Scan barcode
owenrebeccaann's review against another edition
funny
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Drug abuse, Drug use, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Sexual violence
Minor: Rape
standard_disk's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
smkraatz's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This was an incredibly challenging and heartwrenching read. Ultimately very worth it, though. A haunting reflection of the world we live in.
renstrange's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
hoo boy! okay, so i have a lot of critiques:
1. why did the characters at the center of a social justice story not seem to really care about the issues they claimed to fight for? at every turn, their main focus was themselves. plus, they just kind of sucked as people. i’m all for flawed- and even unlikable- characters, but this was to a whole other degree.
2- all of the organizing and a good chunk of the action was off-page. our protagonist isn’t even present for some of it. so much of the action is presented in summary. additionally, the protagonist does almost nothing to further the plot. she’s just kind of there. it felt like the author wanted to write a protest story but knew nothing about protesting.
3- this book really reads as little more than an opportunity for the author to spew leftist talking points at the reader. perhaps i’d have gotten more out of it if i wasn’t already well aware of leftism, but it really detracted from the book.
4- why, in this alternate reality story, does a character hypothesize about what the world would be like if gwb were elected and somehow predict exactly what happened in this reality?
5- why is this social justice book mainly about people partying?
6- there’s a bit halfway through where the author remembers her characters are in a band, they start playing again, become suddenly famous, and then their fame is never mentioned again.
7- at least there was lots of trans rep (including a character with neo-pronouns). so that’s… something?
1. why did the characters at the center of a social justice story not seem to really care about the issues they claimed to fight for? at every turn, their main focus was themselves. plus, they just kind of sucked as people. i’m all for flawed- and even unlikable- characters, but this was to a whole other degree.
2- all of the organizing and a good chunk of the action was off-page. our protagonist isn’t even present for some of it. so much of the action is presented in summary. additionally, the protagonist does almost nothing to further the plot. she’s just kind of there. it felt like the author wanted to write a protest story but knew nothing about protesting.
3- this book really reads as little more than an opportunity for the author to spew leftist talking points at the reader. perhaps i’d have gotten more out of it if i wasn’t already well aware of leftism, but it really detracted from the book.
4- why, in this alternate reality story, does a character hypothesize about what the world would be like if gwb were elected and somehow predict exactly what happened in this reality?
5- why is this social justice book mainly about people partying?
6- there’s a bit halfway through where the author remembers her characters are in a band, they start playing again, become suddenly famous, and then their fame is never mentioned again.
7- at least there was lots of trans rep (including a character with neo-pronouns). so that’s… something?
deckanddaughter's review against another edition
5.0
This love letter to community action and grassroots protesting absolutely gutted me in all the best ways.
The mycelium analogy. The discussion of shame as a black hole encompassing feeling. The white cowardice tied up in privilege.
I didn’t quite make it to the 2am club and when I was about 2/3rds through, I got the sickest I’ve been in awhile and set it aside. For too long. But when I picked it back up, I couldn’t put it down for hours and finished it the same evening I revisited it.
I cannot wait to read more by Sim Kern!
The mycelium analogy. The discussion of shame as a black hole encompassing feeling. The white cowardice tied up in privilege.
I didn’t quite make it to the 2am club and when I was about 2/3rds through, I got the sickest I’ve been in awhile and set it aside. For too long. But when I picked it back up, I couldn’t put it down for hours and finished it the same evening I revisited it.
I cannot wait to read more by Sim Kern!
caleb_makes's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
elienore's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
maiakobabe's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
4.5
Set in an alternate timeline in which Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared the War on Climate Change instead of the War on Terror, this novel is an interesting mix of hopeful and dystopian elements. The main character is Maddie Ryan, a white high school English teacher working in a primarily Black neighborhood in Houston, TX. The novel is Maddie's written account of a tumultuous year in which the grungy music warehouse where her punk band practices and performs is threatened by a proposed high way and oil line which will rip up not only their art space but also a historically Black neighborhood. Maddie starts attending activist meetings which quickly morph into a full blown protest encampment surrounding the warehouse. Dubbed the Free People Village, this protest movement goes viral and is met with the exact same kind of violent police response as the current student encampments protesting for Palestine on college campuses. Woven through this depressingly accurate political forecast are multiple queer love stories, interracial friendships, a 101 crash course in anarchist philosophy and bracing look at what long-term activism takes. Folks with more of an organizing or activist background than I might find some of this book a bit basic; but I was completely drawn in by the relationships and conflicts of Maddie, Red, Gestas, Angel, and Shayna. This book feels almost painfully timely, and I hope a lot of people read it and gain both courage and perspective.
nanno_lib's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
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? It's complicated
3.0
siasprout's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
5.0