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shivani_n's reviews
390 reviews
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
read this for econ, not bad. was interesting to learn about the exploitative nature of the housing market and how eviction is such a large cause of poverty in the US.
3.0
The Fourth State of Matter by Jo Ann Beard
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Maurice by E.M. Forster
slow-paced
2.0
i thought this book was supremely boring, but i also don't know if that's the novel's fault or if it's mine because i was just not in the right state of mind to read a classic. anyhow, i guess we'll never know!
Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
"have you ever seen a town fall? ours did. we'll end up saying that violence came to beartown this summer, but that will be a lie; the violence was already here. because sometimes hating one another is so easy that it seems incomprehensible that we ever do anything else."
i was so excited to reconnect with the characters in frederik backman's sequel to beartown, and my god it did NOT disappoint. sequels sometimes have a tendency to fall flat compared to the first book in a series, but that wasn't the case with this at all. us against you was an absolutely perfect sequel to beartown. to me this book is perfect and i will accept no criticisms! it's everything!!
frederik backman is genuinely one of the most talented writers i have ever come across; his words are so rich and powerful, yet so simple and blunt. the way he reveals such subtle yet obvious truths about humanity is so clever and my copy of us against you is HEAVILY annotated, just like beartown. there are so many lines that just live in my head rent free because they're so beautiful. i especially love how he uses foreshadowing alongside the commentary of the characters.
the plot was also incredible, i loved how this one delved deeper into the rivalry between the two towns and their hockey teams, because backman gives a lot of insight into how sports culture can affect a community, especially when it's taken seriously to a high degree. it was really enlightening for me, too because i'm not much of a sports person, but this allowed me to dig a lot deeper into sports culture and why it is so important to people, as well as the consequences it presents. at the end of the day it's largely about human nature, the people we choose to be and the people we can't help being, the choices we make and how they affect ourselves and those around us. it's about believing in something bigger than yourself.
lastly, the characters of beartown are SO SO SO special to me they will always have a place in my heart. i was rooting for so many of them throughout the book and i'm so excited to see where the finale of the trilogy will take them, especially because it's about BENJI!!! he's my favourite.
i cannot recommend this serious enough, please please PLEASE read it it's incredible!!!
i was so excited to reconnect with the characters in frederik backman's sequel to beartown, and my god it did NOT disappoint. sequels sometimes have a tendency to fall flat compared to the first book in a series, but that wasn't the case with this at all. us against you was an absolutely perfect sequel to beartown. to me this book is perfect and i will accept no criticisms! it's everything!!
frederik backman is genuinely one of the most talented writers i have ever come across; his words are so rich and powerful, yet so simple and blunt. the way he reveals such subtle yet obvious truths about humanity is so clever and my copy of us against you is HEAVILY annotated, just like beartown. there are so many lines that just live in my head rent free because they're so beautiful. i especially love how he uses foreshadowing alongside the commentary of the characters.
the plot was also incredible, i loved how this one delved deeper into the rivalry between the two towns and their hockey teams, because backman gives a lot of insight into how sports culture can affect a community, especially when it's taken seriously to a high degree. it was really enlightening for me, too because i'm not much of a sports person, but this allowed me to dig a lot deeper into sports culture and why it is so important to people, as well as the consequences it presents. at the end of the day it's largely about human nature, the people we choose to be and the people we can't help being, the choices we make and how they affect ourselves and those around us. it's about believing in something bigger than yourself.
lastly, the characters of beartown are SO SO SO special to me they will always have a place in my heart. i was rooting for so many of them throughout the book and i'm so excited to see where the finale of the trilogy will take them, especially because it's about BENJI!!! he's my favourite.
i cannot recommend this serious enough, please please PLEASE read it it's incredible!!!
Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
this book is not bad, but i enjoyed reading it. after finishing the good girl's guide to murder trilogy, a cutesy YA romance was exactly what i needed.
the romance was nice but nothing special. i think ali hazelwood's books have really been going downhill for me since love, theoretically. i don't understand why she had to make check & mate YA, because to me, nothing about this felt like a YA book except for the cringey writing and the age change of the characters. i feel like she just decided to make them 18 but then didn't actually put effort into creating the character of an 18 year old and truly getting inside their head. sure, mallory was immature, but all every main character in ali hazelwood's books are the exact same, and they are all fully adults. i feel like the story would have worked just fine with just a few minor changes even if they were 30. mallory also pissed me off so much; i'm sorry but if you exclude her chess abilities, she is an idiot.
however, there were some cute parts between her and nolan that i enjoyed so it definitely wasn't all bad. he was so obsessed with her and it was lowkey adorable, there really is something to be said about someone understanding your passion and truly caring about it because you do, because they want you to be happy. also, i'd never read a romance book about chess before though, so i liked how it was a slightly new twist to a regular romance book. i don't really know anything about chess though, so i can't speak on how accurate any of the terms were.
to sum it up, it was pretty decent, but there are much better YA books out there.
the romance was nice but nothing special. i think ali hazelwood's books have really been going downhill for me since love, theoretically. i don't understand why she had to make check & mate YA, because to me, nothing about this felt like a YA book except for the cringey writing and the age change of the characters. i feel like she just decided to make them 18 but then didn't actually put effort into creating the character of an 18 year old and truly getting inside their head. sure, mallory was immature, but all every main character in ali hazelwood's books are the exact same, and they are all fully adults. i feel like the story would have worked just fine with just a few minor changes even if they were 30. mallory also pissed me off so much; i'm sorry but if you exclude her chess abilities, she is an idiot.
however, there were some cute parts between her and nolan that i enjoyed so it definitely wasn't all bad. he was so obsessed with her and it was lowkey adorable, there really is something to be said about someone understanding your passion and truly caring about it because you do, because they want you to be happy. also, i'd never read a romance book about chess before though, so i liked how it was a slightly new twist to a regular romance book. i don't really know anything about chess though, so i can't speak on how accurate any of the terms were.
to sum it up, it was pretty decent, but there are much better YA books out there.
As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
i'm going to be sick. oh my god. i'm genuinely so hurt and empty right now because that ending CRUSHED ME. HOW WILL I SLEEP AT NIGHT WTF???????????? i need a pip and ravi happy ending STAT i am not okay!!!
will this book series haunt me forever? probably! am i still really glad i read it? DEFINITELY. the rollercoaster of emotions i went through while reading this trilogy is genuinely insane, all of the plot twists and the character building were so expertly crafted.
while i do understand why holly jackson ended the series as she did, because there is way more drama and shock factor that way, i do lowkey think it would have been possible for pip to just tell the police that jason was the DT killer; her DNA was all over his car, there's evidence she escaped from the storage closet, there's andie's email, green scene ltd, security alarm etc. i was honestly so surprised that pip didn't connect the dots about jason being DT right after she read andie's email; it was so obvious. even if the police wouldn't have believed her, the alternative plan she formulated seemed like such an extremely far stretch to go.
it's really creepy when you think about how the first book in the series started with pip trying to solve a murder case, wherein it was revealed that sal, the alleged killer was framed, and in the final book in the series pip herself frames max for murder. it's all very full circle, for lack of a better phrase, which is part of what makes it so haunting. i've seen a lot of criticism about this book, from what i gathered it's most people's least favourite in the series. to be honest i understand that point of view. however i just feel like after everything pip has been through, it does kind of make sense why she would lose trust in the police, and lose her ability to think rationally in the situation with jason bell. maybe that's just me trying to make sense of it all, but yeah. i still think it was a really good book. so, SO scary and sad but so good.
read at your own risk though😭
will this book series haunt me forever? probably! am i still really glad i read it? DEFINITELY. the rollercoaster of emotions i went through while reading this trilogy is genuinely insane, all of the plot twists and the character building were so expertly crafted.
while i do understand why holly jackson ended the series as she did, because there is way more drama and shock factor that way, i do lowkey think it would have been possible for pip to just tell the police that jason was the DT killer; her DNA was all over his car, there's evidence she escaped from the storage closet, there's andie's email, green scene ltd, security alarm etc. i was honestly so surprised that pip didn't connect the dots about jason being DT right after she read andie's email; it was so obvious. even if the police wouldn't have believed her, the alternative plan she formulated seemed like such an extremely far stretch to go.
it's really creepy when you think about how the first book in the series started with pip trying to solve a murder case, wherein it was revealed that sal, the alleged killer was framed, and in the final book in the series pip herself frames max for murder. it's all very full circle, for lack of a better phrase, which is part of what makes it so haunting. i've seen a lot of criticism about this book, from what i gathered it's most people's least favourite in the series. to be honest i understand that point of view. however i just feel like after everything pip has been through, it does kind of make sense why she would lose trust in the police, and lose her ability to think rationally in the situation with jason bell. maybe that's just me trying to make sense of it all, but yeah. i still think it was a really good book. so, SO scary and sad but so good.
read at your own risk though😭
Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
i will probably update this review in the morning but for now holy shit i am just speechless
Finding Me by Viola Davis
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
WOW. viola davis's story is so inspirational, from crawling out of poverty to working her way up to being an oscar-winning actress. she is a true testament to perseverance and healing from past trauma.
not only is her story fascinating but the way she expressed her ideas through the writing was so compelling. one of my favourite parts of the book was the discussion about the entertainment industry in general, i feel like i learnt a lot (eg: the difference of how theatre and film are treated) and it was interesting to hear from the perspective of someone who has been working in it for decades. the conversations about the racism, colorism, and misogyny that she faced in hollywood are so valuable because these are conversations that need to be had and there are so many stories that still need to be heard.
overall i really enjoyed this book. if you are going to read it, i would highly recommend listening to the audio book (that's what i did) because she is such a good narrator!! the emotion in her voice when telling the story and just the way she talks in general makes you want to keep listening.
not only is her story fascinating but the way she expressed her ideas through the writing was so compelling. one of my favourite parts of the book was the discussion about the entertainment industry in general, i feel like i learnt a lot (eg: the difference of how theatre and film are treated) and it was interesting to hear from the perspective of someone who has been working in it for decades. the conversations about the racism, colorism, and misogyny that she faced in hollywood are so valuable because these are conversations that need to be had and there are so many stories that still need to be heard.
overall i really enjoyed this book. if you are going to read it, i would highly recommend listening to the audio book (that's what i did) because she is such a good narrator!! the emotion in her voice when telling the story and just the way she talks in general makes you want to keep listening.
Alice Walker's Short Story Everyday Use by Martin Eder
finally finished my last story for ap lit summer homework!!!
3.0