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zombiezami's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gore, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Incest, Cursing, Pedophilia, Child abuse, and Gaslighting
Minor: Dysphoria and Mass/school shootings
saffyre's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Gore, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Pedophilia and Incest
corar's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I really liked this young adult book about a city that had a revolution and banished all monsters. When a creature comes out of Jam's mothers painting and tells her it is here to hunt a monster, Jam can't believe it. How can there still be a monster when they have all been destroyed. Now Jam must help the creature find the monster, before it can hurt someone she cares about. This was an interesting and unique story. I liked the characters of Jam and her friend, Redemption. I liked the different kinds of diversity in the book and how it was just there and not what the story was about. It really made me think about denial and how sometimes people want everything to be OK so bad that they blind themselves to the truth.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Pedophilia
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Cursing
hkingcrab's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I don't know how to start.
This book was my first book with a main character who signed. The book was set in an ideal world where signing is normalized, as well as genderless names and different formats for dialogue. Very refreshing but also work to get used to. The writing is very mystical and atmospheric, which I love.
I'm a character driven reader, so having a mostly plot-driven book left me feeling a little less satisfied. The plot was also quite fast-paced that it felt that the characters didn't have enough time to process everything happening (and a lot happens, let me tell you).
Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who would like a reflective but short book to contemplate society through a kid's eyes.
This book was my first book with a main character who signed. The book was set in an ideal world where signing is normalized, as well as genderless names and different formats for dialogue. Very refreshing but also work to get used to. The writing is very mystical and atmospheric, which I love.
I'm a character driven reader, so having a mostly plot-driven book left me feeling a little less satisfied. The plot was also quite fast-paced that it felt that the characters didn't have enough time to process everything happening (and a lot happens, let me tell you).
Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who would like a reflective but short book to contemplate society through a kid's eyes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Minor: Gore, Child abuse, Vomit, Sexual violence, and Pedophilia
sssssoup's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Cursing, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Violence
Minor: Dysphoria, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Police brutality
valereads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Jam likes in a utopian city where there are no more monsters. Or so she thinks. Until a creature climbs out of her mother's painting looking for a monster, a monster that may be in her best friend's house.
This little book packed a punch. It's short length meant the narrative was very focused in on the main plot with no real room for subplots. It might be on the shorter side for some people but I felt it was the perfect length for what it wanted to do.
I love Emezi's prose style in this book just as much as I did in their first book, Freshwater. It's told very beautifully but would still be accessible to the target audience of teens. I especially loved the audiobook read by Chris Myers. I felt it really added something to the story but I needed to read along with the physical book as it could be a bit confusing which parts were signed, spoken out loud and thought with just the audio.
I also really like the casual diversity in this story. Jam is trans and selectively mute (it's not mentioned in the book, but I remember seeing somewhere that she's autistic) and neither of these elements are the focus of the story but still remain relevant to the story and are important for young audiences to see. I especially appreciated that Jam's disability wasn't treated as a negative and characters naturally accommodated for it. I wish people treated non-vocal autistic people like that more often in real life.
The themes of this novel are important especially for young people. Being aware of the signs of something wrong and not ignoring them and not taking things for granted are ones that are important for them to hear. Along with the importance of looking out for each other and taking care of each other.
This book was beautifully written and important for young people and adults alike. I especially liked how the speculative themes were incorporated into the narrative. I highly recommend it and can't wait to read Bitter when it releases in 2022.
Content Warnings: implied sexual abuse, implied csa, child abuse, violence
This little book packed a punch. It's short length meant the narrative was very focused in on the main plot with no real room for subplots. It might be on the shorter side for some people but I felt it was the perfect length for what it wanted to do.
I love Emezi's prose style in this book just as much as I did in their first book, Freshwater. It's told very beautifully but would still be accessible to the target audience of teens. I especially loved the audiobook read by Chris Myers. I felt it really added something to the story but I needed to read along with the physical book as it could be a bit confusing which parts were signed, spoken out loud and thought with just the audio.
I also really like the casual diversity in this story. Jam is trans and selectively mute (it's not mentioned in the book, but I remember seeing somewhere that she's autistic) and neither of these elements are the focus of the story but still remain relevant to the story and are important for young audiences to see. I especially appreciated that Jam's disability wasn't treated as a negative and characters naturally accommodated for it. I wish people treated non-vocal autistic people like that more often in real life.
The themes of this novel are important especially for young people. Being aware of the signs of something wrong and not ignoring them and not taking things for granted are ones that are important for them to hear. Along with the importance of looking out for each other and taking care of each other.
This book was beautifully written and important for young people and adults alike. I especially liked how the speculative themes were incorporated into the narrative. I highly recommend it and can't wait to read Bitter when it releases in 2022.
Content Warnings: implied sexual abuse, implied csa, child abuse, violence
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Minor: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Transphobia
urs's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Violence, and Child abuse
Moderate: Cursing, Physical abuse, and Pedophilia
Minor: Child abuse and Vomit
atrkula's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Gaslighting, and Pedophilia
amandaquotidianbooks's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
The tone was very inconsistent. The language and world building is simple, but Jam is 15 and the plot involves child abuse. I don’t know who the target audience is. I liked the seamless transgender and throuple representation.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Child abuse, and Blood
kierscrivener's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
"How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?"
Wonderful worldbuilding, exploration of abuse and a trans lead whose story is not focused on her transition or trauma but just on her life, friendship as she confronts the reality of abuse through a fantastic lense. She is also selectively mute and uses signs to communicate.
I loved the prose and the way that Emezi wrote the story, except I am not sure exactly who the target audience is. I might have missed her exact age but Jam felt young, between 11-13 and yet there is a fair bit of swearing in it. I am not under any delusion that kids that age don't use the f word like it's going out of style, but it felt out of sync with the rest. Especially as even though Emezi deals with heavy subjects like child sexual assault, They make the thoughtful choice to say that 'this isn't a private conversation we need to be privy to' and we hear that 'he no longer wanted to be be bathed and had bruises, and "he'll pay for the bruises and the rest he did" My concern would be that a lot of parents and educators wouldn't want to read this otherwise any age appropriate conversation of sexual abuse because of the coarse language asterisk. Which is really a shame as it is a really needed and accessible way to discuss 'monsters.' They never add drama, or make it gritty for gritty's sake. Instead it is introspective and shows more emotions and quiet moments then the often the mishandling, denial or tragic porn 'representation' we normally get. But I feel like it could be overlooked as it wouldn't be deemed appropriate for middle schoolers and Jam would feel too young to high schoolers.
All in all, Pet is a stellar novel. It is a book I plan to revisit again soon and make notes on. But I would recommend to any age, it is an enjoyable and thought provoking story to read for an adult and I think it presents its themes and topics in a way that is easy to understand and recognize and not preachy for children.
Wonderful worldbuilding, exploration of abuse and a trans lead whose story is not focused on her transition or trauma but just on her life, friendship as she confronts the reality of abuse through a fantastic lense. She is also selectively mute and uses signs to communicate.
I loved the prose and the way that Emezi wrote the story, except I am not sure exactly who the target audience is. I might have missed her exact age but Jam felt young, between 11-13 and yet there is a fair bit of swearing in it. I am not under any delusion that kids that age don't use the f word like it's going out of style, but it felt out of sync with the rest. Especially as even though Emezi deals with heavy subjects like child sexual assault, They make the thoughtful choice to say that 'this isn't a private conversation we need to be privy to' and we hear that 'he no longer wanted to be be bathed and had bruises, and "he'll pay for the bruises and the rest he did" My concern would be that a lot of parents and educators wouldn't want to read this otherwise any age appropriate conversation of sexual abuse because of the coarse language asterisk. Which is really a shame as it is a really needed and accessible way to discuss 'monsters.' They never add drama, or make it gritty for gritty's sake. Instead it is introspective and shows more emotions and quiet moments then the often the mishandling, denial or tragic porn 'representation' we normally get. But I feel like it could be overlooked as it wouldn't be deemed appropriate for middle schoolers and Jam would feel too young to high schoolers.
All in all, Pet is a stellar novel. It is a book I plan to revisit again soon and make notes on. But I would recommend to any age, it is an enjoyable and thought provoking story to read for an adult and I think it presents its themes and topics in a way that is easy to understand and recognize and not preachy for children.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Cursing
Minor: Transphobia and Cursing
the childhood sexual abuse is moderate as it is not graphic or described but is it heavy and centered in the story