Book Review

The Hate U Give by A.T.

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5 Starrs. Wow. I’m behind on reviews. I read this, like, 2 months ago (today is 9/16) and am just now getting to writing about it. And, because I devoured it so fast, I vaguely remember anything I initially wanted to write about AND (lucky me) of course I didn’t take notes.
Anyway, forget all that and travel back with me to what I probably would have said had I written a review in a timely manner:
This book is brilliant. Each character was unabashedly themselves, the symbolism (which I read about in the acknowledgments at the end) was stellar, and I cannot help but say that this book is both ahead of its time in addition to being prophetic. It created a portrait of a beautiful family and neighborhood and showed them from an angle you never see on the media (even now). I sincerely hope that Thomas writes a million more books with such vivid points of view. Truly a remarkable work.

Book Review, Non-Fiction, Philosophy, Self-Help

So You Want To Talk About Race by I.O.

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4.5 stars. I really appreciated the simplicity of Oluo’s writing, concise and beautiful! I was certainly fired-up every time I picked it up. I learned so much, like how to confront racism around me and how to not be a white savior when speaking up for the under-privileged. It was comprehensive too! Addressing not just Black Americans as a whole but Black Women, Asian-Americans, and Indigenous peoples as well (including all gender and sexual identities too, as Oluo points out is a problem with some movements). I believe this should be a staple for reading lists and book clubs world-wide for as long as it takes and beyond. I am really grateful that Libby/Overdrive took it off my 6 month hold (confusing at first) and made it a book that’s now always available.

Book Review, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Z.N.H.

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3.5 stars. So I read this book first in high school. I’ve been wanting to reread it for years and years because I remember enjoying it so much the first time. And well, I don’t really know why I liked it in high school or if I even understood it, because I had a really hard time getting into it. Janie was totally unlikeable and I couldn’t understand her motivations; character progression was nigh nonexistent. I also couldn’t figure out how someone watching her walking down the street with her grapefruit butt strapped into some overalls had to do with anything that happened in the last 99% of the book. It didn’t come full circle for me. I felt hollow and empty at the end, instead of fulfilled and like I enjoyed myself. The word choice and imagery were beautiful and maybe thats how I fell in love with it initially. Its quite a classic, and I think that I’ll still recommend it to friends and family, maybe just less vehemently so.

Book Review, Dystopian, Philosophy, Series

Series: Earthseed by O.E.B.

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The Parable of the Sower

4 stars. Whoa. I’ve been waiting to read this book for a while. I think a few years ago when I first purchased Kindred. The Parable of the Sower is basically prophetic. Like, the parallels between what is happening in the world now are glaring! I urge to you to pick up this book now! Lauren isn’t my most favorite narrator, but she gives a whole new perspective to survival. I also think a lot of her hyperempathy was lost in regards to smaller feelings, but I explained away my disappointment in the interest of time and pages on Butler’s behalf. But Butler sure knows how to weave a compelling story, and while raw dystopian novels aren’t really my cup of tea I am mildly convinced to read the rest of this series. Will Earthseed find peace? I don’t know! But do I want to know what happens between Lauren and Bankole (yikes! age gap) even less so. Who knows which part of me will win in the end.

Parable of the Talents

Who knows. Someday, maybe.

Parable of the Trickster

Unfinished by author before her death.

Book Review, Dystopian, Historical Fiction, Series, Steampunk, YA Science Fiction

Series: Dread Nation by J.I.

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Dread Nation

5 stars. I absolutely loved this concept, the execution, the characters. Every. Last. Word.

Except (yes, always the exception) I tired of the tribute to Friends episode titles that adorned every chapter title. To be fair, I have only ever watched one episode of Friends in its entirety and have done so several times. Why can’t I move past the first episode? you may ask. Well, this is a review about Dread Nation not Friends, so I’m moving on.

This book is not Friends (from what I can discern from memes, gifs, and the like), this book is a national treasure and everyone should read it! Don’t read it for the historical allusion to life after the Civil War or even the zombies, read it for the way it addresses the complex issue of race, passing, and deeply entrenched discrimination (and a little for the zombies).

Deathless Divide

4 stars. First can I just say: this is the book we all didn’t know we needed. Zombies, queer leads, awesome fighting, thoughtful character development. Boom! When I saw that it was going to be a book going back and forth between the two main characters POV, I was not exactly thrilled. “It’s just a lazy way to go about writing” I usually say to myself. But, boy howdy, I was wrong. I needed Katherine’s insight just as much as Jane. Though I missed a full-on Jane narration like in Dread Nation, I could never have imagined a better execution for the interchanging first-person narrative.

I don’t remember why I gave it four stars instead of five. I should have written better notes. I won’t change it and maybe someday I’ll remember why I didn’t think it deserved as good of a rating as the first one. I think I was probably too enthralled with the story to remember to write down what I didn’t like. Which goes to show how good the book was, I think.

(Remember how I talked too much about Friends in my review of Dread Nation? Turns out you can just ignore the chapter titles and then it doesn’t have an effect on you at all!)