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ironfang's reviews
26 reviews
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 by Sue Townsend
funny
lighthearted
4.0
I definitely feel this captures the experience of being a teen, up to and including the overwrought 'romance' and being blissfully ignorant to things going on around you that are incredibly obvious to everyone else (such as the affair his mum is having that's spelled out incredibly clearly but goes over Adrian's head). Although slightly before my time the various flavour of growing up in England is definitely very grounded in reality.
Got a good chuckle out of a couple of lines that definitely captured 'child who thinks he is extremely well read and incredibly itelligent, but definitely is only 13 years old' - for example the entry complaining about school dinner quality and 'I am considering making a protest to Mrs Thatcher'. Guard your milk, Adrian!
Got a good chuckle out of a couple of lines that definitely captured 'child who thinks he is extremely well read and incredibly itelligent, but definitely is only 13 years old' - for example the entry complaining about school dinner quality and 'I am considering making a protest to Mrs Thatcher'. Guard your milk, Adrian!
Ace Voices: What it Means to Be Asexual, Aromantic, Demi or Grey-Ace by Eris Young
Did not finish book. Stopped at 34%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 34%.
Felt misled by the title somewhat, as I assumed "ace voices" would be about...voices of the asexual community from different demographics. The book is about the author's experiences and validating those experiences by drawing from research respondants who felt similarly, which does not feel super fits with the synopsis: this is the ace community in their own words.
I also found the use of initials for survey respondants difficult to track and had some general personal gripes with how the discussion of sex in queer spaces was presented. This latter point is super subjective, admittedly, but it is what pushed me to give up with the book.
I also found the use of initials for survey respondants difficult to track and had some general personal gripes with how the discussion of sex in queer spaces was presented. This latter point is super subjective, admittedly, but it is what pushed me to give up with the book.
Super Adjacent by Crystal Cestari
Did not finish book. Stopped at 0%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 0%.
Writing style just wasn't for me.
Lost Boi by Sassafras Lowrey
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Teen lit through and through, enjoyable enough! Happy to see the perspective of an Australian muslim girl going through day to day life, touching on her family, friends, and the relationships she and others have with their faith.
Major gripe was how the internal comments about how being fat is the worst and awful were really relentless. You're absolutely going to hear about how huge they are and the impacts of their food choices! Ended up skipping past it and while I appreciate this is how teenagers were (growing up as one in 2000's it was all very familiar) it felt a bit TOO much, especially when none of the girls are fat in the first place!!
Major gripe was how the internal comments about how being fat is the worst and awful were really relentless. You're absolutely going to hear about how huge they are and the impacts of their food choices! Ended up skipping past it and while I appreciate this is how teenagers were (growing up as one in 2000's it was all very familiar) it felt a bit TOO much, especially when none of the girls are fat in the first place!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia and Fatphobia
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