mesy_mark's reviews
671 reviews

Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler

emotional sad tense 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

3.75

This is a YA on a cheerleader and the new football quarterback- here is the catch the quarterback is a girl.   And she kicks ass on the field but no one cares except Amber, our cheerleader, who can't risk supporting QB cause she wants to be the captain.  Amber is dating Miguel, her gay best friend for cover but as the team of footballers and cheerleaders intense their anger at the new girl, will Amber try to stop it?

This is a heavy book even though at times there is the light-hearted cute aspect of it.  There is homophobia and myology dripped on many pages, not in grand examples but more the microaggression, and yes microaggression also comes through.  The characters are memorable and we can see the connection between our MCs.  And seeing our MCs going about in the homophobic cluster they are in was me rallying for them, sad for them, and angry at the couch who saw all of it and did nothing.

He/She/They: How We Talk About Gender and Why It Matters by Schuyler Bailar

informative reflective medium-paced

3.75

 This is a book mainly for the allies or would-be allies of the trans community. As a trans person reading this book, I see where this would be a good resource for a cis person to read. Covering from the basics of trans 101 to intersecting identities and how that adds layers to the human(s) this book is the book I'd like to give curious cis folk when wanting to know what is in my pants. Even though I have stated that the reader target group seems to be the cis population, I also see where trans folk can learn to stand more ground in the constant rude and inappropriate questions and how to guide the conversation to be more productive when dealing with minority groups. Overall well done as a 101 guide for cis community understanding the trans community. 

The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America by Eric Cervini

informative reflective

3.0

This is a queer history that covers the government's oppression of LGBTQ people in the not-so-distant past—starting with Kammy a brilliant man who could not get security clearance after having a record of indecent behavior with another man.  It is heavily in the history of before Stonewall, documenting the assimilation of gays before Stonewall led to come as you are people.  Kammy's storyline was interweaved through the whole text as he kicked it off with fighting against the government—a slow pace dense book, good for learning queer secret history.

All That's Left in the World by Erik J. Brown

adventurous

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The world as we know it has ended and two teens have found each other in the apolitical times.  This is how two boys devolve feelings for each as they look for a home.  It's cute and much different than other queer books I have read.  At times I felt like it dragged on a bit but overall enjoyed the vibe of it

The Other Significant Others: Reimagining Life with Friendship at the Center by Rhaina Cohen

informative medium-paced

2.5

 So has this author heard of queerplatonic relationships cause she is describing them without using the words? Secondly, I think Ace is mentioned once but to me, the friendships convey an asexual but not aromantic type of relationship. And by default, a little bit of the polyam due to the deep friends may also have romantic partners. I feel like if the author could have opened herself to talking to asexuals she would have found more examples.

The book itself is about the deep friendship that someone has for another. All examples are of two people in this dynamic. All seem to value friendship over their romantic life. Studies show facts over these friendships occur more in older folks due to being thought of as asexual once reaching a certain age while the younger crowd is more questioning on a romantic relationship. I liked how people can explore intimate bonds, choose to raise children, live together (or nearby), etc and sex doesn't have to be that intimate together.

The author read the book and I did get confused at points due to the cast of characters changing for each chapter. I would have liked to have seen dynamics with more than two, There are some legal things discussed like getting married to a friend but that leads me to think about the ace folk. 

Pageboy by Elliot Page

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.0

 Elliot is in the flim business from 14 as a girl but performed boy items more and was crushing on the girls. Came out gay first and then trans. Elliot opens about his childhood and the impact on him. I like the overall flow and pacing of the book getting more insight on his pre flim life and how it became apart of his life. 

Mad Honey by Jennifer Finney Boylan, Jodi Picoult

emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

 Mad Honey is a book about a beekeeper mother and her son Asher hitting a major curve ball, her son is accused of murder. Then we have Lilly and her mom, the newbis in town, and the final home of for Lily and her short life. The writing is on par with a Picoult book and with a co-author as well, it sounds like one voice. Bringing in more than just a courtroom drama but also shows the gray of what between the black and white. This book highlights sexualities and other social issues making it a more real-world book. It shows the diversity of what the world is. At times I felt a little bit of a dragging on through the text. I liked learning about bees and honey. the characters are developed well and the twist was a twist albeit wasn't shocking to me cause I had heard of the twist before reading.

I listened to this book through the audiobook and it contained one feminine-sounding narrator and a post-script on how this book cam to be. The narration was sound and had a nice voice the kept me with the story.

Overall a solid read. 

January First: A Child's Descent into Madness and Her Father's Struggle to Save Her by Michael Schofield

sad fast-paced

1.0

Yes, Janni (name changed mid-through to Jani) is a disturbed trouble. And since this book has been published a lot has come out pointing to her having autism, not sz. But to the content of the text I read. Wow is this an ego lord character?  January's dad thinks only he can save his daughter from her disturbing behaviors. Not professionals who have dealt with countless children.  I heard enough of her in of being in the 140s. This book mainly speaks out to family dysfunction creating a turbulent home life and aggravating January's internal.

A Queer History of the United States by Michael Bronski

informative reflective medium-paced

4.25

 This is a book not highlighting queer events in the US history but the queer populations along side the side only talked about, cisgender heterosexuals, from way back in the day, like civil war solders that were women to ACT UP in the AIDS epidemic. It is an easy read and fuller rendition of history that includes all rather than a select few. 

Luster by Raven Leilani

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

 

Okay, so I listened to this and just have to ask, what did I listen to> The narrator gave it some life but the content is just confusing. Our MC lives in the deplorable apartment and has many failed relationships gets entangled with a married man and it's okay because the wife gave consent (yeah for ethical nonmonogamy) and then she moves into their house since she lost her job and shitty apartment.

I didn't get the relationship between our main character and Eric. And the arrangement he mentions that has rules, one of which is not in the home, is broken so what's the point of the list when there were no consequences? And then there is the wife Rebbeca who is a medical examiner, and our MC spends more time with or with the foster (Black) daughter.

The transition between scenes needs work on as when I listened to this it seemed to have just jumped to this is how it is now, like our MC moving in without how she got her stuff out of the old or again breaking an agreement t in the rules.

This just didn't seem to have a point. At least it was short and I can shelve it away.