khopeisz's reviews
142 reviews

The Blueprint by Rae Giana Rashad
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.

intrigued by premise and always looking to read books by black women, but unfortunately this was not working for me. IMO, a lot of dystopian/sci-fi stories tend to prioritize exposition or world building over character development, and this book was no exception. This is a pet peeve of mine. I could not help but cringe every time an expository sentence was jammed in the middle of otherwise finely executed prose. and I felt very little connection to the main character.

Sweet Days of Discipline by Fleur Jaeggy

3.75

I was not engaged with the relationship between the narrator and Frédérique, and I think before picking this one up, readers should anticipate their relationship as being almost incidental. What really intrigued me was this constant obsession with death and the idea that these girls are not their own but are extensions of their parents and forebears. That this resentment plagues the narrator’s mind makes sense, as she states that, despite living thru the war, the best years of her life were wasted in and out of boarding schools, her life dictated by missives from her (i suspect N*zi) mother and overseen by detached figures. The result of this is, in my opinion, a feeling that the narrator feels close to the grave, leadened by the shadows of generational input—she and the other girls may as well have been dead already. Frédérique, perhaps with her willingness to accept and thus transcend this discipline, fascinates her. This is what conclusion I’m coming to. Don’t expect Miss Fleur to hop on a podcast anytime soon lol.

That all being said, I’m glad I read Proleterka first and familiarized with the authors recurring themes and her stark writing style. I did enjoy Proleterka more though.

Liars by Sarah Manguso

4.5

the literary equivalent of a Kendrick Lamar diss track I’m not even joking. Manguso let me never become your enemy lol. this book made me so mad at all the men in my life; I need to reread Romantic Comedy LEST I plunge headfirst into total misandry.

The Emperor's Babe by Bernardine Evaristo

3.25

Hmmmmmmm…..

Was a BIG fan of the book at the start. Something about it felt so nostalgic, reminded me of my days spent reading Gail Carson Levine. And then the middle of the book happened, and by “happened” I mean nothing happened. Like just stretches of nothing. And then Septimus enters I guess? And then Zuleika is capable of being progressive in areas of gender but not in areas of, say, slave ownership (even if her thoughts reflected that of the time, she was VERY unsympathetic to her slaves). And then supposedly there’s a running thread where she’s mourning her youth, bc she got married young, but I was never convinced that this was a big enough deal for her. That she SPOILER dies is the books saving grace lol. Good Riddance.

I’ve read only one other book in verse, Blood Water Paint, and that book was done SO much more successfully than this one. IMO this book had a lot of like plot holes  because the verse was so sparse. Also, this book is victim of that early aughts type of edgy girl humor, where in you’re bratty like Carry Bradshaw and slightly racist like Bridget Jones. I picked it up bc I thought the premise sounded fun but, respectfully, I think we should keep it tucked away in Everisto’s back log 😅

The Beautiful Summer by Cesare Pavese

3.0

I did not entirely dislike this book for a few reasons: 1) the writing was fun; 2) I am intrigued by the lore of Cesare Pavese; and 3) I was amused by every character except for Ginia. Which is a problem bc she’s the main character. 

I completely get who Ginia is supposed to be, and at points I related (or past me rather) to her insecurities, resentments, and paranoia. But dear god this was so frustrating to read!! Her insecurities are too repetitive. Pavese was an editor, so I’m wondering why he did not refine this story more. It is already short and I’m telling him, may he rest in peace lol, that it could have been 50 pages shorter. Also, I was confused by the passage of time and also the feeling of place. From the foreword by Elizabeth Strout I understood that the story is set in an artist’s bohemian city. However, a true feeling of place was never established for me and so it just felt like the city was just randomly littered with a bunch of artists. Like your butcher? Oh he’s an artist. Your doctor? He’s an artist too lol.

Anyway, if I hadn’t heavily annotated this book I’d give it away. Not out of malice or anything, I just don’t see myself re-reading it for pleasure (maybe as a reference point for my own writing). Oh! And the ending was very fitting and sweet I thought.

The Hypocrite by Jo Hamya

4.25

I dunno what the literary sensation is where a black reader (me) and a black author (Jo Hamya) can exchange, as if whispers behind a hand, our cheeky little thoughts on the intergenerational shortcomings and superficialities of well-to-do white artists—but I had fun. and hey Elena, girl: I appreciated you! 

hashtag summer vibes hashtag excellent writing hashtag hashtag hashtag

How to Wrestle a Girl: Stories by Venita Blackburn

4.0

this was a densely packed collection of stories, all of which were excellent. I wonder why some of these were included, however. Thematically everything was cohesive, but some of the stories with the older characters for example felt out of place when bookended by the bleaker voices of youth. Maybe I’m not seeing the connection. And some of the stories in the second half could have existed in their own novella (ik those stories call back to some of the stories in the first half but there were so many stories in between them that the significance of the call back was lost on me). It was slightly overwhelming to consume all of this together.

I’ve never read a book that features a crossword puzzle and an excel spreadsheet before: that was so much fun! And done really well. I was surprised at my being able to be emotionally moved by the excel spreadsheet story. I think it was called Grief Log. Effectively executed.

Blackburn has a way of capturing the essence of humanity and grief that is so unique and resonating. Those classroom stories were dark; they’re still lingering with me. Blackburn’s language is skillful as well. However, the last story includes an observation about how animals are not competitive and I HARD disagreed with that lol. Every nature documentary I’ve watched says otherwise!!!!

Would recommend as a book to dip in and out of until you get to the Esperanza storyline in the second half, then you should sit and finish it without long stretches of interruption. Please note, I did not find any of these stories to be funny. I think it’s blurbed as being that, dunno why lol.

The Road to the City by Natalia Ginzburg

4.0

in my correct opinion, this is a tragicomedy. Every character is awful but to a comical degree that I found most of them endearing. Not my favorite Ginzburg but still a nice little read.

Spoilt Creatures by Amy Twigg
Did not finish book. Stopped at 48%.

did not care about any of the characters, was unconvinced about everything, was waiting for the book to become plottier, since if I’m not caring about characters at least give me a plot, but it didn’t happen soon enough for my liking. Emma Cline does this so much better.

Proleterka by Fleur Jaeggy

4.0

what can be said? this was depressing as hell, so unforgiving. yet sentimental in its own detached way. The ‘rating’ is my subjective reflection on the quality of this book, not a reflection of my disturbed mood, for which this book is responsible. If I were to rate based on my mood I’d give this book a zero lmao. I’m so scared of Fleur Jaeggy; will be reading her other translated works like a hostage to her brutal yet astute pen.