plantkiller
🌱 | 🏳️🌈 | 🦓 (27) they/them ———————— just a bookworm who loves getting lost in new worlds and words… ——————————— human and animal liberation for ALL ———————————————-————-
5228 points
3.85 average · 39 reviews
Click a segment to filter
What a lovely completion to this mini duology! I found that much of what we discovered with Mosscap could be applied to real life in that there is so much to learn from nature (and each other). As an environmental educator, I liked how
the lessons I try to impart to my students (and really anyone that will listen) are made quite clearly through Mosscap’s pov. It’s much more accessible to learn alongside a character than to be told to learn your local flora/fauna, spend regular time in nature, observe your surroundings from new perspectives, etc etc…
When we can dig deeper with our connections, identify the birds we hear/plants we see, use all our senses outside, we can go from being strangers to stewards of the land. It’s much easier to care about our world when we know about it and Mosscap does a splendid job of relaying that message. Even though Dex is quite knowledgeable of the ecosystems they visit/inhabit, we caught moments where we discovered how their sense of wonder had been stalled (like when they realized they’d never noticed the phenomenon of crown-shyness which was occurring right in their childhood backyard). We can spend our whole lives going through the motions of mundanity, but even just a moment a day to sit in wonder helps us reconnect and ground in the Here and Now. (And here is my shameless plug for everyone to check out literature regarding shinrin yoku aka forest bathing and the myriad of benefits such practices have to offer.)
I’m not sure if anyone in this forum has read Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach but the society we see explored in these books reminds much of what Callenbach tried to imagine for a more eco-centric future. It’s a product of its time so I’m not sure I’d recommend it to everyone but if you liked seeing a world where nature and community were the core to society, you may enjoy experiencing that utopia, too.
Anyways, I’m off to go walk and commune with the trees for a spell 🍃
The Scourge Between Stars
Ness Brown
plantkiller commented...
Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke (1997)- first book I checked out from the school library where I literally couldn’t put it down. This is where I first started fantasizing about being a caretaker for the wondrous creatures (and where I started getting caught reading in my desk for not paying attention to the lessons).
Molly Moon series by Georgia Byng (2002)- a series that was so outrageous and different from what I was finding on the library shelves. The trippy pug on the cover pulled me in but the writing kept me latched on. The concept was so ridiculous (orphan girl turned hypnotist) but it was so believable and real that I was fully along for the ride.
The Land of Elyon series by Patrick Carman (2003)- arguably one of my favorite series of all times (tied with Septimus Heap below). As a quiet kid who preferred sitting in a tree talking to the bugs and leaves, this book spoke to my little reader’s heart in a way that made me feel so seen. Isn’t is every kid’s dream to find a secret passage revealed to you by the animals of the forest to be their hero, their voice to adventure with? Let’s be honest that’s still my dream to this day. The last book is probably my favorite of the series and I still think about the concept of living on the rock towers, traveling places by intricate zip line networks at least once a week.
Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage (2005)- a most perfect example of a kid friendly book that doesn’t infantilize the adolescents in the story and, in fact, empowers them to seek their destiny with the kind and compassionate support of the adults around them. Beautiful magic system and world building (spectacular maps!!!). It is because of this book that I would like to be reincarnated as a Boggart (iykyk). I will forever feel like a gold star reader for having read this series instead of that other lady’s magic series. If anyone ever wants to revisit the nostalgia of magical learning without supporting a racist transphobe, this is the series for you! (This is not an ad I just really love this series with my whole being and it’s the only book(s) I’ve reread (I’m not a rereader, I tend to read and forget. But not this series!!!))
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (2011)- this is more so a read that spoke to my preteen soul who just wanted to do art and have blue hair. It being set in Prague also made the atmosphere of the book just so cool and interesting to me bc obviously only the coolest people when to art school in Prague. The magic system was also pretty intriguing although I remember less of the details with this one and am more so enamored with the vibes that set me on the path to being an adult with blue hair who’s always seeking out ways to incorporate art and a little bit of magic in their daily life.
So I just updated my reading spreadsheet to track some new stats and found out that about 60% of all the books that I read this year were published in the 2020s. And while I like reading contemporary fiction, I know there are a lot of good books that weren't published in the last few years. I've added some books to my Interested and TBR list, but I'd love to have more.
So, I'd like to ask the community: What are your favorite books that were written pre-2020? Bonus points if they were written in the 20th century.
© 2025 Pagebound