Kate Mester
A much better story than the movie, which, though well acted, was truly and inexcusably horrible. I can see why Maroh was so angry at the adaptation
Meh. I semi-understand the hype around this book, but I definitely don't understand some of the breathlessly “best book of our times” blurbs from greats like Zadie Smith. I really disliked his drawing style and that you could barely tell characters apart. Having seen nothing else by Drnaso, I can't tell if that's viewed as a feature or a flaw. For me, if yellow hair is the only feature separating one character from another, I'm going with flaw. I liked some of the juxtapositions of the panels and the churning dread felt real, but the intentionally obscured text panels were tiresome and though I read the book in one night, I never felt compelled or moved by the characters or story. It's a final 3 star instead of a 2 because I will keep thinking about the dark side of conspiracy theories after tragedies, but I'm not looking to read more from him.
Absolutely charming and basically an into to baby's first drag in graphic novel form. The dresses were gorgeous, the romance sweet, and the family dynamics uplifting. Totally joyous for ages 9 to adult!
Feynman had a fascinating life, but I think the lack of transitions between topics and chapters made the narrative really jerky and sometimes hard to follow. I'd like to say there's a high school audience for this book, but so far I haven't had any luck in finding readers.
The audiobook narrator did a great job with giving all of the female characters distinct voices and personalities. I really enjoyed her reading. The content, meh. Unlike Gone Girl, I didn't find it as obvious from the beginning because Hawkins did a good job of making all of her characters unlikeable and possible suspects.
The audio was ok, though both narrators very much sounded like adults and were not believable as teens. There's some really good concepts in here for a book taking place on one night and taking on a riot and racial justice themes. The action moves quickly, but the characters and the resolution still feel underbaked.
I drank so much water listening to this! Though they give a hopeful ending, this book feels like a glimpse into a pretty close future that i believe we are as a society are in no way working to avoid. Definitely makes me want to up my own conservation and environmental efforts. Very discussable and would be great paired with lots of nonfiction on the topic. Some hackneyed/out of touch writing (I saw the real him as if he was being unzipped from a zip drive?!?!?!) but the action and pacing made that easier to overlook.
Enjoyable, but I maybe read this too soon after finishing God in Ruins, because I kept comparing the two in my head, unfavorably to Doerr.
Enjoyable, but my least favorite Reynolds (which still means it's awesome), only because his threads were wrapped up too neatly. Spot on, as always, in tone, dialogue, and city description.
Solid 3 1/2. Believable and strong characters, great boy friendships. Audio narrator was perfect
Not as good as FiOS, but had some dead funny one liners delivered by the audio book cast. Have had kids love it, so it's an easy book to sell, especially with a movie tie-in. Will be interested to watch now and see the interpretation
Strong 4 1/2. The audio is read by Edward Herman, which is such a delight, as his dignified and classical delivery is so perfectly suited to the story. Liz and I listened to this on a car trip together, and it took much longer to get through because we kept having to pause for exclamations and discussions (recommended!). The story is so fantastical, I was on the edge of my seat on what happened next to him and his friends in the story. I also appreciated the historical details. Though they did slow the story, I learned from them and they inspired a lot of great discussions. Glad this is on the HBOB list!
The staging seems really great, so I bet I would be wowed by the immersive experience and special effects, but Tiffany's screenplay was labored. JK's writing and wordplay have always been excellent and much more subtle. Perhaps I don't know theater well enough, and maybe you do need dialogue like this to explain emotion or action, but the dialogue was so clunky and obvious and kept spelling out (ha) the obvious emotions as opposed to letting the viewer/reader understand or infer them.
1.5 Started audio, but though read by the author himself it wasn't particularly great, so after 3/4 just skimmed the book to end. Why was this so long? Not sure if brutal editing would have redeemed this though. It's a checklist of diversity with no actual development given to any of the diverse characters, the main character is pretty (I believe unintentionally) awful and takes emotionally from all other characters, particularly the female identifying characters, and the trauma is continuous with no build, break, or resolution. Also, it feels implausible that everything happened so quickly but continuously. Had high hopes for this, but was disappointed.
3.5 A modern take on dark fairytales with great world building but rather flat characters. Lots of dramatic and harrowing events happen to them but at an emotional remove from the reader. Worth it if you're looking for darker fairytales or fantasy that you'll enjoy at a distance.
Euan Morton is an excellent audio narrator, making these books even more enjoyable thanks to his great acting. A little slow to start but another fun entry into this world. Ends on a predictable cliffhanger to take you into her planned third book. A fun diversion.
Yuck. A copy of a copy of every lame fantasy trope that exists. Boring, badly written, and offensively stereotypical (orcs have big eyebrow ridges and are evil, goblins have hooked noses and are servile, etc..these racist stereotypes have been played out for decades).
Listen to the audio because MED delivers it himself. I've been struggling with where to start in recommending books to people who hold different views than I do, but this, finally, is it. This book is the perfect mix of rational but personalized argument, pop culture, history, and research references (w/o actually being research dense). His preacher roots and professional acumen combined for the perfext delivery. If folk (or as he calls his audience, “Beloved”) aren't listening to this, sit them down and listen with them. This is a required catalyst to view-changing.
Rowell's characters are so beautifully realistic. She perfectly captures unique teen voices and emotions.
Audio read by Leah. Quick, surface listen, but all I knew of scientology was founded by LRH and some wackadoo celebrities are fans, so some of the details were interesting and gossipy.
3.5 Very realistic with a strong depiction of a loving but contentious mother/daughter relationship. Some elements felt dated after only 5 years but definitely has strong kid appeal!
Definitely upper elementary or middle school, though could be a super quick for HS just for discussion and background knowledge.
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/the_highbrow/2006/12/precocious_realism.html
Meghan O'Rourke explained in Slate (with much better writing and clearer thought) why I have absolutely no interest in finishing this book. I made it to page 220, but the ~20 needless (and occasionally nonsensical) similes per page sure made it feel like I read at least 600 pages.
Whew, a tour de force from first time author Kim Johnson (with a top notch audiobook performed by Bahni Turpin). A fast paced, urgent, and compelling mystery through the lens of our country's baked-in racial inequality. The injustice for the Beaumount family shows rather than tells readers that the past is the present is the future and that history is living and constantly affects our society, our community, and people's everyday actions. This Is My America would be well paired in a classroom with the YA versions of Just Mercy or We are Not Yet Equal. This is one of my top reads of 2020 and I'll definitely be getting a book set for the library and recommending to students and teachers. I feel confident this will also show up on the 2021 Project Lit list!