hii readers, this post is going to be fairly quick and short. i just wanted to let you guys know about two things.
that i changed my blogs name, domain, and general purpose
that i started a second blog for my more bookish content
i changed this blog mostly because i felt like this blog had no purpose anymore. it was just me rambling about life. i really wanted a blog where i could focus on catholicism, but i also wanted a blog with more bookish topics. my solution was to start a second blog and change this one.
my second blog is called stars & stories, and it is literally almost all book/writing related content. please go check it out <3. also, it still has some kinks. please be aware of this.
this blog has been renamed full of grace, referencing ‘hail mary full of grace’. i intend to have this blog have a more serious purpose. also!! there is a slight chance that i may take a short hiatus on this blog so that i can pay a bit more attention to my new blog. i promise to be back soon.
thank you so much for reading, and for being understanding of my changes. i hope you have a lovely day 💕.
((by the way, it was @joycaroline who gave me the idea to do this. i’d already been wanting to do this, but seeing her post about changing her blog to be more Christ focused really inspired me))
Hiii readers, I hope that you’re all doing well. Today’s post was originally supposed to be Characters That Are Truly Kind + Ways To Bless Others, Inspired By Them, but I was struggling with writers block and really had no motivation to write that post (I mean, I did write it, but I was not satisfied with the finished result), so!! Instead, you guys get a post that I am much more enthusiastic about (also, writing something that excites me is kinda self care for me). I hope that that’s okay, thank you all for understanding 💕.
Autism representation is such an important thing. I cannot stress this enough. It is so important. Being autistic can sometimes feel incredibly isolating. There are so many things about having autism that only other autistic people understand. For example, my sensory stuff. I am sensitive to things that neurotypical people are not bothered by (such as fireworks. Side note: fireworks are actually a trigger for me, the sound scares me so much. If at all possible, this 4th of July, please take other autistic people into consideration and avoid using illegal loud *boom* fireworks).
There are so many things that are specific to having ASD (although, I will point out that those with ADD and other things like that can probably relate to a lot of my autism things); stimming, struggling with eye contact, not understanding social cues, and more. Explaining these to neurotypical people can sometimes to exhausting. They don’t always understand. My dad doesn’t always understand why I don’t eat certain foods. My sisters don’t always understand why I ask questions repeatedly. My teachers at a homeschool co-op didn’t always understand why I was so clueless to social cues (although, this might have been a result of having been homeschooled for most of my life haha). My classmates didn’t always understand why I couldn’t just be normal. Not everyone always understood, and explaining is sometimes just too hard.
When (on an extremely rare occasion) I see an autistic character in the media, I have been known to get emotional. They usually aren’t represented well, which really makes me sad. But here’s the thing, just knowing that they’re autistic makes me feel a little less alone. I feel a little better seeing them. Now, I want to ask you guys a question, why do we have so little autism rep that even just a mention of autism is a big deal? I want better autism representation. I want to be an advocate for better autism rep. I want people to understand why this is so important. I hope that in ten years other autistic teens will feel understood. I hope that autistic teens in ten years from now won’t understand the misunderstood feeling that so many of us feel daily. This is why autism rep is so important (or at least it’s one of the reasons, another reason would be so that neurotypical people understand better how to help autistic people).
Key
= I’ve read it and can guarantee that it has good autism rep
/ = I’ve read it and while it doesn’t have good autism rep, it still has autism rep. But, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it for the autism rep.
~ = I’ve read it, and while it does not have autism rep, I think that one of the characters might be autistic.
^ = I haven’t read it, but I’ve heard that it has autism rep. I cannot however guarantee that the rep is well done.
The Books (I’m only going to include books with autistic main characters. There are others with side characters that are well written that I have chosen not to include for a few reasons. Also, I will be only including commentary on the books that I have already read. If I haven’t read the book, I will only include the blurb from Amazon)
Sometimes a new perspective is all that is needed to make sense of the world.
KIT: I don’t know why I decide not to sit with Annie and Violet at lunch. It feels like no one here gets what I’m going through. How could they? I don’t even understand.
DAVID: In the 622 days I’ve attended Mapleview High, Kit Lowell is the first person to sit at my lunch table. I mean, I’ve never once sat with someone until now. “So your dad is dead,” I say to Kit, because this is a fact I’ve recently learned about her.
When an unlikely friendship is sparked between relatively popular Kit Lowell and socially isolated David Drucker, everyone is surprised, most of all Kit and David. Kit appreciates David’s blunt honesty—in fact, she finds it bizarrely refreshing. David welcomes Kit’s attention and her inquisitive nature. When she asks for his help figuring out the how and why of her dad’s tragic car accident, David is all in. But neither of them can predict what they’ll find. Can their friendship survive the truth?
I have incredibly mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I felt like it was really well written and had really likable characters. None of the characters were ‘flat’, even the side popular characters were interesting. I liked how it dealt with the fact that everyone is a little messed up. The main character was an autistic boy. He was really sweet. He was also a trope. He reminded me of literally almost every other autistic boy that I’ve read about, but he was portrayed as attractive instead of hideous, which is almost never done in books about autism. Overall, while the autism rep wasn’t perfect, it was better then most books. Besides, the romance was really sweet.
Note: There is quite a bit of ableism and graphic death threats in the book. Read with caution, I know that I found these quite triggering (which was why I skipped the climax).
Rose Howard has OCD, Asperger’s syndrome, and an obsession with homonyms (even her name is a homonym). She gave her dog Rain a name with two homonyms (Reign, Rein), which, according to Rose’s rules of homonyms, is very special. Rain was a lost dog Rose’s father brought home. Rose and Rain are practically inseparable. And they are often home alone, as Rose’s father spends most evenings at a bar, and doesn’t have much patience for his special-needs daughter.
Just as a storm hits town, Rain goes missing. Rose’s father shouldn’t have let Rain out. Now Rose has to find her dog, even if it means leaving her routines and safe places to search. Rose will find Rain, but so will Rain’s original owners.
Hearts will break and spirits will soar for this powerful story, brilliantly told from Rose’s point of view.
Ann M Martin is my favorite author. Almost all her books are wholesome and fairly trigger free (the only one to watch out for is A Corner Of The Universe — it’s not horrific, but it does have some content that might be too mature for a middle grade book). She also tends to include characters that are diverse, especially in the sense of disability. In Main Street and Family Tree, she includes characters with Down Syndrome. Rein Reign focuses on an autistic 12 year old girl who has a hyperfixation with homophones. I don’t remember a lot about the book (I read it when I was eleven, basically three years ago), but I’m pretty sure that the autism rep was well done (although, once again, it was not perfect).
This award winning book offers kids an authentic depiction of selective mutism and a story of the experience of middle school interactions and mental illness.
Elise carries a notebook full of tallies, each page marking a day spent at her new public school, each stroke of her pencil marking a word spoken. A word that can’t be taken back. Five tally marks isn’t so bad. Two is pretty good. But zero? Zero is perfect. Zero means no wrong answers called out in class, no secrets accidentally spilled, no conversations to agonize over at night when sleep is far away.
But now months have passed, and Elise isn’t sure she could speak even if she wanted to―not to keep her only friend, Mel, from drifting further away―or to ask if anyone else has seen her English teacher’s stuffed raven come to life. Then, the discovery of a shocking family secret helps Elise realize that her silence might just be the key to unlocking everything she’s ever hoped for…
I just finished this book, it was so good. The main character was a girl who had selective mutism, and I’m pretty sure that it was represented well (please note that I do not have selective mutism, therefore I cannot say just how well it was represented). I am also pretty sure that the main character (Elise) is autistic. I related to a lot of stuff about her social awkwardness and just overall vibe. I do not know for sure whether or not she’s autistic though. But!! If you’re looking for a book with selective mutism rep, this is a wonderful book. The ending broke my heart, it was so good.
Things Tally is dreading about sixth grade:– Being in classes without her best friends– New (scratchy) uniforms– Hiding her autism. Tally isn’t ashamed of being autistic — even if it complicates life sometimes, it’s part of who she is. But this is her first year at Kingswood Academy, and her best friend, Layla, is the only one who knows. And while a lot of other people are uncomfortable around Tally, Layla has never been one of them . . . until now. Something is different about sixth grade, and Tally now feels like she has to act “normal.” But as Tally hides her true self, she starts to wonder what “normal” means after all and whether fitting in is really what matters most. Inspired by young coauthor Libby Scott’s own experiences with autism, this is an honest and moving middle-school story of friends, family, and finding one’s place.
This beloved celebration of individuality is now an original movie on Disney+!
A modern-day classic and New York Times bestseller from Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli.
Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’ s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.
Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.
This book is so good, I could rave about this book for hours upon hours. But!! That’s not the point of this post haha. I personally canonize Stargirl as autistic, she is such a divergent thinker (I learned that term from the book BenBee and The Teacher Griefer — that was a book with really good ADD rep). Besides, I related to Stargirl. If she turns out to be autistic, I will be so happy because ahh guyss she feels so realistic ahh.
A KIND OF SPARK tells the story of 11-year-old Addie as she campaigns for a memorial in memory of the witch trials that took place in her Scottish hometown. Addie knows there’s more to the story of these ‘witches’, just like there is more to hers. Can Addie challenge how the people in her town see her, and her autism, and make her voice heard? A story about friendship, courage and self-belief, perfect for fans of The Goldfish Boy.
Whip-smart, hilarious, and unapologetically honest, Rachael Lucas’s The State of Grace is a heartwarming story of one girl trying to work out where she fits in, and whether she even wants to.
“Sometimes I feel like everyone else was handed a copy of the rules for life and mine got lost.”
Grace is autistic and has her own way of looking at the world. She’s got a horse and a best friend who understand her, and that’s pretty much all she needs. But when Grace kisses Gabe and things start to change at home, the world doesn’t make much sense to her any more.
Suddenly everything threatens to fall apart, and it’s up to Grace to fix it on her own.
M. That’s what I’d like you to call me please. I’ll tell you why later.
Welcome to M’s world. It’s tipsy-turvy, sweet and sour, and the beast of anxiety lurks outside classrooms ready to pounce. M just wants to be like other teenagers her age who always know what to say and what to do. So why does it feel like she lives on a different plane of existence to everyone else?
Written by the students of Limpsfield Grange, a school for girls with Autism Spectrum Disorder with communication and interaction difficulties, M is for Autism draws on real life experiences to create a heartfelt and humorous novel that captures the highs and lows of being different in a world of normal.
Martin is an American teen on the autism spectrum living in France with his mom and sister for the summer. He falls for a French girl who he thinks is a real-life incarnation of a character in his favorite book. Over time Martin comes to realize she is a real person and not a character in a novel while at the same time learning that love is not out of his reach just because he is autistic.
Thank you so much for putting up with this long rambling post. If you’re enjoying my blog and/or this post, please don’t forget to leave a comment, click like, and follow me.
Because I’m not quite sure what to use for question prompts based on this post, I’ll just ask you guys something I saw another blogger (Lotus @PagesOfStarlight) doing in a post. How are you guys doing this week, how are you all feeling at the moment?
Hii readers!! Today, I have decided to participate in Classic Remarks, a weekly meme hosted by @Pages Unbound all about classic literature. This Friday’s prompt was: What are some classics on your TBR list, why? I am so excited to be doing this post, I really hope that you all enjoy my little ‘ramblings’.
Pride & Prejudice, by Jane Austen
This book has been on my TBR for so so long. I have tried so many approaches to attempting to tackle this book, and they have all failed. However, I recently got an annotated version from the library, so hopefully that will be of assistance.
Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens
I’ve already read the abridged versions of quite a few Charles Dickens books more times then I can count (my parents got me a whole collection and read them to me when I was three — no joke). I think that it would be really nice to read the actual books. Great Expectations was always one of my favorites (Pip is such an enduring character ahh).
Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo
I actually wanted to read this book a while ago, but then discovered that it has a lot of gore. I still really want to read it though, hopefully I’ll be able to handle it in a few years.
Bleak House, by Charles Dickens
This was another one of my favorite (abridged) stories when I was a little kid, Esther is so likable and yes, the ending is really sad but like it seems like such a good read ahhh.
Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
I have recently developed a fascination with Mary Shelley and her life. This book seems terrifying, which is why I won’t be reading it any time soon, but I still really want to read it haha.
Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte
I started reading this book back in like last September. This Fall, I really hope to pick it up again and learn more about Heathcliff and all the others. Although…it was really confusing…
Romeo & Juliet, by Shakespeare
I went through a HUGE West Side Story phase last Summer and guysss, WSS was based on Romeo & Juliet and I just think that it would be so cool to read this. Plus, I can’t resist a tale of star crossed lovers haha.
Emily Dickinson Poetry
Yes, this isn’t exactly a book, it’s more of a generalized collection, but whatever. Emily Dickinson is such a wonderful poet and although most of the time I never understand what she’s talking about, she’s still a lovely poet. Besides, supposedly she was autistic!!
I suppose that concludes my little post. I really hope that you enjoyed this and maybe found yourself a new old book to add to your TBR list.
What classics are on your TBR? Let me know in the comments!!
I hope that you all have a lovely day and remember to make someone else feel special 💕.
Hii readers (wow I say that in every post :P), today’s post is one that I am very excited about. You see, I’ve recently been thinking a lot about ways to make the world a better place and how to be a better person. I feel like (especially now), kindness is such a rare thing, and being a kind person even in a small way makes a huge difference. I really hope that this post is bit more helpful in your journey to making our world a slightly better place <3.
*Most of the ideas came from the internet
For Strangers
Leave a short encouraging note in a library book
Leave a $5 tip in the tip jar at a restaurant
Wipe down a grocery cart after using it
Leave positive reviews for businesses that are just starting out
Draw inspiring quotes in chalk around the park
Use manners when talking to others (please, thank you, have a good day, etc)
Pay for the person behind you’s meal (someone once did this for my family and it was so sweet ahh)
Pray for random people you see walking across the street
Leave a used book that you enjoyed in a cafe or restaurant for someone else to read
Compliment random strangers
For Your Family + Friends
Leave little love notes on your bathroom mirror
Do chores without being asked to
Bring cookies to your neighbors
Tell people you love them
Send flowers to one of your friends
Write a sweet little letter
Call someone to let them know that you care
Pray for someone
Ask someone how they’re honestly doing
Make a playlist for one of your friends
For Yourself
Have a self care day
Forgive someone
Write yourself a love letter
Read a classic novel
Dress up just for yourself
Make yourself a happy playlist
Watch your favorite tv show
Laugh a bit more
Smile whenever you’re sad
Pray the rosary
Listen to music that helps your soul
If you’re enjoying my blog and/or this post, please don’t forget to like it, comment, and follow me.
How do you try to bless others? Let me know in the comments!!
Hii readers!! Happy first day of June (can you guys see how excited I am about new months?)! Today’s post is my usual monthly post, and I’m excited about it. Usually I don’t go through with my monthly plans, but hopefully this month I will (although you never know 😋). Did you guys notice that I just used an emoji for the first time on my blog?
Important note: I did not sleep much last night and I am tired so like be aware that this post might not make much sense at times haha.
Important Things
I wrote 1,211 words of my novel!!
I graduated middle school, I’m officially a high schooler 🙃
I called the girl who bullied me back in like 6th grade to tell her I forgive her. That went really well, she reacted incredibly well and it was just a very good phone call.
I purchased the supplies to make stuff for my Etsy shopppp !!
Olivia Rodrigo released Sour and I’ve been listening to most of the songs on it on repeat
I started doing digital art!!
What I read
The Wardens Daughter, by Jerry Spinelli – 3/5 stars, I really enjoyed Stargirl, and after that I wanted to try some other Jerry Spinelli books. This book was pretty good, the writing style was well done and the characters were interesting. There were some surprisingly mature themes for a kids book, but overall it was a good read. It vaguely reminded me of Shug, by Jenny Han. I did remove two stars from it though because of the foreboding tone (which I did not like) and the bizarre dark plotlines (*trigger warning* there was a suicide of a main character and also a storyline about a serial killer).
Queen Of The Sea, by Dylan Meconis – 2/5 stars, I wanted to like this book. I really did, it just was too long. It was really interesting however, the backdrop of a convent in the 1600s added some depth, unfortunately the author focused on certain plotlines for too long. I was sad, it had the potential to be really good.
Avalon High, by Meg Cabot – 5/5 stars, I started out this book hating it. Ellie was definitely ‘not like other girls’, which bothered me. However, the story grew on me and by the end, I was in love with all the characters. It was probably one of my best reads this month, and my only complaint is that it was too short.
Center Of Gravity, by Shaunta Grimes – 4/5 stars, okay so confession, I actually read the beginning of this and then skipped to the end because OCD triggers. So, I missed quite a bit of the book haha. Anyways though, what I did read of it was really cute.
Confessions Of A Boy Crazy Girl, by Paula Hendricks – 1/5 stars, I really REALLY wanted to like this book, I did. But it was just too preachy. I liked the meaning behind the book, I just didn’t like the way it was presented.
Instant Karma, by Marissa Meyer – 4/5 stars, I was nervous that this book would be occult-ish and go against my comfort levels, but!! It did not. It was a really funny and cozy read, I greatly enjoyed it. After finishing it, I suddenly had the desire to volunteer at a marine animal rehab center haha.
Ballad, by Blexbolex – 4/5 stars, this book was SO weird. I found it at the library randomly and ahh it was so interesting. I can’t do it justice by explaining it here, all I can say is that it’s super cool and that you need to read it (you can read it in 20 minutes).
Pilu Of The Woods, by Mai K Nguyen – 5/5 stars, this was such a cute read. I loved the whole part about emotions and mental health, even though this was a kids book, I really enjoyed it. It was very cottagecore and adorable, you need to read it.
How My Goals Went
🍑 = achieved
🐛 = not achieved
Write 10,000 words of my novel 🐛
Wear my veil everytime I leave the house (I’m obsessed with my Catholic veil) 🐛
Get 100 blog followers 🐛
Read 15 books 🐛
Read the entire Bible 🐛
Pray one Rosary each day 🐛
So yes, I achieved none of my goals. That was sad. To be fair, I did set really hard goals haha.
Goals
Write 3000 words of my novel
Read 10 books
Upgrade to a custom blog domain
Get 100 followers
Prep for Camp NaNoWriMo
Start Etsy shop
Start liturgical living
Pray one decade of the rosary every other day
*These quotes have nothing to do with this months theme, they are merely quotes that I like*
When you start to feel like things should have been better this year, remember the mountains and valleys that got you here. They are not accidents, and those moments weren’t in vain. You are not the same. You have grown and you are growing. You are breathing, you are living, you are wrapped in endless, boundless grace. And things will get better. There is more to you than yesterday.
― Morgan Harper Nichols
She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl. We did not know what to make of her. In our minds we tried to pin her to a corkboard like a butterfly, but the pin merely went through and away she flew.
― Jerry Spinelli, Stargirl
She taught me to revel. She taught me to wonder. She taught me to laugh.
My sense of humor had always measured up to everyone else’s; but timid
introverted me, I showed it sparingly: I was a smiler. In her presence I
threw back my head and laughed out loud for the first time in my life.
― Jerry Spinelli, Stargirl
and perhaps
what made her beautiful
was not her appearance
or what she achieved,
but in her love
and in her courage,
and her audacity
to believe:
no matter
the darkness
around her,
Light ran wild
within her,
and that was the way
she came alive,
and it showed up
in everything.
― Morgan Harper Nichols
The sun is still shining,
the wind is still blowing,
and out in the wild
you are growing.
Days may go by
without change
you can feel,
but what’s happening here
is most certainly real:
You are becoming
what you were meant
to become
out in the wild
in the arms of the sun.
― Morgan Harper Nichols, Storyteller: 100 Poem Letters
If every person in this room made it a rule that wherever you are, whenever you can, you will try to act a little kinder than is necessary – the world really would be a better place. And if you do this, if you act just a little kinder than is necessary, someone else, somewhere, someday, may recognize in you, in every single one of you, the face of God.
― R.J. Palacio, Wonder
the kind people
are running this world
they don’t know how
their one little smile
has saved many lives”
― Noor Unnahar, Yesterday I Was the Moon
By becoming little and weak for me, [Jesus] made me strong and full of courage, and with the arms He gave me, I went from one victory to another, and began to ‘run as a giant’.
– St. Therese of Lisieux
I want to suffer and even rejoice for love, for this is my way of scattering flowers. Never a flower shall I find but its petals shall be scattered for you; and all the while I will sing, yes always sing, even when gathering my roses in the midst of thorns; and the longer and sharper the thorns may be, the sweeter shall be my song.
– St. Therese of Lisieux
Theme Verse Of The Month:
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
– Colossians 3:12
Theme Of The Month: Kindness; this month I want to focus on making the world a better and more lovely place. Throughout this month I will be posting about kindness and how to be kind. A few posts that are coming include Truly Kind Characters & What We Can Learn From Them, Ways To Bless Those Around You, Books That Inspire Kindness, and Reasons To Be A Kind Person.
If you’re enjoying my blog and/or this post, please don’t forget to like it, comment, and follow me.
How was your month of May? What did you read? What are your plans for June? Let me know in the comments!!
XOXO,
Liesl ♡
PS: I am kinda having a blogging niche crisis, so I will be experimenting with various niches over the next few weeks. Thank you for understanding 💕.
ruelilith.wordpress.com 
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