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anjaliiiiiii's reviews
38 reviews
Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
3.5
I enjoyed the stories in the second half of the book more than the ones in the first half, but they were all interesting! Favorite stories: Returning, Peking Duck, Tomorrow
Home Remedies by Xuan Juliana Wang
3.5
favorite stories:
- vaulting the sea
- algorithmic problem-solving for father-daughter relationships
- echo of the moment
- the strawberry years
- vaulting the sea
- algorithmic problem-solving for father-daughter relationships
- echo of the moment
- the strawberry years
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
3.0
I would have liked it more if there were fewer long, boring (to me) descriptions of Levin’s opinions on agriculture, politics, and religion. I get why people might like that but it’s sooooooo not for me. The ending felt both rushed and dragging (the Vronsky/Anna storyline was abrupt but the Kitty/Levin one kept going on and on). However, it was also just a beautiful and interesting book with tragic loves and complex relationships written extremely well.
Some themes I noticed coming up again and again:
- characters switching into French to conceal their true meanings/when speaking less vulnerably or honestly
- upper-class people seeing lower or middle class people & being envious (Kitty & Varenka, Levin & the peasants working his farm, Anna & the people she passes on her last trip to the train station)
- religion as a guide, divider, and central question
Some themes I noticed coming up again and again:
- characters switching into French to conceal their true meanings/when speaking less vulnerably or honestly
- upper-class people seeing lower or middle class people & being envious (Kitty & Varenka, Levin & the peasants working his farm, Anna & the people she passes on her last trip to the train station)
- religion as a guide, divider, and central question
White Oleander by Janet Fitch
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Edge Case by YZ Chin
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Read this all in one day, it was really good. I didn’t really read the synopsis before picking up this book, and I think going in without expectations helped me enjoy the book more.
I loved how the book was written from the perspective of Edwina speaking to a therapist. That frame supported all of the internal turmoil, the back-and-forth style of narrating memories vs present day events, and the off-handed allusions to Edwina’s past that had previously been unexplained for example the casual mention of her self-harm scars which then does not get brought up again . It reminded me of my own experiences in therapy in some ways. Though I am very different from Edwina, I felt very connected to her and saw myself in her quite a bit too.
As someone interested in psychology, I also kept thinking about how minority stress was playing a role in Edwina’s challenges throughout the book. So good.
Some themes/motifs I’m still thinking of:
- transitions to and from vegetarianism, the kinds of meat eaten
- unreliable narration/looking at what’s left out/how E speaks to the therapist
- past life stories!
- relationship with body & mental health; looking at it with a kaleidoscope- how do her family, her partner, the structures she navigates shape what she’s experiencing internally & vice versa
I loved how the book was written from the perspective of Edwina speaking to a therapist. That frame supported all of the internal turmoil, the back-and-forth style of narrating memories vs present day events, and the off-handed allusions to Edwina’s past that had previously been unexplained
As someone interested in psychology, I also kept thinking about how minority stress was playing a role in Edwina’s challenges throughout the book. So good.
Some themes/motifs I’m still thinking of:
- transitions to and from vegetarianism, the kinds of meat eaten
- unreliable narration/looking at what’s left out/how E speaks to the therapist
- past life stories!
- relationship with body & mental health; looking at it with a kaleidoscope- how do her family, her partner, the structures she navigates shape what she’s experiencing internally & vice versa