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moony_reads's reviews
391 reviews
Trans and Disabled: An Anthology of Identities and Experiences by Alex Iantaffi
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
ARC REVIEW
Trans and Disabled, edited by Alex Iantaffi is a collection of essays, poetry, artwork, and other pieces by people who fall into the identities of 'trans' and 'disabled,' however each creator personally defines and experiences those terms. It is divided into three parts: "Who we are," "Being (treated) different," and "Loving Ourselves and Each Other."
These pieces are intended for and written about those who fall under the 'trans and disabled' umbrella, allowing us to feel seen, heard, loved, and in solidarity with others who can truly understand the struggles and joys of these lived experiences. This is a short book, but each piece is poignant.
However, I did not necessarily enjoy every entry. As a non-binary, disabled and neurodivergent person, I could definitely relate to a lot of the writing, and truly loved a fair few pieces and lines. But I am a young adult, and a lot of these entries are written by people who are 30-50, so a lot of the language almost seems to get lost in translation, terms that I don’t like are used and there is a lot of stereotypically queer aspects that I, as a young person, find to be what straight, abled people ridicule us for, (the usage of colour and glitter to describe queerness, assigning neo pronouns to cats, etc)
It is difficult to put a rating to real peoples' true struggles and authentic stories, so I can only offer my gratitude to and appreciation for these creators, and will be rating it highly for it’s diversity and readability. Vulnerability is something to be praised, especially in the current political climate.
Thank you for sharing your stories, and for paving the way for those to come.
It is worth a read, regardless of your gender, sexuality, ability and neurodiversity.
Thank you to Jessica Kingsley Publisher’s and Netgalley for the ARC.
Trans and Disabled, edited by Alex Iantaffi is a collection of essays, poetry, artwork, and other pieces by people who fall into the identities of 'trans' and 'disabled,' however each creator personally defines and experiences those terms. It is divided into three parts: "Who we are," "Being (treated) different," and "Loving Ourselves and Each Other."
These pieces are intended for and written about those who fall under the 'trans and disabled' umbrella, allowing us to feel seen, heard, loved, and in solidarity with others who can truly understand the struggles and joys of these lived experiences. This is a short book, but each piece is poignant.
However, I did not necessarily enjoy every entry. As a non-binary, disabled and neurodivergent person, I could definitely relate to a lot of the writing, and truly loved a fair few pieces and lines. But I am a young adult, and a lot of these entries are written by people who are 30-50, so a lot of the language almost seems to get lost in translation, terms that I don’t like are used and there is a lot of stereotypically queer aspects that I, as a young person, find to be what straight, abled people ridicule us for, (the usage of colour and glitter to describe queerness, assigning neo pronouns to cats, etc)
It is difficult to put a rating to real peoples' true struggles and authentic stories, so I can only offer my gratitude to and appreciation for these creators, and will be rating it highly for it’s diversity and readability. Vulnerability is something to be praised, especially in the current political climate.
Thank you for sharing your stories, and for paving the way for those to come.
It is worth a read, regardless of your gender, sexuality, ability and neurodiversity.
Thank you to Jessica Kingsley Publisher’s and Netgalley for the ARC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Transphobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Dysphoria, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Biphobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Blood, Antisemitism, and Alcohol
Minor: Deadnaming, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, and Lesbophobia
And They Were Roommates by Page Powars
funny
hopeful
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? No
4.0
ARC REVIEW
And They Were Roommates is a very cute LGBT+ slow burn that has a very similar feel to Page Powers’ other book, The Borrow a Boyfriend Club, in that the trans main character changes school and wants to remain stealth but ends up being caught up in very elaborate school secrets and making friends who really love him.
This book follows Charlie, the new scholarship kid in an elite boys boarding school. After planning to have a single room, he ends up in a dorm with someone who knew him pre-transition, but who also broke his heart.
While Charlie wants nothing more than for Jasper to move out, Jasper wants Charlie to help him write love letters for the other students.
It’s a fun, genuine slow burn (like, no romance until 80% in slow burn) with some great tenderness and angst, and is a classic academic setting YA. It was very easy to read and kept me entertained the whole way through. Definitely recommend if you enjoyed Powars’ first book, or if you enjoy good, harmless queer YA.
Thank you to Hachette Children’s Group and Netgalley for the ARC!
And They Were Roommates is a very cute LGBT+ slow burn that has a very similar feel to Page Powers’ other book, The Borrow a Boyfriend Club, in that the trans main character changes school and wants to remain stealth but ends up being caught up in very elaborate school secrets and making friends who really love him.
This book follows Charlie, the new scholarship kid in an elite boys boarding school. After planning to have a single room, he ends up in a dorm with someone who knew him pre-transition, but who also broke his heart.
While Charlie wants nothing more than for Jasper to move out, Jasper wants Charlie to help him write love letters for the other students.
It’s a fun, genuine slow burn (like, no romance until 80% in slow burn) with some great tenderness and angst, and is a classic academic setting YA. It was very easy to read and kept me entertained the whole way through. Definitely recommend if you enjoyed Powars’ first book, or if you enjoy good, harmless queer YA.
Thank you to Hachette Children’s Group and Netgalley for the ARC!
Sunstruck by William Rayfet Hunter
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ARC REVIEW
Oh this was insanely good.
Starting off in the rush of a pseudo-bacchanalia during the height of a french summer, where our narrator is staying with a university friends family, followed by the starkly sobering conclusion set back in the UK.
I couldn’t put it down, clinging to the pages in the same gripped, disgusted way I watched Saltburn, which Sunstruck is definitely reminiscent of. Take Saltburn, Brideshead and the atmosphere of CMBYN and this is it. The only difference is Sunstruck takes on it’s topics unflinchingly, regardless of the severity. Our narrator is unnamed, of fairly ambiguous race and lower class, finding himself in a world of rich, powerful white people. But the author does not shy away from the moments of microaggressions, and full on aggressions, letting them flow naturally and horrifyingly between the intoxicating romance (if you can really call it that), never once underwriting the serious aspects of the novel.
A truly stunning, aching read and I look forward to reading anything else William Rayfet Hunter publishes in the future.
Thank you to NetGalley and Cornerstone for the ARC!
Oh this was insanely good.
Starting off in the rush of a pseudo-bacchanalia during the height of a french summer, where our narrator is staying with a university friends family, followed by the starkly sobering conclusion set back in the UK.
I couldn’t put it down, clinging to the pages in the same gripped, disgusted way I watched Saltburn, which Sunstruck is definitely reminiscent of. Take Saltburn, Brideshead and the atmosphere of CMBYN and this is it. The only difference is Sunstruck takes on it’s topics unflinchingly, regardless of the severity. Our narrator is unnamed, of fairly ambiguous race and lower class, finding himself in a world of rich, powerful white people. But the author does not shy away from the moments of microaggressions, and full on aggressions, letting them flow naturally and horrifyingly between the intoxicating romance (if you can really call it that), never once underwriting the serious aspects of the novel.
A truly stunning, aching read and I look forward to reading anything else William Rayfet Hunter publishes in the future.
Thank you to NetGalley and Cornerstone for the ARC!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Car accident, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Deadnaming, Homophobia, Sexism, Transphobia, Blood, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Vomit and Death of parent
F: Poems by Franz Wright
dark
emotional
fast-paced
5.0
I am so glad I found this.
Scratch that, it found me.
Stark and heartbreaking poetry prose that’s gritty and gets under your skin.
Poems for the weird days.
‘One day I am going to start to cry and never stop until I die. So what.’
‘I have no more idea what I look like than you do, I’m happy to say; all of that is over, that business with the mirror. One winter afternoon I noticed it had stopped. I couldn’t anymore, and that was all, wish I’d thought of it sooner.’
Scratch that, it found me.
Stark and heartbreaking poetry prose that’s gritty and gets under your skin.
Poems for the weird days.
‘One day I am going to start to cry and never stop until I die. So what.’
‘I have no more idea what I look like than you do, I’m happy to say; all of that is over, that business with the mirror. One winter afternoon I noticed it had stopped. I couldn’t anymore, and that was all, wish I’d thought of it sooner.’
Ancient History by A.J. Truman
DNF @ 66%
awful usage of the second chance trope, went straight from reunion to “i love you”
awful usage of the second chance trope, went straight from reunion to “i love you”
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Difficult, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Oh.
This helped me organise some thoughts and learn a lot about my own life and relationship with an emotionally immature parent.
Didn’t particularly enjoy the victimisation aspects (book problem) or learning about externalised siblings (me problem) but overall very helpful.
This helped me organise some thoughts and learn a lot about my own life and relationship with an emotionally immature parent.
Didn’t particularly enjoy the victimisation aspects (book problem) or learning about externalised siblings (me problem) but overall very helpful.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Strong Female Character by Fern Brady
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
While reading this I would often find myself gasping and quietly muttering “that’s me” to my bedroom walls.
Fern Brady has verbalised the tribulations of being a late diagnosed autistic AFAB person perfectly, with such deft and raw honesty.
Every single chapter unhinged my chest and nestled its way in, hurting and healing a part of me with each progression. Being AFAB, being autistic, being mentally ill, and being a problem to your family is so universally felt and yet so torturously lonely, but Brady has portrayed this life beautifully and I wish I could read every word again for the first time.
Fern Brady has verbalised the tribulations of being a late diagnosed autistic AFAB person perfectly, with such deft and raw honesty.
Every single chapter unhinged my chest and nestled its way in, hurting and healing a part of me with each progression. Being AFAB, being autistic, being mentally ill, and being a problem to your family is so universally felt and yet so torturously lonely, but Brady has portrayed this life beautifully and I wish I could read every word again for the first time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Classism
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, and Alcohol
Minor: Vomit