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whatsallyreadnext's Reviews (719)
funny
informative
medium-paced
I bought this book last year ahead of our holiday in Japan back in May, and I managed to read it just in time before we set off for Tokyo! I hadn't actually heard of Chris Broad's popular YouTube channel Abroad in Japan, but I was drawn in by the beautiful cover and the fact that it's a book about one of my favourite countries (which I last visited back in 2018)!
In Abroad in Japan, Chris Broad shares about his experiences living in Japan for ten years after securing a teaching job in a northern Japanese city. We follow some of his mishaps as he initially struggles to adjust to life in Japan and its customs, before eventually, fully embracing his new life and how his YouTube channel began.
I enjoyed reading about Japan from Broad's perspective and it sounded like an honest depiction of how much of a culture shock it really is for anyone arriving in Japan for the first time. I liked that he incorporated Japanese words and sayings in his book, and I learnt some new things along the way.
I'd recommend this book for anyone interested in Japan or planning to visit the country.
In Abroad in Japan, Chris Broad shares about his experiences living in Japan for ten years after securing a teaching job in a northern Japanese city. We follow some of his mishaps as he initially struggles to adjust to life in Japan and its customs, before eventually, fully embracing his new life and how his YouTube channel began.
I enjoyed reading about Japan from Broad's perspective and it sounded like an honest depiction of how much of a culture shock it really is for anyone arriving in Japan for the first time. I liked that he incorporated Japanese words and sayings in his book, and I learnt some new things along the way.
I'd recommend this book for anyone interested in Japan or planning to visit the country.
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When the Women's Prize first revealed their longlist for Fiction this year, I knew that River East, River West would be one that I'd want to prioritise from the list. I always gravitate towards Asian literature reads, and this one is set in China and written by a French-Chinese-American author. I really loved this one, so I'm delighted that it was shortlisted, and what an achievement to be the only debut novel on the shortlist too!
The novel follows two timelines, which interlink - one is set in Shanghai, in 2007, where 14-year-old Alva is not happy about her American white mother Sloan getting married to their rich Chinese landlord Lu Fang, so she starts planning her escape from China.
The other timeline focuses on Lu Fang, in Qingdao, China, over twenty years prior, where he is a newlywed, working as a shipping clerk, who ends up meeting a woman that has an impact on him more than he could have ever imagined.
It was a refreshing spin on the usual east-west immigration narrative, as it focused on a white woman's experience of living in a country with a predominantly Asian population, whilst raising a mixed race child.
I particularly loved Lu Fang's story whose character evolved during the book, and probably was the most impactful and memorable for me. It was also interesting to read about Alva's struggles with her mixed race identity and the dynamic between her and her mother.
Overall, I found it difficult to put down, as it left me always wanting to find out more about the characters and their stories. I think it's fully deserving of a place on the shortlist this year! I was lucky enough to meet her at the Women's Prize party and enjoyed chatting to her about her book, she is so lovely!
The novel follows two timelines, which interlink - one is set in Shanghai, in 2007, where 14-year-old Alva is not happy about her American white mother Sloan getting married to their rich Chinese landlord Lu Fang, so she starts planning her escape from China.
The other timeline focuses on Lu Fang, in Qingdao, China, over twenty years prior, where he is a newlywed, working as a shipping clerk, who ends up meeting a woman that has an impact on him more than he could have ever imagined.
It was a refreshing spin on the usual east-west immigration narrative, as it focused on a white woman's experience of living in a country with a predominantly Asian population, whilst raising a mixed race child.
I particularly loved Lu Fang's story whose character evolved during the book, and probably was the most impactful and memorable for me. It was also interesting to read about Alva's struggles with her mixed race identity and the dynamic between her and her mother.
Overall, I found it difficult to put down, as it left me always wanting to find out more about the characters and their stories. I think it's fully deserving of a place on the shortlist this year! I was lucky enough to meet her at the Women's Prize party and enjoyed chatting to her about her book, she is so lovely!
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Longlisted for this year's Women's Prize for Fiction, this is another one that I think could be a contender and is on my dream shortlist! It's a fairly short book at less than 200 pages, but it certainly packs a punch and covers a lot of themes, including family, grief, queer love, and trauma.
Jessica works as a scientist who is researching the reasons why people choose to end their lives to support her controversial view that committing such an act can be morally right. However, one single event makes her question whether this is still true.
Although it took a little time to get used to initially, I enjoyed how Black had structured the book into various flashback periods of Jessica's life, interspersed by a funeral set in the present day. Whose funeral this is for is gradually and cleverly revealed in the book. Despite the seriousness of the topics, I think that Black successfully interweaves humour and a sense of lightheartedness amongst the trauma and sadness that occurs in the book.
Jessica works as a scientist who is researching the reasons why people choose to end their lives to support her controversial view that committing such an act can be morally right. However, one single event makes her question whether this is still true.
Although it took a little time to get used to initially, I enjoyed how Black had structured the book into various flashback periods of Jessica's life, interspersed by a funeral set in the present day. Whose funeral this is for is gradually and cleverly revealed in the book. Despite the seriousness of the topics, I think that Black successfully interweaves humour and a sense of lightheartedness amongst the trauma and sadness that occurs in the book.
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this recently ahead of next week's Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist announcement and I think it could be a good contender! I'd heard great things about this book beforehand and overall, I liked it and how honest it was about the challenges of motherhood - in fact, it was so honest that it almost put me off motherhood at times!
Written as an inner monologue
to her son from a young mother, who is struggling with early motherhood, feeling isolated and facing the strain of her marriage, this novel was raw, darkly funny and brutally honest that paints quite a bleak picture of her experiences. When an old friend appears in her life again, he could be the lifeline to remind her of the woman she used to be before motherhood.
Her tough experiences of motherhood felt relentless in the novel and I almost felt exhausted from it all as the reader, but it was certainly a powerful book. I was conscious that at times, she wasn't always the most reliable narrator, and that part of how she'd describe things which happened would be related to her exhaustion as a mother.
Written as an inner monologue
to her son from a young mother, who is struggling with early motherhood, feeling isolated and facing the strain of her marriage, this novel was raw, darkly funny and brutally honest that paints quite a bleak picture of her experiences. When an old friend appears in her life again, he could be the lifeline to remind her of the woman she used to be before motherhood.
Her tough experiences of motherhood felt relentless in the novel and I almost felt exhausted from it all as the reader, but it was certainly a powerful book. I was conscious that at times, she wasn't always the most reliable narrator, and that part of how she'd describe things which happened would be related to her exhaustion as a mother.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I had been eyeing up this book for a little while (partly drawn in by the octopus on the cover!), so I was pleased when my work's book club picked this for one of our reads recently.
The story centres around Tova Sullivan, who takes up a job being a night-shift aquarium cleaner after her husband passes away. The disappearance of their eighteen-year-old son, Erik, on a boat over thirty years ago, still mystifies her and keeping busy has been her coping mechanism.
Tova forms a special bond with a giant Pacific octopus called Marcellus, who lives at the aquarium and is extremely clever. This is proven when he is able to deduce exactly what happened to Erik all those years ago, and now needs to figure out how to help Tova discover this herself before time runs out.
This debut novel was nothing like I'd ever read before - it is part magical realism, part mystery, with a bit of fun and quirkiness thrown in too. I particularly enjoyed reading the chapters written from the perspective of an octopus, Marcellus was a joyful character! Although the book dragged a bit during the initial setup of the characters and around the middle, the pace picked up a bit once there were a few reveals to the reader and I felt more invested in the story by then too. I think the ending improved the book for me as well as the inclusion of the octopus!
The story centres around Tova Sullivan, who takes up a job being a night-shift aquarium cleaner after her husband passes away. The disappearance of their eighteen-year-old son, Erik, on a boat over thirty years ago, still mystifies her and keeping busy has been her coping mechanism.
Tova forms a special bond with a giant Pacific octopus called Marcellus, who lives at the aquarium and is extremely clever. This is proven when he is able to deduce exactly what happened to Erik all those years ago, and now needs to figure out how to help Tova discover this herself before time runs out.
This debut novel was nothing like I'd ever read before - it is part magical realism, part mystery, with a bit of fun and quirkiness thrown in too. I particularly enjoyed reading the chapters written from the perspective of an octopus, Marcellus was a joyful character! Although the book dragged a bit during the initial setup of the characters and around the middle, the pace picked up a bit once there were a few reveals to the reader and I felt more invested in the story by then too. I think the ending improved the book for me as well as the inclusion of the octopus!
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced