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ashleigheva's reviews
60 reviews
And Then by Natsume Sōseki
4.0
(3.75/5)
wow i really spread this book out over a longgg time
the language is stunning and the book brought up some intriguing ideas
but the shifts in timing feel too abrupt for my liking and sometimes the run on sentences and description and metaphorical manners of speech get a bit too draggy
i wish we got more of the last two pages with the symbolic imagery of burning and the colour red. the sentence structure also beautifully compounded with this to create easily one of the most captivating sections of the book. not sure if i'm being too harsh but i do find it a shame that it took me the whole book to find a part i liked that much. (though honestly that isn't even necessarily a bad thing, i just think that in the context of this book, in which it took me months to finish because i kept getting bored and stopping to read other things, i would've greatly benefitted from reading something that struck me profoundly much earlier in the book. but of course what piques my interest is an entirely subjective matter that has little to do with the writer's intentions and craft. wow what a long disclaimer)
i didn't like it nearly as much as i deeply loved kokoro but i'm still glad to have read it :-)
wow i really spread this book out over a longgg time
the language is stunning and the book brought up some intriguing ideas
but the shifts in timing feel too abrupt for my liking and sometimes the run on sentences and description and metaphorical manners of speech get a bit too draggy
i wish we got more of the last two pages with the symbolic imagery of burning and the colour red. the sentence structure also beautifully compounded with this to create easily one of the most captivating sections of the book. not sure if i'm being too harsh but i do find it a shame that it took me the whole book to find a part i liked that much. (though honestly that isn't even necessarily a bad thing, i just think that in the context of this book, in which it took me months to finish because i kept getting bored and stopping to read other things, i would've greatly benefitted from reading something that struck me profoundly much earlier in the book. but of course what piques my interest is an entirely subjective matter that has little to do with the writer's intentions and craft. wow what a long disclaimer)
i didn't like it nearly as much as i deeply loved kokoro but i'm still glad to have read it :-)
Tokyo Ueno Station by Yu Miri
3.0
i think the book is meant to be deliberately illusive in the sense that it feels like it's suspended in time and space but for me at least it made it pretty unenjoyable because the flow of events felt unclear
the book isn't bad, but i think there's a specific audience for it and at the time i read it, i did not fir that demographic
if you're looking for something with a concrete plot then you won't find it in this book
instead, it offers a vague retelling of one man's life experiences that may or may not be of interest to you
the book isn't bad, but i think there's a specific audience for it and at the time i read it, i did not fir that demographic
if you're looking for something with a concrete plot then you won't find it in this book
instead, it offers a vague retelling of one man's life experiences that may or may not be of interest to you
Tales from the Café by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
4.0
4.25/5
mAn i enjoyed this once again :-)
not sure whether i enjoyed this or the previous book more but either way, such pleasant and palatable reads
perhaps sometimes the impact falls a bit flat but honestly it's likely because i read the first book last year
i think if you read them in succession the experience will be even better!
glad to have read this :-)
mAn i enjoyed this once again :-)
not sure whether i enjoyed this or the previous book more but either way, such pleasant and palatable reads
perhaps sometimes the impact falls a bit flat but honestly it's likely because i read the first book last year
i think if you read them in succession the experience will be even better!
glad to have read this :-)
It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover
4.0
i bought this book at two other romance novels in search of a light hearted read to cool myself off from all the serious stuff i've read this year
last night when i got home, i sat down and began reading a little bit off each of the three books, just to satiate my excitement, since it was already really late and i was exhausted
i was the least excited for this book
it seemed to be the least like a feel good romance out of the three (which was was i was looking for), and honestly i wasn't too sure why i had even bought it
like i said, it didn't fit the profile of the exact kind of book i was looking for, so it didn't really make sense to for me to have bought it yesterday evening
i did really want to try reading colleen hoover's books but i could've waited for a time when i wanted to read something of this sort to have bought the book instead
perhaps something that gave me a lil nudge is that when i flipped open to a random page, the first thing i saw was "i would very much like to fuck you right now"
i think that's what really sold me haha
i started reading it at 2am, only intending to read the start, but i ended up reading up till 6am, which was the time i had originally set my alarm to. yikes
i just didn't want to put the book down.
i don't very often feel this way about books, but this truly felt like such an easy read in all the best ways possible.
my eyes really hurt and i think i have the flu so i'm gonna cut this short. bottom line is, i love atlas so much and i really respect colleen hoover. :-)
last night when i got home, i sat down and began reading a little bit off each of the three books, just to satiate my excitement, since it was already really late and i was exhausted
i was the least excited for this book
it seemed to be the least like a feel good romance out of the three (which was was i was looking for), and honestly i wasn't too sure why i had even bought it
like i said, it didn't fit the profile of the exact kind of book i was looking for, so it didn't really make sense to for me to have bought it yesterday evening
i did really want to try reading colleen hoover's books but i could've waited for a time when i wanted to read something of this sort to have bought the book instead
perhaps something that gave me a lil nudge is that when i flipped open to a random page, the first thing i saw was "i would very much like to fuck you right now"
i think that's what really sold me haha
i started reading it at 2am, only intending to read the start, but i ended up reading up till 6am, which was the time i had originally set my alarm to. yikes
i just didn't want to put the book down.
i don't very often feel this way about books, but this truly felt like such an easy read in all the best ways possible.
my eyes really hurt and i think i have the flu so i'm gonna cut this short. bottom line is, i love atlas so much and i really respect colleen hoover. :-)
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
5.0
i originally gave this 4 stars and i honestly don't know if i was swayed by seeing other people's reviews or if if was a genuine change of heart
so perhaps a 4.5/5!
i REALLY ENJOYED THIS like i mean i was relishing every bite of this like a it was a bowl of warm stew on a rainy day oh my god
the language is absolutely stunning. the descriptiveness is always done with such precise intention— it never feels contrived, it never feels overdrawn
the abstractness of a lot of these descriptions is part of what makes them so effective in aiding the reader's understanding of achilles as a character, while also alluding to patroclus' unchanging high regard of achilles. it makes achilles' charismatic presence so much more validated, and also, gosh i don't know how to put it into words coherently, but just fits him like glove
something else i absolutely adored was how self assured both achilles and patroclus are
patroclus will respond with insecurity when the situation legitimately calls for it, but otherwise, they both serve as a huge breath of fresh air from the tendency of self deprecation that i and too many others fall into
aside from achilles' gradual spiral into astounding arrogance, i think the sort of self assurance and confidence shown was a huge joy for me to see
it sort of addressed my own personal fear of having self confidence seem cocky
speaking of achilles' degeneration, i think this was executed marvellously
we see the little tendencies achilles begins to conveniently acquire, along with patroclus' hushed thoughts, until it eventually culminates in achilles' petty decision to refuse to fight in the war
it didn't feel like an out of character, jarring moment because we were long made privy to the ever evolving streak of brutality that achilles bore
also today a friend said "oh i heard that book is really sad" and i was slightly confused but hm yeah i don't think it's send more so as bittersweet? and i was so surprised i didn't cry
but man at the last page tho?
ngl i teared up :")
oh also i absolutely love how they address pride in this
one of my favourite video games has this quote "what use is pride?" and i don't know i guess i think that pride is just such a uniquely complex concept that deserves to be picked apart more
wow i really just keep coming back to add more and more to this incoherent list but patroclus!!???!? the sweetest soul ever
so much compassion, empathy, understanding, emotional maturity
seriously what an absolute gem
so perhaps a 4.5/5!
i REALLY ENJOYED THIS like i mean i was relishing every bite of this like a it was a bowl of warm stew on a rainy day oh my god
the language is absolutely stunning. the descriptiveness is always done with such precise intention— it never feels contrived, it never feels overdrawn
the abstractness of a lot of these descriptions is part of what makes them so effective in aiding the reader's understanding of achilles as a character, while also alluding to patroclus' unchanging high regard of achilles. it makes achilles' charismatic presence so much more validated, and also, gosh i don't know how to put it into words coherently, but just fits him like glove
something else i absolutely adored was how self assured both achilles and patroclus are
patroclus will respond with insecurity when the situation legitimately calls for it, but otherwise, they both serve as a huge breath of fresh air from the tendency of self deprecation that i and too many others fall into
aside from achilles' gradual spiral into astounding arrogance, i think the sort of self assurance and confidence shown was a huge joy for me to see
it sort of addressed my own personal fear of having self confidence seem cocky
speaking of achilles' degeneration, i think this was executed marvellously
we see the little tendencies achilles begins to conveniently acquire, along with patroclus' hushed thoughts, until it eventually culminates in achilles' petty decision to refuse to fight in the war
it didn't feel like an out of character, jarring moment because we were long made privy to the ever evolving streak of brutality that achilles bore
also today a friend said "oh i heard that book is really sad" and i was slightly confused but hm yeah i don't think it's send more so as bittersweet? and i was so surprised i didn't cry
but man at the last page tho?
ngl i teared up :")
oh also i absolutely love how they address pride in this
one of my favourite video games has this quote "what use is pride?" and i don't know i guess i think that pride is just such a uniquely complex concept that deserves to be picked apart more
wow i really just keep coming back to add more and more to this incoherent list but patroclus!!???!? the sweetest soul ever
so much compassion, empathy, understanding, emotional maturity
seriously what an absolute gem
So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
3.0
(listened to the audiobook)
a really informative book!
i love how it was structured such that each arc presented a gripping anecdote about the harrowing impacts of the issue to be addressed, followed by clear steps that can be taken in response. that really helps to make the reader feel personally invested in the discussion.
i also really appreciate that this book addressed the issue of racism rather holistically.
while in terms of message i am with the author, i could not help but find parts of the book to be overly repetitive and consequently draggy
a really informative book!
i love how it was structured such that each arc presented a gripping anecdote about the harrowing impacts of the issue to be addressed, followed by clear steps that can be taken in response. that really helps to make the reader feel personally invested in the discussion.
i also really appreciate that this book addressed the issue of racism rather holistically.
while in terms of message i am with the author, i could not help but find parts of the book to be overly repetitive and consequently draggy
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
4.0
okay so i started listening to the audiobook for this last year and i got about 95% through and then the audiobook was removed so i never finished it
i then moved onto the third book anyways without technically ever finishing this book but i know that i have no intentions of revisiting this just for that last 5% so im marking it as completed as of today lol
i then moved onto the third book anyways without technically ever finishing this book but i know that i have no intentions of revisiting this just for that last 5% so im marking it as completed as of today lol
You're Not Listening: What You're Missing and Why It Matters by Kate Murphy
5.0
HOLY HECK DID I LOVE LISTENING TO THIS!!
as someone who has been trying to improve my listening skills and work on better responding to the communicative needs of others, while also being someone with an interest in sociology and developmental psychology, this book was seriously perfect for me! so incredibly enjoyable and insightful :-) what a delight
also there was one part that went along the lines of "people listen to audiobooks and two times speed while doing other things at the same time" and i gasped in laughter because hi i just listened to this book on 1.75x speed while learning about catalysts for chemistry class
ps i think non fiction audiobooks might be my new big thing and i LOVE THAT
as someone who has been trying to improve my listening skills and work on better responding to the communicative needs of others, while also being someone with an interest in sociology and developmental psychology, this book was seriously perfect for me! so incredibly enjoyable and insightful :-) what a delight
also there was one part that went along the lines of "people listen to audiobooks and two times speed while doing other things at the same time" and i gasped in laughter because hi i just listened to this book on 1.75x speed while learning about catalysts for chemistry class
ps i think non fiction audiobooks might be my new big thing and i LOVE THAT
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear
4.0
(listened to the audiobook)
bRUH despite how heavily referenced this book is in self improvement communities i frequent, actually consuming it first hand was still a really informative experience
this book had the perfect balance of anecdotes/experiences and scientific studies, both worked in harmonious tandem to efficiently illustrate the points brought up
lovely listen!!
bRUH despite how heavily referenced this book is in self improvement communities i frequent, actually consuming it first hand was still a really informative experience
this book had the perfect balance of anecdotes/experiences and scientific studies, both worked in harmonious tandem to efficiently illustrate the points brought up
lovely listen!!
The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg
dnf @ 10%
i'm sure there is something in this book that could be of value for me at some point, but at the moment because of how much this book along with other self improvement books' content has been repackaged and discussed through the productivity gurus i consume the content of, everything feels too repetitive for me
i'm sure there is something in this book that could be of value for me at some point, but at the moment because of how much this book along with other self improvement books' content has been repackaged and discussed through the productivity gurus i consume the content of, everything feels too repetitive for me