maddie o

kinda sweet that bookshop.org's anti-prime sale overlaps with banned books week, which means today you can get free shipping PLUS 20% off their banned books list! bookshop.org/info/banned-...

Nestled up against the steps of City Hall in LA is a large placard with missing posters for the recently disappeared in the city.

‘You Realize the Whole System Is Broken’ Seven musicians open up about navigating the complications and cruelty of American health care: ‘You realize the whole system is broken, religion is broken, government is fucking broken — you’re on your own.’

Seven musicians open up about navigating the complications and cruelty of American health care: ‘You realize the whole system is broken, religion is broken, government is fucking broken — you’re on your own.’

2nd-Place Runner in High School Race Rips Maine GOP Lawmaker for Attacking Trans Winner | Common Dreams "I don't feel like first place was taken from me. Instead, I feel like a happy day was turned ugly by a bully who is using children to make political points."

"I don't feel like first place was taken from me. Instead, I feel like a happy day was turned ugly by a bully who is using children to make political points."

The cover for “A Moon in a Dewdrop: Selected Haiku” by Ishii Rogetsu, translated and collected by Alexander Dolin. The cover also includes text in Japanese and Russian, with a photo of a shrine dedicated to Rogetsu on top of a red, maple leaf background. The book is published by Akita International University Press.

15. a moon in a dewdrop by ishii rogetsu/trans. alexander dolin
5/10/25
N/A
read this for class and i’m counting it, in the past i’ve been middling on haikus but as my japanese improves im realizing that translations don’t really do justice how lovely the simplicity of them is? i really liked this!

The audiobook cover for “A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance” by Hanif Abdurraqib. The cover has a black background and white text, with a greyscale photograph of a Black couple dancing joyously in the center of the frame.

14. a little devil in america by hanif abdurraqib
5/4/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
at this point if hanif abdurraqib says jump, i say how high, this was excellent! his reflections on music (ie merry clayton!) are usually my favorite, but i’m biased because i LOVE a good music based essay, and this does deliver!

The cover for “Crime and Punishment” by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It is a black and white geometric pattern, with black spikes pointing towards a white circle on a white background. The translation is by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky.

13. crime and punishment by fydor dostoevsky
4/25/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
this was a Project but man oh man, first life changing classic in a while for me? no one told me how hilarious it would be!!! obsessed with how vibrant and convoluted the writing was!! on a craft front (duh but y’know-) life changing!!!

The cover for “The Bomber Mafia” by Malcolm Gladwell. The text is gold over an overhead ocean backdrop, and in the center is a WWII era bomber plane. The subtitle is “A dream, a temptation, and the longest night of the second world war.”

12. the bomber mafia by malcolm gladwell
3/27/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️
it’s been a sec, forgot to update this because i’ve been so busy but this felt pretty lukewarm anyway so not much of a loss? i’m not really into military history, and despite attempts at big picture insight, this didn’t really prove me wrong?

Moonstruck is so good. I like any movie that makes profound points about the nature of romantic desire while depicting Italians with the subtlety and nuance of Super Mario.

That!!

A picture of David Lynch with the caption Fix your hearts or die

Happy Trans Day of Visibility

Donate to Help Save Ronan: My Best Friend Desperately Needs Emergency, organized by Aiden Thomas Hi everyone, I’m reaching out today with a heavy hear… Aiden Thomas needs your support for Help Save Ronan: My Best Friend Desperately Needs Emergency

Ronan is my shadow, my writing buddy, and my best friend. Right now, he’s paralyzed and fighting for his life. 

He needs life-saving surgery (that I can’t afford) to survive. Anything you can do — donations, shares — would be a gift. 

gofund.me/036f9754

BUT i will say that i thought lucy gray felt more one note/manic pixie dream girl in the book and the movie was what really brought her to life, so maybe the movie will flesh this out more? one can hope, i am excited, ready to be hurt, etc! (tldr; could’ve added like 100ish pages for pacing imo-)

-which felt refreshing honestly and gave a lot of weight? i feel like we never really got to know lenore dove bc most of her appearances are either from a distance, flashbacks, or her in prison, so it was sad but it didn’t feel as grounded? i might condense a mental thesis/essay on this later-

KINDA SPOILER ZONE: but like my main thing holding me back was that the pacing felt somewhat off in a way that affected my emotional investment, like i feel like tbosas earned it’s tragedy in the third act more because more time was spent with the characters back in district 12 after the games-

The cover for “Sunrise on the Reaping” by Suzanne Collins. It has a purple geometric background with a golden, connected snake and bird on top, connected in a horseshoe like shape. Between them are prongs that look like a crown.

11. sunrise on the reaping by suzanne collins
3/24/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
i’m behind on my goal and will talk spoilers in replies but essentially just as devastating as promised and pretty good!!

A news article headline reads, "White House Plans to Pause $175 Million for Penn Over Transgender Policy." The subheadline states that the decision is part of a broader effort to push universities to end diversity programming and adopt stricter discipline. Below the text is a photograph of a historic building on the University of Pennsylvania's campus, with a statue in the foreground and leafless trees framing the image. The article is authored by Alan Blinder and Michael C. Bender, published on March 19, 2025.

A news article continues discussing the Trump administration's decision to suspend $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania due to its policies regarding transgender athletes. The article references a White House social media account announcing the move, citing Penn's support of transgender swimmer Lia Thomas as a justification. A response from Penn states that they have not received official notification and assert they are in compliance with all relevant regulations.

You wouldn't know from reading this New York Times story about Trump punishing the University of Pennsylvania for trans athletes that there are no trans athletes on women's teams at the University of Pennsylvania because the New York Times didn't find that detail worth including

various LGBT stickers on a dark surface. some of them read "improve your image... been seen with a butch!" "if i cannot find trans joy i shall create it." "dykes make the day brighter." "transgenderism is for lovers." "don't want to see trans people? pluck out your eyes?"

some of the stickers ive got in stock right now <3 any shares help—i have a $500 HRT appointment in less than two weeks 💔🥲

(also will note for posterity that the last time i read macbeth was high school sophomore year may 2020 (yikes what a time 🫣) so i cannot speak for the adaptation decisions, my feelings are mostly for the story on it’s own merit 👍)

The cover for “Lady Macbeth” by Ava Reid. The title is in bright pink gothic font over a painted portrait of a pale woman staring through a white veil directly at the viewer.

10. lady macbeth by ava reid
3/11/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️
i loved reid’s prose like always, but i feel more mixed on this one? during the reading process the story would have me, then lose me again, over and over, so i’ve kinda settled into an eh position 😔 (shoutout to the cover though, big big fan 🔥)

A list of films logged in a Letterboxd diary. From top to bottom it marks “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” watched and rated four stars on March 1st, “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” watched and rated three and a half stars on February 28th, and “Sonic the Hedgehog” watched and rated three and a half stars on February 26th.

as it stands, a generational run 🙏

if i could log sean munger vids on letterboxd id have watched 12468964 films already this year,,,,,,,

The cover for “The Trial” by Franz Kafka, with “The Trial” listed in black cursive text, and “F. Kafka” underneath in smaller white serif. The background is bright red with a cream white border, and there are two rows of blue eyes with a light brown eye in the bottom left corner. The title text is in the bottom right corner.

9. the trial by franz kafka
3/6/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️
i know they’re not trying to do the same thing, but i prefer what the stranger by camus does more than this? i’m sorry kafka 💔

US threatens permanent visa bans on trans athletes based on sex markers Exclusive: State department memo directs officers to bar those deemed to misrepresent birth sex on applications

it took no time at all for the recent bans on trans women in sports to turn into an effort to simply bar trans women from entering the U.S. at all

these policies were never about sports — they're ideological cover to sideline trans women out of society

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

LGBTQ federal workers brace for a McCarthyist purge "They’re not asking people, ‘Are you gay? Are you lesbian?’ They’re asking, ‘Who is participating in DEI?'"

Federal workers are being asked to report on colleagues who are involved in after-work groups for LGBTQ employees: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

The cover for “Blood of Hercules” by Jasmine Mas. The title text is in gold font over a white marble background, with silver vines and gold flower buds creeping down the sides, and the gold silhouette of a female warrior with a spear and shield below the title.

8. blood of hercules by jasmine mas
2/19/25
⭐️⭐️
i plead the fifth, all im gonna say is that having writer brain has absolutely tanked my ability to enjoy stuff like this with my brain turned off like it’s probably meant to be enjoyed 😔 (fluffy jr innocent-)

Laverne Cox's 'Clean Slate' Is What Reality Should Look Like Prime Video's 'Clean Slate' is a warm hug of a show, but it stands in stark contrast with the harsh reality of 2025.

The new Laverne Cox sitcom Clean Slate follows a trans woman and her father working it out on the proverbial remix. It feels like a product of a different time, and it is: 2018 to be exact.

But Clean Slate isn't just a long-gestating series, it's a reminder that trans freedom remains in reach.

The cover for Sonny Boy by Al Pacino. The image under the text is a black and white portrait of Al Pacino as a younger man.

7. sonny boy by al pacino
2/10/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️
another great read for audio! there were some slower parts that lagged, but a lot of the insight and stories were really fun and definitely made it worth my time for an autobiography even if it wasn’t perfect! (i ❤️ peepaw!!)

i’ve gotta respect it bc from my time in stan circles like 75% have no regrets scheduling travel plans with <48 hours notice & going w the flow, meanwhile this show isn’t until october & yet not having the exact amtrak, train station floor plan & daily itinerary mapped out is dread ulcer central 😔