reading_to_write's reviews
208 reviews

A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James
Did not finish book. Stopped at 10%.

It’s a great book, so compelling and well written and a marvel.  But it takes some time to get into the syntax and to understand the relationships between everyone- and my mind just isn’t in that space for a fiction book right now. I will return to it, though, for sure- it’s a good winter book for me.

Diavola by Jennifer Marie Thorne

dark mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

I devoured this book, at once a tense ghost story and a broody exploration of familial ties and the search for meaning. It built in some twists that were surprising and delightful too- this isn’t your rote, standard formulaic story.  

Twilight Territory by Andrew X. Pham

adventurous emotional reflective fast-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

4.5

Fear Is Just a Word: A Missing Daughter, a Violent Cartel, a Mother's Quest for Vengeance by Azam Ahmed

challenging dark informative sad fast-paced

3.5

Book is a well-written, point-of-view narrative of one woman’s quest, the development of the “carteles” in Mexico, and the 2010-2017 period in Tamaulipas, Mx. deeply researched. It leans heavily into the danger/violence of cartel actions and this is also my criticism. It adds to the weaponized narrative of Mexico (and therefore Mexicans) as dangerous, and does little to dispel or correct this, other than saying at the end that it was no longer as BAD as the early ‘10s.

The Great Divide by Cristina Henríquez

adventurous hopeful inspiring 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? It's complicated

3.0

It’s a good summer beach read. Nice having Panama’s colonial past with the canal highlighted and written about. Sometimes the character development seemed pretty simple/ flat; overall a good read.

Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond

hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

It’s excellently written, but wasn’t what I was expecting from this author. Once I adjusted to that, i found the book informative and chock full of ideas to interrupt and change the poverty situation in the US. 60% of the book is source notes and an index, and it’s definitely a book that will be referenced itself in the future.

Newspaper by Maggie Messitt

informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

A longform braided essay in book form, this was an enlightening, inspiring, extremely well-written examination of less-explored themes in the news industry. By interspersing stories about newspapers and the press from South Africa and the U.S., Messit has managed to capture the complexity of the much-less-explored history of the news’ tendency to capture the predominant culture’s view point — and the shifts it’s been undertaking for the last few centuries, ending wirh the challenges the “ 4th estate “ has faced in recent decades from both declining readership/ public belief in the tenants of a free press and from government steps to restrict free speech and reportage. 

Out by Natsuo Kirino

challenging dark slow-paced

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

3.0

A slow read. 

Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy

challenging hopeful reflective fast-paced

4.5

17 minutos: Entrevista con el dictador / 17 Minutes. An Interview with the Dicta tor by Jorge Ramos

challenging hopeful informative inspiring sad fast-paced

4.5