Sunday, December 17, 2017

My Most Anticipated 2018 Reads

I might not be a real book blogger, but I can still yell about all of the books I'm dying to get my hands on!

Sequels and Companions

Shadow Call by AdriAnne Strickland and Michael Miller
My Plain Jane by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows
Puddin' by Julie Murphy
The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee
The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty
Warcross #2 by Marie Lu
The Spy with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke
The Caged Queen by Kristen Ciccarelli
Ruin of Stars by Linsey Miller
Chainbreaker by Tara Sim
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns #2 by Julie C. Dao

Other Books

Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson 
Sea Witch by Sarah Henning
Mirage by Somaiya Daud
Heart of Thorns by Bree Barton
What the Night Sings by Vesper Stamper 
Royals by Rachel Hawkins
Isle of Blood and Stone by Makiia Lucier
The Nameless Queen by Rebecca McLaughlin
Game of Secrets by Kim Foster
The Summer of Jordi Perez by Amy Spalding
Fat Girl on a Plane by Kelly deVos
The Half King by Melissa Landers
From Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon 
The Unbinding of Mary Reade by Miriam McNamara
The Bird and the Blade by Megan Bannen
Dark of the West by Joanna Hathaway
A Land of Permanent Goodbyes by Atia Abawi
Hullmetal Girls by Emily Skrutskie
Tyler Johnson Was Here by Jay Coles
Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan
Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young
The Queen Underneath by Stacey Filak
Belly by Eva Darrows
A Spark of White Fire by Sangu Mandanna
A Thousand Beginnings and Endings edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman
You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone by Rachel Lynn Solomon
A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole
Bygone Badass Broads by Mackenzi Lee
Summer Bird Blue by Akemi Dawn Bowman
To Be Honest by Maggie Ann Martin
The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White
Beneath the Citadel by Destiny Soria
Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

So, that's everything that I'm DYING for. But it's definitely not the only books I'm watching in 2018. And I'll be talking about some of the 2018 books I've already loved in my year-end round up. At the actual end of December because I still have reading to do.

--Julie

Monday, October 23, 2017

True Life: I'm Obsessed with Bookish Candles

My name is Julie and I have a problem.

I reorganized my candle collection and I currently own 100 candles. One. Hundred. I owned less than 10 before July. And I'm currently waiting on...13 if I counted right. With another 96 on my wish list that I'm hoping to make a dent in with the holiday sales. Majority of them are themed around a specific book or piece of media that I love and honestly, I'm just lucky I'm not a fan of Sarah J. Maas because things could be so much worse because there are so many Maas candles.

But with all of that candle shopping, I've gathered Thoughts on quite a few candle shops and policies and scents and I thought it'd be fun for me to share them with you.

My Top 3

Looking at my candle collection, I absolutely have favorites and all of these favorites have a few things in common: they ship quickly, they have a wide variety of scents and inspirations for those scents, they have fantastic customer service, and they have great packaging.

Icey Designs was my first candle love. Hafsah works with her whole family and makes some fantastic candles. They're a bit on the pricier side, but it's so easy to tell why. The candles have some physical heft to them and aren't like the types of jars you see in other stores. The labels are always stunning and well thought out. A lot of the candles have some gorgeous glitter on top. Hafsah is always open to suggestions for scents and for book inspirations and she works fast to come up with them. I've proposed candle ideas and she's had a scent ready in a week or two. She also has amazing customer service; whenever I've had issues, she's been quick to offer to replace the candle or refund me (I always opt for the replacement because they still smell fantastic). And if you want your candles fast, Icey Designs is where you go; the candles aren't listed unless they're in stock and they usually ship out the day after your order, arriving 2-3 days later because of priority mailing.

Owned: The Fallen Isles (8 oz and 2 oz), Over the Wall (8 oz), Warcross (8 oz), Dumplin' (8 oz), An Autumn in Whimsy (8 oz), Touched by the Stars (8 oz and 2 oz), Dimple and Rishi (8 oz), Wonder Woman (8 oz and 2 oz), It's Only a Game (8 oz), As Travars (2 oz)

Wish List: Empress of Feng Lug (8 oz), Reading by the Fire (8 oz), Fangirl (2 oz), The Fallen Isles (2 oz), It's Only a Game (2 oz)

Novelly Yours is another candle shop I've loved for a long time. I wasn't totally sold at first, but they've quickly become a favorite. Brittany has such a wide variety of candles and there are definitely candles I missed out on before I fell down the rabbit hole that have already been retired. She also always ships within two weeks most of the time and comes up with such creative ideas! She even has a new Scent Obsession jar so you can get your favorites in a 22 oz size and yeah...that's gonna happen when some of my stock runs low.

Owned: Stories & Sunsets, Anna's Favorite Cookie, Shipping It, Autumn Ambiance, Summer Love set

Wish List: Autumn Ambiance (yes another), Cress, The Wraith, Shipping It (22 oz because it's so good, some retired scents only available in 22 oz sizes (Anna's Favorite Cookie, Magical Golden Flower)

Flickering Tales won me over with a Pemberley candle that was being discontinued. It was Pemberley and had a lilac smell, so I thought it'd be fun to try! Since then, I've burned through 2 8 oz tins and I have two more in my candle cabinet that I stocked up on. She also has a candle that smells just like chocolate covered cherries that I need a full size of and most recently she impressed me with a limited edition Bardugo box, featuring 5 locations from different Leigh Bardugo books. I had been on the fence with it since I wasn't big on Shadow & Bone and never finished the series and I haven't read Crooked Kingdom yet, but I'm kind of obsessed with these candles and I'm already really sad they're not available in full sizes. I might actually order a custom of one of them in a full size. She's also really great at highlighting lesser known books that are harder to find swag for. In fact, there's a Song of the Current candle that was a limited edition and not in my budget when I ordered the Bardugo box, but if it's still in stock when holiday sales start up....

Owned: Pemberley (8 oz), Belle (4 oz), Romance (4 oz), New Adult (tealight), Bardugo box

Wish List: Romance (8 oz), Current Carry You

Other Shops I've Tried

Canterbury Road Co really focuses on covering lesser known titles - lesser known swag wise, anyway. Shannon is so lovely and while I'm not totally sure her scent combinations work for me, I'm still waiting it out.

Owned: Camp Daybreak, Whimsy's Enchantment, Raven in Peril Raven in Love

Wish List: Over the Sea to Skye

Wanderlights Candle Co is a Canadian company that ships out pretty quickly and is based on locations, including fictional ones. She also has great customer service - I placed an order about a week ago and she messaged me yesterday to let me know there was a delay in some supplies, but she would have it out by next week.

Owned: Tokyo, Paradise Island, Halloweentown (soon), PSL (soon)

Cornerfolds Candles is owned by two women who are in a fan group I'm in. They're located in Florida and when the hurricane was about to hit, they made sure orders were out the door several days in advance or they just held on to them. Mine made it out the door, but USPS decided to hold my candle in limbo anyway. But it was totally worth it because the candle is GORGEOUS and smells incredible.

Owned: The Sanctuary (4 oz)

Wish List: Toil & Trouble, The Sanctuary (8 oz), Wit Beyond Measure

Nerdy Alchemy is a newer, smaller Canadian shop that does candles and some body products for bookish goods and video games (Legend of Zelda fans, you'll be quite pleased) and movies, so it's a really great variety. She's super quick at communicating - the candles I ordered weren't going to look exactly as pictured and she made sure that was okay before sending out.

Owned: Emojis and Cookie Dough

Wish List: Current Carry You

Stub Tail Candle Co is another shop that covers a lot of books that don't see much swag. If there's a book you feel needs more candles, this is a really good place to check (she has a lot of Roar candles, for example). She also donates a portion of all sales to animal rescue organizations.

Owned: Reading Past Bedtime, Daughter of the Dragon

Wish List: Memory World, Glass Snow, King of Crows

Muggle Library Candle Co is a really wonderful little shop with a fantastic line up. Unfortunately, she recently launched a Sorting Hat Candle that changes colors as you burn to "reveal" your house and a bunch of big websites found it, so she's overwhelmed with orders. The only listing in her shop right now is for pre-orders of the Sorting Hat Candle in May. When she can handle making more of her candles, I'll be eagerly waiting.

Owned: Deadly Sunrise, Jewel of Bharata, Ravenclaw

Wish List: Book Boutique, Free Elf, Pumpkin Juice

Geek and Wonder AKA Flickering Fandoms is a shop that was too pronged, but recently merged to sell all sorts of nerdy things - skin care, bath and body products, and obviously candles. A lot of shops tend to use amber and sandalwood and some heavier smells, but both of the candles I have from this shop are really light and clean, which is what I prefer.

Owned: Trident, Amazon Princess

The Melting Library is one of the most well known candle shops. Because of that, it will take at least a month to get any of your candles. Once they ship, they ship quickly and they're a really nice quality. I like the packaging a lot and shipping isn't too expensive - though I do live in the same state as her - and there's just a nice selection. The holiday themed candles are already up for pre-order because she has such a long processing time, so I pre-ordered an Anastasia-themed candle and threw in an Outlander one as well. She restocks some number of candles every Sunday at 12 EST!

Owned: Goddess of Truth, The Autumn Prince, Once Upon a December (soon), Breath of Claire (soon)

Wish List: His Calipha, The Night Bazaar

Wick and Fable is another one of the more popular ones with a large variety. She'll also do multiple candles for the same media so if you don't like a particular scent, you'll likely have other options.

Owned: Isla de los Suenos, Ravenclaw, Most Ardently, Warrior Princess, Honeydukes (soon), October Winds (soon), The Autumn Prince (soon), Autumn Rainstorm (soon), Autumnlands (soon), Whimsy (soon)

Wish List: Inej, Nina, Virtual City, The Spring Prince, Thousand Lanterns, Xifeng, Imperial Palace

Novel Heartbeat Creations is the first shop that created the hashtag candles and has some really great ones. There's also a pretty good variety of book inspirations and a really fun layout.

Owned: #diversebooks, Slay Your Own Dragons, Nightspire, Bookstagram

Wish List: #diversebooks (8 oz)


Wick Worms is one of the companies that makes chunk candles - creating extra chunks of wax in different colors and letting them settle within the main candle. She does a lot of fun bundles that are limited edition, so definitely keep an eye out.

Owned: Book Hangover, Wonder Woman Set

Wish List: Autumn in Whimsy

Belle and Co Candlemakers focuses on ladies. All of their candles are based on literary ladies, mostly classics, but also some more modern and pop culture and literary references. Most recently, she released a limited run of candles inspired by Margaret in North and South and I...had to jump on it.

Owned: Women of Winterfell set, Margaret (soon), Lizzie (soon)

Wish List: Lila, Diana

The Leaky Candle has a lot of fun candles and sets. When I ordered from them, it took over 6 weeks to get my candles and there was little communication about what was happening and why it wasn't just the week or two their website said. I was finally able to get an answer through their Etsy and they explained there were some emergencies and they included an extra candle. So, a little frustrating, but it was (hopefully) a one time thing. And I do like the candles I ordered. She has a bunch of Halloween-y candles in the shop now you can check out.

Owned: Summer Storm, Mo Dunn, Pemberley Woods, Hogwarts Express

Moss & Moon isn't really a bookish candle company, but they are still a lot of fun. The concepts are fun, the smells are wonderful and strong, and I love the labels. The only downside for me is that they're in Australia and the shipping is a bit much for me to order more candles from.

Owned: Citrus Punch, Crazy Cat Lady

A Court of Candles is a shop I don't have a ton of experience with - I only have one small candle from a book box - but I've liked what I've tried so far, so I'm excited to check out some of the other candles. I am not a fan of their website, but they do have an Etsy as an alternative.

Owned: Thymiscera

Wish List: Viktor, Kaz, Inej, Hapee Birthdae

Meraki Candles is a Scottish candle company that I'm...truthfully not a fan of. Again, I only got to try one candle from a book box. The candle didn't smell bad, but it didn't smell great. It managed to have some tunneling, even though it was in a tin (which usually prevents tunneling since the metal gets hot and melts the wax on the edges) and then after about three burns, the wick just...fell into the wax. I can't use the candle unless I cut out more wax or melt...around the wick? Somehow? I just wasn't impressed and I won't be placing more orders.

Owned: Phoenix Riders

Flick the Wick has some of the most stunning labels in all of candledom - which is why Angeline also has a bookmark shop! Her candle scents are really close to the description and the colors are just so stunning.

Owned: Emergency Dance Party, Dimple and Rishi

Wish List: Dimple and Rishi (8 oz), Goddess of War, Bookstagram, Bibliophile, Ketterdam

Liber de Stella has a huge variety of candles and all of the ones I ordered smell amazing...but they also tunneled. It's an easy thing to fix and not a big deal, but it is kind of frustrating. I might give her shop another try - maybe go for the smaller sizes - but I'm not in a rush to do so.

Owned: Mountain of Adamant, Gauri's Garden, The Night Bazaar, Her Yellow Dress

Library Lights is another Canadian based company that makes candles (and a lot more). It did take a very long time for my order to ship out, but they're so simple and pretty and the smells are incredible.

Owned: The Promise of Tomorrow, Caliph of Khorasan

From the Page is a really fun shop with some cool options. They do a lot of cool, unique sets and some fun inspirations for their candles. Right now, they're having a sale where they're selling 8 oz jars of some of the scents they made for sets in 2 oz and I snatched one up from the Disney set.

Owned: Disney set

In the Wick of Time is another one of the really popular candle shops. The one candle I have is a very strong rose scent, which usually gives me headaches, so I can't really burn it, but that's a me problem, not a shop problem.

Owned: Pemberley

Wish List: Once Upon a Time, Jane Austen's Writing Desk, Amazon Warrior

Other Eras Candles isn't really a bookish shop, but whatever. She does a lot of really great packaging and she does some charity candles and she also has a couple of art prints. And her scents, at least in the candle I have, are really strong too, which I tend to appreciate.

Owned: French Lavender

Wish List: Autumn, Stand with Women

This isn't even close to all of the shops out there - there are many, many more on my wish list I want to try out - but these are some shops I have feelings about. If you'd like, I can make this a monthly-ish or quarterly thing, where I go through and just talk about the different candle shops I've tried. Or, if you'd like more details about any specific shop, let me know that too.

--Julie

Sunday, May 28, 2017

Bullet Journaling 101

About 6 months ago, I began bullet journaling. Maybe the logical thing to do would've been to wait until January 1 like a normal person, but I started in the middle of December because I just had so many ideas.

It started with a twitter conversation. People tried to explain it to me and it made sense when they laid it out - a bullet journal is a planner, a to-do list, and a place for notes all in one place. So, then I started googling. I looked at Pinterest, which is a wealth of pictures and blog posts about layouts and ideas. I also looked on YouTube to watch videos of the things people were doing. Then I decided to go for it.

Bullet Journaling uses an index. You write down everything important in your index and the page numbers so you can find it easily. This requires pages for indexing and numbered pages. After falling down my research rabbit hole and realizing these were things I would need, I decided to stick with the Leuchtturm 1917 - which comes with numbered pages, indexes, and bookmarks. It makes things easier for me to have all of that ready to go. (These are available on Amazon a little bit cheaper and I try to check regularly - sometimes certain colors will randomly be cheaper.)

Additionally, the Leuchtturm is available in a dot grid. The benefit of a dot grid is that it it gives guidance for drawing lines and writing neatly, unlike blank pages, but it doesn't feel as constraining as lined or graph paper because it's not as defined. Not everybody is bothered by the definition of lined or graph paper and not everybody wants guidance, so it really depends on your preferences. These notebooks are pretty pricey, so if you're not sure what you prefer or if bullet journaling is even for you, then start with any notebook you have around the house. 

Now, what do you put in a bullet journal? As I said, it's a planner, to-do list, and place for notes. Most people start with a Future Log - which basically means some sort of calendar for future months. Personally, I used two pages and wrote down all the months of the year with some space between, 6 months per page. Underneath, I write down anything relevant - birthdays, events, holidays. 

I also put any trackers that I'll use over and over again for months. For me, that included a purchase tracker, so I can track my spending habits, and some reading trackers - one to track the books I read, counters of what format I'm reading and how diversely I'm reading, etc, which I'll turn into graphs later. There's also wish lists, long term to-do lists, a list of movies to watch, a period tracker, a list of essay ideas I have, a social media tracker, phone numbers for my representatives, a list of passwords for various websites, and lists to track the books I get rid of and the books I bring in this year.

Then comes monthly spreads. There's a lot of ways to do this that depend on your needs. For me, I keep it simple - a page where I put down every day of the month and make any notes of events/holidays/etc that are listed on my Future Log. On the next page, I make notes for the month - Blogbound work, freelance projects I have for the month, Interrobang list I want to get done, and any other notes or goals I have for the month. Super, super simple, but there's all kinds of things people do with their monthly spreads.

Next, I have monthly trackers. I have a habit tracker, both to keep track of when I do things like cleaning the litterbox and watering my plant and to build better habits, like taking vitamins every day, working out, moisturizing. Then I do a Money In/Money Out page, which is literally just a page split in half where I write down my income and my spending. Then I do another reading page, so I can track EVERYTHING I pick up and sketch out my TBR for the month. Finally, I do a Gratitude Log, which has a lot of layout options.

After that, things vary. Some people do weekly and daily spreads, while others just do a weekly - again, it depends on what you need and how much space you need. I don't need a ton of space, so I just write down the date, 4 days on one page and 3 days on the other, and write down any events, appointments, and to-do list items. with the remaining space, I make a notes section for the week - things I don't have to get done on a specific day and things I just want to keep in mind - and a Waiting On section, to keep track of things I'm expecting in the mail.

Beyond that, I make a lot of lists - to-do lists, ideas for Interrobang, time logs for Pique, notes for my manuscripts, places I want to travel, Broadway shows I want to see. I practice my handwriting because I still have a long way to go on that front. Your pages can be whatever you want them to be.

How do you decide what you want your layouts to look like? That, again, comes down to you. I did a ton of research into ways people did layouts to decide what to work on and I still change things up - my June spreads are a total departure from the spreads I've been doing so I can see if I like something else better. As I said before, Pinterest is a really great resource. I have a Pinterest board for bullet journal spreads and for handwriting practice - there's not a ton there, but it prevents getting overwhelmed and helps give you a basic starting point. I also, as mentioned, fell down a YouTube hole. One of the most helpful channels was Boho Berry. She has a ton of videos, but probably the most helpful series is her Bullet Journal 101 series. But she also has Plan with Me videos, tutorials on different layouts, comparisons, and other tips. Additionally, she has a blog, an Etsy shop, and she has a newsletter that includes some freebies and discounts. 

As a bonus, once you start looking at these kinds of things, Pinterest and YouTube will both start recommending you MORE channels and boards like it. And you'll also fall down the research hole.

So, I think that's a good place to start! I'll be happy to do another post on more tips should anyone want them or have other questions relating to bullet journaling. 

Happy planning!

--Julie

Saturday, May 27, 2017

NYC Things to Do

So, Blogbound, Book Expo, and Book Con start in just a few days, so a lot of my friends are converging on New York City. Here are a few helpful tips!

  • Download an MTA Subway app. There are even some (free) ones that'll let you know about delays that pop up. Mine is just called Subway and it's free and a little annoying because it always opens up in Brooklyn, but it's easy enough to navigate. There's even a 7 train station right by the Javits open now - the 7 line runs through Times Square and Grand Central for your convenience and the Javits is the last stop going west! On the other hand, be careful on weekends. The subway can be a nightmare on weekends.
  • Bring a portable charger. If you don't have one, get one - you can get them pretty cheaply. And bring a regular charger too, since there's always cafes with outlets you can stop in in the worst case scenario. 
  • There are the obvious places to stop - Strand, Books of Wonder, Shake Shack. But I also recommend Kinokuniya, which has books, stationary, and a comics/manga section on its three floors. There's also this bar I love - Duke's - which has really good Happy Hour deals and amazing desserts. I used to go to a location near Union Square, but that's closed, so the only other location is on 3rd Ave, between 37 and 38. I also love Big Daddy's Diner, which has multiple locations, and the Hollywood Diner - they're both your classic diner, though probably a bit more expensive than you're used to if you're not around NYC. Near the Javits, there's the Tick Tock Diner and the Skylight Diner. Both are on 34, but Skylight is on 9th Avenue and Tick Tock is on 8th Avenue.
  • Speaking of the Javits - I highly recommend skipping the overpriced options in their cafe. Instead, go to one of those diners or one of the food carts that surround the Javits. My plan is usually to stop into one of the Dunkin Donuts in between Penn Station and the Javits; there's three or four of them within a couple blocks of Javits and I can grab a bagel or two, which is easy to eat on the go and doesn't make much of a mess. So if your schedule is packed or you just don't know what your food schedule will be and don't want to pay the overpriced options, I'd recommend grabbing something along those lines and bringing it to Javits.
  • If you do go to the Strand, I highly recommend going downstairs - there's a few shelves of half off new books. A lot of their books are already half off, but this section is a LITTLE different.
  • It's going to be pretty warm in NYC next week and the rain will be pretty minimal, but always bring an umbrella and always bring a light sweater. There are frequently random thunderstorms in the summer that only last 20 minutes or so, but get pretty intense. And while outside will be comfortable, the subway and some places might be blasting the AC, so you might want a little extra something.
And that's all I've got on the top of my head, but feel free to ask questions!

Thursday, March 2, 2017

February Reading

February was my own personal non-fiction month! I decided that if I was going to stray from that, I had to read books by black authors. That lasted...for a little while, but not as long as I'd hope it would. Still, I wasn't far off my expectations and I'm generally pleased with my progress this month!

I DNFed one book this month and finished three books for work, which I won't include here. I also started one book that I didn't finish and think I'm going to put aside for a little while; it was a non-fiction book by a white dude.

Total read: 10
Non-Fiction: 6
E-books: 3
By WoC: 5
YA books: 4
Adult Fiction: 1
Romance: 1

I'm still slacking on queer reading - I only read two books with queer MCs and by queer authors (plus an essay collection with some queer authors) - but I otherwise really need to work on widening my diversity scope. Still, I made a good dent on my TBR, both e-book and not. 

As for how many books I acquired vs how many I got rid of...that I don't wanna talk about. It wasn't TERRIBLE but it was still...yeah. (Also I'm not in the house so I don't feel like trying to figure it out.)

SO, there's a really basic overview of my reading month. Still room for improvement, but I'm content.

--Julie

Tuesday, January 31, 2017

January's Reading

When I started this challenge, I didn't anticipate quite how intense America's meltdown would be. But I still managed to read 10 books, only 2 short of what Goodreads said I needed to hit my goal of 150. I might still finish another tonight since my current priority has been finishing books that have been sitting on my nightstand for AAAAAGES.

So, I read:
Fate of Flames by Sarah Raughley
Wait for Me by Caroline Leech
Poison's Kiss by Breanna Shields
La Petite Four by Regina Scott
Difficult Women by Roxane Gay
The Library of Fates by Aditi Khorana
By Your Side by Kasie West
The Ship Beyond Time by Heidi Heilig
Geekerella by Ashley Poston
The Falconer by Elizabeth May

Which means I read
10 books
4 books by WoC
6 books about PoC
2 books by queer authors (that I know of)
1 book with queer MCs (though two had pretty extensive queer side casts)
2 books with neurodiversity
0 books with disabled MCs
1 book with fat MCs
0 non-fiction
0 ebooks
1 DNF

I also DNFed one other library book, but I didn't get far in, so I didn't count it. And I'm 2/3 of the way through a non-fic book that I figured I'd wait to finish until February so I could work on clearing books off my nightstand for the last few days of January. I still have...7 books, including a library book and 2 romance novels. So...that went well.

BUT hey, I'm doing good at making sure I'm reading more PoC and I've...got some work to do on the rest. Still. Progress!

As far as my book IN take vs my book OUT take well...I took in 31 books and got rid of 13. I *did*, however, get rid of 31 since I started tracking in December and only brought in 45. And I finally boxed up a bunch of books to go out, so my physical piles of books to get rid of have shrunk? But I also have at least 4 more books coming so...you know I'm TRYING. And I think a lot of my non-fic books have the chance to go on the pile of books I get rid of. As do the romances I'll read when I need a break. And I only know of...6 books I'll be acquiring for sure in February. At the moment. So...fingers are crossed.

I have a (loosely) compiled reading list for February. Feminism and badass ladies and intersectionality. I'm ready to do some learning and be empowered!

--Julie

Friday, January 27, 2017

Learning About Fascism: Part I

In the current political climate, it seemed like a good time to compile some history about how fascism grew in Germany and how it was torn apart. 

For now, we start with German history - knowing how Germany got to fascism is key.

First of all, Germany didn't really exist until 1871 - it had been a series of loosely related nations, but was united after the Franco-Prussian War by Emperor William I and Otto von Bismarck. As a newly united country, politicians were ready to modernize Germany and become a respected nation. It began acquiring colonies in Africa and Asia, since that was the thing to do in the 1800s. They even began practicing genocide in the early 1900s in one of their colonies when faced with an uprising! 

Basically, from 1871-1914, Germany's focus was becoming an industrialized, modern nation that was well respected by the other major nations.

Then WWI came and the new nation showed just how much work it still had to do. Coordination was lacking, supplies were lacking, it generally went poorly for Germany as 1918 approached. This lead to a revolution in November 1918. Germany was declared a republic and Emperor Wilhelm II abdicated and left the country. Germany had multiple political parties and at the end of the revolution, the Social Democratic Party, or SDP, held the majority in the Reichstag as the Weimar Republic began its reign.

These Socialists were the ones who signed the Treaty of Versailles. Germany had zero say in the negotiations of the treaty and were threatened with the continuation of war if the treaty was not signed exactly as it was presented. The terms of this treaty:
  • Germany would accept total responsibility for the war.
  • Germany gave up large portions of its land, some of which had been acquired in the war and some which had been part of Germany before the war. This included Czechoslovakia, Moresnet, Saar, and parts of Poland.
  • Germany forfeited all colonies to the League of Nations and some of the Allied Nations.
  • Germany was forced to demobilize much of its military and the Rhineland was to be demilitarized entirely.  
  • Germany had to pay 20 billion francs in reparations to cover occupation costs.
There were a few other things and details to it, but this is the gist of it. Years later, the Allied Powers behind this would admit the measures were too harsh.

Many Germans were unhappy with the Treaty and the SDP for allowing it to be signed. The idea that Germany was entirely at fault for the war stung and the SDP had voted for the war to happen, only to turn around and sign such a harmful treaty? It didn't go over well.

Additionally, Germany was suffering in post-war conditions. The lack of colonies, as well as the loss of some of their lands, made it difficult for Germany to get raw supplies. Demobilization had caused a loss of jobs among soldiers, police, and weapons makers. The reparations combined with debt from the war to cause massive inflation. Imports were limited and expensive and the lack of raw supplies made it hard to export anything. Germany's most productive areas, which had a great deal of mines and factories, were occupied by Allied nations, and many people opted to strike as a form of resistance; unfortunately for the German government, they paid benefits for those on strike, further harming the economy. 

In response to this crisis, extremists parties began popping up. More extreme socialism grew, as did communist and fascist parties, inspired by the Russian Revolution.  One of those parties was the DAP, which became the NSDAP - the National Socialist German Workers' Party; it was not at all socialist and we know it as the Nazi Party. 

The DAP started in 1919 and grew out of military culture; in the Germany military in WWI, there had been a great deal of camaraderie and pride, with many soldiers returning feeling united. The Freikorps movement was racist, nationalist, and xenophobic, on top of still clinging to military culture; after the war, many continued to roam Germany, putting down Communist uprisings. The whole party grew as an alternative to Communism for the working class. 

Adolf Hitler came to the party in mid-1919 after being assigned to monitor the party by the military. But he became drawn in by the nationalism, the anti-capitalism, the anti-Communism, the unity, and obviously, the anti-Semitism. Anti-Semitism was rampant...everywhere. Because it always has been. In 1920, the DAP became the NSDAP to have a broader appeal and Hitler made the infamous flag to represent them. His public speaking skills made him the public face of the party, his speeches growing large crowds.

By 1923, the party had created a fair sized following and attempted the Munich- or Beer Hall - Putsch; an attempted coup from November 8-9.  Two thousand or so marched on Munich, ending with 16 Nazis dead and many injured, including Hitler. Hitler was then arrested and charged with treason and he was delighted by the situation. The party got front page headlines, his trial gave him a public platform to discuss his platform, and he learned the benefit of gaining power through legitimate means, rather than through force. Even the time he spent in hail - just nine months - was a bonus, for it allowed him time to write Mein Kampf. 

However, the Nazi Party was banned after this attempted coup and Germany entered a Golden Era from the end of 1923-1929. There was a culture boom, politics and the economy stabilized, and Germany became a permanent member of the League of Nations; progression ruled the country. Meanwhile, after his release from prison at the end of 1924, Hitler quietly began rebuilding the Nazi Party. He agreed to only seek power democratically and accepted a ban on public speaking, which was finally lifted in 1927. The party became more open, accepting women and having a legal section and a civilian section. More leaders were appointed to help the party grow outside of Bavaria/Munich. 

Then in 1929, the Great Depression hits world wide. Germany may have even had it worse than America because Germany was still reliant on loans from American banks and institutions. The major parties of the time - the SDP and the Communist parties - couldn't agree on how to fix the economy, so no progress was made. Come the election of September 1930, the Nazi Party took 18.3% of the votes, the equivalent of 107 seats, making it the second largest party in the Reichstag behind the SDP. Hitler and his cronies used radio and airplanes to campaign and it turned out to be effective. 

Paul von Hindenburg had been elected president in 1925, serving a seven year term. He largely acted as sort of a constitutional monarch - he refrained from getting into party squabbles. He had also been retired and only ran for president under pressure. The solution was to appoint Heinrich Bruning as a sort of Chancellor. Bruning, a Centrist, had no majority to work with in the Reichstag, so he attempted to work separately from the Reichstag, with little success. Often they worked in opposition together while things for the average German continued to get worse.

In 1932, Hitler was officially able to be declared a German citizen - having denounced his Austrian citizenship seven years earlier - and therefore, he was eligible to run for office. He ran against Hindenburg, who was 84 and in questionable health. Hindenburg was again pressured to run, this time because many believed he was the only person who could defeat Hitler, a goal Hindenburg badly wanted. The race was still close, with Hindenburg only being declared the winner after a run-off election. And in July of that year, the Nazi party continue to grow, getting 37.4% of the Reichstag vote, easily making it the largest party present. Combined with the Communists, the right-government had 52% of the Reichstag and both refused to support the current heads of state. (The Communists continued to see the Socialists as their biggest enemy and vise-versa.)

In November of 1932, another election was called for and this time, while the right still held 50% of the Reichstag, the Nazi party dropped to 33.1%; the Great Depression was letting up, so support was shrinking. The Nazis had to act quickly.

Franz von Papen and Alfred Hugenberg had reached high levels of government and, after the November 1932 election, they urged President Hindenburg - with the help of industrialists and businessmen - to appoint Hitler as the chancellor. He was sworn in on January 30, 1933, alongside Wilhelm Frick, Minister of the Interior, and Hermann Goring, Minister of the Interior for Prussia; these two other appointments gave Hitler control of most of Germany's police force.

The Reichstag, meanwhile, was still locked in a stalemate. Hitler called for new elections in early March, 1933. Miraculously, the Reichstag was set on fire on February 27, 1933. A Dutch communist was blamed and arrested for the fire and most historians agree that he did set the fire, but many still argue it could have been a frame job or he could've been hired to do it by the Nazi Party. Why? Because on February 28, 1933, President Hindenburg okayed Hitler's desire for the Reichstag Fire Decree - a decree that suspended basic rights and the need for trial before being imprisoned. Over 4,000 Communists were arrested and the Communist Party was suppressed from action. Meanwhile, the Nazi Party worked hard to push anti-Communist propaganda. Come election day on March 6, the Nazi Party won 43.9% of the vote; still not an absolute majority.

On March 21, the Reichstag held an Opening Ceremony in a church in Potsdam. There, Hitler proposed the Enabling Act passed, giving Hitler's cabinet the right to enact laws without Reichstag approval for the next four years; to ensure the law passed, all 81 Communist deputies and several Socialists were kept from the meeting. On March 23, the Reichstag met again at the Kroll Opera House to vote on the measure. After Hitler verbally promised to the leader of the Center Party that President Hindenburg would still have veto power, the Center Party backed the Act and it passed with only the SDP voting against it.

The dictatorship began.

The SDP was banned, with many members being arrested or sent to concentration camps. Jewish people who had not served in WWI were removed from civil positions. Trade unions, and eventually all other political parties were banned. The party was overrun with requests for memberships and had to suspend applications on May 1. Hitler's SA - a precursor to the SS - was purged on the Night of the Long Nights, with leaders being killed from June 30 to July 2 of 1934.

On August 1, 1934, Hitler learned that President Hindenburg was on his deathbed. He rushed the Law Concerning the Highest State Office of the Reich through his cabinet, which merged the position of Chancellor and President into one upon Hindenburg's death. When Hindenburg officially died on August 2, Hitler was now the Chancellor and President and nobody could stop him.