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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
This was not my favorite. I just never connected with the main character. At first, I thought she was neurodivergent, and by the end of the book, I really wasn’t sure what type of person she was supposed to be. The Covid storyline came in pretty late in the book and didn’t have a huge impact either. Overall, this was a pretty boring book for me.
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!
this is one of those books that i thought would be 5 star and i loved like a 5 star but then something happened that prevented it from being a 5 star but i still kind of feel about it like i would about a 5 star so 4.5 star it is?
there are stories i wanted concluded here, but life goes on without things tied up, so i guess that's fine for a book, but it still was very abrupt. i like a slice of life as much as the next girl but i also like a good ending.
still, i loved joan very much and i could have read a much longer book in her brain and this made me...feel things.
like emotions.
how weird.
bottom line: weike wang stan club!!!
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currently-reading updates
makes one of us :)
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reading books by asian authors for aapi month!
book 1: kim jiyoung, born 1982
book 2: siren queen
book 3: the heart principle
book 4: n.p.
book 5: the hole
book 6: set on you
book 7: disorientation
book 8: parade
book 9: if i had your face
book 10: joan is okay
this is one of those books that i thought would be 5 star and i loved like a 5 star but then something happened that prevented it from being a 5 star but i still kind of feel about it like i would about a 5 star so 4.5 star it is?
there are stories i wanted concluded here, but life goes on without things tied up, so i guess that's fine for a book, but it still was very abrupt. i like a slice of life as much as the next girl but i also like a good ending.
still, i loved joan very much and i could have read a much longer book in her brain and this made me...feel things.
like emotions.
how weird.
bottom line: weike wang stan club!!!
------------
currently-reading updates
makes one of us :)
------------
reading books by asian authors for aapi month!
book 1: kim jiyoung, born 1982
book 2: siren queen
book 3: the heart principle
book 4: n.p.
book 5: the hole
book 6: set on you
book 7: disorientation
book 8: parade
book 9: if i had your face
book 10: joan is okay
Joan is a fantastic invention. We’re given a peek into the mind of someone who is incredibly competent and gives 0 fucks but maybe doesn’t always fully express it. The tension and confusion of this double experience makes it worth the read. It’s too bad the story and ensemble of characters (rich status-obsessed brother, dumb cishet bro coworker, egomaniacal boss, nice guy boy next door, sad withdrawn mom, etc.) weren’t as brilliantly colored in.
I loved this book. Almost impossible to step away from Joan's crisp, easy narration, her casual refusal to comply with social expectations, her sometime curiosity about the inscrutable behavior of others, and her utter uniqueness.
This is somewhere between 3 and 4 stars for me. I was not at all expecting, but thoroughly enjoyed, Joan's neurodivergence. Also unexpected was the Covid part of the story. (I guess I knew nothing about this book going in, really.)
I had trouble feeling fully connected to characters' choices, and some of Joan's musings, at times. For instance, she has a strained(ish) relationship with her brother, but you don't really understand why. I mean, you come to see that he's a pushy tool, but I don't feel like I got that that's why she's always had a hard time with him.
I had trouble feeling fully connected to characters' choices, and some of Joan's musings, at times. For instance, she has a strained(ish) relationship with her brother, but you don't really understand why. I mean, you come to see that he's a pushy tool, but I don't feel like I got that that's why she's always had a hard time with him.
Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC. It isn't actually something I would necessarily pick out, especially because I tanked on some of my review books this year, and even worse on my reading goal. But in my quest to read happy things for most of this year, I fell for a YA romance called [b:Tokyo Ever After|54860605|Tokyo Ever After (Tokyo Ever After, #1)|Emiko Jean|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1601695675l/54860605._SY75_.jpg|73814218], and then followed it up with [b:A Pho Love Story|54238295|A Pho Love Story|Loan Le|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610894924l/54238295._SY75_.jpg|62796365], so I went for it. Clearly this is not a YA romance, more along the lines of [b:Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine|31434883|Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine|Gail Honeyman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1493724347l/31434883._SY75_.jpg|47327681], but not as far extreme. I am prattling a bit, but this really was a pleasant book about a young Chinese-American doctor who in her own way is as driven to succeed as her brother, but cares in no way about the trappings of success, and is limited in her ability to connect with other people, including her family. Being a physician is her life. It is not an exciting read per se, but the fact that it covers the beginning of the pandemic delivers an excellent grounding in reality. I think if this was a movie, it might be called a sleeper. Worth your time.
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
