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ellieb_reads's Reviews (186)
I absolutely loved this book. I was completely gripped from the beginning, and I abandoned my list of errands yesterday morning because I simply could not wait to finish it. I don’t think you could call it a thriller exactly, but it is without a doubt the most interesting “mystery” I’ve ever read. Angie Kim has written what is, on the surface, a story about a missing father and a family’s efforts to find him. But it’s also a brilliant commentary on happiness, disabilities, and communication. Kim’s writing is fantastic, and I really identified with the narrator in a lot of ways. In particular I thought the book did a great job of showing how Mia navigated her complex and conflicting feelings - wanting to find her dad and wanting to protect Eugene, while managing her guilt, fear, and grief. If I had to nitpick, I wish this hadn’t been set in the 2020 COVID pandemic. I didn’t think it added to the story in a compelling way and served more as a distraction. But that’s a very minor critique for a book that was overall one of the most unique and gorgeous novels I’ve read this year.
I waited ages on the library’s waiting list to get this book, and I was so excited to read it. It’s award-winning, very well-reviewed, and seems like a huge hit. So I might be the problem here, to be fair. But I feel like this desperately needed a better edit. While much of the writing is beautifully descriptive, most sentences were paragraph-sized; I encountered one with 8 clauses and commas! It was SO much description that I was getting lost between the beginning and end of a sentence. It was also hard to keep track of the overwhelming number of side characters, many of whom who we learn far too much about for someone who doesn’t show up again. I also found a lot of repetitive phrases and facts throughout. Within a couple pages, McBride describes Dodo as “in traction” four times. Every time Doc Roberts is mentioned, we get a review of his backstory, as if we’d have forgotten it from 10 pages ago (and 25 pages ago and 50 pages ago). The main story was really fantastic, and the time in history and type of community it focuses on is so engaging and deserves attention. Perhaps if an editor had cut down on the repetition and run-on sentences and dropped a few characters, I really think I’d have enjoyed it so much more. It just felt a little like homework getting through it - but it’s very possible that smarter readers than me will love it!
I’m having a hard time describing exactly what it is I loved about this book. I hated the narrator. I hated the narrator’s haters. I kind of hated the “victim,” and I kind of hated the “hero.” Damn near every character in this book was some degree of unlikable, though some more than others. I can completely see how it might not be for everybody; hating all the characters can be tough and the narrator is really an unbearably awful person. But wow, I thought that made for a pretty mind-blowing read. At the same time as you believe June to be a thief, a terrible friend, and a racist, author R.F. Kuang manages to make you feel sorry for her too. More than once I found myself feeling sympathetic, immediately followed by a frustrated reminder to myself “no, you hate her!” The commentary throughout on social media, literary discourse, and the publishing industry was well-done, and I loved that the book is basically the one that June tries writing near the end. Watching June’s mental health deteriorate over the course of the book was really fascinating, and she’s so unhinged by the end that the last 50 pages or so almost read like horror. The ending was really satisfying, despite being somewhat ambiguous. And throw in there that the author appears (based on her bio and public details) to have modeled Athena after herself?! Wild. This book was nuts, and I hate-loved it.
This book is just gorgeous, easily one of my favorite novels I’ve read this year. The writing is stunning, even more impressive considering this is author Thao Thai’s debut! Banyan Moon centers around three generations of women and the relationships between mothers and daughters. The book includes flashbacks to 1960s Vietnam, and passages where grandmother Minh (who has died) is observing her daughter and granddaughter and reflecting on their lives. These sections especially brought so much depth to the book. If I had to critique anything it would be Ann’s relationships with Noah and Wes, but the ending wrapped up these storylines in exactly the way I wanted. Despite not being a thriller or mystery, the plot was exciting enough that I hardly wanted to put it down. An emotional, beautiful, and engaging novel that I can’t recommend enough.
This was another heartbreaker, but I think well worth the emotional work of reading it. I especially loved the way Keane writes about Peter’s childhood. The sections of the book that focused on a young boy trying to make sense of his mother’s mental illness were really moving and felt authentic. I truly found all the characters interesting, and their emotions and reactions in response to incredible challenges felt believable. I did think the pacing of the book was a little inconsistent. The book moved a little too slow at times, while other sections felt quite rushed. I also had trouble with the somewhat frequent paragraph-long run-on sentences. I know they were meant to mirror stream of consciousness/racing thoughts, but it was sometimes tough to follow. But overall, this is a really beautiful story about empathy and love, and I enjoyed it a lot.
I very nearly decided to DNF this one. About 120 pages in, I still was not hooked. But I have heard such great things about Zadie Smith, and I hoped it would grab me after another section. It didn’t. Eliza Touchet was the only character who really interested me, and each time the book redirected to one of the other narratives, I was disappointed. By the end, even Eliza’s character was starting to feel boring. Smith is clearly an incredibly talented author, and I do see where she was going with the different ways one might be a “fraud” in their lives. Conceptually, I think it’s really interesting and I do typically enjoy historical fiction. But I was confused by the shifting stories and timelines (there were multiple instances where I had to re-read a paragraph or a whole page to understand what was going on), and I just didn’t feel like the plot was going anywhere. I’ll definitely try another Zadie Smith title soon, but The Fraud was just not for me.
This book was just so heartwarming - a welcome change after a lot of very sad books for me this fall. I really enjoyed the story and most of the characters (Cameron kinda sucks, I’m sorry). I wish the Marcellus sections had been more frequent or longer, and the answer to the “mystery” was predictable from early on. But even so, I enjoyed this one a lot and found it very sweet.
After almost 400 pages, I felt very little upon closing the book beyond gratitude that I get to start something new. The first section did hold my attention for a while, and I thought I’d enjoy the rest. Some of the prose is really beautiful, and Daverely is clearly a talented writer. But I just didn’t connect with any of the characters. Rosie and Will consistently made choices I could not understand, and neither of them are willing to talk openly about their feelings with anyone. They are totally inauthentic with people they’re supposedly close to, and I don’t know if I just have better friends, but it seemed completely unrealistic to me that you would go through life never ever ever confiding in your friends/family/husband/literally anyone. These characters needed therapy. And not in a way that made for a good and convincing story, but rather a story that was pretty monotonous and uninteresting to me.
“He worries that by virtue of expressing opinions, I am burning bridges. He’s probably right, though that is never my intention. And, frankly, any bridge my work might burn is not a bridge I have any interest in traversing.”
I just love Roxane Gay’s writing so damn much. I love everything she writes, even when my opinion is different than hers (which is incredibly rare). This was a fantastic collection of her work, organized so we see the way the world has changed and not changed over the last 10 years. I thoroughly loved every piece, but I was particularly moved by her introduction (the source of the above quote). She discusses being a very opinionated woman and the complications of that, which I related to and loved. Everyone should read this, and then all of her other books too.
I just love Roxane Gay’s writing so damn much. I love everything she writes, even when my opinion is different than hers (which is incredibly rare). This was a fantastic collection of her work, organized so we see the way the world has changed and not changed over the last 10 years. I thoroughly loved every piece, but I was particularly moved by her introduction (the source of the above quote). She discusses being a very opinionated woman and the complications of that, which I related to and loved. Everyone should read this, and then all of her other books too.
This was just cute and happy - which I think I appreciated more after reading three very heavy books in a row. The concept was unique and the setting (peak COVID times) was done well and in a way that didn’t totally bum me out. I wasn’t wowed by the writing here, but it was a fun, quick read.