wtb_michael's reviews
2165 reviews

By Chance the Future by Amy Rudder

dark emotional medium-paced

2.5

Nostalgic, episodic novel about being an expat in London at the turn of the millennium - good on youth and politics and chance connections, but it all felt a bit self indulgent at times to me 

Free: Coming of Age at the End of History by Lea Ypi

informative reflective

3.75

Fascinating memoir by a woman who grows up as Albania transitions out of communism in the early 90s

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

adventurous challenging emotional fast-paced

3.75

 Wild, gripping and dramatic, stuffed with intrigue and battles and thrills. Would have been perfect for my upcoming flights tbh, couldn't put it down 

Wildflowers by Peggy Frew

dark emotional sad

4.5

A really wonderful portrait of trauma and addiction, depression and family - the three sisters at the heart of it are brilliantly drawn 

Hydra by Adriane Howell

challenging dark

4.0

Unsettling and strange, funny, compelling and ultimately mysterious - a very enjoyable and odd debut 

New Australian Fiction 2022 by Suzy Garcia

4.0

This starts with an absolute bang and holds a pretty strong level all the way through - always a good, exciting snapshot of Aus fiction in these collections 

Song of Less by Joan Fleming

4.0

 Post-apocalyptic dystopian poetry? Not what I was expecting, but utterly brilliant 

Marshmallow by Victoria Hannan

dark emotional reflective sad

4.25

Utterly readable, beautiful on grief and grieving, friendship and adulthood - not as funny as Kokomo, but more moving I think 

On Immunity: An Inoculation by Eula Biss

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

Short, thoughtful and weirdly timely book about vaccination anxiety, society and our responsibility to each other

Holy Woman: a divine adventure by Louise Omer

fast-paced

2.5

A bit underwhelming, this memoir is light on research and feels a bit directionless as it tries to dig into big, meaty topics around gender and religion.