Scan barcode
kirsty_reads's reviews
425 reviews
How We Met: A Memoir of Love and Other Misadventures by Huma Qureshi
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this memoir.
The writing is thoughtful and the author does a fantastic job at connecting with the reader. I found myself thinking of where I was and how I was feeling at the same stages in my life. In that sense it really did feel like a reflective conversation. I felt like I was getting to know a new friend.
There is something so beautiful to me about women’s memoirs that are just honest thought processes or reflective writing on figuring themselves and the world around them out. This is definitely one of my favourites so far.
I really enjoyed the format of the writing which shifts between time periods in the authors life. It added to the reflective element and all came together beautifully.
In the last section of the book the author says she is not sorry for her story being undramatic. This was a crucial part of the memoir for me. Everyone’s stories are important but being in the U.K. I find the only life and love narratives offered mainstream about Muslim women are entrenched in stereotypical religious oppression. This memoir is just the truth, that every family, every individual’s faith and life and love story is unique and doesn’t fit a single or even multiple narratives.
The writing is thoughtful and the author does a fantastic job at connecting with the reader. I found myself thinking of where I was and how I was feeling at the same stages in my life. In that sense it really did feel like a reflective conversation. I felt like I was getting to know a new friend.
There is something so beautiful to me about women’s memoirs that are just honest thought processes or reflective writing on figuring themselves and the world around them out. This is definitely one of my favourites so far.
I really enjoyed the format of the writing which shifts between time periods in the authors life. It added to the reflective element and all came together beautifully.
In the last section of the book the author says she is not sorry for her story being undramatic. This was a crucial part of the memoir for me. Everyone’s stories are important but being in the U.K. I find the only life and love narratives offered mainstream about Muslim women are entrenched in stereotypical religious oppression. This memoir is just the truth, that every family, every individual’s faith and life and love story is unique and doesn’t fit a single or even multiple narratives.
Dim Sum of All Fears by Vivien Chien
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Death by Dumpling by Vivien Chien
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Raceless: In Search of Family, Identity, and the Truth about Where I Belong by Georgina Lawton
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
3.5* This is the perfect romance read. It is layered and complex but still sweet and fun. The audiobook narration is fantastic!
Romance and the high school setting is just not my thing - but I do try! Maybe if I had gone to a school in the US I would have felt closer to the setting. The character development of Liz is beautiful and I loved the dynamics between the characters.
If you like this genre this is the perfect read!
Romance and the high school setting is just not my thing - but I do try! Maybe if I had gone to a school in the US I would have felt closer to the setting. The character development of Liz is beautiful and I loved the dynamics between the characters.
If you like this genre this is the perfect read!
Confident Women: Swindlers, Grifters, and Shapeshifters of the Feminine Persuasion by Tori Telfer
lighthearted
medium-paced
2.5
2.5* I didn’t not enjoy this book despite the star rating. I just felt that there was a missed opportunity to explore why these women should fascinate us. For many, they were responding and surviving in a patriarchal society and that wasn’t really explored.
A good read but a bit flawed. The title didn’t work for me either. Can only con women be confident? Is the bar of confidence for women really that high?!
A good read but a bit flawed. The title didn’t work for me either. Can only con women be confident? Is the bar of confidence for women really that high?!
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw
emotional
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
This is a beautiful short story collection. It astounds me that it still feels unique to read books where women’s inner voices are the narrative. We get this so much from men but with women it always feels ‘coated’, probably to make the women more likeable or palatable. This is even more true of the narratives surrounding black women.
This collection feels honest. It contains the first romance story I’ve ever really enjoyed which is written without tragedy or drama, just truth and a women working it out. I tried to think of my favourite story but so many stand out that I say read and appreciate them all.
I love this description: “The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary pause from being good”
I hope collections like this speak to us all and help us demand a permanent full time pause from being good!
This collection feels honest. It contains the first romance story I’ve ever really enjoyed which is written without tragedy or drama, just truth and a women working it out. I tried to think of my favourite story but so many stand out that I say read and appreciate them all.
I love this description: “The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary pause from being good”
I hope collections like this speak to us all and help us demand a permanent full time pause from being good!
The World I Fell Out Of by Melanie Reid
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation by Rebecca Traister
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
The writing in this book is transporting and much of what I appreciated was the imagery and sense of haunting the writing style created.
At the heart of this is an important forbidden love story set on a plantation in Mississippi. This book challenges the usual voice and places queer sexuality in the narrative and time period. Where it has always been but hasn’t been traditionally recounted in the literature.
Though each of the characters take up only a short space in the story overall the depth of insight we get as a reader is wonderful. Maggie’s character stood out to me in particular and on reflection although I didn’t spend much time with her she had a strong influence on my perception of the story.
The relationship between Isaiah and Samuel is beautiful and haunted by their circumstances. Their connection is stunningly written and you feel the terrifying heartbreaking prospect that they will be torn from each other throughout the book.
What an amazing debut novel!
At the heart of this is an important forbidden love story set on a plantation in Mississippi. This book challenges the usual voice and places queer sexuality in the narrative and time period. Where it has always been but hasn’t been traditionally recounted in the literature.
Though each of the characters take up only a short space in the story overall the depth of insight we get as a reader is wonderful. Maggie’s character stood out to me in particular and on reflection although I didn’t spend much time with her she had a strong influence on my perception of the story.
The relationship between Isaiah and Samuel is beautiful and haunted by their circumstances. Their connection is stunningly written and you feel the terrifying heartbreaking prospect that they will be torn from each other throughout the book.
What an amazing debut novel!