Book Recommendations: Loved This Ghibli Film? Read This Book!

Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening friends! What do you think of Varian’s costume of San from Princess Mononoke? Princess Mononoke is perhaps my favourite Ghibli film of all time; it’s a beautiful story with powerful themes and compelling characters, especially San, the human girl raised by wolves.

In case you’re new to the Pond’s recommendation posts, the recommendation posts are brought to you by Varian, the Pond’s very own Toadshifter who is knowledgeable in all kinds of magic! One of Varian’s ambitions is to get better at sewing, hence why whenever Varian has shown you their latest costume, they will always recommend a book that inspired that costume.

As you might have already guessed, today’s book recommendations theme is ‘Studio Ghibli’.

Book Review: Front Desk by Kelly Yang – A Compassionate & Empowering Story About The Immigrant Experience, Poverty, and Community

Synopsis:

Mia Tang has a lot of secrets.

Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old Mia manages the front desk of the Calivista Motel and tends to its guests.

Number 2: Her parents hide immigrants. And if the mean motel owner, Mr. Yao, finds out they’ve been letting them stay in the empty rooms for free, the Tangs will be doomed.

Number 3: She wants to be a writer. But how can she when her mom thinks she should stick to math because English is not her first language?

It will take all of Mia’s courage, kindness, and hard work to get through this year. Will she be able to hold on to her job, help the immigrants and guests, escape Mr. Yao, and go for her dreams?

CW’s review:

A few pages into Front Desk by Kelly Yang, I thought to myself, I’m falling in love with this book. Unsurprisingly, Front Desk became not only one of my effortless favourites back in 2018, but it became one of my favourite books ever – more than deserving, I felt, to be in my ‘forever in my heart’ shelf in Goodreads. Front Desk may be a middle-grade novel, but don’t be fooled – it has a light and compassionate narrative but also delves into tough topics that children and adults alike can learn from.

Welcome to the 2018 Pond Awards! (The Best, The Worst, and Everything in Between)

Happy New Year, my dear friends! I wish you all a wonderful year, one where you will find what you are looking for, one that is fulfilling, and, of course, one filled with wonderful books. To kick-start the new year, I have a fun feature prepared for you all:

Welcome to our very first Pond Awards!

In addition to my favourite books of 2018, I thought I would also include a more fun post where I share with you a summary of the best (these should not be too much of a surprise!), the worst, and the most’s.

Xiaolong’s Favourite Reads of 2018!

With the year drawing to a close, you’re feeling a little anxious but excited about what the new year will bring. You remember Xiaolong asking you to visit her near the year’s end. And so that’s where you are off to today.

“Hi friend!” greets Xiaolong, when you enter the Pond. “It’s always good to see you. Today I have some books to share with you today – my favourite books of this year!” She holds up the stack of books in her hands up to you, showing you their shiny spines. “I read so many good books this year, but I think these ones are my top eight books.”

You sit down next to her, and ask her what her favourites are. “I’ll tell you, but after you have to tell me what your favourites are too, okay?”

She takes a seat too, picks up the first book, and begins: “So, one of my favourite books was…”