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sisa_moyo's reviews
195 reviews
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Vol. 5 by Koyoharu Gotouge
A mountain of spider demon and a stoic hashira severs spider power kizuki.
It was pretty solid.
It was pretty solid.
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
This is such a silly, goofy, laugh out loud funny book. It captured being young, the anxieties of navigating your potential, your future and feeling out a crush and all that so well. The banter was top tier, the stakes were quite equal to the setting and the world and the characters were absolutely loveable for me.
It’s obviously a super idealistic book, the portrayals of the intricacies and intimacies of those of the Crown are clearly fictionalised; the political movies are so rosy and idealistic - to help people; and I can tell you that that is not how politics and international relations work and play.
But you’re not reading this book for textbook representations of politics and political motives or biblically accurate international relations.
It’s cute, it’s funny, it has my least favourite thing - smut of any kind in the written word, but I still worked through the book and enjoyed it thoroughly.
It’s obviously a super idealistic book, the portrayals of the intricacies and intimacies of those of the Crown are clearly fictionalised; the political movies are so rosy and idealistic - to help people; and I can tell you that that is not how politics and international relations work and play.
But you’re not reading this book for textbook representations of politics and political motives or biblically accurate international relations.
It’s cute, it’s funny, it has my least favourite thing - smut of any kind in the written word, but I still worked through the book and enjoyed it thoroughly.
Spare Me Your Mercy by Sammon
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
I could not for the life of me get into it
The grammatical errors are jarring, the insta-love with no yearning??? The deadass murder mystery with too many people dead to keep track of within the first 20%
It’s a no from me
The grammatical errors are jarring, the insta-love with no yearning??? The deadass murder mystery with too many people dead to keep track of within the first 20%
It’s a no from me
Beyond Power Transitions: The Lessons of East Asian History and the Future of U.S.-China Relations by Xinru Ma, David C. Kang
informative
This is an insightful book that builds of Ma and Kang's 2017 paper on the likelihood of war between a rising China and the global hegemon USA along the lines of power transition theory.
In illuminating the limits of power transition theory especially on the non-Western context, Ma and Kang present the lessons of East Asian history, that of a shared regional understanding and the primacy of internal challenges over external threats.
While repetitive at times and heavy handed at times, this is a super interesting, well researched, coherently argued and easily readable text on: the limits of Eurocentric theories, the lessons from East Asian history for Intl Relations, and the future of US-China relations. Highly recommend for those interested in China's rise, East Asian history and to students of IR, Political Science or Global History.
[e-arc courtesy of Netgalley]
Full review: Review | NetGalley
In illuminating the limits of power transition theory especially on the non-Western context, Ma and Kang present the lessons of East Asian history, that of a shared regional understanding and the primacy of internal challenges over external threats.
While repetitive at times and heavy handed at times, this is a super interesting, well researched, coherently argued and easily readable text on: the limits of Eurocentric theories, the lessons from East Asian history for Intl Relations, and the future of US-China relations. Highly recommend for those interested in China's rise, East Asian history and to students of IR, Political Science or Global History.
[e-arc courtesy of Netgalley]
Full review: Review | NetGalley
A Crane Among Wolves by June Hur
In this novel we follow a young girl as she searches for her sister who has been stolen from her home by the crown and gets tangled in a plot to move the heavens.
I always have a fun time with Hur’s work. As someone interested in Korean studies and historical fictions, her works always keep me engaged and entertained throughout and this was no exception. She never fails me with the political intrigue, murder investigation, the risk for family plot set in a dark time in Korean history so I knew I was going to enjoy this one.
I always have a fun time with Hur’s work. As someone interested in Korean studies and historical fictions, her works always keep me engaged and entertained throughout and this was no exception. She never fails me with the political intrigue, murder investigation, the risk for family plot set in a dark time in Korean history so I knew I was going to enjoy this one.
Inside Harare Alcatraz and Other Short Stories by Andrew Chatora
This stories explore the black Zimbabwean experience within the country and those of the diaspora in the UK as immigrants.
I struggled to get through this book even with it being so short. First, I was jarred by the dialogue, most of which did not sound natural or conversational at all. For me, it did not read like how people speak or would speak given their age, where they were from - it didn’t feel localised. Additionally a lot of the phrases, and paragraphs were quite repetitive in a way that would kill the flow of a sentence or make the story boring to read through.
I was also not engaged by the stories the author writes from women’s perspectives which were mostly of a sexual nature. I found that one of my favourite stories while it was about/ centred around women was not from within their point of view but from a teenage boy looking into these lives. The shift to writing from the perspective of women and their subsequent portrayal personally irked me.
While I resonated with the themes of the stories and found the messages worthwhile, the execution, in Chatora’s writing style doesn’t leave the message to the subtext and repeats issues with a single story, was not for me. There was a lot of telling not showing, half of the stories felt unlike fiction laced with the relevant themes and more like news articles or manifestos for columns or blog posts.
I struggled to get through this book even with it being so short. First, I was jarred by the dialogue, most of which did not sound natural or conversational at all. For me, it did not read like how people speak or would speak given their age, where they were from - it didn’t feel localised. Additionally a lot of the phrases, and paragraphs were quite repetitive in a way that would kill the flow of a sentence or make the story boring to read through.
I was also not engaged by the stories the author writes from women’s perspectives which were mostly of a sexual nature. I found that one of my favourite stories while it was about/ centred around women was not from within their point of view but from a teenage boy looking into these lives. The shift to writing from the perspective of women and their subsequent portrayal personally irked me.
While I resonated with the themes of the stories and found the messages worthwhile, the execution, in Chatora’s writing style doesn’t leave the message to the subtext and repeats issues with a single story, was not for me. There was a lot of telling not showing, half of the stories felt unlike fiction laced with the relevant themes and more like news articles or manifestos for columns or blog posts.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Vol. 4 by Koyoharu Gotouge
From the demon with the drums to the mountain of spiders and Zenitsu’s hidden strength
To the Kennels: And Other Stories by Pyun Hye-young
fast-paced
This is the first I’ve read of the author’s short stories. They’re weird, at times unsettling and mildly suspenseful. They circle around particular characters who’ve found themselves in absurd, inexplicably strange circumstances and the stories each delve into the human condition.
I liked the stories overall, especially the titular story which was the most thrilling and unsettling of the collection.I also enjoyed Friday hello, Lost and Found and the Night Work
The stories delve into the human condition and experience with Kafkaesque elements throughout and the unexplained oddities made them so enjoyable to read.
I did feel that the stories were not as scary or eerie as I had expected and that there was room to go darker, scarier, more nightmarish.
I liked the stories overall, especially the titular story which was the most thrilling and unsettling of the collection.
The stories delve into the human condition and experience with Kafkaesque elements throughout and the unexplained oddities made them so enjoyable to read.
I did feel that the stories were not as scary or eerie as I had expected and that there was room to go darker, scarier, more nightmarish.
You Get So Alone at Times That It Just Makes Sense by Charles Bukowski
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
Back to library
Schoolgirl by Osamu Dazai
reflective
fast-paced
An interesting exploration of depression, loneliness, adolescence and grief. I think that this is less reflective of a schoolgirl and more of Dazai's anxieties, feelings and philosophies. It's a very introspective stream of consciousness than anything with many profound passages on anxiety, morality and sadness. I liked it for what it was, it was short, concise and impactful in the themes it touched upon.