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jiayuanc's reviews
274 reviews
Suncranes and Other Stories: Modern Mongolian Short Fiction by
challenging
slow-paced
3.5
Good anthology of Mongolian short stories. A lot of the stories sound very similar though this may be because of the English translation work. My favourites listed below:
- What Changed Soli
- The Morning of the First
- Bunia Takes Wing
- Suncranes
- Hulan
- Room for Rent
God's Away on Business: Sean Duffy Year 1 by Adrian McKinty
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Adrian McKinty blessing us with two Sean Duffy stories within a month - this audio-only prequel tale, and then Book 8 finally out in English next month (March 2025)!
"God's Away on Business" takes us through Duffy's first weeks on the Carrickfergus job. We get to see how he first settles up in town, and meet long time partner Crabby.
It's a short one at under 2 hours listening time, and it's currently an audiobook-only release, but I find I don't mind much when I get to spend time again with Duffy, brought to life by the always brilliant Gerard Doyle. It still delivers on what makes this a series I keep coming back to - the witty prose and puns, the humour, Duffy's clever internal dialogue, pepper in his literary knowledge and excellent music taste and you've got a winner. There's an entire sequence in chapter 9 that had me grinning ear to ear!
Here's to hoping we get a print release of this!
"God's Away on Business" takes us through Duffy's first weeks on the Carrickfergus job. We get to see how he first settles up in town, and meet long time partner Crabby.
It's a short one at under 2 hours listening time, and it's currently an audiobook-only release, but I find I don't mind much when I get to spend time again with Duffy, brought to life by the always brilliant Gerard Doyle. It still delivers on what makes this a series I keep coming back to - the witty prose and puns, the humour, Duffy's clever internal dialogue, pepper in his literary knowledge and excellent music taste and you've got a winner. There's an entire sequence in chapter 9 that had me grinning ear to ear!
Here's to hoping we get a print release of this!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Domestic abuse
A History of the Bible: The Story of the World's Most Influential Book by John Barton
informative
slow-paced
5.0
Very thorough history of the books making up the Hebrew Bible and the books of the New Testament. Very insightful.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
This is such a difficult book to give a rating to. I read this for the first time as a 30 year old and I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more had I read this as a child. But then again, as a child I would not have picked up so heavily on the moralistic, preaching attitude of the characters. I really did enjoy reading part 1 "Little Women", and I do relate so much to Jo March in this section, even as a 30 year old! This part was so cozy and warm to read, I loved getting to know the sisters and Laurie.
But as we move on to part 2 "Good Wives" I began to feel more and more disappointed. The extolling of poverty as a virtue, the "lessons" of being a good wife and loving God were quite heavy handed, not in a way I could so easily put out of mind. And while I completely understand that LMA had to do as her publisher asked and marry off Jo, it is still disappointing, though I could rationalise around it if I really tried I think.
I do see why so many people love this book and can relate to all the characters. It can be cozy and warm and a lovely read, despite it all.
Some notes specific to the Penguin Deluxe Classics edition of Little Women - it says "annotated" in the description of the book but the publishers are referring to the contextual essays and glossary of unfamiliar words/slang (useful for younger readers or for older readers who want more background on the slang of LMA's day) at the back of the book. The text of the book itself is free of footnotes; the logic behind this choice per the editor is that footnotes would be "distracting". I found that I did not mind this choice and the essays at the back were very informative for putting this book into its historical context.
But as we move on to part 2 "Good Wives" I began to feel more and more disappointed. The extolling of poverty as a virtue, the "lessons" of being a good wife and loving God were quite heavy handed, not in a way I could so easily put out of mind. And while I completely understand that LMA had to do as her publisher asked and marry off Jo, it is still disappointing, though I could rationalise around it if I really tried I think.
I do see why so many people love this book and can relate to all the characters. It can be cozy and warm and a lovely read, despite it all.
Some notes specific to the Penguin Deluxe Classics edition of Little Women - it says "annotated" in the description of the book but the publishers are referring to the contextual essays and glossary of unfamiliar words/slang (useful for younger readers or for older readers who want more background on the slang of LMA's day) at the back of the book. The text of the book itself is free of footnotes; the logic behind this choice per the editor is that footnotes would be "distracting". I found that I did not mind this choice and the essays at the back were very informative for putting this book into its historical context.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death
Minor: Misogyny, Antisemitism
Build Your Own Redwall Abbey by Brian Jacques
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The Signalman by Charles Dickens
dark
mysterious
tense
3.75
Sam Mendes has a wonderful voice for this spooky Charles Dickens tale; the dolby atmos sound is haunting and definitely enhances the listening. I think the story on its own probably would not have been a favourite but the experience of the surround sound, music and rail chimes were excellent additions to drum up that creepy atmosphere.
The star rating is for the story itself; the production by the sound team is top notch here.
The star rating is for the story itself; the production by the sound team is top notch here.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Panic attacks/disorders
From Marx to Gramsci: A Reader in Revolutionary Marxist Politics by
informative
inspiring
reflective
3.5
This is a fine collection that provides readers a good overview and valuable introduction to various sources in Marxist political writings.
That being said - I want to point out to readers that the more I read from the publishers Haymarket Books, the more I am leaning to the belief that they are Trots (or at least, are apologists for him). They have unfortunately excluded writings from Mao and Stalin here. From Le Blanc's own introduction, he states that while past handbooks to Marxism have usually included works from the Marx-Engels-Lenin-Stalin group of four, his own personal belief is that Stalin should not be included, and the foursome should be Marx-Engels-Lenin-Trotsky (lol). Make of that as you will, though I suppose reading Trotsky is good in a "know your enemies" kind of way.
Aside from that, this is a valuable book. I used it as an introduction and to catch up with revolutionary viewpoints. I would recommend Losurdo's book on Stalin for further reading from here.
That being said - I want to point out to readers that the more I read from the publishers Haymarket Books, the more I am leaning to the belief that they are Trots (or at least, are apologists for him). They have unfortunately excluded writings from Mao and Stalin here. From Le Blanc's own introduction, he states that while past handbooks to Marxism have usually included works from the Marx-Engels-Lenin-Stalin group of four, his own personal belief is that Stalin should not be included, and the foursome should be Marx-Engels-Lenin-Trotsky (lol). Make of that as you will, though I suppose reading Trotsky is good in a "know your enemies" kind of way.
Aside from that, this is a valuable book. I used it as an introduction and to catch up with revolutionary viewpoints. I would recommend Losurdo's book on Stalin for further reading from here.
Frankenstein by Junji Ito
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Genuinely terrifying.
This was my first time reading any adaption of Frankenstein and I loved it. Fantastic, eerie vibes, felt the sorrow of the characters. 5 stars.
The second set of stories in this collection follows Toru Oshikiri and his weird haunted mansion house that leads to alternate dimensions; these stories alongside Junji Ito's creepy art just gives me the spooks. I liked these a bit less than his adaption of Frankenstein. The one the stood out to me the most was the story where 3 classmates of Oshikiri become his friends as they are all into investigating the supernatural. I was even a bit sad at the end when their friendship (understandably) fizzles out after a horrible encounter with their alternate dimension selves.
The "bonus" stories at the end about Ito's own pets was really kind of weird (not in a good way) and I excluded these in my star rating.
I made the mistake of reading this in the evening right before bed and now I'm terrified I will have nightmares.
This was my first time reading any adaption of Frankenstein and I loved it. Fantastic, eerie vibes, felt the sorrow of the characters. 5 stars.
The second set of stories in this collection follows Toru Oshikiri and his weird haunted mansion house that leads to alternate dimensions; these stories alongside Junji Ito's creepy art just gives me the spooks. I liked these a bit less than his adaption of Frankenstein. The one the stood out to me the most was the story where 3 classmates of Oshikiri become his friends as they are all into investigating the supernatural. I was even a bit sad at the end when their friendship (understandably) fizzles out after a horrible encounter with their alternate dimension selves.
The "bonus" stories at the end about Ito's own pets was really kind of weird (not in a good way) and I excluded these in my star rating.
I made the mistake of reading this in the evening right before bed and now I'm terrified I will have nightmares.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death of parent
The Father Paolo Baldi Mysteries: The Complete BBC Radio Crime Series by Barry Devlin
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I love Paolo and Tina's friendship. Some episodes did spook me! But mostly they are fun listens, I would put it on to fall asleep to.
Parle-leur de batailles, de rois et d'éléphants by Mathias Énard
mysterious
reflective
sad
5.0
Magical little book. I read this in both the original French and in the wonderful Charlotte Mandell English translation. Énard just doesn't miss.