Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

Paper Names by Susie Luo

7 reviews

vaekay's review against another edition

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sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Heavy groomer/borderline pedophilic (maybe not-so-borderline pedophilic) content. Stuck in extremely gross, misogynistic mens' point of views for the majority of the book. Bounces from the POV of a 9 year old Tammy to an adult Tammy having sex with her fiancee then back to a childhood Tammy. Lots of casual racism towards Black and brown people of color as well as other Chinese people. I understand that the internalized Sinophobia/racism is a plot point of the book, but myself and my Chinese partner were very disturbed by it.
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tiak143's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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oceanwriter's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Literary fiction with generational themes has been an unintentional go-to for me this year. I picked up Paper Names not long after reading Banyan Moon so it was fun to switch perspectives. While Banyan Moon followed mother/daughter/grandmother dynamics, Paper Names had more of a father/daughter theme to it. 
 
Tony has only ever wanted the best life for his daughter Tammy. To him, that means leaving China and building a new life in America. It hasn’t been easy for him. He's afraid to venture from his small circle out of fear. It’s easier for Tammy as a first-generation American. She and her father tend to butt heads as she strives to lead her own American lifestyle where Tony is often stuck in the middle of the culture in which he was raised and the one he sought out for Tammy. After an accident, a man named Oliver comes into their lives, bringing his own perspective on what it means to be American. 
 
I loved reading the scenes between Tony and Tammy as well as a lot of Tony’s chapters in general. I can’t say I was hooked on the story as a whole. Given what drew me to the book, it didn’t seem like Oliver’s perspective was entirely necessary. Otherwise, the writing style was strong for a debut aside from some pacing issues. The ending happened so quickly and predictable once the setup had been made.
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foxreadsbooks's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Paper Names is a beautiful, heartbreaking debut. Following the lives of Tammy, her father, and Oliver.

Taking place in America and China over different time periods, this novel delves into what it means to chase the American dream, and the lengths one goes to, to achieve their- or others’- version of success. 

I read this one in a single day. 



I knew Oliver was no good after he left the dog.
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allapaz's review against another edition

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4.25

this was a hell of a story, the family relationships and coming-of-age and 'American dream' story and its pitfalls and struggles and triumphs and tragedies. I was floored this was a debut, the author works the non-linear timeline and different POVs so well. only really loses a star for me because (light spoiler)
....Oliver. He gave me the ick so bad with his relationship with Tammy, I think it would have been a lot more powerful if the author either A. left that as a wholesome big brother relationship, or B. went full on to call him out/make it clear that he's icky. Because, fight me, falling 'in love' with a girl you taught piano to when she was in 4th grade and you were in your 20s is weird and predatory as hell...glad he got what he deserved. after that dog chapter I was 1000% done with him
  but all in all, the conversations around identity and family and parent/child dynamics was lovely
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imfixintoread's review against another edition

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challenging emotional tense medium-paced

4.0

This book was quite a ride. From the immigrant experience to complicated relationships with family members, I enjoyed the complexities of human nature. There were some awkward moments from the dog situation to Oliver's feelings for Tammy to the ending with Kip & their newly signed client. I would like to have seen a bit more of that wrapped up in the end--it felt a little disconnected and incomplete.
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bsatterl's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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