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moonyreadsbystarlight's reviews
576 reviews
Drag King Dreams by Leslie Feinberg
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
This is such an incredible and important story. There were parts of the characters I'd like to have seen more fleshed out, but ultimately I think it all worked. But the themes, the point of this book was incredible. I would end up writing an essay if I started going into it all. But if you are interested in activism in any way, you need to read Leslie Feinberg. This embodies a lot of what ze said in some of their nonfiction about solidarity -- within the LGBT movement and outside of it. It discusses nuances of identity and nuances of connection. So many excellent things happening.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Deadnaming, Death, Homophobia, Transphobia, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
Bloom by Kevin Panetta
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship
Moderate: Grief
Burning Sugar by Cicely Belle Blain
emotional
inspiring
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
This was such a beautiful collection. Individually, the poems were powerful and beautiful, but also as a collection, it felt very cohesive. I loved that there were three distinct parts with their own motifs, but they were still all connected by other themes. I cannot wait to see what other collections they put out!
Breaking the Walls of Silence: AIDS and Women in a New York State Maximum Security Prison by Whoopi Goldberg, Members of AIDS Counseling and Education, AIDS Counseling and Education Program
emotional
informative
reflective
4.0
This was a really important view into how the AIDS epidemic impacted a group of constantly overlooked people. This book outlined what they had to go through to get this group together and what the group was able to do for people as individuals. While some chapters do have a section of text explanation, most of the book is comprised of testimonies, experiences, and even poetry from women who were a part of the ACE program. The end covers the workshops that they did, including information about AIDS that they had at the time and activities for workshops, but they also included some responses that people had given in past workshops, giving us another window into these women's experiences.
This book really paints a picture of stigma and life with AIDS in prison at the time and the issues that these women faced outside of it through these snapshots of experience. But it also shows the importance of community support and resilience that shines through when people are given the proper resources -- which is particularly huge since in most aspects of life, many of these women weren't given the support they need. Something that really struck me is how much the creators of ACE had to work to get this program. Eventually people from the outside could come help them and they reached out to new inmates, but at first the people in charge of the prison were resistant. These women did such incredible work, but they shouldn't have had to. Most of these women were at the intersection of AIDS, the war on drugs, mass incarceration, racism, poverty, and often other sorts of violence and misogyny. These women should have been given resources in prison certainly -- but they should have been given them way before. So much of their experience handling AIDS is similar to what I have read of other groups -- having to come together for social support, solidarity between PWAs and people who are negative, having to go out of their way to help treat and care for their own. But they had to do it all while navigating the time constraints, lack of personal support, and so much more that comes from being in prison.
On a technical level, I'm sure I could pick out some issues. And I would love to see a discussion that brings the experiences together more -- and discussion of prisons and AIDS looking at the system, but I'm sure I can find that elsewhere (and I'm sure there would have been much more barriers to publishing that sort of book from prison). I am so glad that they were able to put this together. There is so much work and organizing that goes unrecognized, so having this documented is really incredible.
This book really paints a picture of stigma and life with AIDS in prison at the time and the issues that these women faced outside of it through these snapshots of experience. But it also shows the importance of community support and resilience that shines through when people are given the proper resources -- which is particularly huge since in most aspects of life, many of these women weren't given the support they need. Something that really struck me is how much the creators of ACE had to work to get this program. Eventually people from the outside could come help them and they reached out to new inmates, but at first the people in charge of the prison were resistant. These women did such incredible work, but they shouldn't have had to. Most of these women were at the intersection of AIDS, the war on drugs, mass incarceration, racism, poverty, and often other sorts of violence and misogyny. These women should have been given resources in prison certainly -- but they should have been given them way before. So much of their experience handling AIDS is similar to what I have read of other groups -- having to come together for social support, solidarity between PWAs and people who are negative, having to go out of their way to help treat and care for their own. But they had to do it all while navigating the time constraints, lack of personal support, and so much more that comes from being in prison.
On a technical level, I'm sure I could pick out some issues. And I would love to see a discussion that brings the experiences together more -- and discussion of prisons and AIDS looking at the system, but I'm sure I can find that elsewhere (and I'm sure there would have been much more barriers to publishing that sort of book from prison). I am so glad that they were able to put this together. There is so much work and organizing that goes unrecognized, so having this documented is really incredible.
The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
In beautiful prose, stories from two different times converge, connected by art, queerness, and community. This book explores grief, identity, and community in ways I have never seen articulated together in such a cohesive and breathtaking way. Each aspect of the story contains multitudes, weaved together so intentionally. I'm not sure I can even articulate all of my feelings or all aspects of the story with one read. It's one that I want to reread even more intentionally -- not just for theme or plot, but to peel back the emotional layers. I'm afraid this is more of a 3am rambling post than a proper review, but suffice it to say, this is an incredible book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
Moderate: Homophobia and Transphobia
mensturation, child birth
Black Movie by Danez Smith
emotional
5.0
Another incredible collection from Danez Smith. So many quality poems and the shared themes (cinema and Black community) were so cohesive and complex, explored from several angles. This was a smaller collection than the others I've read by them, but no less powerful.