I’m Charlotte: school librarian, bookworm, theatre nerd, knowledge collector, and exceptionally average.
Here you’ll find me writing mostly about books, films, and theatre, particularly LGBTQ+ ones!
Culhwch and Olwen by Catherine Fisher: an accessible retelling of Welsh folklore
JUNE 18, 2024 • BOOK REVIEW, BLOG TOUR • ★★★★
A mythical adventure of love and heroism. Culhwch falls madly in love with Olwen, the daughter of a malevolent giant. But unhappy about the pairing, Olwen’s father sets Cuhlwch a test: he must complete several perilous feats and bring him the treasures he desires.
Exciting prose combined with beautiful poetry and hand-drawn line illustrations make this Welsh mythology retelling feel accessible and exciting, and is perfect for both young readers and grown-up Welsh mythology fans!
Vivi Conway and the Sword of Legend by Lizzie Huxley-Jones: a diverse adventure rooted in Welsh mythology
MAY 30, 2023 • BOOK REVIEW, BLOG TOUR • ★★★★★
When 12-year-old Vivi moves with her mums to London from rural North Wales, she finds herself wrapped up in a thrilling and mysterious mission alongside a misfit crew, including a thousand-year-old dog.
This contemporary adventure based on Welsh myth features a cast of diverse heroes including an autistic main character, a non-binary side character, and others with various ethnicities and disabilities (and written by a non-binary autistic author).
Catfish Rolling by Clara Kumagai: an excerpt from the tale inspired by Japanese legend
MARCH 17, 2023 • EXCERPT, BLOG TOUR
Magical realism blends with Japanese legend in a story about grief, memory, time, and an earthquake that shook a nation. There’s a catfish under the islands of Japan and when it rolls, the land rises and falls. This time, it caused an earthquake so powerful, it cracked time itself, destroyed Sora’s home, and took her mother.
When Sora strays inside the wild and abandoned zones where time runs differently, she finds that time distorts, memories fracture, and shadows linger. And when her father goes missing too, she has no choice but to find her parents, and perhaps even the catfish itself…
The Boy Lost in the Maze by Joseph Coelho: contemporary verse inspired by ancient mythology
OCT 10, 2022 • BOOK REVIEW, BLOG TOUR • ★★★★
A story about two boys, separated by centuries, parted by myth, divided by reality. Two boys hoping to be men. Two boys severed from their fathers. Two boys searching a maze of manhood.
This spellbinding YA novel told in poems blends the ancient legend of Theseus and the Minotaur with the quest of a modern-day teenage boy to find his biological father. Each story tells of a boy becoming a man and discovering what true manhood really means.
The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester by Maya MacGregor: an addictive, diverse YA mystery
AUG 29, 2022 • BOOK REVIEW • ★★★★★
After a traumatic incident, Sam Sylvester isn’t optimistic about moving to a new state, but things don’t seem so bad – until Sam learns of a mysterious death that shook the town in the 1980s. Amongst threatening notes and figures hidden in the shadows, Sam discovers that they may be closer to a killer than previously known. Would they risk their new life for a half-lived one?
Includes a range of sexuality, gender, neurodivergent and mental health representation, written by a non-binary, autistic author.
Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating – Adiba Jaigirdar
Genre: YA Contemporary, RomanceDate Published: May 25, 2021Rating: ★★★★LGBTQ+: ✅ 📖 Click here to read the synopsis Everyone likes Humaira "Hani" Khan—she’s easy going and one of the most popular girls at school. But when she comes out to her friends as bisexual, they...
Mooncakes – Wendy Xu & Suzanne Walker
Genre: Graphic Novel, FantasyDate Published: October 22, 2019Rating: ★★★★★LGBTQ+: ✅ 📖 Click here to read the synopsis A story of love and demons, family and witchcraft. Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmothers'...
Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World – Sarah Prager
Genre: Non-Fiction, Biography, HistoricalDate Published: May 23, 2017Rating: ★★★★LGBTQ+: ✅ 📖 Click here to read the synopsis World history has been made by countless lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals—and you’ve never heard of many of them....
Loveless – Alice Oseman
Genre: YA ContemporaryDate Published: July 9, 2020Rating: ★★★★★LGBTQ+: ✅ 📖 Click here to read the synopsis Georgia has never been in love, never kissed anyone, never even had a crush – but as a fanfic-obsessed romantic she’s sure she’ll find her person one day. As she...
Graphic Novel Readathon: 20th & 21st August 2022
Do you love graphic novels? Do you love buying them so much that you have a huge stack of them waiting to be read? Well, if this sounds like you and you're free this weekend, you're in luck! On Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st August 2022, my friend Kate and I will be...

