naolin's reviews
13 reviews

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

adventurous dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

medium-paced

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

1.0

Yeah, this book was not for me. I kept reading because I was waiting for it to get better but unfortunately it didn't. 

First of all, why use a Vietnam war story as some sort of allegory for confessing to a crush? Why are four adults so fixated on setting up two teenagers? (Even if they are their parents, it's odd for them to be SO involved) Then there's a ton of build up which leads you to believe that Ari's brother would have a super complicated and interesting back story and then it's just

"Oh, he killed a trans woman with his bare hands, unprovoked".

Which was not only a really boring choice plot-wise, but felt weird as a trans reader. Also, there was no substance to the story. Nothing meaningful. There's no conflict outside of a couple of teenagers complaining and arguing over nothing. 

Also, Ari repeatedly says that he loves Dante, that he's his best friend, etc. There's never any notion that Ari is romantically interested in him. But yet, his parents basically coax him into saying he's in love with Dante on the premise that if he wasn't, he wouldn't look out for him. Which is crazy— can friends not save each other's lives or beat up each other's enemies?

That being said, as a Mexican-American guy, a lot of their conversations about their culture were nice.

I don't know. I heard great things about this book but I figure it's just meant for a High School audience.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Sexual content

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

adventurous lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

adventurous hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

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

4.5

I really enjoyed this book! The setting and characters are so interesting and you get to explore them in-depth throughout the story. Also, as a trans person, I thought the trans representation was well-executed. I appreciate when a piece of media has a trans character in it, without the whole story being about it. I would definitely recommend this book :)

"It is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it."

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

This book was so profound and the writing was beautiful. I read pages 81-83 several times over. Highly recommend.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

The author's writing style is so bland and the ending was

very anti-climactic. I don't mind the fact that it was not a happy ending. The issue is that it's so meaningless and disjointed from the rest of the story.

That being said, I don't enjoy reading romance in general (I just read this for a book club) so my opinion might be biased and to be fair there were a few paragraphs that were relatable and well-written.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

Becoming a Visible Man by Jamison Green

emotional informative medium-paced

4.5

Green documents his personal experiences as well as some insights on the state of the trans community during the 80's and 90's. I thought it was very interesting. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

Tezcatlipoca by Kiwamu Sato

Didn't like it

Red Birds by Mohammed Hanif

funny reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

I enjoyed reading this book but it was extremely character-driven aka not much actually happens. The book is mostly spent on characters reflecting on the past and the hypothetical. That being said the characters are endearing and funny so it was worth the read. It just seemed like the plot had a lot of potential and I would've liked to see more of it.