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A review by iwasalilacsky
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Thoughts:
A painful, beautiful, inclusive, emotional, and hopeful story. It is incredibly well-written with so much history. You can clearly see how much research was put into it. The timelines of what is happening in-between parts really kept you in full understanding of what was going on the entire story. We get just a glimpse into Chinese American and lesbian culture, but you walk away with so much understanding of what it would be like during this period. My heart was broken, but I also felt the love between two school girls who are just finding their way through a homophobic and racist world with the odds stacked against them. Every part of me ached for both Lily and Kath.
The characters you are supposed to love you love. The characters you do, you will not. However, there is a grey area with characters you are conflicted as to what to feel about.
The telegraph club felt like a safe haven with lots of lesbian representation. A place where you felt free to be yourself and have a community of those who understand you. It was lovely to feel a part of it, and be brought into it.
A warm but gut-wrenching sapphic story of discovering love and who you are. Thank you Malinda Lo for this magnificent book!
Would I recommend this and to who:
YES! As said by Emily X.R. Pan (on the cover), “This book is for anyone who has ever loved-in any sense of the word.”
Paperback/Hardcover/Audiobook/E-book:
E-book and audiobook
How did I discover this:
A girl on hinge actually said it was her favorite and told me to give it a try lol.
Pace:
Medium-paced
Cover thoughts:
It is so pretty, and my favorite moment from the book.
POV:
Multi
Quotes:
“She’s having a hard time right now because you’re not what she expected. But we’re never what our parents expected. They have to learn that lesson.”
“It’s unmistakable.” (How she could recognize Kath at the other end of a crowded Galileo hallway by the way she walked.) “It’s like . . . well, it’s like falling,” Lana said. “Falling, or floating, or sinking.” (Every time they kissed.) “You won’t know which way is up.” “It’s like having a fever.” (The way the world seemed to narrow down to the tips of Kath’s fingers.) “It’s like being drunk—drunk for days.”
“She wondered if Kath could sense her, sitting on this train as it took her away. Perhaps it was possible, if she closed her eyes and sent out her thoughts along the steel track like a message along a telephone wire. I love you. I love you. The train swayed gently beneath her, and she leaned against the window to feel the cool glass against her cheek, and she was sure that Kath had heard her, she was sure.”
Triggers:
Homophobia, Racism, Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Miscarriage, Underage Drinking etc.
A painful, beautiful, inclusive, emotional, and hopeful story. It is incredibly well-written with so much history. You can clearly see how much research was put into it. The timelines of what is happening in-between parts really kept you in full understanding of what was going on the entire story. We get just a glimpse into Chinese American and lesbian culture, but you walk away with so much understanding of what it would be like during this period. My heart was broken, but I also felt the love between two school girls who are just finding their way through a homophobic and racist world with the odds stacked against them. Every part of me ached for both Lily and Kath.
The characters you are supposed to love you love. The characters you do, you will not. However, there is a grey area with characters you are conflicted as to what to feel about.
The telegraph club felt like a safe haven with lots of lesbian representation. A place where you felt free to be yourself and have a community of those who understand you. It was lovely to feel a part of it, and be brought into it.
A warm but gut-wrenching sapphic story of discovering love and who you are. Thank you Malinda Lo for this magnificent book!
Would I recommend this and to who:
YES! As said by Emily X.R. Pan (on the cover), “This book is for anyone who has ever loved-in any sense of the word.”
Paperback/Hardcover/Audiobook/E-book:
E-book and audiobook
How did I discover this:
A girl on hinge actually said it was her favorite and told me to give it a try lol.
Pace:
Medium-paced
Cover thoughts:
It is so pretty, and my favorite moment from the book.
POV:
Multi
Quotes:
“She’s having a hard time right now because you’re not what she expected. But we’re never what our parents expected. They have to learn that lesson.”
“It’s unmistakable.” (How she could recognize Kath at the other end of a crowded Galileo hallway by the way she walked.) “It’s like . . . well, it’s like falling,” Lana said. “Falling, or floating, or sinking.” (Every time they kissed.) “You won’t know which way is up.” “It’s like having a fever.” (The way the world seemed to narrow down to the tips of Kath’s fingers.) “It’s like being drunk—drunk for days.”
“She wondered if Kath could sense her, sitting on this train as it took her away. Perhaps it was possible, if she closed her eyes and sent out her thoughts along the steel track like a message along a telephone wire. I love you. I love you. The train swayed gently beneath her, and she leaned against the window to feel the cool glass against her cheek, and she was sure that Kath had heard her, she was sure.”
Triggers: