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valetparkering's reviews
262 reviews
You Feel It Just Below the Ribs by Jeffrey Cranor, Janina Matthewson
4.5
I fell off of Night Vale and related media early in my college career, so I haven't listened to the podcast that this is tied into.
Anyway. Irrelevant.
I really loved the tension between Miriam and the editors, and how you become less and less sure of their objectivity as the book goes on (for me it was kind of snarky and then there was a hard break around the Age Ten Protocols).
Bonus points for being casually queer
Anyway. Irrelevant.
I really loved the tension between Miriam and the editors, and how you become less and less sure of their objectivity as the book goes on (for me it was kind of snarky and then there was a hard break around the Age Ten Protocols).
Bonus points for being casually queer
Men Who Hate Women by Laura Bates
4.0
Unfortunately this is my house so none of the info was new and since the book is five years old, quite a bit outdated. I think a lot of these pipelines are still functioning, but the actors have changed quite a lot (I think Bates would get a kick out of Andrew Tate). The internet moves quickly.
That said, I really appreciated the passion that came across in the writing. Bates is not interested in softening her message and I liked how directly she dismantled some of the more petty retorts.
I was a little on edge the whole time (as I usually am with feminist pieces) if trans women were going to be addressed in any way. I don't think they were directly, but I didn't spot any terf rhetoric and the author always used LGBT (as opposed to LGB) and there were some nods to racial intersectionality. The book was overall focused on the different man-centered communities and how they encourage violence against women as a whole.
That said, I really appreciated the passion that came across in the writing. Bates is not interested in softening her message and I liked how directly she dismantled some of the more petty retorts.
I was a little on edge the whole time (as I usually am with feminist pieces) if trans women were going to be addressed in any way. I don't think they were directly, but I didn't spot any terf rhetoric and the author always used LGBT (as opposed to LGB) and there were some nods to racial intersectionality. The book was overall focused on the different man-centered communities and how they encourage violence against women as a whole.
The Warden by Daniel M. Ford
Did not finish book. Stopped at 24%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 24%.
Novelization of the author's dnd campaign. Stopped right when the love interest and company joined so that was probably the plot hook but I just don't caaaaaaaaaaaare
Thyme Travellers: An Anthology of Palestinian Speculative Fiction by Sonia Sulaiman
4.5
Gorgeous stories
Only one or two that I didn't completely jive with
Only one or two that I didn't completely jive with
Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army by Jeremy Scahill
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
this is so petty but the narrator is doing that "in a world..." movie trailer voice and I just can't listen to that for 14 hours
The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
3.5
Well this definitely didn't help my climate despair
Interesting to learn about all these animals and how we've been thinking about extinction for the past few hundred years.
Author seemed kind of out of touch at points (with the park cashier, some of the framing in South America)
Interesting to learn about all these animals and how we've been thinking about extinction for the past few hundred years.
Author seemed kind of out of touch at points (with the park cashier, some of the framing in South America)
Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse
3.0
Gonna fully admit this was on me for not getting to it sooner. Read book 1 about 2 years ago now. I still really enjoyed the world but I was kind of lost on the characters, so I had a hard time getting into it. Gonna aim to get to book three this year so I don't have that super long gap again.
Lakelore by Anna-Marie McLemore
3.0
Unfortunately this one was grating a little hard on the Representation angle. For such a short book, we spend A LOT of time going over Lore and Bastian's patterns of thinking. They use so many metaphors for how their brains work that the lake, which is supposed to be this magical element, never really rises above the level of metaphor. It was really unclear what exactly the stakes were, since no one else can see the world under the lake or the alibrijes.
This is really just a case of not-for-me-itis, I'm sure this would work well for other people.
This is really just a case of not-for-me-itis, I'm sure this would work well for other people.
The Lies of the Ajungo by Moses Ose Utomi
5.0
Loved the writing, loved the messaging.
I feel like even if you know exactly what the twist is, it doesn't ruin the book because it has that fable-like tone. It's set up to be a metaphor from the jump.
This was exactly as long as it needed to be.
I feel like even if you know exactly what the twist is, it doesn't ruin the book because it has that fable-like tone. It's set up to be a metaphor from the jump.
This was exactly as long as it needed to be.