Today, Kiana, of @novelisticnotions, shares what drew her to the bookstagram community. Kiana’s account also inspired Gee, @talking.story, to start a bookstagram account! I appreciated how Kiana mentioned the pressure that sometimes comes with curating and establishing a niche Instagram account. Read on to learn more:
Island(s) you're from? Guåhan (Guam)
Name? Kiana
Bookstagram handle: @novelisticnotions
Why did you start an IG for your books or reading? Who or what inspired you?
I discovered Bookstagram in 2016, not too long after discovering BookTube, and I was so excited to see a worldwide community of readers using these platforms to connect with each other over all things books. I wanted to be a part of that.
What has it been like to join the Bookstagram community?
When I am active (I’m not always), it’s been rewarding. I’ve made friends with people who share the same love for reading. I’ve gotten great recommendations and read great reviews. There were times where I felt pressured (by what I was seeing from others) to be reading and posting constantly, or to be taking professional-looking, highly aesthetic photos—but once I reminded myself that I’m doing this for the fun and joy of it, I got over all of that. Now, it’s just about enjoying the bookish content and the conversation.
This is pretty specific lol but what other Micronesians/Pacific Islander bibliophile accounts or websites do you recommend that people should follow?
I’m going to recommend all the Micronesian-run book accounts I know of: @talking.story @mlm_bookreviews @taotaotaitai @shai.reads @telbong @corinarichards
For a while, I didn’t know of any others, so I’m happy to see more of us in this community.
Do you have a favorite Pacific Islander author?
This is such a difficult question to answer because I honestly feel like I haven’t read enough. So, instead of choosing a favorite author, I’m going to mention books I have read by Pacific Islander authors that I’ve particularly loved and appreciated: “Properties of Perpetual Light” by Julian Aguon, “CHamoru Legends” by Teresita Perez, “Shark Dialogues” by Kiana Davenport, and “The Bone People” by Keri Hulme.
What's your favorite part about having an Instagram account just for your books/things you're reading?
I think just the fact that I can nerd out about books with people who get it, and that I can share books rooted in my communities.
But also—engaging with other readers means I get exposed to different reading tastes and different worldviews that help me expand my own.
What makes a bookstagram account worth following do you think?
There are a bunch of reasons I could give, but I’ll just say that there’s great content for pretty much everyone—people who love reading or want to start reading for leisure, people looking for what to read next or simply what to gift someone. And the content itself is so diverse, so everyone is bound to find accounts that cater to their specific interests.
Thank you to Kiana for taking the time to answer these questions! Everyone please follow @novelisticnotions on IG!
And now for some links 🔗
This is a big deal dot com.
So the Supreme Court of the United States (!!!!!) ruled in Guam's favor in the Ordot dump lawsuit this week.
Remember SCOTUS is notoriously picky and chances that they even choose your case are like, so slim. Like Eugenia Cooney slim. So the Navy was like “Bro gtfoh with this lawsuit you’re too late. We don’t owe u.” And then Guam was like “Wait a damn minute. You are responsible. Don’t u remember? U made this dump? Hello? Why are u not responding to my texts????”
And SCOTUS was like “Yeah. Guam is kind of on to something.”1
The real tea can be found here and here. Here's some background from Pacific Daily News’ Steve Limtiaco. Here's the Guam Daily Post's story by John O’Connor on the recent opinion.
If your eyes are tired but your ears are hungry for more about the landmark decision, then check out the latest episode of “That’s It, That’s All!” with Shawn Gumataotao. A friend of the newsletter and a familiar voice to Guamanians near and far, Shawn breaks down the issue and provides a real inside scoop.
Subscribe to Shawn’s podcast, rate it on Apple Podcasts, follow it on Spotify and share it with all your friends and family.
Mana Denight, a Chamorita who works at PIXAR (!!!!!) made this super cool graphic that Pixar shared on Twitter and Instagram!
“This piece is a celebration of the history and culture of Guåhan (Guam) and my take on the flag. When I think about being Chamorro, I am filled with an overwhelming sense of pride. Throughout our history, Chamorros have been nothing but resilient and to me that is what makes our culture and our people so special. Although I represent a small piece of the Pasifika diaspora, I will always use my voice and platform to ensure Pacific Islanders are represented, especially in AAPI spaces.”
—Mana Denight (She/Her), Talent Outreach Specialist2
I have been listening to Olivia Rodrigo's song "Good 4 U" on repeat. Here's an hour-long version for your listening pleasure.
And finally, this week I also learned that dolphins and whales literally sleep with one eye open. Thanks, TikTok.
In case you missed it, this month on The Husk it’s all about authors and bookstagrammers and making a Little Free Library in line with May being Get Caught Reading Month. Let’s read and let’s especially read Pasifika authors to support the #PasifikaReadathonChallenge.
Check out the last bookstagrammer Q & A with Telbong, the Belauan woman behind the IG account of that same name!
Thank you for reading. Write to you again soon.
Cheers,
Jasmine
This is a dramatic, fantastical retelling. For legal reasons, this is a joke. Please read the actual news.
Caption from the Instagram post