Review: Starfish By Akemi Dawn Bowman

Goodreads Synopsis: Kiko Himura has always had a hard time saying exactly what she’s thinking. With a mother who makes her feel unremarkable and a half-Japanese heritage she doesn’t quite understand, Kiko prefers to keep her head down, certain that once she makes it into her dream art school, Prism, her real life will begin. But then Kiko doesn’t get into Prism, at the same time her abusive uncle moves back in with her family. So when she receives an invitation from her childhood friend to leave her small town and tour art schools on the west coast, Kiko jumps at the opportunity in spite of the anxieties and fears that attempt to hold her back. And now that she is finally free to be her own person outside the constricting walls of her home life, Kiko learns life-changing truths about herself, her past, and how to be brave.

My Review: I'm so, so happy that I discovered this story, because it got me out of my reading slump. I have to admit, this book was pretty much perfect. 

Kiko was a deeply fleshed out character, and I really appreciate the time the author took to develop her and the other characters in this story. The mom made me so incredibly angry, and it was really difficult to understand her intentions, until I realized that she was meant to be this flawed and cruel. As her true colors are revealed, Kiko learns to outgrow her shell in a completely natural, realistic way, and I love the way the plot was structured to show her growth. 

Kiko herself was such a lovable protagonist, and I like how she started to focus on herself instead of her relationship when she realized what she truly wanted from her life. She also never shows much jealousy in her relationship, which is uncommon in many YA novels, and very refreshing! 

Additionally, the author spends time focusing on Kiko's passion of art, and I enjoyed the vivid all the descriptions of paintings and sketches Kiko creates. When Kiko doesn't get into the art school of her dreams, it's inspiring to watch her stick to her passion, strive to get better, and never give up.

There were so many twists and turns in this novel, and just when things are going great, something horrible happens. But it really shows you the power of living in the moment, and I think it's something Kiko needed to learn.

Some problems I had with the novel:

• I feel like the whole point of Kiko getting rejected from Prism was to move on, but she still reapplies in the course of the novel?
• Kiko meeting Hiroshi seems very coincidental.
• Jamie meeting Kiko was also pretty coincidental? It was absolutely integral to the plot, too.
• I'm not sure why Kiko only applied to one school in the first place? Even if she could only imagine herself at one school there are so many amazing art schools around the country, so I'm pretty surprised she didn't apply to any safeties.
• That's it. Go read the book. Shoo.

If you can't tell already, I highly recommend Starfish. It handles important issues in an elegant, poignant manner, and the author took her time to focus on the plot, Kiko's art, and character development. I rate this story 5 stars, and I can't wait to read whatever Bowman writes next!

Trigger warnings: sexual assault, attempts at suicide, anxiety

DECA Crash Course Week 3: Creating a logo

Hey everyone, welcome back to my crash course! Today's post is a shorter one, geared toward people doing entrepreneurship events. I used to get questions about how I designed my business's logo, so today, that's what I'll be going through.

Week 3: Designing your logo.

Finally, after you've come up with a business idea you want to pursue, you've decided to create your business's logo. A logo is pretty critical to a business: that teeny design showcases the business's values, and is a true example of the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words".

So what are the main aspects you should focus on when designing your logo?

• Capturing your business's theme. Whether your business is elegant or playful, your logo should capture its originality. There's nothing wrong with having a playful logo instead of a sleek one; it's all about capturing your business's brand promise. 

You wouldn't see Toys "R" Us using a black and white logo because they sell toys, for example.

• The color scheme and fonts. Choose gender-neutral colors if your target audience includes all genders. Use simplistic fonts that pop rather than really decorative ones that are hard to read. 

• Additionally, keep in mind that the color scheme for your logo will probably be similar to that of your report, so try to choose colors that would look good on both. 

• The symbols you're going to include. The best logos are simple, and use relevant symbols to capture the message they want to send. Think Nike, Target, and Amazon.

Nike's logo is clear and simple. Their slogan, "just do it", is crisply captured in this check mark. 

And finally, which tools should you use to design your logo? There are a million options! I actually designed my logo sophomore year using Google slides, and I was pretty satisfied with the result! I simply found free images, played around with the colors, and saved my work!

Also, last year, I used Powerpoint (my love for Microsoft products is never ending, as you'll see these next few weeks!). I know a lot of people use Canva as well. In fact, that's what I used to design this series' icon. 

However, I probably would advise against using logo makers, because they're pretty generic. Your logo is your judge's first impression of who you are, so make sure to capture the best look of your business.

That's all my tips for today! How do you guys usually design your logos? Tell me below! If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or ask me on this form here! This series is for all of you, so don't be afraid to ask me questions :).

Thanks for reading, see you next week!

*DECA Inc. does not endorse or create this post, series, nor any of the visual content on this blog.

Review: Fake It Till You Break It

Goodreads Synopsis: Mia and Jake have known each other their whole lives. They’ve endured summer vacations, Sunday brunches, even dentist visits together. Their mothers, who are best friends, are convinced that Mia and Jake would be the perfect couple, even though they can’t stand to be in the same room together. After Mia’s mom turns away yet another cute boy, Mia and Jake decide they’ve have had enough. Together, they hatch a plan to get their moms off their backs. Permanently. All they have to do is pretend to date and then stage the worst breakup of all time—and then they’ll be free.

The only problem is, maybe Jake and Mia don’t hate each other as much as they once thought...

My Review: Another intriguing premise... that unfortunately didn't live up to my expectations. This book was pretty light and fluffy, but mainly revolved around the protagonists' inability to express their feelings for each other. Which would be fine as a sub-conflict, but as the main problem of the entire story, it didn't get me excited. I know plenty of YA books that have explored the complexities of relationships and added fresh takes on tropes, but this one didn't. I also thought the plot line with Jake's brother was pretty unoriginal: girl fixes guy's relationships -> guy gets mad -> we all know how it ends. 

Ultimately, this novel is great as a light and fluffy read. I just wish the novel showed some more creativity with its plotline, so I rate it 3 stars.

DECA Crash Course Week 2: Idea Generation

Hello everyone! Welcome back to my DECA Crash Course. Today I'll be going over a really, really important aspect of creating your projects, idea generation.

Week 2: Idea Generation

Idea generation means different things for different events, but what I basically mean is, which type of business should you choose to create/research/develop a plan for, and does it even matter if the report is solid and well-written?

The short answer: Yes, the type of business you choose matters a lot. If you choose the wrong business, even a solid plan might not get you far. You should choose a business that you're passionate about but that's also realistic to compete with.

My advice is tailored toward entrepreneurship events because I've competed in ESB and EIB for the past three years. However, based on what I've seen from my friends' experiences, the following is applicable across pretty much every event. 

Here are the three main details you should keep in mind when choosing a business to pursue or when designing your own business:

• How judges of all backgrounds will react to your idea. Would male and female judges be equally interested in your business? Would older judges be more dismissive of your idea? Consider using a business that everyone can relate to, because you don't want to walk into the room with a disadvantage to begin with.
• If the business has an aspect of social good associated with it. People love to hear about how you're helping other people. While the main goal of your project should be to make the business money, choosing a business that tries to make change in the world is a bonus. This can work in many ways: perhaps the business treats their employees especially well, donates a percentage of their profits to charitable organizations, or had strong environmental impact last year. If you're designing your own business, try to include a small humanitarian aspect.
• How unique your business is compared to other competitors' ideas. This one is very tricky, because depending on your judge, your idea may or may not be well received. Don't go out of your way to be different (after all, there may be a reason why your idea hasn't been done before), but if you do come up with a novel business idea, then by all means, use it in your report! If you find a quirky business, it'll only help the judge stay engaged with your report and presentation. But if you find yourself in a place where all your business ideas have been taken, it just means that you're on the right track, and that whatever you've been coming up with is a product people need! Don't be discouraged, and just keep looking.

I hope this advice helps you decide what type of businesses to pursue for your projects this year. What types of businesses have you guys already competed with for your written events? Tell me below!

Have any additional questions? Let me know in the comments below or fill out this form here! This series is for all of you, so don't be afraid to ask me questions.

Thanks for reading, see you next week!

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Top Ten Tuesday: My Dream Bookish Party

Hostess

Hey everyone! I promise I will be adding more content besides TTTs (these topics are so exciting I can't stop haha). But today I'm back with a topic I've actually done as a post here: 10 things I'd bring my dream bookish party! I've decided to deviate off this post, so it's time for Tea Party 2.0!

Guests:

• Shahrzad from The Wrath and the Dawn
• Clara Shin from The Way You Make Me Feel 
• Dimple from When Dimple Met Rishi
• I didn't really enjoy the book, but I liked Dimple's character!
• Audrey Rose from Stalking Jack the Ripper
• Samantha Lee from Under A Painted Sky
• Gigi from Smart Girls Get What They Want
• Everyone from Harry Potter. Because it's my party and I do what I want, including reviving Dumbledore because :(.

        

Food:

• My favorite food at the moment seems to be... noodles? So maybe Pad Thai and some Asian salads? 
• Dessert: Raindrop cakes. They're so beautiful; I simply cannot stand to be an uncoordinated piece of cheese around them. So I'll eat them instead.

Source

Activities:

• Light mingling. No dancing, I don't think anyone on the list would approve of that.
• Discussing our favorite books! (Actually this sounds like a good post idea... maybe you'll be seeing that soon!)

Miscellaneous:

• Music: I'd introduce everyone to tunes of the 21st century: a mix of Dimple's Bollywood playlist, and some of my favorite pop songs! Ooh and I'm sure Samantha would love to play some violin :).

So that's it, my perfect (second) bookish tea party. What does your party look like? Let me know below!