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ainsleyexe 's review for:
3.50 stars.
I believe that most book-writing related issues can be traced back to two main points- idea and execution. Idea is the content of the novel- the themes, the plot and world-building, the purpose of the novel; Execution is how it is written- development, writer's craft, diction, and the like. Sometimes both are strong, sometimes one is strong and one is weak, and sometimes, on a rare occasion, both are weak. In the case of this novel, idea is strong-ish but execution is mediocre.
I was really excited to see Sam Maggs come out with this novel, I really enjoyed The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy.I love a good anthology of great women from history. This one made it about two-thirds of the way. The women chosen were diverse; of all different fields, financial backgrounds, sexual orientations and dispositions, which I greatly appreciated. At the end of each chapter, however, was a sort of runner-up section, and to be honest, I wish the novel focused on some of the "runners-up". As well, there was a bit of a disparity between the number of white women and the number of women of colour that were focused on- 11 women of colour in total, composed of two Chinese women, one Japanese woman, two Indian women, four Black women, and one Hispanic woman and one Latina woman; many other WOC were mentioned in the runner-up section, but it was a bit of a snub. WOC relegated to second-best again, It is the author's prerogative to choose whomever they want, but it was disappointing to see so few WOC in comparison to so many white women. At least the white women were interesting. I do really like the illustrations, colour palette, and visuals of this book; they are perfectly minimalist, and a striking and unique balance between modern and vintage. The art did great justice to the women. The writing was a little young at times, almost giving off adult-mocking-teenage-children-by-using-slang-poorly vibes, which did make it a bit grating to read. I know the author's intent was not to mock, which I did try to take into account, but I can definitely see this rubbing younger readers the wrong way. All in all, it was not horrible, but it was not the best either. Comfortably middle-of-the-road.
I believe that most book-writing related issues can be traced back to two main points- idea and execution. Idea is the content of the novel- the themes, the plot and world-building, the purpose of the novel; Execution is how it is written- development, writer's craft, diction, and the like. Sometimes both are strong, sometimes one is strong and one is weak, and sometimes, on a rare occasion, both are weak. In the case of this novel, idea is strong-ish but execution is mediocre.
I was really excited to see Sam Maggs come out with this novel, I really enjoyed The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy.I love a good anthology of great women from history. This one made it about two-thirds of the way. The women chosen were diverse; of all different fields, financial backgrounds, sexual orientations and dispositions, which I greatly appreciated. At the end of each chapter, however, was a sort of runner-up section, and to be honest, I wish the novel focused on some of the "runners-up". As well, there was a bit of a disparity between the number of white women and the number of women of colour that were focused on- 11 women of colour in total, composed of two Chinese women, one Japanese woman, two Indian women, four Black women, and one Hispanic woman and one Latina woman; many other WOC were mentioned in the runner-up section, but it was a bit of a snub. WOC relegated to second-best again, It is the author's prerogative to choose whomever they want, but it was disappointing to see so few WOC in comparison to so many white women. At least the white women were interesting. I do really like the illustrations, colour palette, and visuals of this book; they are perfectly minimalist, and a striking and unique balance between modern and vintage. The art did great justice to the women. The writing was a little young at times, almost giving off adult-mocking-teenage-children-by-using-slang-poorly vibes, which did make it a bit grating to read. I know the author's intent was not to mock, which I did try to take into account, but I can definitely see this rubbing younger readers the wrong way. All in all, it was not horrible, but it was not the best either. Comfortably middle-of-the-road.