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kingofspain93's reviews
325 reviews
Good Night, World by Willa Perlman
4.0
I am really into the bedtime genre of kids books. adults don't have a whole literary genre dedicated to chilling out before bed. if we did maybe we wouldn't be so sick.
The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton
3.5
it took me the whole time to realize this is some Noah's ark shit because it's much cuter when it's just a bunch of animals on a boat together, sailing at night. something about a boat at sea at night sounds so cozy. bath time THEN workout is a crazy routine.
Fuzzy Bear Goes to Bed by
3.0
in Fuzzy Bear Goes to Bed Fuzzy Bear selects as her bedtime story Fuzzy Bear Goes to Bed from a shelf of books. it is not an artist's rendition in the same style of the rest of the book, but a photographic insert of the actual book’s cover. there's an implied Droste effect here that is a little dizzying. who is the target audience? I guess Fuzzy Bear.
Passing by Nella Larsen
1.5
Larsen has an interesting premise that seems like it was very relevant to Black thought during the Harlem Renaissance and remains intriguing even today. the digital era and the recently established cultural cache of BIPOC identity to achieve certain ends have led to a time when passing now happens in both directions. Larsen hints at the possibility of this in her novel while still dismissing it as improbable at the time.
after establishing her premise and a very interesting central character in Clare, Larsen then fails to deliver any criticism or analysis. the themes are only dealt with topically and the majority of the book is Irene’s repetitive inner narrative. it's possible that Irene's shallow characterization is an intentional counterpoint to Clare’s vivaciousness and risk-taking but if so the contrast is not used effectively. in short, Passing reads as amateurish and boring. it seems destined to be fodder for mildly progressive English 101 classrooms where only the most obvious analyses are endorsed.
after establishing her premise and a very interesting central character in Clare, Larsen then fails to deliver any criticism or analysis. the themes are only dealt with topically and the majority of the book is Irene’s repetitive inner narrative. it's possible that Irene's shallow characterization is an intentional counterpoint to Clare’s vivaciousness and risk-taking but if so the contrast is not used effectively. in short, Passing reads as amateurish and boring. it seems destined to be fodder for mildly progressive English 101 classrooms where only the most obvious analyses are endorsed.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?: 50th Anniversary Edition by Bill Martin
4.5
never read this before, I'm now a lifelong fan of blue horse. not sure why the teacher is giving her class the stink eye. in future readings I will rank the things that are seen and the teacher will rank last.
The Good Night Book by Lynn Wells, Mandy Wells
4.0
cute little book. felt a hundred years old and like it was dissolving as I read it but I'm sure it will outlive me.
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
5.0
‘Do you think that too,’ she said, ‘that I have slept too long in the moonlight?’
I don't trust people who are super into classic English romances. I like Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters, etc. but not at the exclusion of other things. there just tends to be a high co-occurrence between these people and religious freaks, I think because this kind of literature can easily promote an extremely simple, extremely white worldview. if there is such a place as Jamaica it is as far away and as relevant as Mars when it comes to whether Jane and Rochester will find love. pre-1900 the only places that existed were England and the U.S.
so in addition to being explicitly feminist (maybe Rochester WASN'T a cool dude for Yellow Wallpapering his wife), Rhys also explores race, class, colonization, and literally the existence of the rest of the world as contextual factors for Victorian literature. she also doesn't treat race like a binary, my guess is because of her lived experience growing up in Dominica. she writes beautifully and painfully. this lives up to the hype.
I don't trust people who are super into classic English romances. I like Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters, etc. but not at the exclusion of other things. there just tends to be a high co-occurrence between these people and religious freaks, I think because this kind of literature can easily promote an extremely simple, extremely white worldview. if there is such a place as Jamaica it is as far away and as relevant as Mars when it comes to whether Jane and Rochester will find love. pre-1900 the only places that existed were England and the U.S.
so in addition to being explicitly feminist (maybe Rochester WASN'T a cool dude for Yellow Wallpapering his wife), Rhys also explores race, class, colonization, and literally the existence of the rest of the world as contextual factors for Victorian literature. she also doesn't treat race like a binary, my guess is because of her lived experience growing up in Dominica. she writes beautifully and painfully. this lives up to the hype.
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
2.0
the first chapter of Orlando is one of my favorite things I’ve read this year. by the end of chapter six I had lost not only all investment in the story but also in Woolf as an author. perhaps if I had more knowledge of (or interest in) the history of English literature it may have hit differently, but I suspect that still wouldn’t have made it a better novel. simply put, after the life Orlando lived I would expect him/her to be a more interesting protagonist. Woolf leans more heavily on meta-humor as the novel goes along, too, and it feels too smug to be funny. a huge disappointment. ego undoing art.
The Ring of Ikribu by Richard L. Tierney, David C. Smith
3.75
"Olin, I suffer from a destiny.”
Red Sonja's ability as a swordswoman comes from a mystical vow she took in response to being raped. throughout The Ring of Ikribu she's shown to be smart, social, and capable, but her destiny has its origin in sexual assault. the inclusion of rape doesn't bother me - the Hyborian Age is a violent one, and it would be sexist to pretend that violence against women isn't a real threat. I also don’t think it’s a problem for Red Sonja to have to deal with the long-term trauma of being raped, or even for this to be framed within a fantasy storytelling device like a vow to a celestial deity. all this said, it is handled clumsily, as you might expect from two dudes telling the story.
otherwise this is an enjoyable campaign-of-the-week fantasy novel. because of the world it’s set in it is violent and grim, sometimes shockingly so, but never so much as to be off-putting. Smith and Tierney are highly creative when it comes to writing both battles and dark sorcery so I had a lot of fun. a great vacation read. despite his hella cursed face Duke Pelides could get it imo
Visions of the Cailleach: Exploring the Myths, Folklore and Legends of the Pre-Eminent Celtic Hag Goddess by Sorita d'Este, David Rankine
4.0
i was concerned at first that Visions of the Cailleach was an attempt to appropriate the Celtic goddess for general use in magic (a fear born of my experiences with faddish ignorant americans) but I was pleasantly surprised. this book reads like a lit review, so not only did it greatly add to my to-reads but it also attempted synthesis based on primary and secondary sources rather than convenience. great coverage of the whole Celtic world (ó Chataibh go Ciarrí and beyond) and an admirable appreciation for folk belief also contribute to making this a wonderful read for anyone interested in the Celtic worldview.