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youreawizardjerry's reviews
115 reviews
What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia by Elizabeth Catte
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
5.0
Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I don't know what it was about the writing but I just didn't care about anyone or anything that was happening.
Maybe Mrs. Richardson? but even for being a central figure her impact fell short imo.
With peace and love, this book could've been 100 pages max with all the nothing that was going on.
I genuinely loved some of the themes explored, the brutal logistics of coming back from systemic disenfranchisment in particular, humanizing the often-dehumanized, legal prejudice etc it was great until the author decided to undermine it all with that ending ( I don't mind predictable endings and I love an unreliable narrator as much as the next, but a predictable ending thrown in at the very end with poor pacing, and so many missed forshadowing opportunities? Yeah it didn't hit. ) A big miss for me.
Maybe Mrs. Richardson? but even for being a central figure her impact fell short imo.
With peace and love, this book could've been 100 pages max with all the nothing that was going on.
I genuinely loved some of the themes explored, the brutal logistics of coming back from systemic disenfranchisment in particular, humanizing the often-dehumanized, legal prejudice etc it was great until the author decided to undermine it all with that ending (
To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It took me 5 months to get through this and I don't regret it, but it was at times difficult to find the resolve to continue. It has a ton of internal dialogue, is very slow, and not much reward comes through in the ways you usually expect from stories like this.
I don't like to tell people who don't enjoy the same books as me that they "just didn't get it" or some variation of that. I don't like insinuating that there is some deeper subtext that they've missed somewhere along the way, so don't misunderstand me as pompous when I say this but-- there is a perspective here that not everyone can readily see the additional depth of. There is an incredible (I cannot stress that enough) INCREDIBLE nuance depicted from an Indigenous lens that I think others will have a far more difficult time contextualizing the story around. For a lot of us as Indigenous people, dystopia has already happened, we live in a world where our societies were uprooted and gutted in every way imaginable. Non-indigenous people can read through these worlds with a sort of catharsis like thank god ours isn't like that, or maybe you see the similarities show through and find it disconcerting that maybe we could become that etc. But, that's happened already (and still is). To us though, not to you. And that heavily changes the way the story reads in my opinion. Especially Book II-- oh my GOD. The chapters of coming into your own when you're growing up as an Indigenous person were strikingly accurate. The confusion, the radicalization-- the way it succumbs you (sometimes misguided, sometimes not), the shifting dynamics within queerness, where the decolonizing line is drawn/ if it is drawn at all, blood quantum with relation to overcompensation/complacency, what community and culture must you relinquish in order to make it in the society imposed onto you. I see so many people disengaged with Book II and while admittedly dense, it is so deeply personal. I am still amazed at how Hanya captured that complexity.
But of course maybe regardless of identity you still just didn't like it lol, and that's fair. I loved it, in a far different way than other similar stories and other Hanya work. Each was satisfying to complete, but not necessarily satisfying endings. I am okay with not having all the answers. I actually think it helps the collective story rather than hinder it if her focus was the interconnections of each book not each it’s own standalone. I enjoyed the ride as well and that counts for a lot to me. I would genuinely love to read this ABSOLUTE UNIT OF A BOOK again (specifically annotate it) in the future knowing what I know now.
I don't like to tell people who don't enjoy the same books as me that they "just didn't get it" or some variation of that. I don't like insinuating that there is some deeper subtext that they've missed somewhere along the way, so don't misunderstand me as pompous when I say this but-- there is a perspective here that not everyone can readily see the additional depth of. There is an incredible (I cannot stress that enough) INCREDIBLE nuance depicted from an Indigenous lens that I think others will have a far more difficult time contextualizing the story around. For a lot of us as Indigenous people, dystopia has already happened, we live in a world where our societies were uprooted and gutted in every way imaginable. Non-indigenous people can read through these worlds with a sort of catharsis like thank god ours isn't like that, or maybe you see the similarities show through and find it disconcerting that maybe we could become that etc. But, that's happened already (and still is). To us though, not to you. And that heavily changes the way the story reads in my opinion. Especially Book II-- oh my GOD. The chapters of coming into your own when you're growing up as an Indigenous person were strikingly accurate. The confusion, the radicalization-- the way it succumbs you (sometimes misguided, sometimes not), the shifting dynamics within queerness, where the decolonizing line is drawn/ if it is drawn at all, blood quantum with relation to overcompensation/complacency, what community and culture must you relinquish in order to make it in the society imposed onto you. I see so many people disengaged with Book II and while admittedly dense, it is so deeply personal. I am still amazed at how Hanya captured that complexity.
But of course maybe regardless of identity you still just didn't like it lol, and that's fair. I loved it, in a far different way than other similar stories and other Hanya work. Each was satisfying to complete, but not necessarily satisfying endings. I am okay with not having all the answers. I actually think it helps the collective story rather than hinder it if her focus was the interconnections of each book not each it’s own standalone. I enjoyed the ride as well and that counts for a lot to me. I would genuinely love to read this ABSOLUTE UNIT OF A BOOK again (specifically annotate it) in the future knowing what I know now.
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
This memoir never felt like it was trying to be an advisory, like it was teaching me lessons, yet I walk away from it with new armor I didn't have before. I feel like I can be a stronger queer for myself and others after having read this. Really appreciated the candor and research throughout, so refreshing. I can't remember consuming anything else like this. The format reminded me of art exhibitions and video essays you get lost in. More than once I’d find myself frozen after seeing what I thought were my own hyper-specific intimate thoughts being echoed to a T in front of me. We're never as alone as we feel. I'm young and excited to see how I age with this. One of the very few books I can see myself re-reading in the future, multiple times over.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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
4.0
Are You Listening? by Tillie Walden
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Stunning art (Cannot stress enough how gorgeous!) but composition and design made it tough to follow at certain points.
Speech bubble order was not always clear, feel like I couldn't find the right panel pacing, and both girls look so similar that I confused them for a solid third of the book.
All technical critques though, the actual story was a poignant one that I'm grateful exists. Shed a few tears.
Speech bubble order was not always clear, feel like I couldn't find the right panel pacing, and both girls look so similar that I confused them for a solid third of the book.
All technical critques though, the actual story was a poignant one that I'm grateful exists. Shed a few tears.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence
Elegy for the Undead by Matthew Vesely
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Vomit, Murder
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
dark
inspiring
fast-paced
3.5
A praiseworthy and unique life story filled with relatable and inspiring beats, but I just did not find the writing style itself particularly engaging. Story vs storytelling for me. Easy and accessible read though, anyone could pick it up and that’s rad.
Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Homophobia, Vomit
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Damn, didn't love it like I thought I would.
I found that the prose & dialogue lacked subtlety, the relationships lacked depth,(wanted more out of the Filippa and The Marks family situations, and wished Rio added some additional concrete Oliver/James' development instead of getting this nebulous gray area of consistently telling rather than showing. I get it you're paralleling theater but it's not theater you gotta SHOW ME. Granted there are a few showcasings of their questioning relationship but enough to take the fall for a murder charge? No way. I could believe that Oliver had feelings for James (barely) but wasn't sold through the text that he would give up everything for him. Just wasn't well done imo.) and overall that the book lacked gay! LOL
I want my money back, there's like hardly any gay at all, dude! *Kevin Sorbo Hercules voice* DISAAAPPOINTED.
If you dig dark academia, predictability, and frankly one-dimensional characters (brief mentions about bad parents is the extent of most of them) that will break into Shakepearean quotes at every given chance, boy is this the read for you.
In all fairness, this book is for the theater folk. Those that will find the references and structure endearing and commendable and thats genuinely lovely, but for me (not-a-theater-folk) taking it solely from a narrative-standpoint-- it was cliché, YA tropey, and superficial. I liked it in theory, but it wasn't a satisfying read.
I found that the prose & dialogue lacked subtlety, the relationships lacked depth,
I want my money back, there's like hardly any gay at all, dude! *Kevin Sorbo Hercules voice* DISAAAPPOINTED.
If you dig dark academia, predictability, and frankly one-dimensional characters (brief mentions about bad parents is the extent of most of them) that will break into Shakepearean quotes at every given chance, boy is this the read for you.
In all fairness, this book is for the theater folk. Those that will find the references and structure endearing and commendable and thats genuinely lovely, but for me (not-a-theater-folk) taking it solely from a narrative-standpoint-- it was cliché, YA tropey, and superficial. I liked it in theory, but it wasn't a satisfying read.