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katreads2022's reviews
50 reviews
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
2.5
My major gripe with this book are the leaps that Gladwell makes to justify his conclusions which range from reasonable to ridiculous. The notion that pure work guarantees success is borderline offensive and exhaustingly promotes toxic work culture. Although much of the success in this book Gladwell, at least implicitly, credits to luck and circumstances, his baseless insistence that putting 10,000 hours into something merits expertise has been endlessly debunked. I understand that research since its release has contradicted some of the assertions of this book and therefore Gladwell would not have the foresight to exclude them. However, an outstanding amount of this book is embellished or falsified with minimal evidence. The writing is fluid and while “Outliers” is entertaining, it lacks the evidential rigour absolutely necessary in a book claiming itself to be nonfiction. Some bits are interesting and insightful, but the pop-science it eschews should be taken with a grain of salt.
Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
emotional
sad
slow-paced
4.0
Really gorgeous writing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
The Vegetarian by Han Kang
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It’s strange. The first two thirds of the book enthralling, the last third is kind of redundant. I’m not really sure what this book was about, but it was good- I think?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, and Medical content
Moderate: Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A bit overdramatic, at times shocking. Perhaps I struggled to relate to this not being a mother. The writing is good and the plot sufficient. If you are interested in the central concept, you will probably like this book.
The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Could not get into it. Also, my library loan expired.
Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-joo
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I will preface this by saying I read this book with no premonition of what it was actually about and I believe that is the best way to approach this book. For those who have not read it, I will just say that I highly recommend “Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982”. For anyone. Spoilers ahead in the remainder of this review.
Detailing—in intriguing clinical fashion—the life of his patient Kim Jiyoung, the unnamed psychiatrist reflects on the roadblocks he had not faced being a man. I think every reader should reflect alongside him, examining the critical role of sex in society. What I think is particularly interesting about this novel is its treatment of the fundamental way in which sexism forcefully redirects the lives of women. There’s this unfounded perception that sexism is compacted in singular experiences: a rude catcall, an apprehensive glance, a snide remark. In reality, it occupies a women’s entire life, ever-present and all-encompassing. Jiyoung isn’t particularly unusual in any way: in fact, she is incredibly average. Her tendency to remain within the norm further illustrates the ingrained sexism in all societies, not just the corporate Korean world which she navigates in her midlife. I am certain everyone can detect the patterns of Jiyoung’s life among their female family and friends, even amongst themselves. The injustice which Jiyoung faces purely because of her sex is, tragically, universal.
Detailing—in intriguing clinical fashion—the life of his patient Kim Jiyoung, the unnamed psychiatrist reflects on the roadblocks he had not faced being a man. I think every reader should reflect alongside him, examining the critical role of sex in society. What I think is particularly interesting about this novel is its treatment of the fundamental way in which sexism forcefully redirects the lives of women. There’s this unfounded perception that sexism is compacted in singular experiences: a rude catcall, an apprehensive glance, a snide remark. In reality, it occupies a women’s entire life, ever-present and all-encompassing. Jiyoung isn’t particularly unusual in any way: in fact, she is incredibly average. Her tendency to remain within the norm further illustrates the ingrained sexism in all societies, not just the corporate Korean world which she navigates in her midlife. I am certain everyone can detect the patterns of Jiyoung’s life among their female family and friends, even amongst themselves. The injustice which Jiyoung faces purely because of her sex is, tragically, universal.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
adventurous
mysterious
fast-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? No
3.75
The pros: really intriguing concept, vivid descriptions, poetic writing, a can’t-put-it-down quality. I enjoyed it and I’m sure many others would love it.
The cons: I really felt like this story got bogged down by the romance. There is a lot of potential to the premise that is lost to some beaten-to-death love triangle. It could have explored Addie’s journey in greater depth, across centuries and continents.I felt like the end was gimmicky and served no purpose other than justifying Henry’s (boring) character. Both the fantasy and historical fiction elements are diluted by the overarching romance. Admittedly, I’m saying this as a skeptic of the latter genre; certainly a romance fan might appreciate this book more than me. However, I believe the story could have been a classic if it were developed better. It is this disappointment that delivers its a relatively low rating for me.
The cons: I really felt like this story got bogged down by the romance. There is a lot of potential to the premise that is lost to some beaten-to-death love triangle. It could have explored Addie’s journey in greater depth, across centuries and continents.
Master of Poisons by Andrea Hairston
Did not finish book. Stopped at 17%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 17%.
Going to leave this on DNF. It is a richly written novel with a great premise. Unfortunately I don’t think I’m acquainted with fantasy yet to fully appreciate the world building just yet. I expect to return to this novel once I get my bearings with the genre.
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
emotional
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Thoughtful, prescient book. A bit slow and droning towards the end.
A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.5
I don’t rate memoirs on content, as I believe it is not my place to insensitively assign numerical values to people’s lived experiences. This review is purely based on structure and readability for a general audience.
This memoir is a devastating exploration of the human psyche and parenting. Klebold is respectful while attempting to carefully navigate the heavy subject of this novel. She advocates for different approaches to mental health services and parenting. Not always convincing in her approach, I in particular disagreed with some of her affirmations about parenting: no, it is not good to search through your teenager’s personal and private journals; no, it is not fair to characterize video games as being a significant contributor to violent behaviour. She makes some assertions bare on evidence interspersed with other cases she is clearly better versed in. I think one can learn a lot from this book- at least to help understand differing perspectives. That being said, the memoir is quite long and Klebold repeats her points at time. This is fine to reinforce an important takeaway, but occurs so many times it becomes repetitive.
A tragic, reflective memoir.
This memoir is a devastating exploration of the human psyche and parenting. Klebold is respectful while attempting to carefully navigate the heavy subject of this novel. She advocates for different approaches to mental health services and parenting. Not always convincing in her approach, I in particular disagreed with some of her affirmations about parenting: no, it is not good to search through your teenager’s personal and private journals; no, it is not fair to characterize video games as being a significant contributor to violent behaviour. She makes some assertions bare on evidence interspersed with other cases she is clearly better versed in. I think one can learn a lot from this book- at least to help understand differing perspectives. That being said, the memoir is quite long and Klebold repeats her points at time. This is fine to reinforce an important takeaway, but occurs so many times it becomes repetitive.
A tragic, reflective memoir.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Mass/school shootings, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Child death, and Grief