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readingcat1832's reviews
218 reviews
Stir-Fry by Emma Donoghue
3.75
this was an interesting one because it reads so much like a debut, and there's some self consciousness in donoghue's writing, some element of trying to be experimental that really shows. but it's not in a bad way? it was in fact her very first book and it's such an interesting look into her early writing, knowing what a prolific writer she'd become in another 10-ish years.
stir-fry was written in 1994 and sometimes that shows in its attitudes; some aspects of its queerness and especially its depiction of bisexuality feel dated, but it's also such a fantastic bit of early lesbian fiction! i understand that for its time at least, a lesbian book that wasn't bogged down with tragedy was somewhat revolutionary. that may no longer be the case today, but this still made for a really nice look into older queer fiction and its characters and story still hold up. i'm starting to get tired of classic "coming of age" stories and even though stir-fry doesn't necessarily break the mould in that department, it probably did to an extent in the early 90s, but more importantly, it just does its job really well. i liked seeing maria's journey to self-discovery and her relationships with ruth and jael. probably not donoghue's intention, but to me maria also read as so very ace? seeing her "choosing" her (male) crushes for the sake of having them felt so very relatable.
(also 10000 points to the bit of dialogue("maybe he's bisexual" // "he could be a necrophiliac for all i care") . what a sentence to read).
stir-fry was written in 1994 and sometimes that shows in its attitudes; some aspects of its queerness and especially its depiction of bisexuality feel dated, but it's also such a fantastic bit of early lesbian fiction! i understand that for its time at least, a lesbian book that wasn't bogged down with tragedy was somewhat revolutionary. that may no longer be the case today, but this still made for a really nice look into older queer fiction and its characters and story still hold up. i'm starting to get tired of classic "coming of age" stories and even though stir-fry doesn't necessarily break the mould in that department, it probably did to an extent in the early 90s, but more importantly, it just does its job really well. i liked seeing maria's journey to self-discovery and her relationships with ruth and jael. probably not donoghue's intention, but to me maria also read as so very ace? seeing her "choosing" her (male) crushes for the sake of having them felt so very relatable.
(also 10000 points to the bit of dialogue
Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots
- Loveable characters? No
2.5
this one had a strong start and then slowly deteriorated until i felt i was forcing myself to get through the book at around the 50% mark. i might have more thoughts later, but for now, i just need to air my grievances over just how much this book hammers exposition down on you. it felt like reading an author's outline more than a finished draft for large portions of the book, with huge swaths of information summarized to us instead of actually written out. one example is anna discussing her growing closeness with leviathan with her team---an important relationship in the book that we NEVER get to actually see build in the first place. another is anna's kidnapping by supercollider: we jump forward to anna already having been kidnapped, literally dropped right into seeing her tied to a chair, when the previous chapter saw her cuddling and hanging out with june. then we go back as anna recounts the events of her kidnapping, then jump forward again. anna's recovery after her rescue is also mostly summary. it left the book feeling oddly disorienting and didn't allow for me to have much of any emotional engagement, which is a shame because the first hundred or so pages were compelling and enjoyable.
The Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
lore was cool but i was Not strong enough for the writing or those awkward similes
Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disability, and Making Space by Amanda Leduc
informative
reflective
I don't read nonfiction often but I thought this was solid and engaging; Leduc's writing is lovely and fluid and she crafts a strong narrative in the parts of the book that were more memoir-focused. As someone who's already spent a modes (though definitely not extensive) amount of time in disability activism circles and in discussions around representation in media both current and historical, the book didn't necessarily raise too many new ideas for me, but they were still very appreciated, and I think this book could make for a great entry point for someone who doesn't know too much about disability representation but would like to learn more. I still enjoyed the chapters of this book and I also enjoyed learning a little about the history of fairy tales and their real-life writers (mostly the brothers Grimm). The discussion of changeling and faerie myths in connection to disability was especially interesting (and new to me personally!)
I did find the essays to be a little repetitive and disjointed at times, however, and at some point I noticed they weren't really saying anything new that hadn't been said three chapters ago---just the same talking points raised in reference to different examples. So, I do wish the book had come to a bit more of a conclusion, or been a little broader in its critiques. Still, this was a good and interesting read and I'm glad I picked it up! And also definitely appreciate the extensive bibliography at the end of the book: it's clear Leduc did her research and I would love to explore more from the authors she cites.
I did find the essays to be a little repetitive and disjointed at times, however, and at some point I noticed they weren't really saying anything new that hadn't been said three chapters ago---just the same talking points raised in reference to different examples. So, I do wish the book had come to a bit more of a conclusion, or been a little broader in its critiques. Still, this was a good and interesting read and I'm glad I picked it up! And also definitely appreciate the extensive bibliography at the end of the book: it's clear Leduc did her research and I would love to explore more from the authors she cites.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
4.75
love u merricat my weird ass girl in all your autistic swag
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
3.75
EDIT 22/11/2023: As I've sat with this book for more time, I've softened or changed my opinions on a lot of the initial criticisms I had. Which weren't all that harsh to begin with, I really liked it right away, but I think this book just improved for me with more reflection! Editing my earlier review to account for that.
Edited Review (all spoilers, all the way): I did find the first two parts a slog at times, and I don't think the book needed to be quite as long as it was---a good chunk longer than any of the original Hunger Games trilogy, none of which I'm sure even hit 400 pages. The book basically continues to gain momentum as you go further, but Part 1 especially sometimes felt like it took a little effort. I also stand by my opinion that some of the references to the original trilogy were a little contrived, such as the fact that Lucy Gray was the original composer of the hanging tree song; I thought it might have been more interesting if we kept the references to the original "hanging" that the song is based on and let the readers connect the dots, but oh well. On the other hand this really served to the movie's benefit, so hey. But those references were hardly enough to kill my enjoyment of the book.
Mostly I've had to mull over my thoughts on Snow as a POV character: at first I wasn't sure if I quite found him a compelling enough villain, but the more I thought about it, the more I think Suzanne did a great job with him. I loved seeing his increasing paranoia and self-entitlement and posessiveness over Lucy Gray, and I liked how much Suzanne commits to writing from the perspective of the most despicable person imaginable and getting into his terrible, terrible head. We didn't get anything that softened him or made him more sympathetic, and I'm glad.
But there were, as well, many elements I enjoyed. The third act was really gripping and went a long way in making up for the pacing of the first two parts of the book, and it had my complete attention, which is always impressive given my painfully poor attention span lately. The depiction of the earlier Hunger Games subverted my expectations, and how they came to be the Games we knew from the original trilogy, how they turned into a spectacle and how the Capitol citizens were able to get invested in watching children being slaughtered on national television every year. At times it's a little heavy handed maybe, but that's okay, it's not as if the books were ever subtle to begin with.
Plus, I really cared about Lucy Gray as a character, even if we only did get to see her through Snow's possessive eyes. And of course there was poor, poor Sejanus, who was absolutely my favourite and who I wanted so badly to be okay even if he was so obviously marked for death from the start.
Overall, Ballad doesn't quite match the levels of quality of the original trilogy, but that's a damn high bar, so I found it a welcome contribution and return to this terrible, terrible dystopian world. I'm really glad I read it and would definitely revisit it again at least as an audiobook.
Edited Review (all spoilers, all the way):
Mostly I've had to mull over my thoughts on Snow as a POV character: at first I wasn't sure if I quite found him a compelling enough villain, but the more I thought about it, the more I think Suzanne did a great job with him. I loved seeing his increasing paranoia and self-entitlement and posessiveness over Lucy Gray, and I liked how much Suzanne commits to writing from the perspective of the most despicable person imaginable and getting into his terrible, terrible head. We didn't get anything that softened him or made him more sympathetic, and I'm glad.
But there were, as well, many elements I enjoyed. The third act was really gripping and went a long way in making up for the pacing of the first two parts of the book, and it had my complete attention, which is always impressive given my painfully poor attention span lately. The depiction of the earlier Hunger Games subverted my expectations, and how they came to be the Games we knew from the original trilogy, how they turned into a spectacle and how the Capitol citizens were able to get invested in watching children being slaughtered on national television every year. At times it's a little heavy handed maybe, but that's okay, it's not as if the books were ever subtle to begin with.
Plus, I really cared about Lucy Gray as a character, even if we only did get to see her through Snow's possessive eyes. And of course there was poor, poor Sejanus, who was absolutely my favourite and who I wanted so badly to be okay even if he was so obviously marked for death from the start.
Overall, Ballad doesn't quite match the levels of quality of the original trilogy, but that's a damn high bar, so I found it a welcome contribution and return to this terrible, terrible dystopian world. I'm really glad I read it and would definitely revisit it again at least as an audiobook.