary character. They’re the best friend, the enemy, occasionally the love interest, and sometimes just someone whose name appears once as if to complete some diversity requirement.

As someone who mainly reads young adult fiction I find this lack of color disappointing at best, a serious problem at worst.

From Tumblr: #WeNeedDiverseBooks because I grew up thinking brown men couldn’t be anything more than a sidekick pic.twitter.com/UrPMBcxjo4

— Aisha Saeed (@aishacs) May 2, 2014

Why is it so hard for me to find a teen book that has a person of color as the main character? And why is it when I do it’s not in the “Teen Fiction” section but instead in “African-American Literature,” or “Asian American Novels,” or “Hispanic Books”? Why is it that as soon as it’s written by an author that not’s white it can’t be classified as just a book but as something specialized that needs it’s own section and should be segregated from other books?

If I write a book about a girl dying with cancer who falls with a boy who also has cancer will it be put in a different section than The Fault In Our Stars just because I’m black? And one could argue that it’s good we have our own section. That it makes our books stand out but it shouldn’t be that way because by separating books like that it inherently makes readers think that “those books” are something different. Something foreign. Something not to be read by someone other than of that race.

Therefore when we do have diverse books it’s hard for them to get the same acclaim and sell as many books as books with white protagonists because only people of color are reading books by people of color and that’s just wrong.

This being said I encourage you all to diversify your reading. Read outside of your comfort zone and show your support for more diverse books by tweeting your thoughts on the subject with the hashtag #WeNeedDiverseBooks. There’s also a Tumblr page dedicated to the cause and it’s not only about color/race but also about getting more books that discuss disabilities and the LGBTQ community as well. It’s a great movement and you should be a part of it.

Woman Crush Wednesday: Heather Wells

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

BmadqmtIMAAB7xF — via Whitney Thompson’s Twitter

Heather Wells is a hilarious, self-assured narrator. Although she’s fallen from teen pop stardom she’s taking this in stride, deciding to work as a Resident Director at NYU and get a degree. She’s sometimes awkward and always quirky. Her love for food is something I greatly appreciate and her crush on her landlord, Cooper, is absolutely adorable.

Heather’s unbelievably relatable with her struggles in love, money, family, and health. Moreover, being a self made detective she also finds herself in a heap of trouble that makes for quite funny situations and stories. She’s quite the catch and once she realizes that her self-confidence makes her the perfectly imperfect protagonist.

Meg Cabot has the ability to create strong female leads in her novels and Heather is no different. If you haven’t read the Heather Wells mysteries yet please do. They’re fantastic.

“I’ll just go at my own pace. Nice and easy. Here we go. There, see? I’m doing it. I’m running! Hey, look at me! I’m running! I’m-
Okay, well, that’s enough of that. Whew. I mean, a girl could hyperventilate from doing that. And seriously, it’s my first day. Don’t want to overdo it.” – Big Boned

Book Review: Pride and Prejudice

Posted on July 14, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Book Reviews

*This book is part of my POPSUGAR 2015 Reading Challenge*

Synopsis from Amazon:

Pride and Prejudice is a novel of manners by Jane Austen, first published in 1813. The story follows the main character, Elizabeth Bennet, as she deals with issues of manners, upbringing, morality, education, and marriage in the society of the landed gentry of the British Regency. Elizabeth is the second of five daughters of a country gentleman living near the fictional town of Meryton in Hertfordshire, near London. Page 2 of a letter from Jane Austen to her sister Cassandra (11 June 1799) in which she first mentions Pride and Prejudice, using its working title First Impressions. Set in England in the early 19th century, Pride and Prejudice tells the story of Mr and Mrs Bennet’s five unmarried daughters after the rich and eligible Mr Bingley and his status-conscious friend, Mr Darcy, have moved into their neighbourhood. While Bingley takes an immediate liking to the eldest Bennet daughter, Jane, Darcy has difficulty adapting to local society and repeatedly clashes with the second-eldest Bennet daughter, Elizabeth. Though Austen set the story at the turn of the 19th century, it retains a fascination for modern readers, continuing near the top of lists of “most loved books.” It has become one of the most popular novels in English literature, selling over 20 million copies, and receives considerable attention from literary scholars. Modern interest in the book has resulted in a number of dramatic adaptations and an abundance of novels and stories imitating Austen’s memorable characters or themes.

It seems strange to be reviewing a classic book that’s so old but I didn’t read anything else this week so here we go.

Pride and Prejudice was just as good as I expected it to be. I listened to the audio book for this one because I’ve tried to read it before but it has never worked out for me so I thought listening to it might be the best option. And it worked because I actually finished it this time. Yay!

If you don’t already know the premise of Pride and Prejudice shame on you, it’s a classic. The story follows Elizabeth Bennet who’s life is changed when Mr. Bingley, along with his friend Mr. Darcy, and Mr. Bingley’s two sisters, move into Netherfield, the estate down the road from Elizabeth and her family. Dealing with her own pride and prejudices along with those of the people around her Elizabeth finds herself in the midst of unwanted marriage proposals and drama.

I loved the Kiera Knightly film and after finishing the book the first thing I wanted to do was watch it again. I also love The Lizzie Bennet Diaries web series. Both of these adaptations of the novel are great but very different.

The point is going into the book I knew what was going to happen but as adaptations often do there was a lot left out and those were the scenes I most enjoyed. I liked getting all the details I never knew before and I fell in with Mr. Darcy and his awkwardness. I wanted to shake Elizabeth for her prejudice but I also wanted to shake Mr. Darcy because he would say things that I’m sure he thought was flattering but in fact was insulting.

Overall, I probably won’t reread it because although it was good and I understand why it’s such a classic it’s just not my type of book. However, you should buy it because it’s free on the Kindle and very cheap everywhere else. Plus it’s just nice to have on your shelf.

Borrow or Buy: Buy! There’s literally zero down sides to buying this book.

Favorite Line:

Elizabeth’s spirit’s soon rising to playfulness again, she wanted Mr. Darcy to account for his having ever fallen in love with her. ‘How could you begin?’ said she.
‘I can comprehend your going on charmingly, when you had once made a beginning; but what could set you off in the first place?’ ‘I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look, or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.’

Stars:

Other Reviews

Between the Covers

A Novel Menagerie

Literary Exploration

Man Crush Monday: Cooper Cartwright

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

Cooper Cartwright is the hottest landlord a woman could ask for, which makes Heather Wells, the protagonist of the Heather Wells Mysteries, the luckiest woman alive.

Cooper owns the brownstone that Heather is renting, now that she’s no longer a pop star and single since she and Cooper’s little brother broke up. Cooper’s also a private investigator and wants nothing to do with his famous brother and his star studded lifestyle, which makes him the perfect match for Heather.

Cooper, of course, is super attractive but not in a pretty boy way. He’s a tough and self-made man who rejects the rich, privileged lifestyle he grew up in (not that he doesn’t benefit from it, of course, but he doesn’t flaunt it either). He’s a really chill guy who cares about and respects Heather for who she is not what size she wears.

This post has now made me want to reread the whole Heather Wells series because honestly it’s been too long and I love Cooper and Heather respectively. If you haven’t read this series yet it’s one of Meg Cabot’s best and you should definitely check it out.

“As you pointed out, I should have left well enough alone. But… well, it’s not in my nature. Let’s face it, though: It’s not in your nature, either, Heather. That’s why we make such a perfect pair. We’re lucky to have found each other. I feel sorry sometimes for people like your mom. Maybe her problem isn’t that she’s a dirty, no good, whatever-you-were-going-to-call-her. It’s that she was never lucky enough to find her soul mate, like we were.” – The Bride Wore Size 12

My First Giveaway!!!

Posted on July 12, 2015July 13, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

Have you ever wanted to win books? How about signed copies of books? Or signed book marks? Or free tattoos? Well, it’s a good thing you’re here because I have the perfect giveaway for you. The Ultimate YA Giveaway is now live!

I wanted to make a video because I’m super excited about this but unfortunately it’s pretty late and I promised I would post this tonight and I’m a woman of my word. A video may still come later so look at for that. Until then here’s the details of the giveaway.

Here’s what you would win:

A signed copy of Something True by Kieran Scott with a Only Everything bookmark and post card
A copy of Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
A copy of Divergent by Veronica Roth
A copy of Bone Gap by Laura Ruby
Three The Lonely Hearts Club buttons
Five signed book marks by Maria V. Snyder (author of the Magic Study trilogy, the Healer series, and so many author amazing books)
A signed bookmark by Katie Sise
A Penryn and the End of Days book mark plus Angelfall and World After tattoos

And that’s it (but isn’t that so much???). The way to enter is down below and the contest will end next Sunday. After that I’ll send the lucky winner their prize. Good luck to you all and may the odds be ever in your favor!

I also want to thank Kieran Scott, Maria V. Snyder, Elizabeth Eulberg, Katie Sise, and Susan Ee for their wonderful contributions to this giveaway. I wouldn’t be able to do this without them so if you haven’t checked out their books yet do yourself a favor and check them out. They’re great authors and also great people.

Click here to win books!

Unfortunately the widget for the giveaway won’t appear here in the blog post so click the link to enter! Working on getting this fixed. Sorry about that.

POLL: Do you reread books?

Posted on July 10, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

I really enjoy rereading some books. Especially if it’s been a long time since I read it and I don’t remember specifics about the book I love going back and reading it again. However, I know there are some people that are a once and done type of reader and that’s fine too.

So which are you. Only one good read or do you enjoy the occasionally reread? Vote in the poll and comment below whey you like rereading or not.

Results of last week’s poll:

YA or Adult Novels?

Although winning by only 10% more than just YA, both was the winner. I guess most of us just can’t choose.

Six Books To Get You Through Any School Scenario

Posted on July 9, 2015August 17, 2015 by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

I know school still seems pretty far off and some of you may even be done with school (me!) but there’s still time for some summer reading and what better to read then some books that will actually help you survive in school. Whether you’re in middle school, high school, or college you’ll probably face at least one of these situations. Here’s six books to help you with six different school scenarios. Good luck!

1. Mean girls

Got some mean girls trying to bring you down? The haters are still hating? Don’t fear because Reed Brennan has been there. In the Private series she goes through some terrible hazing just to fit in with the Billings Girls, the most popular group of girls at her new boarding school. Even better, however, she learns how to beat them at their own game and become a boss herself. Plus, she also solves some murders but hopefully that’s not something you’ll have to deal with.

2. New year, new you

You’re tired of not being seen and you’re read to make a splash. You want to be noticed and you’re willing to do what it takes to get there. Lexi gets that. She’s ready for her long time crush, Logan, to finally notice her and she’s ready to play the beauty game to get what she wants. Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality will give you tips on your makeover while also reminding you that looks aren’t everything and maybe you’re perfect just the way you are. But some lipstick never hurts, right?

3. New student

Being the new kid can be the worst. You have to make new friends, learn your way around the halls, and try to fit in with a new crowd. Well imagine trying to do all that while having a crazy ghost roaming the halls of your high school. Yeah, your situation sounds much better now, doesn’t it? In The Mediator series Suze Simon is a mediator with a lot on her plate. It’s her job to get ghosts onto their next step (whatever that is) and she still has to pass all her classes. Add in a hot ghost roommate and Suze’s new girl status is the least of her problems. Still, Suze’s boss attitude to facing a new environment is one you can learn from before you enter your new school.

4. Getting over a crush

Unrequited love is the worst and you’re over it. You’re sick of crushing and being let down. You want to move on and start this year off right, leaving that crush in the past. Sadie feels your pain. She’s had a crush on her best friend, Garrett, for far too long and now she’s done. She’s ready to move on and she’s got a plan to do it. Consider Getting Over Garrett Delaney as your guide to letting go and finding your own happiness. You got this!

5. First year of college

Leaving home for the first time? Staying home but all your friends are leaving? Trying the long distance relationship thing with your high school significant other? Yolo deals with all this and more. If you’ve never read the TTYL series I’d definitely recommend it before reading this one (plus there’s great advice in those as well). Besties Angela, Zoe, and Maddie have been friends all through high school but now that they’re going off to separate colleges they each face their own struggles and problems that almost any freshman will face. Lauren Myracle leaves no stone unturned and all the advice you’ll ever need to get you prepared (and excited) about college is in this novel.

6. First relationship

Falling in love for the first time can be hard. Especially when you’re a secret spy and the guy you’re dating has no idea. Of course, that’s probably not an issue for you. It is however, for Cammie Morgan, a spy in training who falls for Josh, a normal boy who knows nothing about the spy world. Although Cammie can speak multiple languages, kill someone with her bare hands, and track someone perfectly, when it comes to dating she doesn’t have a clue. In I’d Teel You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You, follow Cammie as she learns the ins and outs of flirting, kissing, and first dates. You may even pick up some dating tips and you’ll definitely relate to her first date woes. What do I wear???

Want more books to fit your school woes? Comment a problem or scenario you’re worried about facing this school year and I’ll recommend a book for you. Try me!