thefriendlyabyss's reviews
116 reviews

Wicked by Gregory Maguire

adventurous dark informative 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

3.5

The world building and expansion of Oz is impressive but there are many portions of the book where the story struggles to hold my attention.

Pillars of Creation: How the James Webb Telescope Unlocked the Secrets of the Cosmos by Richard Panek

adventurous hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

4.5

A fascinating and easily digestible look into one of humanity’s greatest technical achievements, the tortured path it took to get it off the ground, and the many insights and questions it has provided about our place in the universe. 

This is a quick read that is sure to peak everyone’s interest about our place in the night sky. Definitely recommend this book!

The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

The Refugees offers a unique insight into refugee life, brought ably to life by Nguyen’s signature introspective style. Worth checking out! 

The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective relaxing slow-paced

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

4.25

A melancholy book about life and all its mundane quirks. What happens when you feel like you’ve missed out on something so fundamental to your life? What happens when you face that choice and choose wrong? 

Murakami tackles all of this and more in this book. He plays with all manner of ideas involving dreams, imagination, duality, and what fundamentally makes someone themselves. Is there a soul? A fundamental essence of you? Murakami might make you say yes. 

Definitely recommend this book. 

On Cuba: Reflections on 70 Years of Revolution and Struggle by Noam Chomsky, Vijay Prashad

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad fast-paced

4.0

On Cuba provides and easy-to-understand brief history of the successes of the Cuban Revolution and the United States’ obsessive determination to see it destroyed. 

The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

4.5

Coates writes beautifully about writing and its capability to change minds.

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder by David Grann

adventurous informative inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

David Grann weaves a truly astounding tale that borders in incredulity if it weren’t meticulously documented. Definitely worth a read.  

The Terror by Dan Simmons

adventurous dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A brilliant book that’ll teach you everything you need to know about sailing and surviving in cold climates while also telling you a riveting tale of the human will to continue on despite the odds.

The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler

adventurous emotional informative mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

The Tusks is a brisk novel that displayed Nayler’s adept talent for blending science and storytelling. Definitely worth reading. 

Ancient Sorceries and Other Weird Stories by Algernon Blackwood

adventurous challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Blackwood deploys his cerebral and at times terrifying style with some degree of success here. Many of the stories like “The Willows” and “The Wendigo” are intimidate tales of very human characters battling with the unknowing cosmic whim of nature and that Call of the Wild that can draw humans to their doom.