Becca
A sweet, thoughtful little picture book about the winding journey of library books, complete with art showing coffee rings, page wrinkles, and discoloration.
It reminds me of stories about how far money travels in its lifetime, where a single coin may be used for subway fare, a wish in a fountain, a coin flip, etc.
For me to bump this up a star or two, there would have had to be someone who checked out the book, let it gather dust for six months, and then brought it back never having opened it. As a library employee and frequent library user, this too is a common fate of our circulating materials.
An unexpectedly hilarious book about a slew of exuberant loved ones turning an unsuspecting child's home and life itself into a sensory madhouse.
I like that the aunts all look different but have the exact same smile. I like how much and how little they pay attention. I like how Rex levels with the frustration and overwhelm that can come with hosting company, especially when you're a kid who doesn't have much control over things.
I would say this of all books makes me want to lead a Storytime at the library, but I know better. I will never do it. There is no book that will make me do it.
A very sweet picture book about the forms of self-expression we feel allowed to ask for, and the bravery it takes to go against the grain, especially at a young age.
Trimmer also underscores what a difference it makes to have supportive parent and siblings. I really liked how disability is woven in, in a way that is simultaneously quiet in the background but also forthright and impactful.
“When she was done crying, she got up and began moving forward again.”
I liked this more than I thought I would! Klassen's interpretation strikes the perfect tone, weaving together a simple yet also sweet and spooky (sorry for the alliteration, but those are all the correct adjectives) folktale. Any coworkers reading, no one else take it for Staff Picks. I want to use it for Staff Picks.
Otilla is an incredible protagonist, who knows exactly what she is about. Themes of found family, problem solving, and finding closure all abound. Oh my gosh, when they're tucked into bed together? Unbelievably cute.
The illustrations remind me of [b:Through the Woods|18659623|Through the Woods|Emily Carroll|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1414845473l/18659623.SX50.jpg|26477611], [b:The One Hundred Nights of Hero|28433627|The One Hundred Nights of Hero|Isabel Greenberg|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1506013534l/28433627.SX50.jpg|48547479], and [b:The Dark|15790852|The Dark|Lemony Snicket|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1350766092l/15790852.SX50.jpg|21512407]. This is a perfect time of year to pick this one up!
Clover, a death doula, prefers the company of the dying to the living. She struggles with relationships, platonic and romantic. She is suspicious and reluctant about small talk and other niceties. Yet in situations that would make most feel stomach churning dread, at a loss for words, or overwhelming fear, she is calm, sensitive, and adept. She has an inner strength and flexibility to meet people where they are. She knows how not to look away from someone's pain.Outside of work, Clover leads a quiet life with few personal connections. The problem is that Clover is not simply alone, she is also lonely. But after living the way she has for over a decade, living any other way feels alien and intimidating. The things she yearns for most have also become sources of shame and insecurity. I love Clover.In a tale about how the people who leave and enter our lives can suddenly shift everything, with a discerning late bloomer at the center who is never condescended to, Brammer weaves together a compelling debut. She also manages to, praise be, avoid telling a story that becomes too coincidental or sentimental. She lets Clover take her time. This called to mind different moments in past favorites like [b:Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine 31434883 Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine Gail Honeyman https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1493724347l/31434883.SY75.jpg 47327681], [b:Convenience Store Woman 36739755 Convenience Store Woman Sayaka Murata https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1680105376l/36739755.SX50.jpg 51852264], and even [b:The Flatshare 41393171 The Flatshare Beth O'Leary https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1627750351l/41393171.SY75.jpg 58189559]. Jennifer Pickens, the audiobook narrator, was fantastic. All in all, this was a sweet (though not preachy) book about how much death teaches us about life. I want to hear [a:Caitlin Doughty 7802044 Caitlin Doughty https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1586002535p2/7802044.jpg]'s thoughts on it.
I don't know why I waited so long to read this, but I could not stop listening to it, and I also never wanted it to end, and I also loved the ending. It is a masterpiece.
Desiree and Stella are twins who grew up in a teeny tiny town called Mallard, like the duck. Mallard is an interesting town, founded on the idea that there must be some middle ground between violent mistreatment of Black Americans and the elusive impunity of being white. The result is rampant colorism, a topic I am wholly unqualified to elaborate on.
The twins decide while teenagers they have had enough of Mallard. They strategically bolt, and for a time galivant around together. But soon they part ways with each other, too. They've not picked different colleges or careers or cities. No, they've picked to live as different races. This decision cements the foundation of a winding, multigenerational tale of denial and acceptance of self.
Bennett helps us ponder who and what must be left behind to access certain opportunities, and whether it's worth it. All of the characters are dimensional and human, with deep-rooted and believable motivations. She expertly toes the line of adding context and sympathy without letting characters off the hook for their choices.
I am fascinated by the idea of Stella leaving everything behind for a lifestyle and education that her own daughter wanted nothing to do with. It's actually a lot like High School Musical. No it isn't.
It's hard for me to talk through more specifics, because I think everyone should just read the whole thing. The audiobook narration was excellent. For some reason it reminded me of [b:The Warmth of Other Suns|8171378|The Warmth of Other Suns the Epic Story of America's Great Migration|Isabel Wilkerson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1433354252l/8171378.SY75.jpg|13341052], which I realize is nonfiction, but is nevertheless a sprawling and moving journey over several decades. Fans of [b:Little Fires Everywhere|34273236|Little Fires Everywhere|Celeste Ng|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1522684533l/34273236.SY75.jpg|94930152] may also enjoy this, as both are slow-building domestic fictions about the complexities of race, class, and family in America.
The High House is a devastating, poetic, painfully human trudge through the chaos of climate change. What is it like to be a parent through an apocalypse of our own making? What is it like to be a child? What is it like to be both, as the oldest sibling with absent parents, or as the sole dependent of an aging guardian?
The High House explores why people continue choosing to bring life into the world even as things become increasingly grim and volatile. It tugs strands of hope out of the most bleak circumstances. It does not shrug off the responsibility we all have to be stewards of this planet, but it still acknowledges the helplessness we feel. What is there to do except what we've always done? How do individual day-to-day actions fix corporate exploitation causing global shifts? Why is it on us?
Here parents work constantly within limited time to give their children a fighting chance to exist for a full lifespan. They sacrifice quality time and emotional connections to stockpile resources and make contingency plans.
But what is parenthood, at its core? Is it about materially providing for beings dependent on you, or is it about nourishing someone's soul and their bond with you? Is it about leaving your children with as much as you can, or staying with them for as long as possible? In an ideal world, we don't have to choose. But ours is certainly not an ideal world.
I don't usually go for climate fiction (cli fi, I've heard it called), but I really love a quiet dystopian novel (favorite examples include [b:Station Eleven|20170404|Station Eleven|Emily St. John Mandel|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1680459872l/20170404.SX50.jpg|28098716], [b:Severance|36348525|Severance|Ling Ma|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1507060524l/36348525.SY75.jpg|58029884], [b:I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself|60679392|I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself|Marisa Crane|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1648063139l/60679392.SY75.jpg|95655500], and [b:The Wall|59468837|The Wall|Marlen Haushofer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1639132182l/59468837.SY75.jpg|573687]). This one was so fantastic I cannot stop rambling about it. What a gorgeous, heartbreaking book.
When it comes to boundaries, we are training the people in our lives how to treat us.
Self-help is a challenging genre for me. One I sporadically dabble in (usually to read specific titles friends loved), only to become immediately incensed by self-righteous vague advice. As I once heard on a podcast about Jordan Peterson, it feels like everything offered is either 1) obvious, or 2) false. The genre feels so individualistic, and I just cannot buy into solutions that turn a blind eye to systemic barriers. It feels like sidestepping reality.
Real Self-Care manages to balance acknowledgment of institutional injustice with actual action we can take to address untenable circumstances and workload. These strategies are derived from evidence-based therapeutic interventions, while reiterating that the book is not a substitute for therapy or meds. Dr. Lakshmin also provides extensive resources at the back for finding therapists and psychiatrists, and barometers throughout the text about how to tell whether you might benefit from either.
This is everything I wanted [b:The Emotionally Exhausted Woman|60062210|The Emotionally Exhausted Woman Why You're Feeling Depleted and How to Get What You Need|Nancy Colier|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1664631572l/60062210.SX50.jpg|94706608] to be and more. It starts by quoting Audre Lorde's The Master's Tools, for chrissake (and comes back to Lorde throughout the text, among other prominent Black feminists).
Dr. Lakshmin does a good job helping readers to view certain obligations as 1) less dichotomous 2) choices we are making. She talks about how to create boundaries in a way that frees us of responsibility for others' reactions to our boundaries. She is upfront about the fact that we will feel guilt and discomfort when advocating for ourselves, especially as we start doing so more regularly.
I also loved what she said about how individual changes create feedback loops within systems to encourage institutional progress. This is what drives me to talk about therapy or to take breaks at work: the desire to work somewhere as supportive of mental health and work/life balance as possible. The personal is political, and our individual choices can in turn empower others to share their experiences and speak up for what they care about — or just take a nap!
I'd recommend this for anyone who has ever felt trapped, overwhelmed, or exhausted by the way we do life. See also [b:Laziness Does Not Exist|54304124|Laziness Does Not Exist|Devon Price|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1607877126l/54304124.SY75.jpg|84737407]. I haven't read it yet, but I think [b:Burnout|42397849|Burnout The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle|Emily Nagoski|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1551216612l/42397849.SY75.jpg|66080282] may pair well with this, too.
A kid at my school said my dad's English sounds like a thick, dirty river.But to me his English sounds like gentle rain.
A sweet story about father and son bonding time and the immense work and stigma faced by refugees whose circumstances are no fault of their own. This story is simultaneously quiet and deep, balancing pain with comfort and hope.
It also features both author and illustrator notes in the back, including this gem from Bao Phi: “[My parents] sometimes told me difficult stories about the war and where we came from, including death and violence. My parents shared these stories with me, not to scare or harm me, but because these traumas were a part of our lives, and they wanted me to understand.”
Though published in 2017, this makes a perfect 2023 response to book bans and censoring curricula. It's almost like restricting access to information has always been a tool of authoritarian oppressors? Someone get me off this soapbox. For more books in this vein, see also [b:Love in the Library|57699005|Love in the Library|Maggie Tokuda-Hall|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1618184466l/57699005.SX50.jpg|90381116], [b:Watercress|54502238|Watercress|Andrea Wang|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1646343526l/54502238.SX50.jpg|85066060], [b:Migrantes|51975962|Migrantes|Issa Watanabe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1565963710l/51975962.SX50_SY75.jpg|72942206], and [b:Sugar in Milk|50998423|Sugar in Milk|Thrity Umrigar|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1581409771l/50998423.SX50.jpg|75845152].
You know those friend groups where you fall into step immediately, no matter how long it's been? You know those places and traditions that feel like your one soft place to land? What if everyone is just pretending that's the case and there's actually tension and disconnects coming to a boil just under the surface? A terrifying thought. But I'm a sicko who needs a side of Actual Real Bad with my romance to make it through the piles of fluff. I much prefer that to the rickety scaffolding of refusing to communicate.
If you liked [b:Book Lovers|58690308|Book Lovers|Emily Henry|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1638867089l/58690308.SY75.jpg|92341790], I bet you'll like Happy Place. You've got the woman thinking she and the love interest are enemies when they were never enemies. You've got the man needing to take care of his parent suffering poor health whose sister bailed. You've got the complex relationships between siblings. You've got the slow realization of how much one's parents shape adult relationships, career trajectories, and overall self-concept.
But you've also got an insistent defense of cozy mysteries, a picturesque description of an escape from reality, and a beautiful ode to unlikely yet everlasting friendships. You've got a real and important message about how you can be struggling with your mental health and not even realize it, and the additional barriers and stigma faced by men who struggle with anxiety, depression, and self-esteem. And you have one of my favorite things: a defense of quitting something that's killing you that you've deeply convinced yourself you must see out to make others proud and be a moral, successful, deserving person. We should quit things more.
A few qualms—I say this as a prude, but I did not understand why the friend group was unbothered by the amount of PDA. It was way too much PDA. And also, depending on your tolerance for Gilmore-Girls-esque banter, the dialogue can flip between entertaining and grating. Though I think my threshold for that is much lower when listening to a book rather than reading a print copy.
Still, overall, Emily Henry did it again! More like, she Wyns again. Alright bye.
Darling endpaper, clever, thoughtful text, and a good message about focusing on free tiny delights.
I think this is a cute and accessible way to introduce mindfulness and gratitude to little ones. The only thing I'm a little iffy on is, I wish there was less focus on “if you're sad, look at this dog,” instead of making it clear that sometimes we feel sad, and that's okay (or, alternatively and preferably, making it clear that you don't have to be thankful for little things only to cheer yourself up).
A quiet yet vibrant book about how much of yourself you can explore at the public library and through reading. Paints reading as a relaxing indulgence to look forward to after you get through your obligations.
Giovanni's description of libraries is pretty compassionate given her note in the back about segregation limiting her access to books. I was moved by how she remembered her childhood librarian making special trips to get her copies nevertheless — a powerful reminder that ultimately, libraries are only as welcoming, inclusive, and justice-minded as their staff.
This Libby audiobook came in for me as I eagerly await Shiny Happy People's release. God's timing, I tell you.
This review will be obnoxiously long (even more than usual), as I have been fascinated by the Quiverfull movement for well over a decade. I watched a lot of the Duggars on TLC, and grew especially interested when several of the older daughters (who arguably bore the brunt of childrearing) started getting married, their ticket to leaving home.
With that many children, it's easy for siblings to blur together. But Jinger has always stood out to fans. Not just because of her name (why), but also because she loves coffee and city life and fashion. People watching the show have long hoped she would wrestle her way out of a lifestyle that stifled her interests and personality.
Well, this book is not that. Though she wears jeans now, Jinger makes sure to distinguish her journey from deconstruction—a term describing interrogation of past religious convictions. Deconstruction does not have one set outcome (e.g., becoming an atheist), but Jinger is nevertheless careful to distance herself from the term. Towards the end she suggests that stepping away from your faith is the “easy route” (laughs in ex-Mormon), so there we have it.
Instead, this is basically a drawn out testimony sprinkled with critiques of Bill Gothard, a vile man whose grave I look forward to dancing on. I would argue it's also the no true Scotsman fallacy stretched across 200+ pages, wherein Jinger repeatedly argues This Christianity is bad and dangerous, but That Christianity is undeniably right and true and good, which is exactly how she described This Christianity a little bit ago. At one point she says of Jesus, “I would be happy to be his slave,” and I didn't like that.
What's especially puzzling are the attempts to separate how she feels about Gothard/IBLP from her loved ones. She was introduced to Gothard's dangerous ideas by her parents, but insists her parents were discerning enough to push back against his most pernicious views and provided a loving, supportive home life. Her husband showed her the error of Gothard's ways, but really all he was doing was encouraging her to think for herself.
Jeremy tells Jinger she's not a Stepford wife (a reference predictably lost on her), but I wonder if they would have ever married if she didn't agree with his view of Bill Gothard. Is it fair to describe that as simply encouraging critical thinking? Plus, how can anyone know whether she was receptive to Jeremy's differing view of IBLP precisely because both her parents and Gothard taught her to view men as authority figures? I don't know, I'm not feeling as disentangled as she is.
At the same time, I don't want to minimize that Jinger was filmed from early childhood through her daughters' early childhood. She talks about how filming exposed her to freeing opportunities and relationships, while also taking over her life in a way she deliberately wants to protect her own children from. The line about “filming people who didn't watch television” was great.
Bill Gothard's view of faith is basically sexually predatory manufactured OCD. Jinger opens up about her superstitions around basic aspects of day-to-day life like food and clothing. She talks about someone stealing her teenage diary to sell it for six figures on eBay, only to return it after realizing how boring and squeaky clean it was. Even while journaling, she held back and was careful about how she presented herself. Where can a teenage girl be herself if not in the pages of her diary?
I suppose I am rating this more kindly than other books. Maybe I'm as naive as Jinger, but I think boldness and bravery is relative. Something that underwhelmed me (so much zoning out during Bible verses) can still be a big step for someone else. I can't say I'm impressed, but I also can't say I expected to be.
I am 86% done but I suffered enough I have decided to count this as “read.”
Someone recommended this to me recently, probably because I have a move coming up and keep yelling “I NEED MONEY” everywhere I go. And well, I just continue to be right about hating self help books.
This edition is ostensibly updated for younger generations. But I'm not sold on Robin's understanding of the economic straits faced by younger generations. Her hypothetical scenarios are buckwild. Talking about owning a home on wooded acres with your basement full of expensive exercise equipment, but still not being fulfilled. Am I supposed to relate to or sympathize with this person? Someone who spends $80 on magazines monthly. Who on this planet in 2023 would do that? Mentioning “Native American artifacts” as an example of your assets. Sure, right, like we all have. Give them back.
I think the underlying issue is that when systemic or generational issues are (rarely) addressed, they're cast as obstacles that anyone can choose to navigate over and around with a change in mindset and a sheet of graph paper.
I am not advocating for us to all exist in some helpless victim purgatory until life becomes fair. In some sense, what choice do we have but to exist? I just think it's strange to act like something is both immovable and no excuse. Which is it — a massive, inevitable force of nature, or something to wave at in passing but not let get you down? (The correct answer is “neither.”) The combination of resignation and dismissal is bizarre.
It's part of Robin's general pattern of putting onus on individuals, like her weird tangents about climate change being mitigated by consumers telling corporations what we value. She dropped several hot takes about physical health and weight loss, comparing these topics to getting control of your finances. It's a yikes from me.
The steps themselves are the least objectionable part of the text. They're just buried in a lot of unnecessary anecdotes and fluff. Why do self help books try to convince me to read them as I am already reading them? Because there's not enough actual substance to stretch this much beyond a four page PDF.
What if The Sneetches was queer adult speculative fiction?
I love a bleary-eyed quiet dystopia. In this one, Kris is recovering from the loss of her wife Beau during childbirth. On top of navigating single motherhood, her United States has implemented drastic changes to the criminal justice system.
Those who have committed infractions (or, at least, are accused of doing so) have an extra shadow attached to them. Further wrongdoing results in a third, fourth, and fifth (etc.) shadow. Shadows are impossible to detach or hide. “Shadesters” have restricted access to healthcare, groceries, and any sort of legal recourse. Discrimination and stigma abound.
Kris has an extra shadow, and policy dictates that her child receive an extra shadow at birth. So now she must raise a child set up to fail, as a broken person in a broken world. She struggles to distance her child from the shame she cannot shake, instilling resolve and pride to offset how everyone else sees and treats them.
This is a story about persistence, the slow journey of grief, and how parenthood can make you feel trapped and inadequate, while also being the primary (if not sole) reason to keep going. I'd recommend this for fans of The Double,[b:We Are Okay|28243032|We Are Okay|Nina LaCour|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1471899036l/28243032.SY75.jpg|48277368],[b:My Year of Rest and Relaxation|44279110|My Year of Rest and Relaxation|Ottessa Moshfegh|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1597676656l/44279110.SY75.jpg|55508660], and, funnily enough, [b:We Cast a Shadow|40163362|We Cast a Shadow|Maurice Carlos Ruffin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1533657073l/40163362.SY75.jpg|62303738].
This came highly recommended by someone who will likely see this review and physically attack me, but the more it went on, the more I struggled with it.
Feyi is an artist in Brooklyn. She lives with her friend Joy. About five years before the book takes place, Feyi's husband Jonah died tragically in a car accident. She is finally starting to open herself up to romance again, but grief is making the process painful and unpredictable.
I think there is something to the idea that the heart wants what the heart wants—that feelings are not simple or cooperative, and sometimes our desires are not what we consciously know is right or good for us. I also passionately believe that the friendzone is a made up term for the entitlement that some (stereotypically, men) feel to someone's affection and body in exchange for pretending to share their interests. I think it belittles how great friendship is, casting it as a (manipulative) means to an end. So I didn't object to any of those aspects.
What really bothered me was how selfish Feyi and Alim were. Even though they were apologetic, I felt they were still self-centered in their response to Nasir and Lorraine. Like their love alone was important enough to warrant such wreckage. Both seemed resolute that it was worth it, and that was something they could decide on behalf of others. Emezi definitely tried to address this and add nuance, but I just wasn't convinced. I don't think I'm supposed to be, but I am firmly Team Lorraine. This is far more trivial, but also Alim said “sweetness” excessively. And Feyi would not stop justifying everything by saying she was alive. WE KNOW. To be fair, I think those things are more obvious and grating when listening to an audiobook.
All that said, Emezi is undeniably a fantastic writer, and I'm interested to read more of their work. I think they have a lot of talent, a lot of range, and a lot of stories to tell.
This book is a warm hug. It is a hearty heap of warm peach cobbler. It is one of the most convincing and painful depictions of love and family I've read. I loved it so much.
One issue I have with anthologies is that often only a few stories stand out, while the rest are more forgettable. Not so with The Secret Lives of Church Ladies. Each story wraps you up in it for as long as it takes to tell it. The pacing is so interesting, like Philyaw is in absolutely no rush. But she also knows when to cut things off, balancing resolution with ambiguity.
I'm trying to think of anything imperfect and coming up blank. The most I can say is that “Jael” took me a few tries to understand, but I think that's just because I was listening to the audiobook and not paying attention. And don't get me wrong; Janina Edwards was a lovely narrator, so I am to blame. I adored this little collection. Highly recommend.
Recently I was watching a YouTube video about meal prep, my endless battle as someone who wants to eat healthy, but hates diet culture, and who also resents the way we've set up our society to leave me two days of the week to cram my life into around work (hello coworkers, I love my job but I am correct in hating the way we do life).
Anyway, the video was sponsored by WeWork. This threw me for such a loop that I listened to a 450+ page nonfiction book about it. My interest in white collar criminals is casual; I watched and liked both The Social Network and The Dropout. And also an Elon Musk documentary about how he's a cruel liar loser, who would have thought.
What really fascinates me is the psychology and groupthink woven into startup culture. The cult-like frenzy that leads companies lacking substance to skyrocket in relevance and value. The self-righteous fervor around a noble, transcendent mission they can't even articulate. The pretentious word salad they expect others to not just buy into, but laud.
The hypocrisy of laying off hundreds of people and banning the rest from eating meat while taking your private jets across the globe daily because you'd rather talk in-person than do a video conference call. The party culture that stokes reckless conduct and muddies the waters between the professional and personal until they're one big blob. How much your work shapes your worldview.
TL;DR— all grifts are one and the same and the worst criminals always have been and always will be rich white people. That's the conclusion I drew, at least. This is an oddly political Goodreads review.
The audiobook is extremely well done. The narrator is fantastic. The research is so meticulous you feel like a fly on the wall. It's a horrifying yet somehow entertaining story about rising and falling equally fast. For fans of both [b:The Great Gatsby|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1490528560l/4671.SY75.jpg|245494] and [b:Bad Blood|37976541|Bad Blood Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup|John Carreyrou|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1523311515l/37976541.SX50.jpg|59699437].
Valentine's Day is almost here and I recently watched a YouTube video describing Book Lovers as two “grumpy little gremlins” so I had to read it immediately.
I am picky with romance. I prefer it with a side of mental health crises or hellish family dynamics—something that feels more true to real life. But I also think the romance genre should be idealistic and fun. I want to have a fluffy good time. That is a difficult balance to strike. On top of that, it's tricky to make pessimistic control freaks who won't shut up about living in New York relatable and sympathetic. And yet, Emily Henry did all of it, and did it well. It was so good.
At the risk of oversharing on Goodreads of all places, the struggles Nora had with prioritizing younger siblings over herself and feeling like she was singularly responsible for holding her family together felt pretty real. The deep conviction that certain concessions are necessary for the people you care about to be okay, and that your own happiness must perpetually take a backseat. Trapping yourself in a role that others are begging you to abandon because they just want you to be happy, yet resenting the pattern you refuse to stop reinforcing. Uh oh, it's me. In all, this is a silly book about vulnerability, change, grief, and being brave enough to go after what you want and let your loved ones do the same. It is well-written and the stakes feel high enough without being overly dramatic. I am quick to find emotionally unavailable male characters insufferable emotionally unavailable women, on the other hand..., but Charlie is somehow okay. He does that straight romance thing of not being furious when a woman changes her mind. Extremely hot behavior, but also the barest minimum. The hets are fascinating.
Reasons I cannot rate this five stars:
• Nora and Charlie come pretty close to having sex in a public library study room. As a public library employee, this is truly one of the worst things that could happen to me at work.
• There were references at different points to “fizzing” and “caramelized” blood. Gross. Did not provoke romantic mental imagery for me.
• This is just personal preference, but I prefer fade to black sex scenes because I am a prude.
• Stop putting epilogues in romance novels. Let my stupid little brain fill in the cheesy gaps myself. It is my right to do so.
I love a story about a sensitive self-aware little robot. Artificial intelligence with more anxiety than the humans surrounding it? Sign me up. I find it so endearing.
Klara is a solar-powered AF; Artificial Friend. Children are accompanied by AFs to nurture their development and wellbeing. After waiting patiently in a store to be purchased, Klara finally gets to go home with a girl named Josie. Except Josie is not well, and neither is her home, and neither is the world.
Klara and the Sun is about a society with a veneer of everyday normalcy halfheartedly concealing volatile politics, environmental ruin, inaccessible higher education, vast inequity, and desperate attempts to escape mortality. So I guess it's a book about real life but with a few more robots.
It is a naïve yet melancholy book about growing up and apart. Its ending is ambiguous, leaving Klara both triumphant and forgotten. It made my heart feel weird, and I can't tell if I liked it in the end. It made me feel both uneasy and underwhelmed. Maybe the meaning will catch up to me.
Here is a long list of things this reminded me of: the Murderbot Diaries series, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Peter Pan, Toy Story, [b:The Giver|3636|The Giver (The Giver, #1)|Lois Lowry|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1342493368l/3636.SY75.jpg|2543234],[b:The Echo Wife|52379735|The Echo Wife|Sarah Gailey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1588791809l/52379735.SY75.jpg|73056559]. Oh and also, Rick reminds me of Rudy from [b:The Book Thief|19063|The Book Thief|Markus Zusak|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1522157426l/19063.SY75.jpg|878368]. I found him a quiet and impressive depiction of positive masculinity, much like every male character in Emezi's [b:Pet|43568395|Pet|Akwaeke Emezi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548836225l/43568395.SX50.jpg|60224408].
I don't know that this gives a good idea of what the book is about, but if Ishiguro wanted a coherent review he could have chosen not to scramble up my soul. Now I gotta read [b:Never Let Me Go|6334|Never Let Me Go|Kazuo Ishiguro|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1353048590l/6334.SY75.jpg|1499998].
The Hunting Party is kind of [b:No Exit|39938177|No Exit|Taylor Adams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1541624527l/39938177.SY75.jpg|56940541] meets Glass Onion in its combination of being confined to dangerous circumstances by winter weather and insufferable self-absorbed rich people.
The premise is simple enough: every year, a group of college friends vacation together. One person in the group plans the trip. This year they're off to an exclusive remote wilderness hunting lodge for New Year's. But then one of the guests goes missing. When she's found, she's dead. And not due to exposure! Someone killed her is what I'm getting at.
Thrillers are not my usual genre, because the twists often make me mad. Either because I think they are predictable or silly. I also think they can stigmatize mental illness, which is already plenty stigmatized. Unfortunately, a little of all of that happened in the end with The Hunting Party. I saw two bigger twists coming far ahead of time. There was another twist that I did not see coming but found to be a goofy aside more than anything.
It's a shame, because the audiobook is fantastically done. Full cast, charming accents, narration that felt unreliable but in a way that felt more human than frustrating. And to be fair, I was wildly guessing at every person and theory for the first chunk of the book. There was a nice slow build with little hints making you second guess things. It was really fun to listen to! I just felt let down in the end because I wanted to have a shocking reveal.
Oh also, something that extremely threw me off was how Doug's chapters were in third person but everyone else spoke in first person? Why? I kept waiting for there to be a reason behind that. Anyway. If you want a well-produced audiobook that feels fitting for this time of year and you don't share my grudge against thrillers, you may well have fun weaving through this twisty little thing. It's also on hoopla if you want it immediately.