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bookishmillennial's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
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
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
Thank you to Riverhead Books for the gifted physical ARC of this book. I'm providing this review of my own accord <3
This book started out quite slow, and I wasn't sure what exactly the story was. However, once I realized that this was a character-driven story about three friends spanning a few decades, I buckled up and was ready for the ride! The book is separated into three narratives, first with Giselle Chin's, who is our performance artist of this friends group. She drafted up potential art exhibits or acts ever since she was young, and she formulates the titular "Memory Piece". We follow Giselle during the 90s and early 00s as she both utilizes art to memorialize her life in that moment and to share commentary on the current zeitgeist.
Then, we jump to Jackie Ong's POV, and she becomes a coder, building community online through her website in the 2010s. The three young women are loosely connected throughout the book, referencing each other or running into each other again. Their friendships, like all friendships, understandably ebb and flow. We also see Jackie develop a long-distance relationship with Diane, yet dips into hooking up with Ellen too. Jackie's POV doesn't use " to signify dialogue, so for the honeys who hate that, brace yourself! I don't mind it, but I like to let people know when it's there.
Then, we jump to Ellen's story and we land in the 2030s! New York City has been so utterly gentrified and colonized essentially, that Ellen and her friends are crossing checkpoints into different boroughs of NYC, and Ellen has a Manhattan ID card. It's eerie and devastating, but ultimately Ellen's work as an activist gave me hope and I felt reverence for those who continue fighting, even as the world seems to feel so gloom and doom-y.
This was my first read of Lisa Ko's and I really enjoyed it. I was so pleasantly surprised by where this novel went, especially by the end with the dystopian (yet not so far away) future and commentary on classism, fascism, and the great divide between the super wealthy and everybody else. I would definitely read her work in the future! Plus, I love surprise lesbians/bis figuring out their feelings for each other hehehe.
Thank you to Riverhead Books for the gifted physical ARC of this book. I'm providing this review of my own accord <3
This book started out quite slow, and I wasn't sure what exactly the story was. However, once I realized that this was a character-driven story about three friends spanning a few decades, I buckled up and was ready for the ride! The book is separated into three narratives, first with Giselle Chin's, who is our performance artist of this friends group. She drafted up potential art exhibits or acts ever since she was young, and she formulates the titular "Memory Piece". We follow Giselle during the 90s and early 00s as she both utilizes art to memorialize her life in that moment and to share commentary on the current zeitgeist.
Then, we jump to Jackie Ong's POV, and she becomes a coder, building community online through her website in the 2010s. The three young women are loosely connected throughout the book, referencing each other or running into each other again. Their friendships, like all friendships, understandably ebb and flow. We also see Jackie develop a long-distance relationship with Diane, yet dips into hooking up with Ellen too. Jackie's POV doesn't use " to signify dialogue, so for the honeys who hate that, brace yourself! I don't mind it, but I like to let people know when it's there.
Then, we jump to Ellen's story and we land in the 2030s! New York City has been so utterly gentrified and colonized essentially, that Ellen and her friends are crossing checkpoints into different boroughs of NYC, and Ellen has a Manhattan ID card. It's eerie and devastating, but ultimately Ellen's work as an activist gave me hope and I felt reverence for those who continue fighting, even as the world seems to feel so gloom and doom-y.
This was my first read of Lisa Ko's and I really enjoyed it. I was so pleasantly surprised by where this novel went, especially by the end with the dystopian (yet not so far away) future and commentary on classism, fascism, and the great divide between the super wealthy and everybody else. I would definitely read her work in the future! Plus, I love surprise lesbians/bis figuring out their feelings for each other hehehe.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Infidelity, Confinement, Colonisation, Racism, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Lesbophobia
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