Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi - My review

This is a Review Post. 0.0  I know. Wow.

Unravel Me
by Tahereh Mafi

tick
tick
tick
tick
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it's almost
time for war.

Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.

She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam's life.


My thoughts:

I'm a fan of Tahereh Mafi having met her in person and she kindly remembered me. (Wow!) I gave Shatter Me 5 stars. I'm not sure why I didn't read this next book 'til now. I like to think that subconsciously I remembered that Ignite Me would be coming out Feb 4th so I planned to read these two back to back. Maybe.

I read a copy from the library which I'd checked out at least three different times. I read the first page planning on setting it aside. Planning Schmanning - I did not live or breathe without being Juliette for days and now I'm struggling with having finished the book. In fact, I'm relieved-to-sprawled-on-the-ground that the pain of not being Juliette for a few days will be short-lived.

I can see how some readers might think there is too much emotion crammed into each paragraph. Frankly, I'm relieved. This writing is TOO intimate, too much like Tahereh climbed inside my head to write. Like she took the crazy, co-dependent side of me and ballooned it into something so twisted and pathetic, I could only nod in agreement. In the first book, it is a little difficult to identify with Juliette unreservedly. I mean, she's nuts. Insane. Even admitting close association feels a little weird. It's hard not to watch Tahereh out of the corner of your eye for potential spontaneous weirdness, since that first book came from somewhere in her head.

But this book?  Unravel Me?  Juliette is changing and growing and... maybe it's just me, but latching onto someone else to feel a sense of worth and purpose is very real to me. Her relationship with Adam continues its burst of growth into something that is not healthy, but such a life-saving connection that No-Adam is horrifically worse than Some-Adam. Until... Some-Adam is infinitely worse than No-Adam. Sweet, sweet progressions that dragged me through mud without my noticing.

Brilliant. I love FEELING without realizing how I was being led until I've arrived.

Warner returns, too. Maybe I didn't want to know how close Warner would get to Juliette. That's possible. I really enjoyed hating him. I didn't want to see a real, human side of him. I definitely never wanted to see how much Warner and Juliette have in common!!  Until I found myself there, in the moment, and was completely convinced.

What I love best is still the writing. I love how Juliette lets her thoughts go and then reigns them in by crossing them out. I love how much of her is revealed by the crossed out words. I love her effort in controlling her thoughts and heart. I connect with that concept deeply. There are two realities for me - the one that exists and the one I want to exist, and Tahereh captures this beautifully.

In Shatter Me, the concept of all the folks hiding out with super powers was a weird twist for me, so I enjoyed the way Unravel Me expands on this world and humanizes those folks. Slowly. Juliette is very slow to let anyone in, and I developed with her, from suspicious to welcoming to anxious for their safety. I love that.

I don't have any quotes because I wanted to quote the entire book from the first line. So, I need this book in my library. I will be re-reading it some day. I loved it even more than Shatter Me. More.

Juliette's emotions run high and low and wide and deep. I can't help hoping that not everyone likes this book. Because I selfishly want to be unique and different and special. I want the way I identify with Juliette to be unique and different and special. Oh, yes, I understand Warner more than I want to admit!! So... just move along!!  There's nothing to see here!!  You don't need to read this book even if I give it 5.25 stars. You don't need to identify with it (although tell me if you do!! It's possible we're kindred spirits and didn't even know it!) and certainly don't tell me if you didn't like it. I shall blink lazily another direction, like a cat, pretending to not care and you might feel snubbed without knowing why.

My book. MINE!

Tahereh Mafi is a girl. She was born in a small city somewhere in Connecticut and currently resides in Orange County, California, where the weather is just a little too perfect for her taste. When unable to find a book, she can be found reading candy wrappers, coupons, and old receipts. Tahereh began Juliette’s story with Shatter Me and Unravel Me, and continued it inDestroy Me, an ebook novella. You can visit Tahereh online at www.taherehbooks.com or on Twitter @TaherehMafi.

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Review and Giveaway signed Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me 

by Tahereh Mafi

Hardcover, 352 pages

Published November 15th 2011 by Harper/HarperCollins

Premise: 

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. 

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

My Review:

Ah… the beauty!!!

There are 3 major things I love about this book.

The first is the balance on the edge of sanity. Juliette begins with a roll of a mini-book and a tiny pen where she scratches her thoughts. She has no one to talk to, so her thoughts begin as written and even when she is no longer living precariously out of that mini-book, her thoughts follow the pattern of writing to herself in it. She is forever catching her thoughts and correcting them. 

Sometimes, she is forcing her will over her emotions... sometimes it is her initial reaction that is virtually insane, but at other times it’s her will-power insisting on an imagined reality that is even more insane. Either way, Mafi has captured a level of emotion and imbalance that is exquisite. 

As the story progresses and Juliette’s confidence grows, these cross-outs lessen. She doesn’t have to correct herself as often. Except in moments of great emotion… and it’s precious. What she refuses to admit carries more story than the words she allows to live. Not to mention, so much more of Juliette’s character is revealed without any description!

The second thing I love is the use of Numbers.

“I’ve been locked up for 264 days… 1 window. 4 walls. 144 square feet of space. 26 letters in an alphabet I haven’t spoken in 264 days of isolation… 6,336 hours since I’ve touched another human being.” Pg 1

Numbers are emphasized by using the numerical instead of letter form… Juliette divides her life into counting everything around her to keep her grasp on reality. She counts to wait. She counts to make sense of things. She counts to keep her brain ready to think because she also has moments of freezing, where she can’t move and can’t react and those moments frighten her. I loved, LOVED this use of numbers through-out the entire book.

The third thing I loved, but I also squirmed uncomfortably with… there is an awful lot of sexual tension!! Consistent with the power of the first two major themes, Juliette’s senses are so deprived that any TOUCH at all is an exclamation point!!! Experiencing human contact through her deprived point of view was… beyond words. My words, that is, so I’ll quote again:

“His fingertips are 10 points of electricity killing me with something I’ve never known before. Something I’ve always wanted to feel. 

‘Then why are you here?’ I whisper, broken, dying in his arms. ‘Why…’ 1, 2 attempts at inhalation. ‘Why are you touching me?’ 

‘Because I can.’ He almost cracks a smile and I almost sprout a pair of wings.” Pg 117

I loved this incredible dive into emotions, but, but… those shower scenes are… OMG!!! No, there’s no sex, but only because they keep getting interrupted!! 

Here's my one tiny complaint:  apparently Juliette is any-man’s idea of beautiful ‘cause every one of 'em ogles over her. Since this is opposite of her childhood memories, it leapt out at me as beyond-believable. That EVERY man would suddenly desire her beyond their physical control was a little excessive for me. Adam makes complete sense… they have deep long-bonding connections that ooze believability. Warner also makes sense in a sick, twisted way. 

Warner, btw, is a great hate-able, detestable character and that hint of attraction between him and Juliette is extra creepy, but totally believable. 

It’s just… every other man that saw her flipped over in awe of her seemed far-fetched ‘cause… frankly… if she was THAT hot, she couldn’t be THAT innocent at the same time. You know? She’d have that cocky self-assurance that natural beauty slathers it’s bearers with. So she’s either one or the other… but both? End of teensy-weensy complaint.

I’ve found one more thing I love about this book, now, which makes four:

“He closes his eyes for half of a second and I marvel at the drop drop drops of hot water caught in his eyelashes like pearls forged from pain.” Pg 117

“Killing time isn’t as difficult as it sounds. I can shoot a hundred numbers through the chest and watch them bleed decimal points in the palm of my hand. I can rip the numbers off a clock and watch the hour hand tick tick tick its final tock just before I fall asleep. I can suffocate seconds just by holding my breath. I’ve been murdering minutes for hours and no one seems to mind.” Pg 127

The writing behind everything… behind the numbers and the edge of sanity and the sensual tension… is incredible. It’s picturesque, unexpected and sharply graphic. I don’t know how many times my heart pounded and I stopped reading and just soaked up an odd phrase here or there, reading it over and over again wondering how Mafi ever thought to put those words together in that combination?  She took a busy storyline filled with complicated characters and spilled it out her own unique way.

You know when you love a book so much you have to read the Acknowledgements section? This thank you to her editor made sense:

“It’s been such a privilege working with someone who so absolutely understands my story. My characters are safe with you in a way they wouldn’t have been anywhere else and I still can’t believe I got so lucky.”

Actually… I can’t believe we all got so lucky!!  This book could have been edited to pieces, stuffed full of punctuation and strict rules about how numbers are handled in books, not to mention No Crossing Out when it’s Thoughts and not even Journal Entries!! This book is a work of art from the writer all the way through the publishing industry… and I really love it.

NOTE:  At the book signing, Tahereh clarified that her agent loved the book in it's entirety, strike-through's and all, so there was never any scary looming publishing bullies to fight off. I was just letting my imagination go crazy in my own little world. Weird.

Cover Commentary:  What's with the dress?!  I'm just curious... it's not even the shimmery one with the pockets or the too-tight one that's hard to run in. I was (happily) caught off guard when the story inside did not match that cover. The blips are right-on... but based on the cover, I thought some super-human girl in formal wear was going to storm the town.

My Rating: 5 stars - Love it!!  I love this book, I want to quote this book, reread this book... I want to follow the author around so I can listen to her quirky humor. Oh, I don't have to!!  She makes vlogs!!  Phew!  That would be creepy!

This vlog is totally AWESOME!!  (Thx for showin' me when it came up, Andrea!!) She describes the book comin' in the fall:  Destroy Me, a "novella" (that's not a novella) in Warner's POV. But don't take my word for it... you'll start following Tareheh around on Twitter like me after you watch this!!



About the Author:

Tahereh Mafi is a girl. She’s 24. She writes books and reads books and drinks way too much coffee. 

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Get Your Copy:

The Book Depository
Barnes & Noble or Amazon:

I was thinking of my readers when I went to the book signing... so this is a signed book just for YOU!!  You totally want to read this... even buy a copy and win a copy, both.  Maybe an extra on your e-reader. Can't have too many copies of this one!!  If shipping exceeds $12, you'll have to help me out, but I don't think it will... not even to wherever you are.  My giveaway rules are listed under About Me - mostly, you need to be old enough to win and no one's responsible for any hiccups in the process.

"Be Extraordinary!"

I have some extra swag from the other book signings if you're interested: Spring Into the Future tour summary

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Spring Into the Future Tour - and swag

The day I figured out that these three authors were coming to MY Barnes & Noble, I couldn't sleep or walk straight & I was in denial. Just in case, I ordered their books online. (Just in case they really came.)

I already had a copy of Shatter Me & Under the Never Sky that I got for myself last winter... they were waiting in my very special TBR Pile, the one I save exclusively as "awesome reading" should I bog down in review reading. (Anna Carey's book would've been there, in my pile, too, if I wasn't runnin' so many giveaways all the time.)

I even managed to read Shatter Me - review (and signed giveaway!!) to follow. Today maybe.

Then magnificent Cynthia Hand joined the tour... which is totally SQUEEE-worthy!! (I bought a copy of Hallowed as soon as I got to the store).

See how the poster says "Portland"?  And "Barnes & Noble Clackamas"?! Oh Yea... THAT'S ME!!!  (My store)

Friday I paced all day... and got myself on location early. Just in case there'd be a line wrapped around the building. YOU NEVER KNOW!!  Fortunately I arrived before the chairs, almost, and got a good seat. I forgot my camera. I didn't even know I'd forgotten my camera. It's a good thing my phone is attached to my hip. Even a great camera wouldn't turn me into a photographer.

Have you been to one of these book signings?!  We got to ask the authors cool questions!!  I say "we" very loosely 'cause I scrunched down in my chair and pretended I was a decoration (like a pretty flower?) whenever the moderator looked around expectantly with the microphone. *cough*

Happily there were braver souls... and I took notes!

What are the hardest scenes to write?

Cynthia - Romance!! I'm more of an action kinda girl!

Tahereh - I love the kissing scenes!!  Hardest parts to write would be Death & Disaster. Kenji is the funnest character to write about with the attitude.

Anna - Same as Cynthia. I want to give the characters some privacy!

Veronica - Dark scenes are a struggle. I've been known to spend the day on Twitter avoiding them.

How did you come up with your characters' names?

Cynthia - Clara almost wasn't Clara 'cause of Claire (or Clare?!) being so close... but Clara wouldn't change her name for me, that's who she was and I'm glad!  The boys' names - Christian & Taylor - are my favorite boy names. If I'd've had a boy instead of a girl (baby) I wouldn't have had a name for him!!  Btw... I know what book 3 is going to be called!!  I can't tell you, but we just figured it out. You'll know SOON, but I can't say today!

Anna - Street signs in LA unconsciously sneak into my books!

Veronica - Perry has a cool background - Peregrine hawks are an endangered species and birds of prey are significant for his character, so that was total confirmation that I'd chosen the right name. (She said it so much better than my dumb notes remind me... I totally missed WHY birds of prey are significant!!)

Tahereh - For me, the names came before the story. Can I share about naming the book?  "Shatter Me" wasn't my first title idea. The book was nearly "Touch Juliette". We were trying to brainstorm 2nd & 3rd book titles for the series and it was getting weird, "Wash Adam"?!  I'm so grateful for my editor insisting that "Touch Juliette" did not work even when I didn't see a problem with it.

How much time does it take you to write a book?

Cynthia - Unearthly was 6 months from Idea to Draft.

Anna - Eve took about 9 months from beginning to end. The 1st draft was about 2 - 2 1/2 months.

Veronica - For me it changes per manuscript depending on challenges, but about 6-9 months for the first draft.

Tahereh - About 2 1/2 months of "pants optional lifestyle".  Writing is an interesting process. some days there's lots of words, but other days are spinning in a chair talking in a British accent or sock skating.  Some days it's really fun, and some days it's like punching yourself in the face.  (That's what my notes say!)

What did you want to be when you grew up?

Veronica - So many different things!!  A marine biologist. An artist.  Anything creative.

Anna - In 7th grade I wanted to be a tap dancer. Or Flutist. Or Painter... but writing persisted. The best thing about being a writer is getting to do all those things in the books, like being a soccer player!

Tahereh - Whatever my parents wanted. When I was 5, I wanted to be a Chemist until I figured out I can't multiply. But I can spell the h-- out of a word!

Cynthia - She-Ra!!  Princess of Power!!!   In 7th grade I knew I wanted to be a writer. In Hi-School, I got into acting and then I was in pre-law in college before having an epiphany:  "I don't want to be a lawyer!"  You gotta do what you love!

What was it like when your first book was released?

Tahereh - I was mortified!  Edits for the second book were due, so I was at home, working hard and my friends and family told me, "Go see your book on the shelves!"  I went to see them, but I stayed on the other side of the room, looking across at them. Drive-by Looking.

Anna - It changes your relationships with bookshelves... like seeing other children on the playground, I'm curious where my book is in the store. It's funny because my job is to hallucinate all day, only it's real! I have a friend who went to see her book in the store when it was released and she asked the clerk about the "today's new release" and they were like, "oh yea, Steve Jobs' book is over there!"


Veronica - I went with my dad and he was telling everyone, "she wrote this!!" I was so embarrassed!  I love it now, seeing all my friends' books on the shelves. YA is a small community.

Cynthia - For me, the most emotional moment was opening the box from the publisher and seeing my book in print for the first time... Wow!!!  It feels like a weird sense of fraud... like, "you know I made this up?"

Do you read the reviews?

Cynthia - Because of the internet, you hear what people say. At first, I wanted to read it all, but even nice comments can skew your reality. Then there's that person that wants you to know... "I hate you, I hate your book and I want you to know that!!" It's all so close because of the internet.  What I like best?  We know the same people in my story!!!

Tahereh - The review thing is like a whole 'nother beast. People are so intense!!  Twitter is 140 characters of awesome!  I didn't know how to deal with people saying they got me book. Uh... "don't worry if you don't like it!!  We can still be friends!!!"

Anna - I'm kind of immunized from a workshop I took in college. We submitted our work to each other and shared opinions and I learned that these 2 always loved what I wrote and these 2 always hated it... and these 3 I could listen to for making revisions. Want to know my favorite question?  "When does the next book come out?"  It means they liked my book and can't wait for more. Wow.

Veronica - I've learned to adapt over time.  The first time I was harshly critiqued was at UCLA in an art class. I had this butcher paper and we were told to just "go for it" and I did, but the teacher criticized my effort.  That was the end of my art career for a long time!  My skin was not thick at all. But, we're all so different, we make different choices all the time. It's ok if everyone doesn't love my book.

Let me say again... that I remember what they said from my notes, which were scratched in haste. I know I perked up when the internet and review discussion came up... I think that's when my eyes took on that predatory look. 'Cause that's about when I started brainstorming this post!!  I have an extra signed poster and some swag. If you'd like something, tell me in the comments and I'll randomly pick someone(s). 

Why, you ask, are there so many pictures of me?!  Huh.  Well... it went like this...

I got a phone call from home. Cam-Shaft was injured and he thought maybe his arm was dislocated or at least broken and Cool, Man wasn't sure why the upset little guy was being so loud about it, like maybe there was a problem that required emergency assistance.  As Mom, my first question was "what time is it?" Why that effects injuries is a mystery, but since it was 15 minutes after bedtime, we decided to send injured child and offending big brother to quiet bed confinement and see if that solved the injury. Meanwhile, I requested to skip ahead of the book-signing line... 'cause there was no way I was taking anyone to the ER before I got my books signed!!  (duh!)

The kind bookstore clerks and fans re-arranged themselves just for me and I was suddenly face-to-face with Cynthia Hand. Cue slack-jaw comments like "I have a book".  My phone rings again (now I'm talking while in the front of the line) and turns out Cam-Shalf will pull through.  PHEW!

All I could think about is how I want to give away as much stuff as I can while keeping as much stuff as I can at the same time. Logically!!  So I whip out my Nook and ask Cynthia to sign the cover for me - 'cause Unearthly is on it, only I forget to mention that... or anything else remotely intelligent.  But I get this bright idea of proving I was there by getting my picture taken with her. It would have been cool if I'd've bravely asked all four authors to look at the volunteer trying to figure out how to hold my tiny phone AND take a picture, too, but I was still babbling nonsense.  The look in my eyes, however, is triumphant like I tricked everyone, or something. But really, they were all so generous, even though I held up the line for a long time for someone who hurried to the front for an "emergency".


Anna Carey offered me extra posters to share with my readers & Veronica Rossi was so nice and personable. Cynthia gave me extra bookmarks and temp tattoos  to share. Tahereh Mafi was so kind and thoughtful and gave me a necklace while signing  my name, "Burgandy Ice".

Yes... I asked them to sign my internet name on the books I had second copies of. Is that weird?  It's my book-lovin' identity... it seemed normal to me.

You know what else seemed totally normal?!  Fangirling with a huge grin. Attempting to monopolize the conversation all the way down the table. Pretending like I was best-buds with each one of 'em. NORMAL, I tell ya!!  What was weird was the mom who was my age standing back so her daughter could get signatures. For one tiny second I wondered if I was acting half my age instead of my mature older-than-all-authors self.

*phtheft*

I got over it the next moment.  There are not enough awesome books and awesome writers out there to get hung up over what kind of fun books I like to read.  So, yea!!  I love YA!!  And I love keepin' company with all the wonderful YA readers!!  I don't think I've ever cared how old anyone was when it comes to books. Brains are what's important!!  Gotta have some brains!

Hey... wanna know the TOTALLY WEIRD THING?!  I've been blogging for what... 7 months?  In a BUBBLE. I wondered if I'd meet other bloggers goin' to this thing... other blogger that live near me. That blog.

Wouldn't you know it?!  Michelle from The Passionate Bookworm was there.  Yep.  So, now we're like best buds, right?  Naw... I've still gotta tell her I was there.  *cough* I would've introduced myself on the spot if... well, if I didn't feel totally lame, like...  I mean, whatya do?!  "Hi - I'm just like you!"  "Uh, what?!"  "I mean, I blog - I review books and stuff. I even read Shatter Me!"  "Oh, well, I'm happy for you".  How would that conversation go?!  Better yet... I'll bug her now and the next time we get together we'll know whether we should pretend we don't know each other or be best-buds.

Not just Michelle... Ephrielle from Hope, Love, and Happy Endings was also there along with Vy from Vy's Blog.  (I just found that out. Just now. Uh, yay for internet?!)

I stole this picture from this really super-great summary of... the Spring Into the Future Tour on Novels News & Notes from your Northwest Neighbors.  I can't even say this with enough sarcasm... there's a Northwest blog. I never knew. What else am I going to find out today?

I really like Michelle's summary. We took turns taking notes. She got the great question on cute guys and the appearance of Awesome Coffee!

Sunday, Spring, Links!

Feliz Cinco de Mayo!!!  Que todos tienen un bien suave fin de semana y encuenten demasiado tiempo para leer!!

Welcome Sunday Saloners!!

I have a post going up SOON with my New Book Arrivals of the week... below I've listed my posts of this past week.

First... I met FOUR AUTHORS Friday night at the Spring Into the Furture Tour!!!

It was so weird that Friday's FF question was What would you say to your fav author?  I totally predicted I'd stand there tongue-tied, and pretty much, that was it. I lived out my prediction.

Cynthia Hand got odd huge smiles out of me, but no "loved your book" or "can't wait to read this one" or even "I agree, 'Clara' is such a great name!"  Nope.  Just insanely odd smiles.


Tahereh Mafi drew me out a little more 'cause she recognized my blog name from my stalking her the day before. I nearly fainted, nearly swoll up like a balloon and popped and fainted all at once, but barely managed more than "gah... yay!" in speech. Sheesh.

Anna Carey was so nice... I've only read the first quarter of Eve, but I might have mentioned how sweet it is or exciting or something. But nope.

Veronica Rossi is a little intimidating, anyway... she was a perfect last station wrap up to keep the line moving.

My cheeks hurt from grinning though. (Cheshire cat?!)

I took notes during the Q & A... so I'll share some more fun stuff SOON. I'm so glad they all came to Portland, OREGON!!!  :-D

Here's my ACTION for the week!!


Interview - Eulogy's Secret by Grace Elliot  - Fierce Reading Virtual Tour stop!

Review - Interrupted by Rachel Coker  - Team Novel Teen tour stop!

Spring Fling Giveaway Hop - win a book of your choice!

Blast!  Elemental by Emily White - win $100 GC for lotsa clickin!!

Interview & Giveaway - The Sun Zebra by Rolando Garcia

Weigh in Wednesday - e-readers or print?

Interview & Giveaway - The Light and Fallen by Anna White

Interview & Giveaway - The Time Weaver by Thomas A Knight

Feature & Follow - What would you say to your fav author?

Blast!  Dangerous Favor by Joyce DiPastena - win a $50 GC for lotsa clickin'!!

Review - At the Foot of the Lighthouse by Erin Hoffman

Saturday Snapshot - 14 yr anniversary pix!!

Lemme just point out that I've been saying I had some authors' books to post about... and there are so, so many MORE, believe me!!  If only there was more of me, like an organized me, to set all these up, what a steady flow of awesome authors we could see!!!  (holy cow that rhymes!! I'm on a roll!!)

Thank you especially to everyone for all the well-wishin' all week. I came down with some horrible virus Sunday and I'm still hackin' a lung a week later... but managed to celebrate our Anniversary in style!!  It was quite the week!!!  All the encouraging thoughts & pix for Spring Fling have kept me chuckling every day.

HUGE thank you!!!

Have you seen the MOON tonight?  It's as close as close as close and BIG!!!  Anna Death Duarte shared this with me a few months back... entirely appropriate!!