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jessdekkerreads's reviews
596 reviews
The Adult by Bronwyn Fischer
3.0
A coming of age story; discovering what it is to yearn. What it is to long for another. That first queer sexual awakening moment. But also, the complications of an affair, the lies.
there is such promise in Fischer’s writing style. I can tell she’s written poetry before. Her sentences were so delectable, I underlined many. But the story itself, I felt it lacked the emotion I was hoping for. The desire and love these characters had for each other, whether it be the familial, platonic or the romantic, I wanted more feeling. I’ll absolutely be following this author’s future books, and read anything she may write.
Feels like: drinking beer in a crowded bar; cold biting air on your cheeks; that first longing for another; the endless chewing of a caramel; the stillness of that first big snowfall; observing campus life around you; goosebumps and butterflies after that first light touch of possibility;
there is such promise in Fischer’s writing style. I can tell she’s written poetry before. Her sentences were so delectable, I underlined many. But the story itself, I felt it lacked the emotion I was hoping for. The desire and love these characters had for each other, whether it be the familial, platonic or the romantic, I wanted more feeling. I’ll absolutely be following this author’s future books, and read anything she may write.
Feels like: drinking beer in a crowded bar; cold biting air on your cheeks; that first longing for another; the endless chewing of a caramel; the stillness of that first big snowfall; observing campus life around you; goosebumps and butterflies after that first light touch of possibility;
Mother in the Dark by Kayla Maiuri
5.0
A tender, vulnerable and heartbreaking debut novel about sisterhood, motherhood, family and healing. This story explores mental illness and generational trauma. This story healed parts of me I hadn’t thought about in so long. It urged me to finally pick up that phone call from my dad. What a special thing when a book can heal parts of you, the power of Kayla’s words, not only in her novel, but also in her kind messages that followed.
I cannot wait to see what Kayla does next.
I cannot wait to see what Kayla does next.
Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti
reflective
3.0
Respect it for its unique narrative structure. Heti chronicles her life over a ten year time period and then alphabetizes her diary entries.
It’s a hard one for me to review, but I will say it’s definitely worth the read. I loved reading vulnerable snippets of Heti’s life. From anxieties over her writing career to self deprecating comments, to philosophical questions, to reflections on relationships, some often toxic.
Full of interesting self reflections. I definitely underlined many passages, however, not sure if I’ll find myself rereading this one in the future. Definitely will be adding to my Heti collection on my shelf though.
TY FSG for the early copy!
The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff
adventurous
dark
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
This story opens with a young servant girl escaping a colonial settlement, courageously heading straight into the snowy wilderness without a look back. Despite what she knows and imagines could be awaiting her in the woods, you as the reader come to understand that whatever life she was living in the colony must’ve been truly horrific to take off into these unknown woods.
Throughout the story we are given flashbacks, showing us how this unnamed woman came to arrive here in this settlement, the dangers and violence she and other women were subjected to, the effects organized religion had on them, as well as the violence inflicted on the Natives to this land.
I loved this story about survival and strength and perseverance. This book reminded me why I love historical fiction so much.
Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
4.25
Darkly comedic, yet also tender and heartbreaking story of a heartbroken daughter returned home to help care for her father who is slowly losing his memory.
This book is clever in its form/storytelling - told in fragmented diary entries. Ruth, our narrator, reminds us through her storytelling how important it is to remember, to document even the smallest of observations and memories and the beauty of mundanity.
Really looking forward to Khong’s newest release in April.
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
slow-paced
4.0
Book opens with the mother telling her daughters a story of her brief days as an actress as they quietly tend to their cherry farm. Her daughters have returned home as the pandemic has disrupted their lives, yet life on the farm in Michigan goes on as normal.
I’ve always been drawn towards books about motherhood in all its forms, but lately, now that I have two daughters, I’m also interested in books that deal with sisterhood, just another reason Little Women, the book and the film, remain favorites. So, this synopsis, about a mother telling her daughters a story, really appealed to me.
“We clump together in our sorrow. In joy we may wander off in our separate directions, but in sorrow we prefer to hold hands.”
A quiet, tender and heartwarming story that shows us the importance of family and sharing stories, how it heals us.
Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino
5.0
*kindly sent to me by @fsgbooks and out on 1/16/23
THE STORY: This is a unique story written in fragments about a young woman named Adina, born to a single woman on Earth, while simultaneously humans have sent Voyager 1 to space, which contains Earth’s golden record. Adina quickly comes to realize she is different, she is other, and eventually begins communicating via fax machine about life on Earth among humans, with her extraterrestrial relatives that exist on a faraway planet which she knows as her home. I love Adina’s wit, I love the way she observes the world, the way she observes humans and humanity. She’s my new favorite fictional character.
WHAT YOU’LL FIND: The portrayal of girlhood is so tender and honest, as well as the authentic exploration of the push and pull of a mother daughter relationship.
Bertino also gives us beautiful philosophical musings on grief and humanity. She shows us what it means to feel lonely, always longing for home. What it means to feel alien, to feel homesick.
“Humans want to find aliens so they feel less alone. They don’t know there is nothing lonelier than an alien.” (pg. 241)
This story reminds us that we have this one fragile human life, and how special it is that we get to love, to love others, to love things, whether it’s romantic or platonic, we simply get to love, and how lucky we are.
“The human life span was perfectly designed to be brief but to at times feel endless. A set of years that pass in a minute, eternity in an afternoon. ... To reach the end of your life and wish you had time for a few other roads—what could be more human? One life span is too short to try to love everything she wants to try to love, do everything she loves as many times as she can.” (pg 320 & 321)
I was completely enchanted by this story, by Adina and I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.
THE STORY: This is a unique story written in fragments about a young woman named Adina, born to a single woman on Earth, while simultaneously humans have sent Voyager 1 to space, which contains Earth’s golden record. Adina quickly comes to realize she is different, she is other, and eventually begins communicating via fax machine about life on Earth among humans, with her extraterrestrial relatives that exist on a faraway planet which she knows as her home. I love Adina’s wit, I love the way she observes the world, the way she observes humans and humanity. She’s my new favorite fictional character.
WHAT YOU’LL FIND: The portrayal of girlhood is so tender and honest, as well as the authentic exploration of the push and pull of a mother daughter relationship.
Bertino also gives us beautiful philosophical musings on grief and humanity. She shows us what it means to feel lonely, always longing for home. What it means to feel alien, to feel homesick.
“Humans want to find aliens so they feel less alone. They don’t know there is nothing lonelier than an alien.” (pg. 241)
This story reminds us that we have this one fragile human life, and how special it is that we get to love, to love others, to love things, whether it’s romantic or platonic, we simply get to love, and how lucky we are.
“The human life span was perfectly designed to be brief but to at times feel endless. A set of years that pass in a minute, eternity in an afternoon. ... To reach the end of your life and wish you had time for a few other roads—what could be more human? One life span is too short to try to love everything she wants to try to love, do everything she loves as many times as she can.” (pg 320 & 321)
I was completely enchanted by this story, by Adina and I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.