mezzarella's reviews
736 reviews

Biting the Hand: Growing Up Asian in Black and White America by Julia Lee

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

Becoming Dangerous: Witchy Femmes, Queer Conjurers and Magical Rebels on Summoning the Power to Resist by Katie West, Jasmine Elliot

adventurous dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

Ejaculate Responsibly: A Whole New Way to Think About Abortion by Gabrielle Stanley Blair

challenging informative medium-paced

3.0

Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler

adventurous dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, and Sexism

It Didn't Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle by Mark Wolynn

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

2.0

Wolynn creates an approach to trauma which involves the vicious cycle of family experience and pain. While there is undoubtedly a need for this type of literature, I worry about what people whose experiences don’t fit the heteronormative and well-meaning-but-hurt—inside will take away from reading the book. 

This read helped me contemplate how much forgiveness and boundaries I wanted to incorporate in my own challenging experiences growing up. While I don’t believe one must accept and wholly forgive family. In order to heal, I believe this book has helped me understand why family members have hurt me without realizing due to their own past experiences with their families. Obviously said but harder to practice, I am grateful to have a perspective separate from avoiding family with little hope for healing. I do wish there were less antedates and more stated research, and I found myself unsure if sections were based on evidence or beliefs. Religion was brought up repeatedly, which didn’t help me, as faith is not a regular part of my life. 

Unwinding Anxiety by Judson Brewer

4.0

The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human by Siddhartha Mukherjee

challenging hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

5.0

I’ve never found a book so aligned to the AICE Biology curriculum that presents the year’s learning in a way which is engaging, exciting, and encourages you to keep turning its pages. Highly recommended for biology teachers and students for summer reading…or those passionate about pursuing or learning about the medical field and research. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer

The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet by John Green

emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

I grew up reading Green’s fiction and YouTube videos, and he quite literally got me through academically and personally dark times. When I heard this book was coming out about the Anthropocene, I thought it would be about climate change and science rather than the human experience. But nearly a decade after my last John Green novel, I am here, reading this book and remembering exactly why I loved reading him all these years ago. John Green’s compassion and deep understanding of mental health come together to paint a beautifully reflective series of reviews about the human experience.  I give this book 5 stars, even if it’s because it was because I was a huge fan.  Even if it’s because the teenager in me briefly revived and reminded me of how hope is around the corner. Thank you John Green, for this book. 

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain

informative reflective

3.0

Tatsuki Fujimoto Before Chainsaw Man: 17-21 by Tatsuki Fujimoto

challenging dark emotional fast-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

5.0