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ambershelf's Reviews (1.3k)
gifted by the publisher
In this deeply moving graphic memoir, Hulls tells the story of 3 generations of women in her family, her Chinese grandma, Sun Yi, her mom, Rose, and herself. GHOSTS is an intimate and evocative exploration of intergenerational trauma and grief, blending modern Chinese history and the complex mother-daughter relationships across generations.
I held my breath reading GHOSTS because of the heavy topic of inexplicable loss, mental illness, and codependent relationships. Hulls acknowledges her inclination to use facts to help her process difficult emotions, evident in the history-heavy sections & her analysis of her grandma's memoir.
Nonetheless, I appreciate Hulls' showing the readers her vulnerability, especially the 3 women's tendencies to use external masks to cover their inner psyches. GHOSTS beautifully traces the lines of 3 generations and their search for freedom & love.
In this deeply moving graphic memoir, Hulls tells the story of 3 generations of women in her family, her Chinese grandma, Sun Yi, her mom, Rose, and herself. GHOSTS is an intimate and evocative exploration of intergenerational trauma and grief, blending modern Chinese history and the complex mother-daughter relationships across generations.
I held my breath reading GHOSTS because of the heavy topic of inexplicable loss, mental illness, and codependent relationships. Hulls acknowledges her inclination to use facts to help her process difficult emotions, evident in the history-heavy sections & her analysis of her grandma's memoir.
Nonetheless, I appreciate Hulls' showing the readers her vulnerability, especially the 3 women's tendencies to use external masks to cover their inner psyches. GHOSTS beautifully traces the lines of 3 generations and their search for freedom & love.
Amazing. This book is for all the readers with unresolved daddy issues (jkjk).
FATHER’S LIBERATION DIARY (I found this translation online but haven’t seen any plans of this book being translated into English yet) is an autofiction following a former socialist/communist’s daughter (FMC) and the various people she met in her dad’s funeral.
The FMC’s dad was a political prisoner, and because of his politics, his family suffered greatly. But as the daughter meets various guests in the funeral, she sees other sides of her late father.
At its core, FATHER’S LIBERATION DIARY depicts the multitudes of a dad whose youth was defined by his politics and imprisonment. With humorous yet heartfelt writing, I cackled at the FMC’s comments on her father’s faults and imperfections, but also sobbed when the FMC realizes how her dad upholds his socialist ideologies to help his community.
The final moments of how we put down our divisions to memorialize a member of the community is another profound angle. How the FMC processes her father’s passing and find solace in his friends & comrades is equal parts heartwarming and heartbreaking.
The author’s note absolutely broke me
FATHER’S LIBERATION DIARY (I found this translation online but haven’t seen any plans of this book being translated into English yet) is an autofiction following a former socialist/communist’s daughter (FMC) and the various people she met in her dad’s funeral.
The FMC’s dad was a political prisoner, and because of his politics, his family suffered greatly. But as the daughter meets various guests in the funeral, she sees other sides of her late father.
At its core, FATHER’S LIBERATION DIARY depicts the multitudes of a dad whose youth was defined by his politics and imprisonment. With humorous yet heartfelt writing, I cackled at the FMC’s comments on her father’s faults and imperfections, but also sobbed when the FMC realizes how her dad upholds his socialist ideologies to help his community.
The final moments of how we put down our divisions to memorialize a member of the community is another profound angle. How the FMC processes her father’s passing and find solace in his friends & comrades is equal parts heartwarming and heartbreaking.
The author’s note absolutely broke me
eARC gifted by netgalley and the publisher
With her signature voice blending wit and humor, RANGIKURA covers girlhood, young womanhood, and feminism. Tibble sheds light on experiences ranging from rebellion, body image, and the sense of losing one's home while growing up Māori in modern New Zealand.
My favorites are Lil Mermaidz, Takakino, Homewrecker, Hot Hine Summer, Hine-nui-te-pō, My Ancestors Send Me Screenshots.
With her signature voice blending wit and humor, RANGIKURA covers girlhood, young womanhood, and feminism. Tibble sheds light on experiences ranging from rebellion, body image, and the sense of losing one's home while growing up Māori in modern New Zealand.
My favorites are Lil Mermaidz, Takakino, Homewrecker, Hot Hine Summer, Hine-nui-te-pō, My Ancestors Send Me Screenshots.
-a powerful memoir/essay about displacement and homecoming as a Palestinian
-it jumps around in time a bit and references historical events without going into too much detail. I’d recommend this to readers with a better grasp of Palestinian history
-I like the Mandarin translation. It has a poetic and melancholic undertone. I’m really curious about what the English translation reads like though, I think it might read more powerful and convey more emotions
-it jumps around in time a bit and references historical events without going into too much detail. I’d recommend this to readers with a better grasp of Palestinian history
-I like the Mandarin translation. It has a poetic and melancholic undertone. I’m really curious about what the English translation reads like though, I think it might read more powerful and convey more emotions
First read in Mandarin. Will update review once I finished the English translation.
It’s a very niche topic about banana farming post ww2 in Taiwan. I love that the dialogues are mostly written in Taiwanese with a mixture of Japanese, while the descriptions are written in mandarin. Definitely a challenging read because my Taiwanese isn’t as good—especially the details about how agriculture escaped me. It’ll be interesting to see how the English translation approaches this book that has 3 languages in it lol
I’d recommend this to readers who have a bit more background in Taiwanese history, since there are lots of references to modern TW politics that aren’t always explained in detail. I really enjoyed this aspect though. I’ve read enough Japanese colonization and 228 stories that this is a refreshing angle.
This book reminds me a bit of MATER 2-10 in that the author’s political ideology is quite obvious, and hence it can read a bit biased. In trying to demonstrate the corruption in KMT-controlled authoritarian rule for 38 years (which is ofc terrible), I feel the author was trying too hard to paint the Japanese colonizers in a good light. I think this could’ve been balanced out. Both authoritarian regimes were terrible, and TW people deserve to rule themselves. There’s no need to say one colonizer is better than the other
It’s a very niche topic about banana farming post ww2 in Taiwan. I love that the dialogues are mostly written in Taiwanese with a mixture of Japanese, while the descriptions are written in mandarin. Definitely a challenging read because my Taiwanese isn’t as good—especially the details about how agriculture escaped me. It’ll be interesting to see how the English translation approaches this book that has 3 languages in it lol
I’d recommend this to readers who have a bit more background in Taiwanese history, since there are lots of references to modern TW politics that aren’t always explained in detail. I really enjoyed this aspect though. I’ve read enough Japanese colonization and 228 stories that this is a refreshing angle.
This book reminds me a bit of MATER 2-10 in that the author’s political ideology is quite obvious, and hence it can read a bit biased. In trying to demonstrate the corruption in KMT-controlled authoritarian rule for 38 years (which is ofc terrible), I feel the author was trying too hard to paint the Japanese colonizers in a good light. I think this could’ve been balanced out. Both authoritarian regimes were terrible, and TW people deserve to rule themselves. There’s no need to say one colonizer is better than the other
3.75/5 gifted by the publisher
A fascinating multigenerational tale of a family of lace makers. I really enjoyed the 1920s timeline. Learning about the Flores women, their sisterhood bonds and friendships in supporting each other is captivating. There’s a thriller/suspense like quality to the writing that kept me hooked!
A couple of imperfections
-the overshadowing isn’t my favorite. I think the book would’ve had more tension without it
-the present day timeline is a bit weak. I wanted to see ~50 pages more about how learning one’s ancestral stories helps someone continue their fight for injustice
Overall a great read! The translation reads smoothly with a very interesting storyline!
A fascinating multigenerational tale of a family of lace makers. I really enjoyed the 1920s timeline. Learning about the Flores women, their sisterhood bonds and friendships in supporting each other is captivating. There’s a thriller/suspense like quality to the writing that kept me hooked!
A couple of imperfections
-the overshadowing isn’t my favorite. I think the book would’ve had more tension without it
-the present day timeline is a bit weak. I wanted to see ~50 pages more about how learning one’s ancestral stories helps someone continue their fight for injustice
Overall a great read! The translation reads smoothly with a very interesting storyline!
3.75/5
Read in Mandarin. I wouldn’t have interpret the story via a political lens without reading the translator’s notes. So grateful for the background. The storyline is very soap operas-y and dramatic (based on the notes it’s inspired by Thai TV dramas). While the writing style is quite elegant and engaging. I love the juxtaposition of the plot vs writing, that makes the story compelling without making it overly sensational
I feel the interpretation of this tumultuous love story and its connection to Thailand’s politics and history would vary quite a bit depending on each reader. But if you’re up to a bit of a challenge (not reading wise but doing more research and background reading), this would be quite an original story!
Read in Mandarin. I wouldn’t have interpret the story via a political lens without reading the translator’s notes. So grateful for the background. The storyline is very soap operas-y and dramatic (based on the notes it’s inspired by Thai TV dramas). While the writing style is quite elegant and engaging. I love the juxtaposition of the plot vs writing, that makes the story compelling without making it overly sensational
I feel the interpretation of this tumultuous love story and its connection to Thailand’s politics and history would vary quite a bit depending on each reader. But if you’re up to a bit of a challenge (not reading wise but doing more research and background reading), this would be quite an original story!