bibliophage's reviews
626 reviews

The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

“I was jealous, of course, partly that by avoiding the academic race beat, Genie had sidestepped the daily trauma of the historical record, the sometimes brutality and sometimes banality of anti-Blackness, the loop of history that was always a noose if you looked at it long enough.”
📚📖📚
A collection of short stories that looks closely at race, history, culture, and relationships. Some of these stories felt fully rounded out and some felt more like vignettes (I like both forms) and at least two of these stories has stuck with me weeks and months after I read this collection. Overall I thought all of the stories were relevant in 2021 and some stories were much stronger than others––but isn't that often the case with short stories?

Me by Elton John

Ever since I saw Rocketman this book has been advertised on my computer pretty much everywhere. A few days ago my long awaited hold came through and I finally read it! More to come.

Emma by Jane Austen

While I loved Jane Austen's writing here (her creative and realistic characters, her dialogue) I despise Emma and Emma's story. She's terrible and she doesn't change nearly enough by the end of the book. Which is maybe more realistic, but still. Looking forward to yet another adaptation, I hope I love it as much as I love the 2009/2010 BBC miniseries—which is splendid.

Diary of a Madman and Other Stories by Lu Xun

I loved the first short story (Diary of a Madman), it's excellent. The other stories are good but not quite as gripping as the first.

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

“I'd often wished I could work out people as easily as I did arithmetic: simply break them down to their common denominators and solve.
Numbers didn't' lie; there was always an answer, and the answer was either right or it was wrong. Simple. But nothing in life was simple, and there was no answer to solve for.”

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

“He has been chewing over this idea that I can ‘buy’ time in exchange for bits of my soul and he wondered if I likened myself to Faust. Nothing like an arcane literary debate with your tyrannical master while you pass the time leading to your execution.”

Two best friends, a pilot and a spy, crash in France in 1943—that’s all I can share. The writing in this book is *exceptional.* It is so hard to craft a story like Wein has done, and then to infuse it with brilliant characters and witty language—it’s so well done.

The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain

Hilarious and some of Twain's finest work. The Innocents Abroad is a neat glimpse in to the 1860s while some descriptions still seem true to this day. For anyone who travels, Twain's The Innocents Abroad is a delightful, but also thoughtful, companion.

The Crucible by Arthur Miller

Some of my favorite dramatic lines come from this play. Miller does a neat job exploring this historical moment (both the Salem witch hunts and the witch hunts of the 40s and 50s––see McCarthyism). This play is a great read in context of his trial and the transcripts of his trial and his New Yorker article is fascinating (found here: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1996/10/21/why-i-wrote-the-crucible).

The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings by Edgar Allan Poe

Poe's works here are excellently written and riveting. Poe will remain on shelves to entertain readers for many years to come. I highly recommend his stories.

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto

This book has stuck in my memory ever since it was read to me by the loved librarian, Miss Davis, at my elementary school. I love the story and descriptions and illustrations. A lovely children's book.