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quantumspook's review
1.0
Hoke takes aim at nostalgia, but gets stuck on stereotypes and middle-class discontent. I unfortunately found myself sighing "ugh, shut up already".
kleonard's review
5.0
A short, wide-wheeling meditation on the material culture of queerness and queer childhood in particular, Sticker is full of surprises and thought-provoking ideas. I love the approach to a vast topic through the lens of something small, and Sticker succeeds brilliantly at it.
shanaqui's review
reflective
medium-paced
1.0
Unfortunately, I seem to be having bad luck with my Object Lessons choices lately. I enjoy the ones which pick into the history of an everyday object and try to understand it, like Personal Stereo and Blue Jeans. I'm less a fan of the memoir type, and Henry Hoke's Sticker falls into that category. It's a life told through tenuous connections with stickers, from the stickers his mother put on bottles of dangerous household cleaning products to the parental advisory stickers on CDs and onward.
There's absolutely a place in this world for this kind of memoir, and the story of a gay kid growing up in Charlottesville is a story worth telling. I want to be clear that it's not that I don't think the story should be told at all. I'm just not a fan of it in this series, and nor is it something I particularly seek out to read (nor memoir in general). Just not for me.
So, if you're looking for something that discusses the history or wider cultural relevance of stickers, this ain't remotely it. Which is a pity, because that book would be fascinating. This book is about Henry Hoke.
There's absolutely a place in this world for this kind of memoir, and the story of a gay kid growing up in Charlottesville is a story worth telling. I want to be clear that it's not that I don't think the story should be told at all. I'm just not a fan of it in this series, and nor is it something I particularly seek out to read (nor memoir in general). Just not for me.
So, if you're looking for something that discusses the history or wider cultural relevance of stickers, this ain't remotely it. Which is a pity, because that book would be fascinating. This book is about Henry Hoke.
rebeshelton's review
3.0
This was a cute concept! An autobiography told through the nostalgia of stickers. Many of the stories but up my own nostalgia attached to the stickers that were described. A nice, short read!
shayleez's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
annieb123's review
4.0
Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Sticker is a collection of short vignettes and reminiscences by Henry Hoke of growing up in Charlottesville Va in the 90s related through the lens of 20 different stickers. Due out 13th Jan 2022 from Bloomsbury Academic, it's 164 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.
This is one of a series of books on everyday items called "Object Lessons" which team writers' observations and experiences with material foci: stickers, bookshelves, bulletproof vest, traffic, TVs, and trees to give a few examples.
There were some a-ha moments in the course of reading. I was previously unaware where Mr. Hoke grew up (Charlottesville) and he ties in the recent infamy and cultural upheaval through his own observations and the responses he's garnered from folks who find out that he's from Charlottesville. He's arranged the responses chronologically from 1998-2018 with grim results.
I have enjoyed a number of the books in this series. It's erudite and thought provoking. This one was a worthwhile addition.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Sticker is a collection of short vignettes and reminiscences by Henry Hoke of growing up in Charlottesville Va in the 90s related through the lens of 20 different stickers. Due out 13th Jan 2022 from Bloomsbury Academic, it's 164 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.
This is one of a series of books on everyday items called "Object Lessons" which team writers' observations and experiences with material foci: stickers, bookshelves, bulletproof vest, traffic, TVs, and trees to give a few examples.
There were some a-ha moments in the course of reading. I was previously unaware where Mr. Hoke grew up (Charlottesville) and he ties in the recent infamy and cultural upheaval through his own observations and the responses he's garnered from folks who find out that he's from Charlottesville. He's arranged the responses chronologically from 1998-2018 with grim results.
I have enjoyed a number of the books in this series. It's erudite and thought provoking. This one was a worthwhile addition.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
frombethanysbookshelf's review
5.0
Thank you to Henry Hoke and Bloomsbury Academic for an advance copy in return for an honest review.
Sticker is part of the Object Lessons collections from Bloomsbury Academic, a series of short books teaching about the hidden lives of ordinary objects.
Like many, I have vivid memories of growing up that include stickers - the ones annoyingly stuck to the fruit in my lunchbox, the ones over my school books, the ones that come with sweets, the ones I wasn't meant to stick to the wall but did anyway - and they still appear in my adult life. They somehow remain a constant and despite their age hold an important part in popular physical media.
In stickers, Hoke creates a memoir using twenty different stickers to mark different phases in his life from infancy to adulthood - exploring growing up in a disabled family, racial segregation, queer childhood and living in a heavily facist and neo-nazi environment that fell victim to fatal terrorist attacks, extreme racism and homophobia - Charlottesville, USA. Rather than just a matter-of-fact history of his hometown, this explores deeply personal history and the emotions contained within, branching out into the wider social issues he's either experienced or observed coming from a place of being both priviledged and a minority at once.
At the same time, this collection also had sections that simply filled me with childhood nostalgia - the iconic gold star to the warning stickers on a bottle of bleach - invoking emotions I haven't thought of in over a decade.
In just under 150 pages, this was a very easy read despite some of it's more sensitive content. Hoke managed to curate a style that felt more like a personal, informal conversation with the reader that made the pages turn far too quickly and still remain fully engaging.
Sticker is part of the Object Lessons collections from Bloomsbury Academic, a series of short books teaching about the hidden lives of ordinary objects.
Like many, I have vivid memories of growing up that include stickers - the ones annoyingly stuck to the fruit in my lunchbox, the ones over my school books, the ones that come with sweets, the ones I wasn't meant to stick to the wall but did anyway - and they still appear in my adult life. They somehow remain a constant and despite their age hold an important part in popular physical media.
In stickers, Hoke creates a memoir using twenty different stickers to mark different phases in his life from infancy to adulthood - exploring growing up in a disabled family, racial segregation, queer childhood and living in a heavily facist and neo-nazi environment that fell victim to fatal terrorist attacks, extreme racism and homophobia - Charlottesville, USA. Rather than just a matter-of-fact history of his hometown, this explores deeply personal history and the emotions contained within, branching out into the wider social issues he's either experienced or observed coming from a place of being both priviledged and a minority at once.
At the same time, this collection also had sections that simply filled me with childhood nostalgia - the iconic gold star to the warning stickers on a bottle of bleach - invoking emotions I haven't thought of in over a decade.
In just under 150 pages, this was a very easy read despite some of it's more sensitive content. Hoke managed to curate a style that felt more like a personal, informal conversation with the reader that made the pages turn far too quickly and still remain fully engaging.
littleemc's review
1.0
This is my review of Stickers: I didn't like this. I love anthologies, and in general I really like short stories regardless of if they're fiction/nonfiction. This one in particular didn't do it for me. I think I went into this expecting a more metaphysical experience. But no.
I'm sure there's an audience for this style and vibe of memoir, but sadly I'm not one of those people. I'm giving this one star because I can't think of anything I enjoyed after reading this, but to be respectful to the author I won't be making any direct critiques. That just feels wrong, especially since nothing was structurally flawed. My opinions are around content, and judging nonfiction feels particularly uncomfortable.
Thanks NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.
I'm sure there's an audience for this style and vibe of memoir, but sadly I'm not one of those people. I'm giving this one star because I can't think of anything I enjoyed after reading this, but to be respectful to the author I won't be making any direct critiques. That just feels wrong, especially since nothing was structurally flawed. My opinions are around content, and judging nonfiction feels particularly uncomfortable.
Thanks NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.
redbirdwings's review
3.0
This is the first book I’ve read of the Object Lessons series, but I admire what the author attempts to invoke with the use of stickers throughout the narrative. As the author begins each section with a specific sticker design, they continue into a memory of their life and how the environment of their home town of Charlottesville, Virginia, has changed since the neo-Nazi rally that resulted in one woman’s death in 2017.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.