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3.4 AVERAGE
3.4 AVERAGE
2.5/5 stars
It was an entertaining read, and certainly a quick, easy one. The pacing worked for me, and the majority of the first half of this was a genuine delight to get through. The characters felt real and rounded, further nuanced by the difficult conversations this book tackled among them including race, sexuality, adultery, and more.
The romance, once in place, felt real, and I appreciated that (while largely unspoken and perhaps not wholly understood here) sexual and romantic attraction were treated as two steps in a process rather than one that instantly collided between our characters. This is what had me rooting for the relationship despite the obvious flaws in the characters.
Sana made for an interesting narrator, and her voice and tone were evident in every facet of this book. But often so much was frustrating to see -- intentionally for much of it -- wherein she failed to see her own hypocrisy and prejudices. This is fine as a step in development, but these prejudices were never fully addressed. She recognizes that she was being racist but never got to the crux of it, as though saying "yeah I was being racist" is a way to make up for those kinds of behavior. What is she actually doing to address this?
I will admit that I never really saw the topic of adultery to be as complex as what was issues here.
The lower rating comes in part because of the cheating plotline (not the father one) that beyond upset me (so much commentary can be made to have a lesbian cheat with a man to get back at her girlfriend, like what the hell. What kind of bullshit was that. I'm. I can't even begin to delve into how and why this was so wrong and misguided). I didn't mind the total severance from the friend in Wisconsin, but it felt a bit unreal for it to be so easy to cut someone out of your life like that -- the fact that this friend because an object of sexual exploration rather than a character was,,,, not my favorite, but this may be personal preference. I do also wish that perhaps the cast of characters was smaller, as some of them got lost in the sheer volume, and their development was undercut by the fact that I kept forgetting they were supposed to be a part of the narrative.
I don't regret reading it, and this book was equal parts enjoyable and frustrating in reflection, but I can't complain.
It was an entertaining read, and certainly a quick, easy one. The pacing worked for me, and the majority of the first half of this was a genuine delight to get through. The characters felt real and rounded, further nuanced by the difficult conversations this book tackled among them including race, sexuality, adultery, and more.
The romance, once in place, felt real, and I appreciated that (while largely unspoken and perhaps not wholly understood here) sexual and romantic attraction were treated as two steps in a process rather than one that instantly collided between our characters. This is what had me rooting for the relationship despite the obvious flaws in the characters.
Sana made for an interesting narrator, and her voice and tone were evident in every facet of this book. But often so much was frustrating to see -- intentionally for much of it -- wherein she failed to see her own hypocrisy and prejudices. This is fine as a step in development, but these prejudices were never fully addressed. She recognizes that she was being racist but never got to the crux of it, as though saying "yeah I was being racist" is a way to make up for those kinds of behavior. What is she actually doing to address this?
I will admit that I never really saw the topic of adultery to be as complex as what was issues here.
Spoiler
It really raises the question on what we see as socially acceptable and how our social norms influence our "right" and "wrong," simplifying something to its seemingly obvious conclusion. This story rejected this. Should Sana's mother leave the adulterous marriage when she knowingly signed up for this, when she has resigned herself to this position with all the information? Should she be made to divorce anyway, even though she clearly wants to stay? Do we get to decide what is best for her? Yes, her situation sucks because she's in an adulterous relationship, but she expressed autonomy in her choice to stay -- how would we be responding by forcing her to leave, and where does the unhealthiness lie here in a way that can be solved, if it can be solved at all? I have no idea what the "right" answer is, but this was, to me, the most well-adapted aspect of the book with how deeply it was explored. The fact that it was so unexpected and made to be latent rather than obvious aided this.The lower rating comes in part because of the cheating plotline (not the father one) that beyond upset me (so much commentary can be made to have a lesbian cheat with a man to get back at her girlfriend, like what the hell. What kind of bullshit was that. I'm. I can't even begin to delve into how and why this was so wrong and misguided). I didn't mind the total severance from the friend in Wisconsin, but it felt a bit unreal for it to be so easy to cut someone out of your life like that -- the fact that this friend because an object of sexual exploration rather than a character was,,,, not my favorite, but this may be personal preference. I do also wish that perhaps the cast of characters was smaller, as some of them got lost in the sheer volume, and their development was undercut by the fact that I kept forgetting they were supposed to be a part of the narrative.
I don't regret reading it, and this book was equal parts enjoyable and frustrating in reflection, but I can't complain.
Tämä oli kummallinen kirja. Tarinassa oli monta päällekkäistä juonikuviota, eivätkä kaikki kovin onnistuneita. Päätarina rakentui pelkästään stereotypioille, joita henkilöt toteuttivat. Kirjan päähenkilö hengaa aasialaisten kanssa ja puhuu selän takana pahaa koulun laiskoista meksikolaisista. Kirjan eniten toistetut sanat ovat varmaan mexicans, asians, japanese ja asian mom. Päähenkilö äkkirakastuu meksikolaiseen koulukaveriin, mutta ei pysty päästämään stereotypioistaan irti. Kirjassa yritetään sanoa, että kannattaa muistaa, että ihminen tulisi nähdä stereotypian takaa, mutta kirjan rakenne ei tue tätä viestiä, enemmänkin vahvisti olemassa olevia mielikuvia. Kirjan lgbt-teema oli osittain kivasti toteutettu, osittain sekin pilattu stereotypioilla.
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
I was not ready for the intense racism and prejudice. It slapped me in the face on multiple occasions. Sana made me want to scream for 75% of the book. And that ending. It's a decent book, but not one of my favorite reads this year.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
A 3.5!
There was certain of aspects of this book that I tend to avoid when choosing my next read but I went into this book blind. Stories that involve anything similar to a love triangle in any sense are usually going to get a pass from me. However, this love triangle situation was less of a triangle and more of a very confused shape.
As a white person I am in no position to be telling anybody whether or not this book was good representation, but I thought this book had a lot of good commentary on racism.
Our main character Sana is Japanese, her parents grew up in Japan, and so her mother raises her to follow traditional Japanese customs. This often intrudes on Sana's desire to be what she thinks of as 'normal'. She doesn't want people to see her as Asian, which she's found hard in the Midwest. It isn't until Sana arrives in California does she meet other Asian girls who share similar experiences to her, and she realizes that she wasn't really looking to be 'normal' but to be accepted for who she is.
The racism aspect comes in a lot, people stereotype Sana as a 'good, well-behaved, smart' Asian girl constantly, and since she is often the target of these stereotypical beliefs one would think she herself wasn't racist but that's not the case. The author doesn't hold back from showing that just because somebody identifies as a POC, does not exclude them from being racist. Sana has a hard time fitting in with Jaime's friends because they are Mexican and she sees them through a lens filled with conceived notions and judgements. That goes both ways as well.
When Sana was the only Asian girl in the midwest, it was easy for her to think that because she so often experienced subtle (and blatant) exclusion and judgement because of her race, she would never see other people that way. This is not the case. Given that she had never really interacted with many other POC before moving to California, she had a very slim world view.
This book has a lot of big things packed into it, the discussion on racism, Sana coming to terms with the fact that she likes girls, that she has a crush on a girl, her relationship with her mother and the secret she knows about her father she's scared to tell.
I think this book is worth the read because it has a lot of good things to say about all of the above topics. Racism is obviously not solved in the end, but Sana does a lot of growing to be able to understand that she herself is not immune to being racist. Yes, the plot is kind of predictable and the romance didn't sweep me off my feet, but I enjoyed myself and think Sana was an enjoyable main character to follow even if I did wanna give her a shake every now and then.
There was certain of aspects of this book that I tend to avoid when choosing my next read but I went into this book blind. Stories that involve anything similar to a love triangle in any sense are usually going to get a pass from me. However, this love triangle situation was less of a triangle and more of a very confused shape.
As a white person I am in no position to be telling anybody whether or not this book was good representation, but I thought this book had a lot of good commentary on racism.
Our main character Sana is Japanese, her parents grew up in Japan, and so her mother raises her to follow traditional Japanese customs. This often intrudes on Sana's desire to be what she thinks of as 'normal'. She doesn't want people to see her as Asian, which she's found hard in the Midwest. It isn't until Sana arrives in California does she meet other Asian girls who share similar experiences to her, and she realizes that she wasn't really looking to be 'normal' but to be accepted for who she is.
The racism aspect comes in a lot, people stereotype Sana as a 'good, well-behaved, smart' Asian girl constantly, and since she is often the target of these stereotypical beliefs one would think she herself wasn't racist but that's not the case. The author doesn't hold back from showing that just because somebody identifies as a POC, does not exclude them from being racist. Sana has a hard time fitting in with Jaime's friends because they are Mexican and she sees them through a lens filled with conceived notions and judgements. That goes both ways as well.
When Sana was the only Asian girl in the midwest, it was easy for her to think that because she so often experienced subtle (and blatant) exclusion and judgement because of her race, she would never see other people that way. This is not the case. Given that she had never really interacted with many other POC before moving to California, she had a very slim world view.
This book has a lot of big things packed into it, the discussion on racism, Sana coming to terms with the fact that she likes girls, that she has a crush on a girl, her relationship with her mother and the secret she knows about her father she's scared to tell.
I think this book is worth the read because it has a lot of good things to say about all of the above topics. Racism is obviously not solved in the end, but Sana does a lot of growing to be able to understand that she herself is not immune to being racist. Yes, the plot is kind of predictable and the romance didn't sweep me off my feet, but I enjoyed myself and think Sana was an enjoyable main character to follow even if I did wanna give her a shake every now and then.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated