bryjpg's reviews
191 reviews

Devil in a Blue Dress (30th Anniversary Edition), Volume 1: An Easy Rawlins Novel by Walter Mosley

adventurous mysterious tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

4.5

The Third Man and The Fallen Idol by Graham Greene

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.75

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Coriolanus by William Shakespeare

dark tense fast-paced

3.75

King Lear by William Shakespeare

dark emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

i really didn't expect to feel bad for Lear by the end, but alas :/ also Edgar deserved better!!!

In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.25

A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

listened along with an audiobook and it made the experience sooo much more enjoyable!!! also I love helena and hermia so much 

Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear: Poems from Gaza by Mosab Abu Toha

challenging emotional fast-paced

5.0

so so powerful but also sad to see the parallels between aggressions in the past and the ongoing genocide today, especially with the poem The Wounds.

the ones that stood out to me the most are probably:

“Their ears hurt when they hear sirens, but we are made deaf by explosions.

Their muscles stiffen with fear on their way to the shelters,
while ours are pierced by boiling shrapnel.” - Us and Them

“Threads of sun
hang in the air.
Butterflies flit across them
like the fingers
of a young guitarist
plucking the strings.” - A Boy and his Telescope

“‘I am not afraid of death. I am ready but I am not waiting for it.’

He hates waiting.

He asks death if it could wait for some time until he finishes
   writing his new poem.
He looks at himself in the mirror and puts
a fresh rose in his lapel for the coming long journey.” - To Mahmoud Darwish

I also loved the interview portion at the end, especially when he spoke about the way he approaches poetry and his experiences traveling to the US and essentially seeing Gaza through a new lens while there. 

Dear God. Dear Bones. Dear Yellow. by Noor Hindi

challenging emotional fast-paced

4.5

“I want to apologize on behalf of all children / of refugees. We leave our shoes on the doors of America / and come back to find them bleeding.” (from I Buried My Brother Last Winter)

so poignant and powerful!! each poem felt like it was its own little world, bursting with color.

Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller

reflective medium-paced

5.0

this book was a solid 3.5/4.0 until the last half cause damnnnnn