Madison
I never thought I'd read an Ali Hazelwood novel (being prejudiced against Reylo and having the eyes to see the cover of Love Hypothesis, as well as not finding any particular appeal to Adam Driver), but this really surprised me and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It might be the chess, since I don't really have an interest in the STEM subjects of her other works, but either way I loved it. I think maybe the really casual and blatant approach to sex would make me hope there's no younger teenagers reading this, but for my own age range there was nothing explicit. This novel isn't a masterpiece of modern literature by any means, but I really liked it and would definitely read it again. It's also managed to make me feel like getting even more into improving myself in chess, so thanks to this book, my next literary purchase will probably be chess related.
Much Ado About Nothing is certainly top 5 Shakespeare ever, even if I haven't read enough of them to have a true ability to rank them. I love it nearly as much as I love Hamlet, if for completely different reasons. I will say, though, that this play is very much advantaged by performance; I don't know that I would like it near so much if I had read it without seeing it first. Being a comedy, the parts that are supposed to be funny can come off worse without the comedic sensibilities of whoever performs them. To read it is amusing, but to see it is hilarious. Even still, I love Much Ado.
While I have this book a 5 star rating, I will say that it took me a bit of time to get into. After all, I managed to put it down for a little over a year. However, when I finally picked it back up I was completely absorbed by the story and read the rest of it in one sitting. Chen captures the characters of Obi-Wan and Anakin really well, and manages to write a compelling story with fantastic original characters (I loved both Mill and Ruug), something that can on occasion be difficult with the constraints of canon and the general style of Star Wars. Overall I think this is a story completely worth its praise, and it was just what I needed to balance out the mountain of classics I'm currently climbing.
I like the idea of this book, and I do try my best to enjoy magical realism (I did, after all, love One Hundred Years of Solitude), but this just didn't do it for me. Tita makes stupid decisions, and I don't think that the book has any moral message at all. Far be it from me to claim that any and all books need a moral message, as they really don't, but I think this one is dangerous in its lack of such a thing. It depicts this “relationship” that is almost entirely based on lust, with no emotional development at all, and then the both of them die at the end from their mutual passion. It's ridiculous, and sets a dangerous standard for women. It's just that Tita and Pedro's relationship is so utterly milquetoast it's repulsive. John at least genuinely cares for and admires Tita, while Pedro really only cares for her body. I can't say anything against the theme of liberation in this book, but it bugs me that that might be the only thing some readers get out of it. I think (and maybe hope) that the way Esquivel writes John is to send readers a message about what real love and companionship should be, to set a standard for how a real man should behave (instead of keeling over after doing the deed, loser), but that hope is rather dashed by calling Pedro's forcing himself on Tita “true love”. It disgusts me. The only hope I can gather from this story is that part of its point is for readers like me to have the same reaction to it that I do, in order to get across less blatant themes, such as having standards and whatnot. Maybe I'm angry because I'm Catholic, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm angry. Maybe it's a story that portrays the negative effects of generational trauma, the hatred and hideous idiocy that can be born of loveless familial relationships. I just think that a lot of scenes in this book are of women being “liberated” by being swept off their feet by rapey, womanizing men. I think someday I'll have to read it it Spanish or perhaps write an essay about it to really get out my frustration at the way that it ends and the way the characters handle themselves. I think, if I looked long enough, this book could wash a waterfall of themes over me, but I don't want to. Obviously there is romance etc etc, but coupled with that is the idea of the liberation of women from traditional roles, the breaking of generational trauma (sort of), and the pursuit of one's own life. Depending on what kind of reader you are, you might romanticize the drama and thrill of it all, or you might hate the lesson it seems to convey, like I do. I think, if the book maybe lasted longer or cared less about the drama and more about the intricacy of characters rather than plot, I would like it better.
I am in love with this book! Unlike pride and prejudice, I read this one blind and it has much improved my enjoyment of the story. However much I love pride and prejudice, the joy of reading it was dampened by already knowing the major plot beats, courtesy of the film. For persuasion, however, I had never seen any adaptation or been told of the events of the story, so all the emotions meant to be evoked by the fantastic writing were entirely unsuspected and entirely genuine. Wentworth is a joy. That letter! “Most ardently” has some competition, in my opinion.
I really really really did not like most of this book. I found the main character, Lia, unlikeable at best and overly selfish at worst, but as the book wore on I think I could understand her better. (It does seem kind of insensitive that I didn't like her but eh) I feel like this is a book that certain people should be very careful about and others shouldn't even read, because despite its bringing to light a very important issue, it does so I a way that is what I assume would be problematic ally triggering for someone going through that same issue.
This is the kind of book that is properly read through the haze of a migraine. I find that that just might be the best way to try and put oneself in Richard's shoes. This was a truly captivating story, and as per usual, certain tragedies caught me completely by surprise. I'm just trying to process it now, I suppose.
I can understand why many people might not enjoy this, but I'm a sucker for a happy ending. I know a lot of people only like to read books that make a statement or deal with some real-world issue, but why not just read some Th omg for the sake of reading a literal fairy-story, a happy ending for the sake of a happy ending? It's not as if it's poorly written.