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flyingfox02's reviews
264 reviews
The Return: Fathers, Sons and the Land in Between by Hisham Matar
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
A very poignant memoir of Hisham Matar's return to Libya in search of answers regarding his father, a prominent and respected activist who was kidnapped in 1990 by Libyan dictatorship. It is beautifully written; lyrical prose and philosophical observations interlace with the hard factual overview of historical events. Much of the history I was ignorant to. I am in awe of the resilience, patience, strength, perseverance that Matar and his family have shown all of their lives (multiple other members of the family were also activists and kidnapped). I've never (and God willing will never) experienced anything close to the kind of horror and desperation described in this memoir, but I think in Matar's reflections about grief and hope there's a little something that everyone can understand and relate to.
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
inspiring
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
I have to say, I'm disappointed with this book.
It's a story about a small town in Philadelphia called Chicken Hill in the 1930s, where a mixed community of African Americans and immigrant Jews live alongside each other. This novel is essentially about them, and their struggles to understand each other, to live the American dream, and to survive in a country that doesn't really try to make them feel welcome.
The book is divided into three parts and I thought Part 1 started it off very strong. Firstly the humour is top notch. I was giggling at the character descriptions, the dialogues, the vernacular phrases. Second, we are introduced to some wonderful characters. There's Chona, a Jewish woman who runs the Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. She is simply incredible. Then there's Dodo, a deaf black boy who is so endearing and will only capture your heart more throughout the book. You'd have to be a really horrible person to dislike Chona and Dodo.
However, that's really where the positives end. Even now not an hour after reading the last page, I couldn't tell you what happens in Part 2. It's that forgettable. Except maybe the ending of Part 2 which allows the plot to move in Part 3. But the plot is very loose even from the beginning. The story meanders so much in Part 3, and it's dialogue heavy. Even though the conversations felt natural and authentic, I couldn't help thinking whether it might suit a soap drama script more. I needed them to get on with it but they just kept talking!
Also, characters were popping up from left right and centre in Part 3. There must've been 25+ characters in total. You'd think the character work might make up for the loose plot but unfortunately it didn't. There were simply too many characters for me to care about. Besides Chona, Dodo, maybe Paper (who's hilarious). Oh and Monkey Pants. Half of them aren't even from Chicken Hill.
Anyway I heard a bunch of praises for this book and it's been a let down. But I'm still giving it 3 stars for Chona, Dodo, and the giggles.
It's a story about a small town in Philadelphia called Chicken Hill in the 1930s, where a mixed community of African Americans and immigrant Jews live alongside each other. This novel is essentially about them, and their struggles to understand each other, to live the American dream, and to survive in a country that doesn't really try to make them feel welcome.
The book is divided into three parts and I thought Part 1 started it off very strong. Firstly the humour is top notch. I was giggling at the character descriptions, the dialogues, the vernacular phrases. Second, we are introduced to some wonderful characters. There's Chona, a Jewish woman who runs the Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. She is simply incredible. Then there's Dodo, a deaf black boy who is so endearing and will only capture your heart more throughout the book. You'd have to be a really horrible person to dislike Chona and Dodo.
However, that's really where the positives end. Even now not an hour after reading the last page, I couldn't tell you what happens in Part 2. It's that forgettable. Except maybe the ending of Part 2 which allows the plot to move in Part 3. But the plot is very loose even from the beginning. The story meanders so much in Part 3, and it's dialogue heavy. Even though the conversations felt natural and authentic, I couldn't help thinking whether it might suit a soap drama script more. I needed them to get on with it but they just kept talking!
Also, characters were popping up from left right and centre in Part 3. There must've been 25+ characters in total. You'd think the character work might make up for the loose plot but unfortunately it didn't. There were simply too many characters for me to care about. Besides Chona, Dodo, maybe Paper (who's hilarious). Oh and Monkey Pants. Half of them aren't even from Chicken Hill.
Anyway I heard a bunch of praises for this book and it's been a let down. But I'm still giving it 3 stars for Chona, Dodo, and the giggles.
Beartown by Fredrik Backman
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I'm finding it a bit difficult how to rate this one.
It's a wonderful book where Backman's excellence shines through yet again, in the way he writes characters that feel authentic, relatable, human. They are multi-dimensional and Backman gives little insights into the past of each character, even the small side characters, which gives us a deeper and more rounded understanding of them, including those who are wrong. (Holding back from using the word "villain" here because it's not that simple.)
The themes presented in this book are numerous and incredibly nuanced; from friendship, community, parenthood, grief, silence, sexual assault, love, loyalty, trust, and hockey. Backman handles all those, some really serious issues that are still prevalent in society today, very well indeed.
However I have some.. notes. Firstly, I read this book way back in 2022 on audio and actually got to 70%. It surprised me that I had gotten that far, I thought I'd have more to read afresh. Yeah for the most part I was "rereading" this book, and I don't really reread stuff, so the beginning really frustrated me (lots of "I knew this already 🙄" for the first 25%). Especially since not a lot happens in the story - the abundance of character POVs is what gives its length, rather than the plot - and it's very slow-paced. It switches between characters a lot, which I didn't mind, but sometimes it was just so slow and the character hasn't moved from their initial place or done anything even after the focus has switched. (Don't know if that makes sense.) Oftentimes I just wished they'd get a move on.
Second. Backman loves taking the mundane moments in life and writing something profound about them, about love, friendship, etc. It's why I love him as an author. But I think he maayy just be trying a little bit too hard this time. He still got my heart tugged, pinched, nudged but I felt things became a bit repetitive. Like every other character POV there'd be a one-liner that's meant to punch you in the guts but it just landed feebly. I'm sorry for being cynical here, maybe I'm just having a Backman overdose (read Britt-Marie last month).
Third. I didn't like the ending. I didn't like the glimpses into 10 years in the future. It was very unnecessary and took me out of the story.
Beartown is still a very good book. I'm just a little disappointed. This review might have been a bit harsh though, because I enjoyed it quite a lot first time round.
It's a wonderful book where Backman's excellence shines through yet again, in the way he writes characters that feel authentic, relatable, human. They are multi-dimensional and Backman gives little insights into the past of each character, even the small side characters, which gives us a deeper and more rounded understanding of them, including those who are wrong. (Holding back from using the word "villain" here because it's not that simple.)
The themes presented in this book are numerous and incredibly nuanced; from friendship, community, parenthood, grief, silence, sexual assault, love, loyalty, trust, and hockey. Backman handles all those, some really serious issues that are still prevalent in society today, very well indeed.
However I have some.. notes. Firstly, I read this book way back in 2022 on audio and actually got to 70%. It surprised me that I had gotten that far, I thought I'd have more to read afresh. Yeah for the most part I was "rereading" this book, and I don't really reread stuff, so the beginning really frustrated me (lots of "I knew this already 🙄" for the first 25%). Especially since not a lot happens in the story - the abundance of character POVs is what gives its length, rather than the plot - and it's very slow-paced. It switches between characters a lot, which I didn't mind, but sometimes it was just so slow and the character hasn't moved from their initial place or done anything even after the focus has switched. (Don't know if that makes sense.) Oftentimes I just wished they'd get a move on.
Second. Backman loves taking the mundane moments in life and writing something profound about them, about love, friendship, etc. It's why I love him as an author. But I think he maayy just be trying a little bit too hard this time. He still got my heart tugged, pinched, nudged but I felt things became a bit repetitive. Like every other character POV there'd be a one-liner that's meant to punch you in the guts but it just landed feebly. I'm sorry for being cynical here, maybe I'm just having a Backman overdose (read Britt-Marie last month).
Third. I didn't like the ending. I didn't like the glimpses into 10 years in the future. It was very unnecessary and took me out of the story.
Beartown is still a very good book. I'm just a little disappointed. This review might have been a bit harsh though, because I enjoyed it quite a lot first time round.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu
An incredibly exquisite collection of stories that make such a delightful, insightful, and impactful read.
This anthology comprises 15 short stories that encompass multiple genres: science fiction, fantasy, and magical realism. A lot, if not most, of them are inspired by Chinese and Japanese tales and history.
Ken Liu's imagination is off the charts, as he creates brilliant and captivating worlds in such a concise way. He's able to weave tales that are thought-provoking, poignant, and so utterly wonderful.
I actually first read this a couple of years ago, and only got to the ~60% mark. I had known from the first few chapters that the rest of the book was going to be amazing. So this time I started all over from the beginning, and my reading experience was just as enjoyable and refreshing as the first time. It just misses out on the 5 stars because a couple of the stories didn't really click for me.
It's still a must read for SFF connoisseurs and curious readers alike. You won't regret it.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
"We are defined by the places we hold in the web of others' lives."
An incredibly exquisite collection of stories that make such a delightful, insightful, and impactful read.
This anthology comprises 15 short stories that encompass multiple genres: science fiction, fantasy, and magical realism. A lot, if not most, of them are inspired by Chinese and Japanese tales and history.
Ken Liu's imagination is off the charts, as he creates brilliant and captivating worlds in such a concise way. He's able to weave tales that are thought-provoking, poignant, and so utterly wonderful.
I actually first read this a couple of years ago, and only got to the ~60% mark. I had known from the first few chapters that the rest of the book was going to be amazing. So this time I started all over from the beginning, and my reading experience was just as enjoyable and refreshing as the first time. It just misses out on the 5 stars because a couple of the stories didn't really click for me.
It's still a must read for SFF connoisseurs and curious readers alike. You won't regret it.
Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
2.0
That felt simultaneously like the longest and shortest book I've read this year. It was confusing, weirdly written, and I had no idea what was going on 80% of the time.
(This will be rambly because I'm trying to make it make sense to me.)
It's written in the perspective of Breq, who used to be the AI of a spaceship called Justice of Toren. Justice of Toren was basically a ship with hundreds of eyes and ears. Meaning, it had human bodies which could see, hear, move, communicate with each other. They're called ancillaries. These ancillaries were basically workers on the ship to support the human crew.
Twenty years ago something happened which led to Justice of Toren being dissolved, and it now lived in just one human body, and it called itself Breq. A major part of the book is told in alternating periods of the current events (what Breq is doing) and the past (what happened 20 years ago and why Breq is doing what they're doing). Because Breq used to be multiple bodies, when they were recounting the past and referring to "I" or "me", they could be referring to any of their human body. For the most part I had no trouble with that. I could discern between the different "I"s and "me"s.
However there's another character called Mianaai, who is the Lord of the Radch (Radch is basically a huge territory and civilization in space). Miannaai is thousands of years old and has thousands of identical bodies. When she came into the story, and we found out that she's the reason for what Breq is doing, it got really confusing.. which Mianaai that Breq or Mianaai herself was referring to.
Anyway. Basically. There's 2 characters here with numerous bodies, which are identical but they also each have their own mind and opinions? So it was challenging to follow who is being referred to, which of their body is doing what, whose opinion is whose.
To make things worse, the writing just didn't click for me. One gripe I have with it is, the weird sentence clauses? Like how clauses in a sentence is sometimes structured. It's hard to explain so let's not dwell on it. My biggest complaint though, is that I felt the narrator (Breq) didn't have enough internal reflection. Like, they'd say A is happening then B is happening.. and we're supposed to understand how A led to B. Or, character A would say something then Breq would say that they could sense character B is getting angry or this and that. But we're not explained how A is making B angry. I don't need the author to hold my hand every single step of the way. But this is sci-fi; it's a strange world and a massive one, it's our first time learning about Radch, the society, the other civilisations, the politics within and among them. A bit of hand-holding would've made a better reading experience.
So that's why I said it felt like the shortest book. I only have the most abstract idea of the plot. I know a list of (most of) the events events that happened. The bigger and biggest picture of the story. But I would've liked to understand the details, the nuances within characters' interactions, the politics.
It's not all bad. For a few chapters near the end, things were a bit clearer, it felt like reading a normal book. The character work is far from the best but it's not the worst.. I liked Lieutenant Awn. I warmed up to Seivarden by the end (though how we got there I'm not sure, it was quite sudden). As for Breq.. not to bring Murderbot into this, but unlike Murderbot, Breq even as an AI is not averse to emotions. However, oddly I couldn't really connect with Breq as I did with Murderbot. Breq was distant and impersonal, and I like my protagonists to be the exact opposite.
I really wanted to like this book. It's won major awards. The premise was so intriguing but the execution is a massive let-down. I'm not sure whether I'll continue the series. If I do I'll need to find a detailed summary down to the bone.
(This will be rambly because I'm trying to make it make sense to me.)
It's written in the perspective of Breq, who used to be the AI of a spaceship called Justice of Toren. Justice of Toren was basically a ship with hundreds of eyes and ears. Meaning, it had human bodies which could see, hear, move, communicate with each other. They're called ancillaries. These ancillaries were basically workers on the ship to support the human crew.
Twenty years ago something happened which led to Justice of Toren being dissolved, and it now lived in just one human body, and it called itself Breq. A major part of the book is told in alternating periods of the current events (what Breq is doing) and the past (what happened 20 years ago and why Breq is doing what they're doing). Because Breq used to be multiple bodies, when they were recounting the past and referring to "I" or "me", they could be referring to any of their human body. For the most part I had no trouble with that. I could discern between the different "I"s and "me"s.
However there's another character called Mianaai, who is the Lord of the Radch (Radch is basically a huge territory and civilization in space). Miannaai is thousands of years old and has thousands of identical bodies. When she came into the story, and we found out that she's the reason for what Breq is doing, it got really confusing.. which Mianaai that Breq or Mianaai herself was referring to.
Anyway. Basically. There's 2 characters here with numerous bodies, which are identical but they also each have their own mind and opinions? So it was challenging to follow who is being referred to, which of their body is doing what, whose opinion is whose.
To make things worse, the writing just didn't click for me. One gripe I have with it is, the weird sentence clauses? Like how clauses in a sentence is sometimes structured. It's hard to explain so let's not dwell on it. My biggest complaint though, is that I felt the narrator (Breq) didn't have enough internal reflection. Like, they'd say A is happening then B is happening.. and we're supposed to understand how A led to B. Or, character A would say something then Breq would say that they could sense character B is getting angry or this and that. But we're not explained how A is making B angry. I don't need the author to hold my hand every single step of the way. But this is sci-fi; it's a strange world and a massive one, it's our first time learning about Radch, the society, the other civilisations, the politics within and among them. A bit of hand-holding would've made a better reading experience.
So that's why I said it felt like the shortest book. I only have the most abstract idea of the plot. I know a list of (most of) the events events that happened. The bigger and biggest picture of the story. But I would've liked to understand the details, the nuances within characters' interactions, the politics.
It's not all bad. For a few chapters near the end, things were a bit clearer, it felt like reading a normal book. The character work is far from the best but it's not the worst.. I liked Lieutenant Awn. I warmed up to Seivarden by the end (though how we got there I'm not sure, it was quite sudden). As for Breq.. not to bring Murderbot into this, but unlike Murderbot, Breq even as an AI is not averse to emotions. However, oddly I couldn't really connect with Breq as I did with Murderbot. Breq was distant and impersonal, and I like my protagonists to be the exact opposite.
I really wanted to like this book. It's won major awards. The premise was so intriguing but the execution is a massive let-down. I'm not sure whether I'll continue the series. If I do I'll need to find a detailed summary down to the bone.
Malice by Keigo Higashino
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A very quick and intense mystery novel that's unlike anything I've read before. It's not a whodunnit story but rather a whydunnit. A murder happens and the perpetrator is discovered a few chapters in, and it was pretty obvious who. The rest of the novel is spent on working out the motive for the murder. There's a lot of twists and turns, no dillydallying. But it was this fast pace that makes me confused on how the detective came to his final conclusion. Maybe I just missed it and should go back to it but whatever. So yeah the ending was a bit meh. Other than that I enjoyed it a lot. Definitely will be reading more from the author.
Jeff Woodmann narrates the audiobook. Not a fan of the voice he uses for Nonoguchi, but otherwise he didn't do a bad job.
Jeff Woodmann narrates the audiobook. Not a fan of the voice he uses for Nonoguchi, but otherwise he didn't do a bad job.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.25
Alright. I'll eat a slice of humble pie. Two thirds of the way in I thought this was bang average, but in Part 3 it actually veered into pretty solid territory. Cixin Liu has really redemeed himself after that mess of a first book.
His writing has massively improved since book 1. Even though there's still quite a lot of exposition at times, it is so much more readable. It's more cohesive and the plot more engaging, and the way things tied up together at the end was quite well done.
He's also undoubtedly stepped up his character work. This book has a completely new cast of characters (except Da Shi), but they have more of a personality than all of the characters from book 1 combined. (But look elsewhere for complex female characters, you won't find them here.)
Since this is sci-fi I should comment on the scientific ideas presented, but I didn't pay much attention to them especially in Parts 1 and 2. Like I said there was a lot of exposition, I think it could've done with a bit more editing. I found the sociology aspect really interesting though, with the Dark Forest theory etc.
Anyway, not to praise a fish for swimming but Cixin Liu did the basic things right in this book. It wasn't exceptional but I'm intrigued what new ideas will be presented in Book 3.
His writing has massively improved since book 1. Even though there's still quite a lot of exposition at times, it is so much more readable. It's more cohesive and the plot more engaging, and the way things tied up together at the end was quite well done.
He's also undoubtedly stepped up his character work. This book has a completely new cast of characters (except Da Shi), but they have more of a personality than all of the characters from book 1 combined. (But look elsewhere for complex female characters, you won't find them here.)
Since this is sci-fi I should comment on the scientific ideas presented, but I didn't pay much attention to them especially in Parts 1 and 2. Like I said there was a lot of exposition, I think it could've done with a bit more editing. I found the sociology aspect really interesting though, with the Dark Forest theory etc.
Anyway, not to praise a fish for swimming but Cixin Liu did the basic things right in this book. It wasn't exceptional but I'm intrigued what new ideas will be presented in Book 3.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Pro tip: don't read this while you're eating.
Empireland by Sathnam Sanghera
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Eye-opening examination of the British Empire, its violent history and how it affects the present state of the country. Much of the book was completely new information to me, as we weren't taught about Imperial Britain at school and my own knowledge of it was severely limited. I'd never heard of, for example, the massacres in India (e.g. Jallianwala Bagh) by the British Army and the genocide in Tasmania. The book explains how the Empire's "violent and occasionally genocidal" nature gives roots to racism and xenophobia today. It also touches on how our longing to return to the "great" Britain of the past is the basis for the rhetorics of some politicians, and ultimately for Brexit. (I have another book in mind to read more about this particular point). Some chapters were a bit tougher to digest (anything economics is abstract to me) but overall well-researched and enlightening.
Homer Todiwala narrates the audiobook, was great and not monotonic at all.
Homer Todiwala narrates the audiobook, was great and not monotonic at all.