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plantbasedbride's reviews
189 reviews
Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhhà Lại
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
A poignant exploration of the refugee experience as told by a child, Inside Out & Back Again was as beautiful and hopeful as it was heartbreaking.
Ha is such a curious and independent child, with so much intelligence and emotional maturity. Her experiences as a refugee from Vietnam echo those of the author, Thanhha Lai, and paints a vivid picture of the experiences of those who escaped Vietnam across the sea.
Refugees are so often treated with disrespect and subject to racism and xenophobia. I believe this book, especially when read by the upcoming generation, could help to bridge the gap with understanding and compassion.
I will be recommending this book to all of my friends with children.
Ha is such a curious and independent child, with so much intelligence and emotional maturity. Her experiences as a refugee from Vietnam echo those of the author, Thanhha Lai, and paints a vivid picture of the experiences of those who escaped Vietnam across the sea.
Refugees are so often treated with disrespect and subject to racism and xenophobia. I believe this book, especially when read by the upcoming generation, could help to bridge the gap with understanding and compassion.
I will be recommending this book to all of my friends with children.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, Bullying, Racism, and Xenophobia
The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman
dark
slow-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
1.0
Ok, I’m sad.
This book was *not* what I expected.
I was so excited to read this. The premise is right up my alley: A SFF YA with a biracial AAPI protagonist that takes place in the afterlife which has been conquered by fictional-Siri?? Amazing. Stunning. Can’t wait.
And in the beginning, I had hope. But Nami died a few pages in and it was all downhill from there.
This book hit so many of my personal pet peeves that listing them all would be exhausting, but in the name of the common good I’ll do my darnedest.
1. There is little to no world-building. This book is nearing 500 pages and I could not tell you anything about the afterlife other than the fact that it's split into four "courts" and run by attractive AIs who are obsessed with being like humans while simultaneously wiping them out.
2. The writing style is drowning in metaphor and simile and the result is melodrama. A few examples (not hard to find, there are as many as 4 per paragraph):
"My heart crumbles to ash..."
"I feel the sting of her words like paper cuts all over my skin..."
"(discarding me) like I’m an empty bottle or a used up battery.”
I love a good metaphor or simile, seriously, sign me up, but when every other sentence opts for elementary flowery language over actually telling the damn story I'm gonna get annoyed.
3. This book contains all of your favourite YA tropes! The chosen one, the gruff tough love interest who is only soft for MC, insta-love, MC catches the eye of a prince, a whole war/rebellion sits upon the shoulders of a teenager... I could go on. But I'm tired. Is this what being old feels like?
4. Our protagonist feels several years younger than her age. Nami is apparently 18, but she acts like an immature 15-year-old throughout. This book seems better suited to a middle-grade audience than a young adult one.
5. I have never read a more repetitive book in my life. If I told you that LITERALLY EVERY CHAPTER the MC is musing over the exact same conundrums and asking herself the exact same questions, often worded in the exact same ways, would you believe me? Well you should, because it's true. I felt like I didn't even know our main character by the end of the book because she only ever had the same 4 thoughts in her internal monologue. Thinking about gruff boy, reminding herself that she's a big sister, wondering if AIs deserve to live, too, and wondering what to wear. For real, that's it. She's in an afterlife that's been taken over by AI after being murdered for god sake and this is the extent of what's in her head??
(If you haven't been deterred from reading this one, yet, I dare you to take a shot every time Nami thinks "Is this what's waiting for May? For my family??" and report back. Or maybe don't. You might die depending on your reading speed).
6. Nami is as sanctimonious and holier than thou as it gets. She's selfish, stuck in her perception of what's right and wrong, judgemental, and willing to endanger everyone around her on a whim. She's also constantly contradicting herself.
7. There are no stakes. We're supposed to worry about these characters dying... except... they're already dead. This is the afterlife. Maybe it's just the atheist in me, but do they really need to "live" forever? Seems like the afterlife is kind of a drag, tbh. I'll take oblivion for 500, Alex.
8. Nami doesn't understand the concept of developing new relationships and it's exhausting. She’s like, they’re not my parents or siblings but maybe it’s ok to care about them? Have you never heard of a fucking friend, Nami??? Good lord.
9. This book ends in the classic "gotta hook readers so they'll read the sequel" way that always pisses me off. In my humble opinion, even a book that is part of a series should have a satisfying end. This book's ending felt like someone ripped out the last few pages.
Ok.
I'm worked up now so I'll switch to the positives for a sec. I liked the concept and the twist was kind of interesting.
Ok, that's it.
So, yeah. I'm sad.
Actually, scratch that. I'm mad.
This book had SO MUCH potential and it squandered it in the most baffling way.
Would not recommend unless you feel like being irrationally angry for several days.
This book was *not* what I expected.
I was so excited to read this. The premise is right up my alley: A SFF YA with a biracial AAPI protagonist that takes place in the afterlife which has been conquered by fictional-Siri?? Amazing. Stunning. Can’t wait.
And in the beginning, I had hope. But Nami died a few pages in and it was all downhill from there.
This book hit so many of my personal pet peeves that listing them all would be exhausting, but in the name of the common good I’ll do my darnedest.
1. There is little to no world-building. This book is nearing 500 pages and I could not tell you anything about the afterlife other than the fact that it's split into four "courts" and run by attractive AIs who are obsessed with being like humans while simultaneously wiping them out.
2. The writing style is drowning in metaphor and simile and the result is melodrama. A few examples (not hard to find, there are as many as 4 per paragraph):
"My heart crumbles to ash..."
"I feel the sting of her words like paper cuts all over my skin..."
"(discarding me) like I’m an empty bottle or a used up battery.”
I love a good metaphor or simile, seriously, sign me up, but when every other sentence opts for elementary flowery language over actually telling the damn story I'm gonna get annoyed.
3. This book contains all of your favourite YA tropes! The chosen one, the gruff tough love interest who is only soft for MC, insta-love, MC catches the eye of a prince, a whole war/rebellion sits upon the shoulders of a teenager... I could go on. But I'm tired. Is this what being old feels like?
4. Our protagonist feels several years younger than her age. Nami is apparently 18, but she acts like an immature 15-year-old throughout. This book seems better suited to a middle-grade audience than a young adult one.
5. I have never read a more repetitive book in my life. If I told you that LITERALLY EVERY CHAPTER the MC is musing over the exact same conundrums and asking herself the exact same questions, often worded in the exact same ways, would you believe me? Well you should, because it's true. I felt like I didn't even know our main character by the end of the book because she only ever had the same 4 thoughts in her internal monologue. Thinking about gruff boy, reminding herself that she's a big sister, wondering if AIs deserve to live, too, and wondering what to wear. For real, that's it. She's in an afterlife that's been taken over by AI after being murdered for god sake and this is the extent of what's in her head??
(If you haven't been deterred from reading this one, yet, I dare you to take a shot every time Nami thinks "Is this what's waiting for May? For my family??" and report back. Or maybe don't. You might die depending on your reading speed).
6. Nami is as sanctimonious and holier than thou as it gets. She's selfish, stuck in her perception of what's right and wrong, judgemental, and willing to endanger everyone around her on a whim. She's also constantly contradicting herself.
7. There are no stakes. We're supposed to worry about these characters dying... except... they're already dead. This is the afterlife. Maybe it's just the atheist in me, but do they really need to "live" forever? Seems like the afterlife is kind of a drag, tbh. I'll take oblivion for 500, Alex.
8. Nami doesn't understand the concept of developing new relationships and it's exhausting. She’s like, they’re not my parents or siblings but maybe it’s ok to care about them? Have you never heard of a fucking friend, Nami??? Good lord.
9. This book ends in the classic "gotta hook readers so they'll read the sequel" way that always pisses me off. In my humble opinion, even a book that is part of a series should have a satisfying end. This book's ending felt like someone ripped out the last few pages.
Ok.
I'm worked up now so I'll switch to the positives for a sec. I liked the concept and the twist was kind of interesting.
Ok, that's it.
So, yeah. I'm sad.
Actually, scratch that. I'm mad.
This book had SO MUCH potential and it squandered it in the most baffling way.
Would not recommend unless you feel like being irrationally angry for several days.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The Cost of Knowing is a gut-wrenching tale of generational trauma, racial profiling, grief, racism, and loss. It's the story of Alex and what it's like for him to be a Black boy in America.
Overwhelmed by anxiety since his parents' death, Alex is just trying to survive each day. Visions of the future come unbidden with every touch of his palm, amplifying his worry. When he sees a vision of his younger brother's imminent death, Alex resolves to spend whatever time he has left bringing Isaiah the joy he deserves.
This story is heartbreaking, all the more so because it echoes the experience of so many young Black people in America. The pain and fear Alex lives with is not an exaggeration or an overreaction, and this novel does not turn away from that injustice.
This book broke me. I haven't sobbed so much while reading in a long time. But it's also so necessary for people like me, a white woman born into a level of privilege and safety I did nothing to earn, to confront. "Well-meaning" white people aren't free from blame. Our whiteness guards us against seeing and understanding the truth of what our ignorance and fear do to those with marginalized bodies. We need to open our eyes. It's long overdue.
Brittney Morris tells Alex's story with compassion, vulnerability, and strength. And it's a story that needs to be heard.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC for review. All opinions are my own.
Overwhelmed by anxiety since his parents' death, Alex is just trying to survive each day. Visions of the future come unbidden with every touch of his palm, amplifying his worry. When he sees a vision of his younger brother's imminent death, Alex resolves to spend whatever time he has left bringing Isaiah the joy he deserves.
This story is heartbreaking, all the more so because it echoes the experience of so many young Black people in America. The pain and fear Alex lives with is not an exaggeration or an overreaction, and this novel does not turn away from that injustice.
This book broke me. I haven't sobbed so much while reading in a long time. But it's also so necessary for people like me, a white woman born into a level of privilege and safety I did nothing to earn, to confront. "Well-meaning" white people aren't free from blame. Our whiteness guards us against seeing and understanding the truth of what our ignorance and fear do to those with marginalized bodies. We need to open our eyes. It's long overdue.
Brittney Morris tells Alex's story with compassion, vulnerability, and strength. And it's a story that needs to be heard.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC for review. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, and Child death
Minor: Slavery and Rape
Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade
emotional
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
2.0
I was very excited to dive into this book as a GoT fan who is relatively new to the romance genre. I heard over and over again from booktubers whose opinions I trust that it was a fantastic read with awesome fat rep. I loved the cover and found the synopsis intriguing.
But.
This book was not what I expected it to be.
While I started off quite liking both April and Marcus, my opinion of them plummeted as the story progressed. April is supposed to provide positive fat rep, but (and I am not and have never been fat so take my opinion with a grain of salt) she was hypersensitive to any and all actions that could in any way be related to her size (and in almost every case, they have nothing to do with her) and refused to communicate her needs and feelings. Marcus felt like a teenager in a 40-year-old's body and was constantly over apologizing (and I have anxiety, I understand over apologizing. But he over-over apologized about everything to the nth degree). They were both incredibly immature, lacked communication skills, and were melodramatic as hell.
There were cute moments here and there (mostly concentrated at the very beginning) but my overarching feeling while reading this was discomfort, in large part due to the overt author-insert nature of the story and the very thinly veiled inspiration for Marcus, the famous actor. As an actor myself (though not a famous one) the idea of someone writing a romance with a love interest based on what they know of an actor from their work and interviews while making it blatantly clear which actor they're meant to be is incredibly unsettling. It feels like Dade crossed a line here.
It honestly felt like she wrote this book just to have an excuse to go on about her hatred of the final season of GoT for 400+ pages, which, while relatable, is in poor taste.
I'm glad this book served as positive rep for many fat and dyslexic readers, but I'd recommend staying away if what I've mentioned in this review has you feeling wary. I'd also recommend reading reviews written by fat readers who can give their own views on the representation.
But.
This book was not what I expected it to be.
While I started off quite liking both April and Marcus, my opinion of them plummeted as the story progressed. April is supposed to provide positive fat rep, but (and I am not and have never been fat so take my opinion with a grain of salt) she was hypersensitive to any and all actions that could in any way be related to her size (and in almost every case, they have nothing to do with her) and refused to communicate her needs and feelings. Marcus felt like a teenager in a 40-year-old's body and was constantly over apologizing (and I have anxiety, I understand over apologizing. But he over-over apologized about everything to the nth degree). They were both incredibly immature, lacked communication skills, and were melodramatic as hell.
There were cute moments here and there (mostly concentrated at the very beginning) but my overarching feeling while reading this was discomfort, in large part due to the overt author-insert nature of the story and the very thinly veiled inspiration for Marcus, the famous actor. As an actor myself (though not a famous one) the idea of someone writing a romance with a love interest based on what they know of an actor from their work and interviews while making it blatantly clear which actor they're meant to be is incredibly unsettling. It feels like Dade crossed a line here.
It honestly felt like she wrote this book just to have an excuse to go on about her hatred of the final season of GoT for 400+ pages, which, while relatable, is in poor taste.
I'm glad this book served as positive rep for many fat and dyslexic readers, but I'd recommend staying away if what I've mentioned in this review has you feeling wary. I'd also recommend reading reviews written by fat readers who can give their own views on the representation.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, and Fatphobia
This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This Is How You Lose the Time War is a unique, timey-wimey, sci-fi sapphic love story told through letters, and I absolutely loved it. Funny, moving, fascinating, and immersive, I adored how the world-building slowly came together like an image coalescing as you complete a puzzle.
I'll be adding this one to my reread pile!
I'll be adding this one to my reread pile!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Body horror, and Death
Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What a moving story. Jude is such a complex, compassionate, and brave young girl and her story as an immigrant from Syria deserves to be told.
Addressing racism and islamophobia, as well as the sacrifice inherent in leaving your country in search of safety, Other Words for Home gives voice to a much needed perspective in Western literature.
I highly recommend for readers of all ages.
Addressing racism and islamophobia, as well as the sacrifice inherent in leaving your country in search of safety, Other Words for Home gives voice to a much needed perspective in Western literature.
I highly recommend for readers of all ages.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Islamophobia, Bullying, and Violence
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A short yet powerful exploration of human nature and the dangers of clinging to traditions without critical thought or compassion. Absolutely chilling.
The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa is a lyrical, timeless, and haunting fable exploring the nature of memory and its power to define us.
Originally published in Japanese in 1994, this recent translation by Stephen Snyder feels just as fresh, provocative, and topical as a new release.
Not only did I find this novel compulsively readable and deeply thought-provoking, but the disquieting tension left behind in pockets of amnesia as the disappearances increased in frequency and severity left me with a creeping sense of terror.
If you don’t enjoy anxiety-inducing dreamlike novels with an open ending, The Memory Police likely isn’t for you. But, if you, like me, live for an ever-present hazily oppressive quality clinging to each page like a memory just out of reach, I would recommend you pick this one up!
With themes including identity, loss, police brutality, control, and the creation of art as resistance against authoritarianism, The Memory Police is in no way light fare. The anxiety, isolation, fear, and emptiness these characters experience feel deeply relevant a year into the pandemic, speaking to this current chapter of history in a way Ogawa couldn’t have imagined 25 years ago.
Despite the heavy themes and gradual horror of the story within the story, The Memory Police contains its fair share of hope:
“My memories don’t feel as though they’ve been pulled up by the root. Even if they fade, something remains. Like tiny seeds that might germinate again if the rain falls. And even if a memory disappears completely, the heart retains something. A slight tremor or pain, some bit of joy, a tear.”
Not all is lost in this world of forgotten treasures and abandoned professions. There is love. There is art. There is a quiet, determined strength.
There are simple joys:
“His soul is too dense. If he comes out, he’ll dissolve into pieces, like a deep-sea fish pulled to the surface too quickly. I suppose my job is to go on holding him here at the bottom of the sea.”
I was deeply moved by this story and have been unable to stop thinking about it since my eyes scanned the bottom of the final page. It plays on my memory like a music box melody, forever repeating even after the lid has been closed.
The Memory Police is absolutely worth your time.
Originally published in Japanese in 1994, this recent translation by Stephen Snyder feels just as fresh, provocative, and topical as a new release.
Not only did I find this novel compulsively readable and deeply thought-provoking, but the disquieting tension left behind in pockets of amnesia as the disappearances increased in frequency and severity left me with a creeping sense of terror.
If you don’t enjoy anxiety-inducing dreamlike novels with an open ending, The Memory Police likely isn’t for you. But, if you, like me, live for an ever-present hazily oppressive quality clinging to each page like a memory just out of reach, I would recommend you pick this one up!
With themes including identity, loss, police brutality, control, and the creation of art as resistance against authoritarianism, The Memory Police is in no way light fare. The anxiety, isolation, fear, and emptiness these characters experience feel deeply relevant a year into the pandemic, speaking to this current chapter of history in a way Ogawa couldn’t have imagined 25 years ago.
Despite the heavy themes and gradual horror of the story within the story, The Memory Police contains its fair share of hope:
“My memories don’t feel as though they’ve been pulled up by the root. Even if they fade, something remains. Like tiny seeds that might germinate again if the rain falls. And even if a memory disappears completely, the heart retains something. A slight tremor or pain, some bit of joy, a tear.”
Not all is lost in this world of forgotten treasures and abandoned professions. There is love. There is art. There is a quiet, determined strength.
There are simple joys:
“His soul is too dense. If he comes out, he’ll dissolve into pieces, like a deep-sea fish pulled to the surface too quickly. I suppose my job is to go on holding him here at the bottom of the sea.”
I was deeply moved by this story and have been unable to stop thinking about it since my eyes scanned the bottom of the final page. It plays on my memory like a music box melody, forever repeating even after the lid has been closed.
The Memory Police is absolutely worth your time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Confinement, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Police brutality, Death, Sexual assault, and Infidelity
They Wish They Were Us by Jessica Goodman
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I wanted to love this rich-kid high school mystery, billed as Gossip Girl-esque, but sadly it fell flat.
Universally awful characters treating each other badly with a dash of a very predictable reveal and red herring, I found myself passively consuming the story while impatiently waiting for my suspicions to be confirmed.
There was clearly an attempt here to explore privilege in education (a very topical discussion after the Aunt Becky ordeal) as well as clique-based bullying and hazing, but it was sloppily done. I think what frustrated me most was how obvious Goodman was about framing this story as feminist without doing the work to include any nuance whatsoever or introspection on the part of the female protagonist and her participation in and reinforcement of the toxic culture created by the players.
Overall, They Wish They Were Us had elements of an intriguing story but was ultimately disappointing.
Universally awful characters treating each other badly with a dash of a very predictable reveal and red herring, I found myself passively consuming the story while impatiently waiting for my suspicions to be confirmed.
There was clearly an attempt here to explore privilege in education (a very topical discussion after the Aunt Becky ordeal) as well as clique-based bullying and hazing, but it was sloppily done. I think what frustrated me most was how obvious Goodman was about framing this story as feminist without doing the work to include any nuance whatsoever or introspection on the part of the female protagonist and her participation in and reinforcement of the toxic culture created by the players.
Overall, They Wish They Were Us had elements of an intriguing story but was ultimately disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Sexual assault
Moderate: Death, Blood, and Infidelity
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I have so many complicated feelings about this book.
The writing style was jarring, to say the least. Disjointed, dispassionate, and incredibly repetitive, we are regaled with unending lists of foods ordered as listed on a receipt and told the exact payment and change for each purchase. Each characters’ clothing is described in great detail while we hear little to nothing of their actual appearance or manner. Characters repeating the same line of dialogue back to each other (or just to themselves) several times before moving on with a scene. I almost DNFd several times in the first half as I struggled to connect to the story in any way.
Could this be due to the translation or my lack of experience with Japanese literature? Perhaps. But nonetheless it was difficult to enjoy the first 50% or so of this book.
However, the second half turned everything around for me. Emotional, poignant, and tragic - the humanity and vulnerability I was missing delivered in spades. I found myself quite touched by the final two stories.
And so, I come around again to my complicated and contrasting feelings about this book. Would I recommend it? Yes, for a particular type of reader. Did I fall in love with it? No, sadly I did not. Am I glad I read it? Yes, I believe I am.
Now I’m off to finish my coffee before it gets cold.
The writing style was jarring, to say the least. Disjointed, dispassionate, and incredibly repetitive, we are regaled with unending lists of foods ordered as listed on a receipt and told the exact payment and change for each purchase. Each characters’ clothing is described in great detail while we hear little to nothing of their actual appearance or manner. Characters repeating the same line of dialogue back to each other (or just to themselves) several times before moving on with a scene. I almost DNFd several times in the first half as I struggled to connect to the story in any way.
Could this be due to the translation or my lack of experience with Japanese literature? Perhaps. But nonetheless it was difficult to enjoy the first 50% or so of this book.
However, the second half turned everything around for me. Emotional, poignant, and tragic - the humanity and vulnerability I was missing delivered in spades. I found myself quite touched by the final two stories.
And so, I come around again to my complicated and contrasting feelings about this book. Would I recommend it? Yes, for a particular type of reader. Did I fall in love with it? No, sadly I did not. Am I glad I read it? Yes, I believe I am.
Now I’m off to finish my coffee before it gets cold.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Car accident