papercraftalex's reviews
363 reviews

Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie

3.5

This is a self-help book, not a religious book. DeBlassie shares a lot of her story intermixed with tips about living a mindful and mundanely magical life. Her tips were decent, but not very unique, and the book was very repetitive. I liked the way it was organized; most of the sections had things you should unlearn and things you should relearn. She had good prompts for ways to make yourself feel more magical and to go against the grain. I felt like she really emphasized introversion to the point it felt like she was implying introverts are oppressed. My neurodivergent extroversion is not celebrated. I think it was overall a decent book for learning self-care and slow living, but it could have been edited down a lot.

Murder Book: A Graphic Memoir of a True Crime Obsession by Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell

dark funny reflective fast-paced

4.0

Murder Book is part memoir, part cultural exploration. The problems in this book are problems with true crime in general; it seems to ignore the massive issues in the criminal justice system and sometimes ignores how the loved ones of the victims would feel about the way people talk about their stories. Overall though, it was hilarious and insightful. Campbell has a really unique way of telling stories and I think it worked so well in Murder Book. I'd definitely recommend! (Just maybe read some Angela Davis after).

Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

5.0

Hijab Butch Blues is one of the best books to come out this year. There aren't enough words for me to express how endearing, inspiring, universal, and heart-wrenching this book is. Each chapter tells the story of a person/creature from the Quran and connects to stories from Lamya's life, stories of queerness, muslimness, and browness. It's so beautifully written and has a lot of very funny parts mixed with highly emotional parts. I don't think I've ever felt so connected to a story. I recommend this book to every single person; everyone has something to take away from it.

Reasons Why We're Angry by Sophia Isabella Murray

emotional reflective tense fast-paced

5.0

Sophia Isabella Murray wrote a fiery, short collection that reflects all aspects of womanhood. This collection is full of succinct and beautiful lines that are even more lyrical when spoken aloud. "delicious force/teeth biting the bottom lip/to feel the ‘f’ build/to awaken my tribute/and throw out the ‘uck’" It was very poignant and I can't wait to read more of her work.

Persephone Made Me Do It by Trista Mateer

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

This is truly Trista Mateer's best work yet. Her voice is so strong in all of her works, especially Persephone Made Me Do It. It's so raw and full of emotion and passion while also being beautifully written. The juxtaposition of art and poems is perfect; each art piece seems so thoughtfully chosen. I love the way she's connected her story to the goddesses in her other books in this series; this one hits especially hard because it's not romanticizing Persephone, it's telling her real story. It's such a nuanced take on mother and daughter relationships that's so universally true. I hope she continues this series (I'd especially love to see Nyx and Hestia), but if this is the finale, it's a very good one.

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Soft Science by Franny Choi

adventurous dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

5.0

This was a stunning collection. It's such a unique perspective to look at queerness, womanhood, and the Asian diaspora through the lens of robotics, and it worked so well. The author has a beautiful way with words; the poems were all full of vibrant imagery and a great rhythm. I can't wait to read more of her work.

Knees in the Garden by Christina D Rodriguez

challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

4.5

Knees in the Garden is a very personal poetry collection about feminine rage, trauma, and oppression. She plays with form and language very well. There is such beautiful imagery and vulnerability. The best poem, in my opinion, was "Prize: Fat Girl." It had great use of language and wonderful rhythm. I definitely recommend this collection and can't wait for the author's future collections!

Thank you to Querencia Press for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Hospital Issued Writing Notebook by

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

4.0

Hospital Issued Writing Notebook is a very creative poetry collection about hospitalization and disability. Flore does a good job with analogy and with fully immersing the reader into his experience. My favorite poem of the collection was "HALLUCINATING WHILE MY FRIEND SMOKES POT AND LOOKS AT ME LIKE I'M JESUS." It really encapsulated Flore's storytelling ability. I don't think I was always fully onboard with the language used ("The juicy fart of paranoia" is not a line I ever thought I would read), but overall it's a good collection.

Thank you to Querencia Publishing for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Drug use, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Finna by Nino Cipri

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

Finna was a very enjoyable, short, queer, anticapitalist sci-fi story. The author did a good job encapsulating how dead end jobs make people stuck and did a great job dropping the reading into the story without over-explaining. It felt reminiscent of "This is How You Lose the Time War" in that they both don't have high amounts of world-building, but still manage to convey a beautiful story.

The Arrival by Shaun Tan

adventurous challenging reflective fast-paced

5.0

I've never read a graphic novel with no words at all, but the lack of words added so much to this story about immigration. It was absolutely touching and a very creative interpretation of how it feels to flee from your home. I saw this on a list of must read graphic novel and I definitely agree!