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emotional
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:
Yes
emotional
medium-paced
dark
emotional
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:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Type of book to name drop Picketty in order to establish the protagonist as a socialist. Everyone here is a liberal's idea - characters that are unlikeable without bite, transness with such minimal conflict (boiled out to queerness). A review on this site compares it to Detransition, Baby and I throw up a little; there, real anger through an expose of the pain of a thousand puncture wounds, emotions baked in the kiln of a lilfetime of grasping, here, a tacit acceptance alongside small pleading, dropping just enough "trannies" to mimic any sense of sharpness. A rote tale of transness, a story told over and over for cis ears. Is this what it's like for those who can ignore the need for violence, who can incorporate desire so easily? Not very good writing outside of this (dull characters, poor dialogue with hesaid/shesaid over and over). God I just wish more trans writers had a fucking backbone.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When I saw that there was a queer novel titled "Bellies", I was immediately excited. Gay culture places a lot of emphasis on having the "perfect" body and as a gay man who doesn't fit into this stereotype, I was looking forward to reading a book that celebrated this oft-maligned body part. HOWEVER, this book isn't about that. It's more of a metaphor about how some animals like cats show your their belly when they trust you. Ugh.
Lack of literal bellies aside, the book is actually quite good. The main characters Ming and Tom from whose points of view the book switches, are very well written. It's an exploration of queerness and the particular challenges that come with it. We meet both characters on the cusp of adulthood and see them blossom into their individuality and their queerness while navigating a relationship together.
Both characters have complex backstories that inform their choices and generate friction between them. They're both not perfect, but you still root for them as individuals and as a couple. Nicola doesn't shy away from exploring the various aspects of each individual's identity and how it plays into their mutual camaraderie.
I loved that we explore Ming's roots as a Malaysian and how that affects their queerness too. I also loved the interactions they had with their step-mother and how the early death of their birth mother informed so much of their life choices.
Food also plays quite an important role in the book. The characters are always making something or eating something. A lot of it is Malaysian food and acts as a good entryway into their culture. It also helps set the mood and help us understand where the characters are (both physically and in their journey).
Near the end of the book, there is a supporting character who has a sudden death that acts as a plot catalyst. It's usually the token queer/POC character who plays this role, but Nicola subverts it by replacing it with the token straight white man. As much as I like the subversion, I just wish authors would stop having secondary characters who die and thereby provide purpose to the main characters. Rob isn't an empty character. We do learn a bit about him. But it's all very surface level. I wish Nicola had found some other way to bring the end together.
An amazing read that will definitely stay with me. I hope she writes about actual bellies next time though. (Jk Kimora).
Lack of literal bellies aside, the book is actually quite good. The main characters Ming and Tom from whose points of view the book switches, are very well written. It's an exploration of queerness and the particular challenges that come with it. We meet both characters on the cusp of adulthood and see them blossom into their individuality and their queerness while navigating a relationship together.
Both characters have complex backstories that inform their choices and generate friction between them. They're both not perfect, but you still root for them as individuals and as a couple. Nicola doesn't shy away from exploring the various aspects of each individual's identity and how it plays into their mutual camaraderie.
I loved that we explore Ming's roots as a Malaysian and how that affects their queerness too. I also loved the interactions they had with their step-mother and how the early death of their birth mother informed so much of their life choices.
Food also plays quite an important role in the book. The characters are always making something or eating something. A lot of it is Malaysian food and acts as a good entryway into their culture. It also helps set the mood and help us understand where the characters are (both physically and in their journey).
Near the end of the book, there is a supporting character who has a sudden death that acts as a plot catalyst. It's usually the token queer/POC character who plays this role, but Nicola subverts it by replacing it with the token straight white man. As much as I like the subversion, I just wish authors would stop having secondary characters who die and thereby provide purpose to the main characters. Rob isn't an empty character. We do learn a bit about him. But it's all very surface level. I wish Nicola had found some other way to bring the end together.
An amazing read that will definitely stay with me. I hope she writes about actual bellies next time though. (Jk Kimora).
emotional
funny
sad
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:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes