swegory_grindle's reviews
161 reviews

This Weightless World by Adam Soto

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

Bloodchild and Other Stories by Octavia E. Butler

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

Schismatrix Plus by Bruce Sterling

challenging dark funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

Martian Time-Slip by Philip K. Dick

challenging dark funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

I really love how Philip K. Dick used repetitive imagery, narrative fragmentation, and perspective shifts to effectively depict time as a living, evolving force subject to both internal psychological processes and external societal decay.

Dick used repetition as a central device to evoke the fluid, non-linear nature of time. Recurring phrases, motifs, and images—such as time slips and decaying landscapes—mirror the cyclical and mutating quality of temporal experience. This repetition not only reinforces the thematic undercurrent of time’s instability but also unsettles the reader, inviting multiple interpretations of events. 

Additionally, Dick employed a fragmented narrative structure and shifting perspectives. The disjointed chronology, interweaving flash-forwards, flashbacks, and subjective time perceptions (notably through Manfred Steiner’s unique view), creates layers of temporal reality. This multiplicity of viewpoints and the deliberate narrative disjunction serve to embody the notion that time is mutable and multifaceted—a dynamic entity that resists a singular, linear interpretation. 

Octavia E. Butler: The Last Interview: and Other Conversations by Melville House

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

Survivor by Octavia E. Butler

4.5

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

adventurous funny hopeful informative lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Uncultured by Daniella Mestyanek Young

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse

Moderate: Incest, Rape, Suicide

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Aside from Peter Watts’s depiction of “vampires,” Octavia Butler’s portrayal of the Ina as mutual symbionts with humans not only allows readers to suspend their disbelief, but also question what it means to be free. 

Remain in Love: Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club, Tina by Chris Frantz

informative lighthearted reflective

3.25

The book reads like a breezy conversation with your “cool” uncle recalling his rock-and-roll stories. Like other reviewers, I would have liked more nerdy explanations of sound and technique.