Ako’s Picks

[Story Plot Summaries]

The Lungs of Jeju - Sunmi

• This is a short story that parallels an individual in their forties and an android

• While the human main character is visiting Jeju, which is in Korea, they meet the android main character who has been overgrown by foliage in the forest and the two of them begin to talk.

• The human main character starts talking about their life, family, pain, loss and their struggle with their identity. 

• While the android main character talks about being created and being seen as beautiful which, along with gender, has no meaning to an android. 

• The android talks about their beauty being the reason they weren't discarded like the other models that were created with them and also talks about being thrown away by a rich tycoon after they became outdated, but later finding a sense of wholeness by choosing to become one with nature. 

• In the end, the android asks the human not to forget them, and the human says they can’t because they have a camera to take pictures. 

• The android becomes one with nature and disappears. 

[Story Thoughts and Feelings]

• I like the parallels of a person making sense of the world through their camera and a robot making sense of the world through nature

• I like the idea of all things being equally sentient and non-hierarchial--a robot, nature, and humans-- but is that true? I wonder…. 

[Story Quote]

• Robot: "When do you feel the most alive?" Person: "When I can remember the feeling and shape of my breath. During my worst anxiety attacks, I forget to breathe -- so I look to the sky to remember"

Expand - Raven White

• The story features a little dark-skinned child who is having trouble in school (Ako feels this. So. Much)

• Their mom asks them if it's an "Audi" or a "Dile" day, which indicates that Andile has complex emotions and/or personality traits that they cannot quite place yet.

• They say it's neither, that it's an “Andile” day, but that their heart hurts -- so their mom is like, "okay, I can come get you, but you’ll have to wait a bit"

• So while they’re waiting outside, completely not feeling being at school (Ako teleports back to her own childhood) they see this ethereal creature on the edge of the playground.

• The creature has an antelope mask as a face and stars and the night sky as its body. 

• So they follow the creature into the woods (Note: do not follow strangers into the woods, even if they are beautiful and ethereal) 

• As the main character runs through the woods they see more of these mythical creatures and finally they arrive at this clearing deep in the forest where this giant ethereal antelope creature meets them 

• The creature tells them to please accept and expand and then touches their heart -- which has been throbbing with this dark spot, that suddenly overtakes them and the main character becomes similar to the other creatures in the woods

• But then they fall out of the woods and their mom’s there to pick them up (Note: this mother is unbothered by her child’s apparent forest rendezvous XD)

• The mom asks if they still feel funny and the main character says no, and their mom’s like, "that’s great, but we still have to go to the doctor" (Note: yes kids you still have to see a doctor even if you have an existential, life experience in the woods with magical star creatures) 

[Story Thoughts and Feelings]

• Imagery of blackness as positive, free, celestial, and life-giving

• Beautiful artistry

• Maybe we should all think of ourselves as celestial creatures with human masks, maybe we would have more reverence for ourselves and each other?

• I like the message--when we try to limit or control ourselves, when we are fighting ourselves, or are afraid of ourselves we become anxious, but there’s a freedom in accepting the expansiveness of who we are

No Vacancy  - Xanthe Bouma

• "No Vacancy" is about young adult siblings who are living in a summer home after their mother has passed away.  

• So the two siblings are living at their summer home, but they don’t go to the upstairs room because that was their mother’s old room and they’re still mourning  

• Then, out of nowhere, these very odd, slightly magical, moderately quirky, woodland creatures need a place to stay. And they ask if they can say at this "hotel" 

• The two siblings are like, "...uh no" and the creatures are like, “are we being evicted?” (Note: you can’t be evicted from a place you were never staying in, but, then again, what is property, but a necessary yet restrictive social construction)

• Anyway, so the two siblings decide to help the creatures look throughout the forest for a suitable place to live, but nothing fits to put it mildly

• However, as they are on their way back to their summer home, the gang sees that a thunderstorm has knocked a tree into the second floor 

• The siblings are understandably freaking out because that’s their mother’s room, but the woodland creatures are like, "this is perfect!" so the two siblings think about it and are like, "yeah sure, why not? Y'all can live up here and we will visit"

[Story Thoughts and Feelings]

• Coping with loss is hard, but in loss, there is the possibility of rebirth and transformation--though not always in the form that you chose 

• The character drawings were spunky, but cute

Return - Ezra Rose & Jey Barnes

• "Return" is about a Jewish individual reflecting on a transformative Sukkot that they spent in the woods as a child.  

• So it starts with the main character in a specific woods that they have not been in since they were a child. 

• Then the story flashes back to when they were a child, at a point when they are running away from their bar mitzvah -- essentially they are on the cusp of adulthood (puberty and such) and are running into the woods because they don’t identify with the way society is trying to coerce them to and they are hoping for a different path. 

• When they get into the woods, they see Hebrew on the trees, which is different as they say they had only seen the words safely locked up in the synagogue--so they follow the words (Note: these kids truly love following oddities into the woods, I truly, truly would have turned around every. Single. Time)

• The main character finally reaches an area full of spirits and fairies and the creatures tell them to stay and eat and rest--which the main character does for the rest of Sukkot.

  • (Note: For those who don’t know, as I didn’t, Sukkot is a Jewish holiday that is both spiritual and agricultural--so it makes sense that they’re in the woods. It's also 7-8 days, so this child was missing for 7-8 days)

• Since their child has been missing, the family is, understandably, freaking out.

• They tell their family that they don’t remember anything, but it's not that they don’t remember, it’s that they’re not sure if it was real.

• So, years later, they’re back to see if it was all a dream and to kind of see if they are now too old, different, or cynical to see the creatures again.

• They leave a meal out for the spirits and, when they turn around, the spirits are there to welcome and celebrate the main character’s return.

[Story Thoughts and Feelings]

• Finding your spirituality and faith in a personal, honest, and true way -- it reminds me a little of He Mele A Hilo and the way we relate to our spirituality, to getting older, and not having that process be adversarial.

• Having the forest reaffirm you in a way that society may not.

[Story Quote]

• "When you’re young you don’t worry so much about where you’re going. Just the things you want to leave behind. Things that scare you, things that you don’t understand yet"

Marci’s Picks

[Story Plot Summaries]

Blat the Hunter - Chlove

• So the story basically follows these two characters; a child (they, them) that likes to draw and a hunter named Blat

• The story starts with the child drawing this like large, sleeping dragon looking-thing and being super hype about it

• On the next page, we see Blat looking at the sleeping dragon and reaching for their sword and we just know some shit bout to go down

• Next, we see the child complaining to this bounty hunter guild that their drawings shouldn’t be used to take down monsters

• The hunters say some shit about protecting the town and the kid’s like, "whet?"

• Then Blat shows up and is like, "here’s a feather from the slain monster" and is then asked to take out ANOTHER beast the kid drew. Blat’s like “bet. But I’m bringing the kid", which no one seemed alarmed by strangely

• The two travel through the forest and it’s cute or whatevah

• They see these like flying manatee things and Blat’s like, “you should draw these” and the kid’s like, “bitch, fuck you! So that you can just kill them??!!”. Then, Blat’s like, "we gotta get rid of the monsters" then the kid’s like, "they’re not monsters!!" and like pours ink on Blat’s head and runs into the distance VERY dramatically

• Seconds later, the kid is captured by the beast they came to kill lmao

• The kid is screaming and causing a ruckus and Blat is like, "sis, PLEASE shut tf up and if you want me to kill it, then just tell me"

• The kid can’t bring themselves to say the words

• So, instead, Blat’s like, "yeah just like be quiet, pet the creature on the nose, and ask politely for one of the scales"

• The kid does and it’s lowkey cute af 

• Then the next scene they’re back at the guild and hand in the scale and the GAG IS everyone thought they slayed the beast when, in fact, they did not

• Bounty hunter asks if the kid learned their lesson and Blat ends the story by saying the kid would make a great assistant and that hopefully the two can keep going on adventures so that the kid gets to draw more on their travels and hopefully make the world a little bit better <3 my heart! 

Finding Alex - Joamette Gil and Corey Ranson

• The story starts with Alejandra (and 2 irrelevant people) looking for Alejandra's dog, Pugsley, that ran into the forest

• Alejandra agrees to meet up with the people in like 15 minutes and veers off

• While out and about, Alejandra stumbles into what looks like a person halfway stuck in a tree

• After setting them free, the tree person, named Alex, warns Alejandra that they need to escape lest this forest demon thing catches up to them

• The two run through the forest trying to escape, mostly being successful, but at various points Alex gets got

• They end up hiding in a hole in a tree where Alex proposes that Alejandra escape while they offer themself to the forest demon

• Alejandra’s like, “bitch you tried it, I’m not leaving you” and Alex then explains that the forest demon has been seeking their hair. The forest demon doesn’t want Alex to have hair, so she takes it

• All of a sudden, forest demon bursts their hiding spot and Alejandra, in a very Sakura type move, cuts their hair and offers it to the demon spirit

• After receiving the bundles, the demon spirit leaves and Alejandra turns to Alex and urges that they both to leave

• However, with Alejandra’s new haircut, the two take a moment to look at one another and realize that they almost look like twins

• Alex thanks Alejandra and vanishes

• Simultaneously, Puglsley’s rude ass re-enters the scene and everyone’s glad the dog is back. One of the people asks Alejandra their name and, after hesitating, they say that their name is Alex

Dear Paloma - Polly Guo

• The story begins with Paloma--a like...frog/person/entity that exists. They were born with no heart, arms (later made of sand), or legs (later made of boar bones) and basically had to make them themselves. 

• Paloma is tired of the bullshit and moves out of their parents’ house to start a life in the forest 

• Almost immediately, Paloma meets a squirrel that wasn’t always a squirrel, but was transformed into one by God only knows who for God only knows what

• Squirrel bitch is struggling and injured

• Paloma helps the squirrel by bandaging them and apologizes for not being able to transform them back

• The squirrel cusses Paloma out for only half helping them and I’m like, "bitch, without Paloma yo ass would be one half less helped tf?!"

• Anyways, Paloma walks through the forest and lowkey drops that their mom told them never to speak to her again and ignores their letters whenever they write to her regardless

• This like sasquatch thing shows up and is like, "is that a pig?" and Paloma’s like, "...nigga?"

• The two instantly fall in love and the sasquatch drops Paloma off at a boat and Paloma’s like, “wait till I tell hoes about this lmao”

• Sasquatch thing is of course a fuckboi and one day sends Paloma a letter being like, “Hey, I left my wife for no reason, would you mind telling her why? Thanks soooooooo much <3” 

  • The bitch even called Paloma “piglet” tryna be cute, UGHHHH NIGGAS!!!!

• Paloma is heartbroken and is like, “wow, love sucks”

• Sasquatch’s wife then barges into Paloma’s space and consumes literally all their emotional labor. Saying she’s too beautiful to be treated like this 

• Paloma then reflects on how love is a scam, which like same 

• Paloma got a dog cuz fuck these niggas

• Squirrel bitch returns for...revenge???? So Paloma and their dog run into an escape tunnel

• They eat mushrooms and worms for weeks, which like the audacity of this squirrel bitch

• Suddenly, Paloma overhears their parents talking cash shit about them and flexing like Paloma’s never written them which is BULLshit

• Paloma’s like, "nah, fuck these hoes"

• Paloma then ascends back into the home and eats the beast squirrel lmao

[Story Quotes]

• “I feel awful, but I’m not sure why. Perhaps, I have dipped a toe in the ocean of life experience” - Paloma

• “A lifetime of being pushed around, echoed in every inch of my life outside. I’ve left home but the seeds of self-disrespect sprout in every event in my life! This is not freedom!” - Paloma

• “I know what it’s like to think that others won’t like or acknowledge you. But I think you seem very kind, and you try your best. (Also, you look super cool!) You don’t need to work so hard to “earn” them. You’re enough as you already are. Please have a little more confidence in yourself. You will find others who care about you. I promise." - Lisa from the story, "Love Letters"