Tash Hearts Tolstoy
Ratings17
Average rating3.9
Good
Enjoyed this a lot. Wish I got to read this book when I was a lot younger. Loved the characters except Thoooom
I really, really enjoyed this book. I devoured it in a blink. The characters were well-fleshed out (though there were one too many conflicts for my liking), the writing was really digestible and at times, profound, and I just had a fun time.
Sure, it was predictable and pretty standard YA but I need just that sometimes. Also, Tash is asexual!!! Even though she is not where I am on the spectrum, I still loved the representation. Even apart from that, this gets brownie points for ALL the representation. It is quite a diverse story in all spheres.
None of the characters were too likable, which is fine, because I don't like saints anyway. This also deals with some heavy topics so check out the content warnings in case you are bothered by that. I really enjoyed the Unhappy Families parts of this book, which was A LOT. All in all, a pretty solid read!
I really, really enjoyed this book. I devoured it in a blink. The characters were well-fleshed out (though there were one too many conflicts for my liking), the writing was really digestible and at times, profound, and I just had a fun time.
Sure, it was predictable and pretty standard YA but I need just that sometimes. Also, Tash is asexual!!! Even though she is not where I am on the spectrum, I still loved the representation. Even apart from that, this gets brownie points for ALL the representation. It is quite a diverse story in all spheres.
None of the characters were too likable, which is fine, because I don't like saints anyway. This also deals with some heavy topics so check out the content warnings in case you are bothered by that. I really enjoyed the Unhappy Families parts of this book, which was A LOT. All in all, a pretty solid read!
I really enjoyed this book while I was reading, but when I'm reading this it's 2 days later and I have a few thoughts about this book.
Firstly, this book will be good at age 15-18. It's a story about Tash who's YouTuber, and she's producing miniseries - adaptation of Anna Karenina.
Tash loves Tolstoy and is talking to him in her room.
It's a story about finding yourself, fighting with hate in comments, trying to find love and purpose. This book is heartwarming. It shows us that friendship is more important than everything else.
Tash might love Tolstoy but I hate Tash. I mean, for most of the book she's unpleasant, selfish, a bad friend, a bad sister, kind of a bad daughter and even when she ‘improves' (too little, much too late) towards the end of the book...I still hate her personality.
I thought, many, many times, about DNFing this book, but ultimately, I liked the supporting cast enough to keep reading. And I wanted more to do with the actual reasons I was interested in this book - the web series and the awards - and they were, kind of, backdrops. Also, the synopsis...I'm of two minds whether it is totally misleading and inaccurate, or total spoilers. Is it possible to be both? Because it kind of is.
Also...I was super excited for the ace rep that was here, but...I kind of hated Tash so much that it was...not the best in my opinion. (And, even beyond that...her thought processes seemed like, for a long time, if I don't think about it, it isn't real.) I am curious though, if it or the culture of Tash were #ownvoices. Because the ace rep is really unpleasant in my opinion.
Edit:
Found two review that explain way better than I could the problems with the ace rep. Check them out.
Check out Aria's review that really dug into the unpleasantness that is the ace rep in this book, from an asexual's perspective. And also Emma's review - though it has spoilers of the romance (that totally isn't spoilers because I saw it coming from really early on) especially read the second half that talks about the ace rep.
3.5, actually.
See, it's not a bad book. It really isn't—I swear. It's just not for me, I guess. Although I liked the story, empathized with the characters, and really, truly loved the ending, the pacing was completely off, IMO. It felt like nothing happened for the most part of the story, and I didn't feel like picking it up a lot of the time.
I like that this book exists, though. It's so important to have diverse voices and stories about diverse characters. I had never read anything with asexual characters before, and I understand how great it is that this book is out. For this reason, I was tempted to award it an extra star, but I wouldn't be fair to myself if I did that.
This is a lighthearted, truthful, beautiful, and loving YA story. If that sounds like it's something right up your alley, be my guest to Tash Hearts Tolstoy. I don't think you'll regret reading it.
5 stars Yes, Yes, Yes! I absolutely adored this book! I love this realistic fiction. The plot is amazing, pretty original and believable. The pacing is excellent. The characters feel real. I love Tash and I want to hug her. I was a bit concerned about the Ace rep part of the story before I started it, but it was GREAT!