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amre23's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Suicide, Kidnapping, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Pedophilia, Rape, Domestic abuse, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Torture, and Misogyny
Minor: Sexual assault, War, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
shadeyc's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.0
This is immense.
I know a lot of people don't like the style but I found it lent to the atmosphere, the chaotic, exuberant, wildness of how the girls want to be/see themselves.
There is so much sadness and pain here, but the Wild Ones absolutely seek out the wonder and make a point of finding the magic in every place they visit.
I have to say one of my favourite things was all the food. I MUST go to all these places and eat all this food - oh it spoke to my heart.
As many have said, there are multiple trigger warnings, and while nothing is shied away from, it's also not thrown in your face. It feels gentle but firm.
I love all these characters fiercely, and I can say without a doubt that snuck up on me. I wasn't ecpecting to love this as much as I did (mostly because of the content warnings).
I know a lot of people don't like the style but I found it lent to the atmosphere, the chaotic, exuberant, wildness of how the girls want to be/see themselves.
There is so much sadness and pain here, but the Wild Ones absolutely seek out the wonder and make a point of finding the magic in every place they visit.
I have to say one of my favourite things was all the food. I MUST go to all these places and eat all this food - oh it spoke to my heart.
As many have said, there are multiple trigger warnings, and while nothing is shied away from, it's also not thrown in your face. It feels gentle but firm.
I love all these characters fiercely, and I can say without a doubt that snuck up on me. I wasn't ecpecting to love this as much as I did (mostly because of the content warnings).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Confinement, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Torture, Trafficking, and Violence
bookswithlee's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.5
4.5/5 stars
I picked up this book having never heard of it and quite honestly I didn’t read the synopsis, I saw the color filled with colors and diversity and I knew I had to read it.
What I liked about this book was the authors ability to tell a story that was both balanced between fantasy and real life events.
Although the cover is beautiful and the book is no doubt fantasy, what I took away from it is that this book was written as away to highlight how girls of color have been silenced and mistreated by others for years. While this book is full of trauma and potentially triggering content, I thought the author did a great job balancing this trauma with joy, and happiness. In the end the book highlighted how strong, amazing, and beautiful women are.
The trauma was not placed in this book to dump on the readers or to pull on heartstrings. It felt as though it was meticulously placed as way to echo much of reality in an authentic way. I sometimes struggle with trauma. being placed in stories as a thrill factor, twist, or to elicit favorable emotional reactions.
There were a few things that I didn’t particularly like about the story. The first half of the book was slow and felt like an information dump at times. I had a hard time keeping up. Not only that there is about 10-11 different characters and I always struggle with that in books as I can’t keep up with what information I need to remember and not every character has great development. However in this story, it was largely done as the “wild ones” are meant to be one entity, which I liked. It give me freshwater/bunny vibes.
Overall I enjoyed this book, but it’s definitely going to require a reread. I think if I had time to really flesh out and process some of the details I might be able to tears a little higher.
CW/TW: misogyny, sexual violence, kidnapping, sexual assault, rape, suicide, trafficking, death of parent
I picked up this book having never heard of it and quite honestly I didn’t read the synopsis, I saw the color filled with colors and diversity and I knew I had to read it.
What I liked about this book was the authors ability to tell a story that was both balanced between fantasy and real life events.
Although the cover is beautiful and the book is no doubt fantasy, what I took away from it is that this book was written as away to highlight how girls of color have been silenced and mistreated by others for years. While this book is full of trauma and potentially triggering content, I thought the author did a great job balancing this trauma with joy, and happiness. In the end the book highlighted how strong, amazing, and beautiful women are.
The trauma was not placed in this book to dump on the readers or to pull on heartstrings. It felt as though it was meticulously placed as way to echo much of reality in an authentic way. I sometimes struggle with trauma. being placed in stories as a thrill factor, twist, or to elicit favorable emotional reactions.
There were a few things that I didn’t particularly like about the story. The first half of the book was slow and felt like an information dump at times. I had a hard time keeping up. Not only that there is about 10-11 different characters and I always struggle with that in books as I can’t keep up with what information I need to remember and not every character has great development. However in this story, it was largely done as the “wild ones” are meant to be one entity, which I liked. It give me freshwater/bunny vibes.
Overall I enjoyed this book, but it’s definitely going to require a reread. I think if I had time to really flesh out and process some of the details I might be able to tears a little higher.
CW/TW: misogyny, sexual violence, kidnapping, sexual assault, rape, suicide, trafficking, death of parent
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Rape
Moderate: Kidnapping, Suicide, Trafficking, and Death of parent
herfleurs's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
"We, however, don't cry. We're too angry to."
The Wild Ones foi uma experiência complicada. Eu li os textos da autora sobre esse livro e tenho imenso respeito e gratidão por ela ter escrito e ter colocado suas dores aqui.
Eu me conectei com o livro, não acho que não tenha como não. Eu adorei a escrita e a forma como ela escolheu contar a história das meninas. Eu adorei os capítulos onde a gente não tem como saber quem é que está narrando e achei ótimo o uso do "nós".
Enquanto o romance na maior parte do tempo não me incomodou como normalmente faz, acho que porque o processo de atração em si não aconteceu/não foi muito explícito, ele tomou uma parte muito maior do livro do que esperava e de certa forma foi muito imaturo pra mim. Eu não estou falando sobre trauma mas sobre a quantidade de tempo de vida dessas pessoas. Paheli leva todo o foco do livro e sendo a primeira ela é extremamente adolescente ainda, no começo foi interessante ver uma "líder" de forma diferente mas quando o romance toma conta da equação ficou maçante.
Eu entendi a denúncia que a autora fez e de forma nenhuma quero ditar sobre perdão ou pespectivas, nada assim, mas me incomodou o fato de que apenas "garotas" são pensadas sobre no livro. Não houve uma vilanização de mães exatamente, porque eu senti o que autora trouxe mas eu acho que teria sido uma boa opção ter expandido essa questão. Não é só garotas adolescentes que sofrem, e claro que entendo o público alvo também mas eu acho tão importante o momento que a gente ganha maturidade e consegue olhar pra nossa figura materna e entender ela como mulher que sofre as mesmas opressões que a gente e acho que isso faltou demais aqui.
O começo do livro foi maravilhoso pra mim, o audiobook (que corri atrás desesperadamente assim que comecei o livro correspondeu minhas expectativas) é ótimo, mas as últimas 100/150 páginas eu me vi ao ponto de desistir. Puxou tanto pro final as coisas que virou uma bagunça e tudo perdeu um pouco do sentido pra mim, nesses últimos momentos eu nem sequer me lembrava sobre o que grupo era e o que ele significava sabe. Com o passar do tempo fica complicado gostar do livro quando elas passaram horas andando e comendo e não exatamente resolvendo as coisas e acaba que algumas coisas ficam muito convenientes. Nem quer o livro de memorias foi bem explorado como estava sendo no início. O começo pode ficar complicado, tem várias info dumps pra explicar o universo e fica muito evidente porque as narradores conversam diretamente com você. O furo sobre magia me incomodou demais, é dito e mostrado todo tempo como mágica não funciona nelas então como o feitiço para localizar possíveis Wilds pôde ser colocado? Não fez sentido.
A autora trouxe diferentes experiências, amostras do que o grupo faz, a gente tem um pouco de como elas ajudam mulheres ao longo do tempo. As vezes por acaso, de caso pensado e com uma rede de apoio mesmo e quando essa ajuda falha mas pra mim ficou raso. Como eu disse eu gostei dos capítulos narrados em conjunto mas sendo eles e os de Pahali, que fui perdendo a vontade de ler com o tempo, acaba que fica esse vazio sobre o que elas realmente fazem durantes esses séculos. Também pensei que raça ia ser pelo menos um pouco abordado e não foi como eu esperei.
Eu não falei sobre Taraana mas ele faz parte da maioria do livro e eu não desgostei dele mas o plot dele não funciona pra mim, ainda mais quando um dos pontos que estavam funcionando, que era a vulnerabilidade dele, o fato de ele ter medo e de assumir seus traumas terem sidos meio apagados na transformação.
Estava sendo um sólido 4 estrelas mas não sei se foi meu interesse, a falta dele, ou a autora foi se perdendo e acabou que não funcionou pra mim do meio pro final.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Rape, Child abuse, Confinement, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, and Kidnapping
foreverinastory's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
4.0
This was incredible.
Rep: Indian female MC (aro-spec coded), French BIPOC trans female sapphic side character, Korean female side character, Indonesian female side character, Filipina female side character, West African female side character (wears a head scarf), Pakistani female side character, Fijian female side character, Turkish female side character, Muslim Iraqi female side character, Japanese female side character. Unsure who is queer but at least half are not attracted to men.
CWs: Abandonment, blood, confinement, death, emotional abuse, grief, homophobia, injury/injury detail, infidelity, kidnapping, lesbophobia, misogyny, murder, physical abuse, sexism, torture, trafficking, prostitution, violence. Moderate: child abuse, child death, pregnancy, mention of attempted abortion, rape, sexual assault, sexual violence, suicide by running into traffic, bullying.
Rep: Indian female MC (aro-spec coded), French BIPOC trans female sapphic side character, Korean female side character, Indonesian female side character, Filipina female side character, West African female side character (wears a head scarf), Pakistani female side character, Fijian female side character, Turkish female side character, Muslim Iraqi female side character, Japanese female side character. Unsure who is queer but at least half are not attracted to men.
CWs: Abandonment, blood, confinement, death, emotional abuse, grief, homophobia, injury/injury detail, infidelity, kidnapping, lesbophobia, misogyny, murder, physical abuse, sexism, torture, trafficking, prostitution, violence. Moderate: child abuse, child death, pregnancy, mention of attempted abortion, rape, sexual assault, sexual violence, suicide by running into traffic, bullying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Trafficking, and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Bullying
nytephoenyx's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
The amount you enjoy The Wild Ones will be directly correlated to the amount you enjoy poetry and flowery language. Azad’s writing reminded me of Nikita Gill and Rupi Kaur. As such, this book was very much not my cup of tea, but it’s not a bad book! Just not a fit for my tastes.
The make up of The Wild Ones is wonderful. It’s the story of a group of girls who come from traumatic, sorrowful backgrounds. They became part of the middle world when Paheli gifts them the stars they press into their palms, a gift given to her so long ago. The girls stay until they are ready to move on. The journey they take as a Wild One feels like a metaphor for processing trauma. So much of this book feels like a series of metaphors, and it makes you think, reread, reconsider.
The Wild Ones are Black girls, brown girls. They are a sisterhood of strength and recklessness and fearlessness. They rescue other girls who are in the same pain they were (are) in. When their creator, the Keeper of the Between, seeks them out, they protect him too. It’s altogether an interesting book, and I DO recommend it to the right reader. It’s extremely stylised, so it requires the right reader to appreciate it fully, but I believe to the right reader, this will be an amazing five star novel. I liked the diversity, I liked the world, but the pace and writing style lost me.
Because of the linguistic choices that Azad made in telling this story, I found the pacing lagged and my attention waned, leading to a lot of rereading. I cannot emphasise enough that this is entirely due to my own reading preferences and for others, this could be a non-issue. The style made the writing (to me) feel vague and scattered. There were single paragraphs and single scenes that I found lovely, but as a reader I felt like I was constantly chasing cohesiveness in the novel.
It’s a good book, but it wasn’t a good book for me. I think others will like it, but before diving into it, do note the prose-like writing style and go in prepared to navigate it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Misogyny, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Trafficking, Torture, Rape, Suicide, Sexual assault, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Death of parent
emmysreading's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Violence
2treads's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
#thewildones is a narrative centering girls and women in all their expressions and complexities; the horrors that they face and the strength that they can find to carry on and band together, creating a loving, supportive, and protective found family.
Azad has used historical settings, food, and friendship to connect us all while weaving this fantastical and magical world. What I also enjoyed and appreciated is her portrayal of the particular magic that exists and permeates a specific city.
She draws upon the complex intricacies of girlhood and womanhood to explore how we come into our femininity or lack thereof; how we form relationships, platonic and romantic; how we grow within the confines or freedom of said relationships; and the beauty, cruelty or futility that can reside within them as well.
She tells a story of what makes us leave the place where we should be safest and most loved: home.
But as with all things magical, there are persons who wish to harness and steal what is special to twist to their evil intentions and it is here that the Wild Ones must truly count on their bond and trust to face what is hunting them.
The choice to switch between memory, first person narration, and a conversational style of prose really aided in engaging and capturing the reader's attention.
But what really made me enjoy this read, besides the strong bond of sisterhood, is the love our MC has for mangoes and food in general. This book had me salivating. Every new city was a new experience with the food of that region, and I loved it.
Azad has used historical settings, food, and friendship to connect us all while weaving this fantastical and magical world. What I also enjoyed and appreciated is her portrayal of the particular magic that exists and permeates a specific city.
She draws upon the complex intricacies of girlhood and womanhood to explore how we come into our femininity or lack thereof; how we form relationships, platonic and romantic; how we grow within the confines or freedom of said relationships; and the beauty, cruelty or futility that can reside within them as well.
She tells a story of what makes us leave the place where we should be safest and most loved: home.
But as with all things magical, there are persons who wish to harness and steal what is special to twist to their evil intentions and it is here that the Wild Ones must truly count on their bond and trust to face what is hunting them.
The choice to switch between memory, first person narration, and a conversational style of prose really aided in engaging and capturing the reader's attention.
But what really made me enjoy this read, besides the strong bond of sisterhood, is the love our MC has for mangoes and food in general. This book had me salivating. Every new city was a new experience with the food of that region, and I loved it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, Kidnapping, and Suicide
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