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2.82 AVERAGE
2.82 AVERAGE
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a book that was not written for me, and that's okay. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy it or that heterosexual couples can't relate to a strain being put on your relationship when you both leave for different colleges, but this was distinctly a book written for the LGBT community about the LGBT community. So, my enjoyment of this book isn't really what matters, and I'm not going to speak to all the complexities of gender identity and whether or not she handled it correctly because I know it's not something that I can fully understand. I will say she specifically called out the "born in the wrong body" trope and smashed it to pieces, so that was cool. Other parts, I wasn't really sure if it could have been handled better, but again, not for me to say.
That said, I did enjoy the book. The characters for the most part felt pretty natural and messy and real. I was frustrated with them pretty frequently, and sometimes I kind of felt like there was more reason for them to be apart than together, but I also found myself rooting for them. I liked the contrast between the way each character saw themselves and the way they saw each other and how similar they were in that. I found it a sort of slow read, but I think that had more to do with the fact that I was very busy through the whole time I was reading it than the content itself. Sometimes the inner monologue could be a little much, on both sides. The ending was kind of perfect, in my opinion.
That said, I did enjoy the book. The characters for the most part felt pretty natural and messy and real. I was frustrated with them pretty frequently, and sometimes I kind of felt like there was more reason for them to be apart than together, but I also found myself rooting for them. I liked the contrast between the way each character saw themselves and the way they saw each other and how similar they were in that. I found it a sort of slow read, but I think that had more to do with the fact that I was very busy through the whole time I was reading it than the content itself. Sometimes the inner monologue could be a little much, on both sides. The ending was kind of perfect, in my opinion.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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 fuller review to come when I have had time to properly organise my thoughts. Suffices to say, I had very high hopes following LWTO and this came nowhere close to reaching them.
Original de: El Blog del Gato - El Extraño Gato del Cuento
¿No te han tocado libros que luego de leer un par de capítulos, estás seguro que odiaras a un personaje, porque sientes que no hay nada en este mundo que haga que te agrade dicho personaje, pero luego terminas sorprendiéndote tu mismo cuando dicho personaje te termina agradando? ¿No? Eso me pasó con What We Left Behind, esta libro tiene varias características que normalmente me hacen terminar con una sensación amarga, solo que la manera como se maneja la historia me llevó a querer que estos personajes superarán sus problemas y terminaran bien.
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¿No te han tocado libros que luego de leer un par de capítulos, estás seguro que odiaras a un personaje, porque sientes que no hay nada en este mundo que haga que te agrade dicho personaje, pero luego terminas sorprendiéndote tu mismo cuando dicho personaje te termina agradando? ¿No? Eso me pasó con What We Left Behind, esta libro tiene varias características que normalmente me hacen terminar con una sensación amarga, solo que la manera como se maneja la historia me llevó a querer que estos personajes superarán sus problemas y terminaran bien.
Twitter || Blog || Pinterest || Tumblr || Instagram || Facebook
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Occasionally, I finish a book and immediately adopt the opinion that everyone in the entire world needs to read this novel. Sometimes, this sensation is sparked by a well-crafted story, full of beautiful writing, complex characters, and an impeccable plot. Other times, I get this feeling from reading an important book, full of scenes, characters, and ideas that will make readers better people. But when a book is both very, very good and very, very important, I feel an even stronger desire to give a copy to everyone I know. What We Left Behind is that kind of book.
What I love about Robin Talley's sophomore novel is this: not only does it spotlight an underrepresented group—transgender and non-binary people—but it shows the messy, painful confusion that comes with gender. This story defies simplicity, from Toni's efforts to uncover a gender identity to other characters' inability to understand Toni's struggle. Talley portrays each character's emotional turmoil so vividly that readers will have no choice but to become absorbed in each person's life. The result is a personal yet universal story—the kind of tale that only belongs to a few characters but that can resonate with widespread readers.
Even better, because What We Left Behind tackles the complex issue of gender, the storyline leaves plenty of room for characters to be problematic without being portrayed as terrible people. Most characters, even the protagonists, think questionable thoughts and make dubious remarks, a truth that may sound critical but that I bestow as praise. Why do I say this? Because all too often, both in fiction and in real life, we tend to put people into boxes and pit two crowds against each other: good versus bad. But in reality, no one is perfect, everyone is problematic at times, and the best we can do is forgive and educate each other. So even though some characters make hurtful comments about Toni's identity confusion, even though Toni criticizes two roommates for being "too feminine" and says they cannot talk about feminism until they stop posting pictures of themselves in bikinis, many characters are portrayed as genuinely kind and simply confused. It is absolutely possible to make problematic comments and still be a good person—confusion and ignorance do not have to equal intolerance—but this truth is often overlooked in today's society, where we cannot disagree without spiraling into aggression. As a result, I loved seeing a fantastic fictional example of several uncertain people teaching each other rather than hating each other.
I know the basis of my adoration for this book—the characters' problematic tendencies—is also the basis for other people's dislike, and there are many superlatively important arguments being made about the characters' attitude toward certain issues. (Aside from Toni's skewed views on feminism, some reviewers criticize the characters for perpetuating the idea that "genderqueer" is merely a temporary label for those who have not decided on an official gender, not an identity of its own. For more details, I recommend reading this Goodreads reviewer's thoughts.) However, as I discussed above, I disagree with the idea that people or characters must be perfect to be worthwhile. While one could make a valid argument that this book should have done a better job of correcting misconceptions, I still think it is a valuable portrayal of a few people's personal experiences in all their flaws. Above all else, What We Left Behind is a book to be discussed, the characters' issues to be dissected and corrected. I hope that someday soon Talley's sophomore novel will be joined by a slew of other stories portraying other experiences with gender, but for now, I will continue to recommend this book. What We Left Behind increased my understanding of what it is like to question your gender identity, and considerable good would come from allowing others the same experience.
What I love about Robin Talley's sophomore novel is this: not only does it spotlight an underrepresented group—transgender and non-binary people—but it shows the messy, painful confusion that comes with gender. This story defies simplicity, from Toni's efforts to uncover a gender identity to other characters' inability to understand Toni's struggle. Talley portrays each character's emotional turmoil so vividly that readers will have no choice but to become absorbed in each person's life. The result is a personal yet universal story—the kind of tale that only belongs to a few characters but that can resonate with widespread readers.
Even better, because What We Left Behind tackles the complex issue of gender, the storyline leaves plenty of room for characters to be problematic without being portrayed as terrible people. Most characters, even the protagonists, think questionable thoughts and make dubious remarks, a truth that may sound critical but that I bestow as praise. Why do I say this? Because all too often, both in fiction and in real life, we tend to put people into boxes and pit two crowds against each other: good versus bad. But in reality, no one is perfect, everyone is problematic at times, and the best we can do is forgive and educate each other. So even though some characters make hurtful comments about Toni's identity confusion, even though Toni criticizes two roommates for being "too feminine" and says they cannot talk about feminism until they stop posting pictures of themselves in bikinis, many characters are portrayed as genuinely kind and simply confused. It is absolutely possible to make problematic comments and still be a good person—confusion and ignorance do not have to equal intolerance—but this truth is often overlooked in today's society, where we cannot disagree without spiraling into aggression. As a result, I loved seeing a fantastic fictional example of several uncertain people teaching each other rather than hating each other.
I know the basis of my adoration for this book—the characters' problematic tendencies—is also the basis for other people's dislike, and there are many superlatively important arguments being made about the characters' attitude toward certain issues. (Aside from Toni's skewed views on feminism, some reviewers criticize the characters for perpetuating the idea that "genderqueer" is merely a temporary label for those who have not decided on an official gender, not an identity of its own. For more details, I recommend reading this Goodreads reviewer's thoughts.) However, as I discussed above, I disagree with the idea that people or characters must be perfect to be worthwhile. While one could make a valid argument that this book should have done a better job of correcting misconceptions, I still think it is a valuable portrayal of a few people's personal experiences in all their flaws. Above all else, What We Left Behind is a book to be discussed, the characters' issues to be dissected and corrected. I hope that someday soon Talley's sophomore novel will be joined by a slew of other stories portraying other experiences with gender, but for now, I will continue to recommend this book. What We Left Behind increased my understanding of what it is like to question your gender identity, and considerable good would come from allowing others the same experience.
This book should be everything I would want: queer women exploring identities and relationships. Instead it acted as a reminder that even queer women can have terrible relationships. Needed a palate cleanser after finishing this and was lucky to have one on hand.
Honestly I don't have the energy to review this properly, but it was poorly written and did so so so much wrong
I absolutely devoured Robin Talley’s debut novel, the amazing Lies We Tell Ourselves. I really wanted to love this book. One, it’s written by the wonderful Robin Talley and two, it’s very much about gender identity and finding yourself which I think should be represented in Young Adult literature. However, I feel like this book came across as a bit too textbook. It didn’t feel overly well developed as a story, the characters were a little bit too judge-y towards heterosexuals and the emphasis on the use of pronouns started to get on my nerves.
Now I will outright admit that I don’t know a lot about those that identify as genderqueer so I can’t speak too much about the topic, or compare it to other books which may be similar, but I don’t believe this book is an overly accurate representation of the identity. I think the problem mainly lies with Toni. Toni is a frustrating character. There is so much information packed into the story and it doesn’t feel natural. It feels like reading non-fiction (which I have no problem with, I just wanted more of a story- not an info-dump!)
I did really enjoy reading from Gretchen’s perspective, who I thought was an adorable character. I don’t think Toni deserved her! That may be harsh of me, I know Toni was struggling with so many issues, but Gretchen was trying to be there for her as much as she could when she was feeling almost as confused about Toni’s identity then Toni was!
I do appreciate that questions about identity, pronouns, predjudice and language are important to be represented in literature. I’m all for that and I think it’s SO important. However, I don’t think the delivery was as solid as it could have been. I did enjoy reading the conversations, but it got so repetitive, especially the talk of pronouns.
I liked the premise of the this book and I really appreciate what Robin is doing with What We Left Behind. This book is certainly going to get people talking and that is what we want. I think it’s important to discuss identity and finding yourself, I just wish it had come across better.
Now I will outright admit that I don’t know a lot about those that identify as genderqueer so I can’t speak too much about the topic, or compare it to other books which may be similar, but I don’t believe this book is an overly accurate representation of the identity. I think the problem mainly lies with Toni. Toni is a frustrating character. There is so much information packed into the story and it doesn’t feel natural. It feels like reading non-fiction (which I have no problem with, I just wanted more of a story- not an info-dump!)
I did really enjoy reading from Gretchen’s perspective, who I thought was an adorable character. I don’t think Toni deserved her! That may be harsh of me, I know Toni was struggling with so many issues, but Gretchen was trying to be there for her as much as she could when she was feeling almost as confused about Toni’s identity then Toni was!
I do appreciate that questions about identity, pronouns, predjudice and language are important to be represented in literature. I’m all for that and I think it’s SO important. However, I don’t think the delivery was as solid as it could have been. I did enjoy reading the conversations, but it got so repetitive, especially the talk of pronouns.
I liked the premise of the this book and I really appreciate what Robin is doing with What We Left Behind. This book is certainly going to get people talking and that is what we want. I think it’s important to discuss identity and finding yourself, I just wish it had come across better.