Picture This: Weasels

Weasels by Elys Dolan

You might think that weasels busy themselves eating, fighting with squirrels, and hiding in their weasel holes, but you would be wrong. "What they really do is...plot world domination!"

Do you really need to know any more than that? This book by English author illustrator Elys Dolan is hilarious. From the main plot of world domination foiled by technical difficulties ("Machine status: It's broken"), to the running gag of weasels drinking coffee and one particular weasel and his attachment to his drill, this is one fun read. The pages are filled with humor and fun details. Their leader even has a monocle!

And when they figure out what went wrong, you can go back and see it as it happens. It was there all along, you just didn't notice. Do they succeed in their goal? One need only look at the fantastic endpages to find out. Loved this one.

Did you see it yet?

♥

Loved it. Satisfying. Very faithful, great casting, entertaining,

Rollin Meerkats

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Recent Read: To All the Boys I've Loved Before

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

Each time Lara Jeans falls in love, she writes the boy a letter to say goodbye. Then she tucks it away in a hatbox, never to be sent. But then the boys start receiving their letters.

Great premise, but it wasn't really what I expected. This little description doesn’t really provide a picture of what the story actually is. Lara Jean’s older sister, Margot leaves for college in Scotland as the book begins. Before leaving she breaks up with her long-time boyfriend, Josh—a boy that Lara Jean loved (and realizes she still does). So when he gets his letter, Lara Jean makes up a boyfriend to save face. She no longer has any interest in the fake boyfriend, (Peter, who also got a letter she had written in middle school), but they decide to keep the charade going for the sake of Josh and Peter’s new ex.

So that’s the set up. And I loved it…until the end. One of the best teen romances I’ve read…until the end. When it comes to romance, YA has a lot of passion, drama, sensitivity, and physical intimacy of different kinds. Jenny Han brings something to this story that I rarely see: humor and playfulness. It was a joy to read this. I felt like I was giggling and blushing along with the protagonist. They tease each other and make each other laugh and enjoy spending time together. It’s a bunch of little things that collect over time. It was nice to read something that felt so natural and fun.

Unfortunately, it was not without its problems. The voice was the first thing I noticed. She sounded 13, but she’s 16. She wasn’t especially emotional, which I found strange.

(spoiler-ish things ahead)
Then there's the biggest problem of all: right at the end something sours things for Lara Jean and _____. And they don’t really get resolved. On the final page we see Lara Jean intending to resolve things. But we don’t really get to see them together as a happy couple. I wanted to see that! I don’t want to rely on my own imagination! The ending was focused more on the sisters than the couple. And truth be told, I was a little unsatisfied with what happens between the sisters, too. I can’t imagine letting go of the things they did to each other that quickly and did Margot ever really get what Lara Jean was going through? I dunno. I’ve never had a sister, so maybe I can’t understand. I kept trying to change the story or resolve it in my head after I finished the book. All this build up and then…blah. Not only did the book feel unsettled, it made me feel unsettled, which I did not appreciate. (Though obviously if I had this kind of reaction, she succeeded very much in getting me involved and caring about the characters.)