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moonyreadsbystarlight's reviews
576 reviews
My Shape Is Sam by Amanda Jackson
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Simple, cute, and made me teary-eyed. Cute lesson but the way it could be about being trans got me in the feels
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Reviewing this book is really difficult because there is just so much that went on in this book. This could be seen as a character study, a study on a theme, and a study on a community. It's about how much a person (or a community) has to be situated in context -- not just the context of the past, but also the present, and with space for the future. This was a messy book about messy characters in messy situations and its reflective of how messy reality really is and how complicated people are. There were aspects of the book that one could critique, certainly, but I think it all adds in to this theme of life and people being messy and complicated. I do think that parts of this book will read really differently for queer people than trans people. Parts of this book are really unapologetically trans -- you don't get the 101 and if you aren't aware of the culture, you may be a little lost. But there are other parts where it is directly about the cishet community. The whole book really acts as a conversation about community, but also about gender (gender at large, but also specifically Ames/Amy's gender), about motherhood and the need to be mothered. This is such a complex and interesting book. I could see it not being for everyone, but I really enjoyed it and found it so fascinating. I'm already planning a reread to unpack it more eventually. The only thing I was really unsure about was some of the conversation about race. Some of it did seem good, but some of the comparisons that happened, I would like to see some biracial trans perspectives on
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime and Transphobia
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Suicide, and Abortion
Discussion of forced outing
Regarding the Pain of Others by Susan Sontag
challenging
informative
reflective
4.5
This was a look into war photography: the history, the reason it is made, and the reactions it elicits. There are so many points that Sontag makes throughout this. She looks at early military art, more staged photography of earlier history, and censorship that some photographers have been met with. She talks about the creator's intent and how that may be at odds with how it is presented in context or consumed by the public. One of the big points that really resonated with me was how different people and places were photographed and how those pictures were presented. Who is afforded dignity and who isn't? Whose tragedies are being broadcasted? Why is pain elsewhere viewed and memorialized, when atrocities within the US are ignored? She also poses and discusses the question: does sharing these photographs hurt or help the situation? There was mixed discussion about whether or not all images make the public desensitized, but one thing seems certain -- seeing an issue in print does not mean that someone understands or will work to fix the issue. Near the end, she also expresses the issue of perspective -- this is all a very middle to upper class western perspective. They are the ones who get to see pictures and decide whether or not to change the channel.
There are so many great point in here, I only wish that she would have fleshed it out a bit more and discussed more in detail. I think integrating her more philosophical commentary and history would have paired excellently with some social scientific research. I also would have loved to see her tie these ideas into her other work on illness and how that is perceived.
There are so many great point in here, I only wish that she would have fleshed it out a bit more and discussed more in detail. I think integrating her more philosophical commentary and history would have paired excellently with some social scientific research. I also would have loved to see her tie these ideas into her other work on illness and how that is perceived.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence and Violence
Princess Princess Ever After by K. O'Neill
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
This was super cute and wholesome. It did go rather quickly -- I'd love to have seen this drawn out over a few books. But it was lovely and sweet regardless.
Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick: Stories from the Harlem Renaissance by Zora Neale Hurston
reflective
- Strong character development? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It's really hard to properly rate this. It was an interesting read from a historical or academic perspective. A lot of the change stylistically was interesting and it's interesting to see how it fits in with her longer works. I'm not sure that I would say that I enjoyed all of the short stories. A lot of them were very similar, so it felt repetitive (though, this is just all of her works -- it wasn't curated by her to be a collection, so I have considered that). There were some specific ones that were quite interesting and did enjoy, even if there were a lot that I felt more lukewarm about. I felt like there was a lot to unpack thematically in a lot of these. Some of them, I was able to follow the themes and what they meant, but some of them seemed to have mixed or surprising messages. I think I would perhaps have a different understanding were I doing a closer reading in a different context.
I did appreciate the introduction. The only real criticism I have of the additional information is that it may have been better if the information about each short story were at the beginning of each individual story, not all just at the beginning of the book as a whole. Since I listened on audiobook, I couldn't go back and forth to read about each story, which I think would have added to the experience.
Overall, I'm glad I read it. I could see myself potentially returning to this if I end up doing a deep-dive into classics later. I think I would appreciate it more in that context. I would definitely recommend it to people who have enjoyed her other work.
I did appreciate the introduction. The only real criticism I have of the additional information is that it may have been better if the information about each short story were at the beginning of each individual story, not all just at the beginning of the book as a whole. Since I listened on audiobook, I couldn't go back and forth to read about each story, which I think would have added to the experience.
Overall, I'm glad I read it. I could see myself potentially returning to this if I end up doing a deep-dive into classics later. I think I would appreciate it more in that context. I would definitely recommend it to people who have enjoyed her other work.
Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Gun violence
Muted by Tami Charles
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book was not what I was expecting, but not in a bad way. I knew that it would tackle some tough issues, but as the story progressed, it became a thriller (or horror -- perhaps used loosely. I am not the arbiter of genres). But, it was a complex story. It wasn't just one person's rise to fame or anything, it also dealt with friends and family and sexuality, and some deep evils that actually exist in this world. (I have some thoughts -- I don't think they're really spoiler-ey but it tells you about one of the people who is the "bad guy", so I'll put it in a spoiler just in case) I don't think I've wanted to hurt a character nearly as much as Merc. Like I almost had to put down the book because he was so skeezy... utterly repulsive. The fact that people like him exist is what makes him so sinister. I nearly put down the book because it upset me so much, but I'm glad I continued. This one is verges on spoiler territory though The ending was so shocking. I thought of a few different things that might be happening (considering how the story was told and everything) but I completely did not see the ending coming. There is so much unresolved but that's how it has to be -- it's the only realistic way that this type of ending could play out. I do think that a sequel from Dali's POV would be very interesting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, and Blood
Minor: Gun violence
Blood (injury as well as in the context of mensuration)
We Still Here: Pandemic, Policing, Protest and Possibility by Marc Lamont Hill
informative
4.5
Concise and very accessible, while looking at the issues with nuance