innerweststreetlibrarian's reviews
425 reviews

Smart Ovens for Lonely People by Elizabeth Tan

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adventurous challenging dark funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This collection is fantastic! It took a long time to read as I needed thinking time between each story.  Some are very dark, others are very funny, still others are whimsical and quite peculiar.
I’ve seen it described as being magical realism but there’s some definite techno horror sci fi vibes as well, the team from Black Mirror could easily adapt a few of these and they’d fit right in. There’s also a strong voice throughout that is decidedly West Australian, Asian Australian, female, millennial, and maybe a bit queer, and it is very refreshing to have that perspective applied in this way. So much fun! Definitely worth seeking out! 
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Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I think this is the one where Sir Terry really started to hit his stride with this series. The first two were a bit slow and surprisingly dull. 
Desire by Haruki Murakami

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lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a tiny collection of short stories loosely based around the theme of “desire”, they are all completely unrelated and to my great surprise one is a reinterpretation of Kafka’s Metamorphosis. I really enjoyed them all, I think I prefer his short stories more than longer fiction. The dreamy quality is still there, but there isn’t time for them to get too “out there” like some of his books. Not a bad way to end the reading year at all 🤩
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The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Another surprisingly slow read, I can see why people don’t recommend you start reading the Discworld series at book one and two. I think Rincewind & the wizards just don’t grab me like the later story arcs do. It is good to finally have some context for The Luggage though 😂
Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta

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Did not finish book.
Got bored, watched the movie instead. 
The Memory Librarian: And Other Stories of Dirty Computer by Janelle Monáe

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adventurous mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

I don’t think I’ve ever read a collection like this before, written by different people but set within the same “world”. I mostly enjoyed it but lost momentum at times, I think I needed a more cohesive thread between the stories to link them. Sometimes the world was a dystopian place, and sometimes it was a magical fantasy place, sometimes both. The ground shifted a bit too much for me to follow what was going on.
I also struggled with the “dirty computer” concept. I still don’t get why that particular phrase was used, it doesn’t make sense to me. The rest was pretty good dystopian fiction and I love the POC, trans, queer and non binary representation throughout the stories. 
The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

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adventurous mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I enjoyed Sea of Tranquility more but I’m still glad I read this one. It was interesting to get more of the back story for some of the characters in SoT, even though I didn’t particularly like any of them very much. 
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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

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adventurous emotional lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This is such a lovely book, magical and delightful like a children’s fantasy but with a bit more grit and romance to keep it interesting for adults. The circus tents reminded me a little of the magical worlds at the top of the faraway tree. 
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Last Human by Doug Naylor

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Did not finish book.
Got bored, was very close to the plot of the tv series so didn’t really see much point continuing. 
The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagihara

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Did not finish book.
Too icky for me. I cheated and read the synopsis on Wikipedia and it looked like it was just going to get worse. 
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