MD

I am a man More sinn'd against than sinning.
^ Lear is pathetic and wrong! His need for power (even when he's voluntarily given it up) is a trait that he's surely handed down to his daughters, which is why most of this happens in the first place. I adore the writing here, and the contrasting narrative with Edmund's betrayal enriches the themes greatly!

AND THEN WHAT?

I cry at nothing, and cry most of the time.

??? so many thoughts. the way he constantly disregards her opinion on her own condition, belittles her, makes her feel silly and isolates her. so upsetting, great work

while i don't believe this essay invalidates the book entirely, & in fact stand by heart of darkness as an important contribution of its era, achebe's essay is of course a compelling & engaging piece of work.

“I have wrestled with Death. It is the most unexciting contest you can imagine, it takes place in an impalpable grayness. With nothing under foot, with nothing around, without spectators, without clamor, without glory, without the great desire of victory, without the great fear of defeat . . . without much belief in your own right, and still less in that of your adversary.”
i understand the criticisms that have been made about this book in recent years, but I look at it this way: the book talks about Africans the way it does because it's the way the white people within the novel view them. The book implies that all of humanity is born from a darkened heart, but the characters aren't smart enough to realize this, so they shift blame elsewhere, cast themselves as saviors. I'm fully aware that the time in this book was written guarantees that it would never be a fully progressive story by today's standards, but for its time it was very important & even now i still believe it is, for historical context if not the message

“I'd know,” said Jim, in the night. “I'd know.”“Sure. You'd just go away and leave me here, Jim.”

the themes of aging and mortality were so poignant and i just think this book is brilliant. so looking forward to reading the rest of the “series”

a little disappointing, the first half of information is interesting & entertaining but around the middle it falls off

You're less than a dog less than a rat less than a bee or an ant less than a white maggot crawling around on a dungheap. You're dead mister and you died for nothing.You're dead mister.Dead.

i feel so ill

omg

Rain, if it comes, will come.This god loves the virus as much as the child.

i wish half-star ratings existed because this is definitely a 3.5. loved some of the poems, but some were so dull that it almost evened out.

I miss you more than I remember you.

i think my tastes have changed since i started this book bc when i went back to finish it, i ended up disliking a few things about vuong's writing style. however, the plot and most other portions of the writing are beautiful! it's just that sometimes it felt like re-used madlibs; i remember __, which is to say i __.

im an idiot and read this one before even the midnighter solo series so i def missed a lot of context <3 but it got me super interested in going back for the rest and ofc gay world's finest is the best ever
ALSO there are a few layouts that made me stare so long at the page i <3 creative panel layouts

screams this book is so fucked up
the repetition i find interesting because it would usually become annoying but here i found it added into a dream-like quality integral to the story

such a beautiful telling of the story!

can't match up to the og series but it was cool to read for things like the judge & the page about cain

“Until recent times, the Kiowas would not speak the name of a dead man. To do so would have been disrespectful and dishonest. The dead take their names with them out of the world,” (pg. 31).
thought the formatting of this one was so unique & cool. after every page i kept going omg!!1!

very much enjoyed this! accessible classic filled w/ beautiful prose.

A few incredible poems mixed in with the good and mediocre. Will prob read again <33

racist and sexist in the way that every few pages there'd be another derogatory remark. chief was a lovely character though, the best thing about reading the book is how you get more insight into his struggles and mindset. <3 chief

oops i read this a few months ago and forgot to log back in to rate it

THE BEST

didn't like it at all but 3 stars bc the chapter six made me sob

short but beautiful!

The ending was a bit frustrating, which is really what's dragging the rating. Otherwise, the prose was beautiful and the atmosphere was <33

Remember liking this a lot, thought the commentary on gov's treatment of mental illness was striking. Want to go back & re-read sometime!