ambershelf's reviews
1295 reviews

Gifty is a neuroscience PhD student at Stanford who is grappling with her complex family trauma while conducting animal experiments to complete her thesis. With her older brother gone from a heroin overdose and her suicidal mom living from her bed, Gifty is determined to discover the scientific basis for the suffering she sees all around her.

TRANSCENDENT KINGDOM is a captivating and contemplative novel that explores the intersection of science and religion following a young woman's journey to make sense of her family's history of addiction and depression. With beautiful prose and deep introspection, Gyasi weaves the story of Gifty's family's immigration to the US and their struggles with poverty & homesickness. The parallels between the mice's addiction and Gifty's brother's dependence on opioids are thought-provoking and raise essential questions about how we understand addiction & design treatments. While it doesn't follow a strong plot, Gyasi's profoundly empathetic writing provides a nuanced perspective on mental illness and draws me in deeply.

As someone who used to work in labs and perform mouse experiments, TRANSCENDENT KINGDOM reminds me of my grad school days. Gyasi raises critical ethical questions about animal experimentation and the role of science in society. Her reflections on the parallels between animals used in studies & patients suffering from illnesses, as well as the consequences of playing God with other creatures, are thought-provoking and will stay with me long after finishing the book.

There are also a lot of references to Christianity and its role & complicity in addressing immigration, gender identity, and racial prejudice. For those with a deeper understanding of religion, TRANSCENDENT KINGDOM will likely provide even more layers and nuance.

I highly recommend this book to readers interested in exploring themes of addiction, depression, science, and religion with complex yet relatable characters.

As a Korean adoptee to white parents in a majority-white Oregon town, Nicole Chung was excited to leave her hometown for college and move across the country. She found her community and home on the East Coast as her family grew after graduation. However, when both her parents passed away within a year of each other–her father from diabetes & kidney disease and her mother from cancer during the pandemic–Chung was hit with heartbreaking grief and rage.

A LIVING REMEDY is a heartwrenching and poignant memoir that explores identity, family, and inequality. As an adoptee who grew up in a white family, Chung grapples with her difference from her parents yet also cherishes the closeness they share. She reflects on her parents' courageous decision to adopt a sick Korean American baby. This experience gives Chung the courage to pursue whatever she wants in life and is a testament to her parents' legacy.

Chung also delves into issues of poverty and healthcare and how these issues are intertwined to contribute to the struggles of middle-class families that rely on stable jobs to afford medical care. As someone who lived in Taiwan, where there is universal healthcare, and finds America's medical system baffling, I resonated deeply with Chung's experience and pain when her father couldn't access adequate care due to financial instability.

Perhaps most heartbreakingly, Chung memorializes her parents and grapples with the question of how to care for them when she's across the country and how to remember them after they're gone. I sobbed so much reading about this and thinking about my parents, who are an ocean away. While I'm grateful for their support of me pursuing my career in the US, I shudder to think if there's ever an emergency and I couldn't be there with my parents. Will I ever forgive myself?

A LIVING REMEDY is a beautifully written memoir that explores complex themes with grace and honesty. Chung's story is one that resonated deeply with me, and I'll be thinking about it long after finishing.

Thank you to Ecco Books and Net Galley for the eARC. A LIVING REMEDY is out today, and it's a beautiful story you won't want to miss!

Betty Carpenter was born in 1954 to a Cherokee father and a white mother. The sixth of eight siblings, the Carpenter household is full of adventures and laughter. But lying underneath Betty's seemingly carefree childhood is a world of poverty, discrimination, and violence. When dark family secrets are brought to light and threaten to uproot everything, Betty must shed her innocence and reckon with the brutal history lurching in the dark.

Inspired by the life of her own mother, McDaniel writes with care and compassion about Betty's coming-of-age story and the resilience of young women. McDaniel's storytelling allows us to see the world through Betty's eyes, and it's a painful and often heartwrenching journey interspersed with the joy of growing up listening to her father's story of the Cherokee people. Despite all the pain and suffering, Betty's heart is so big I just want to give her a big hug.

The book deals with themes of racism, sexism, and sexual abuse, and it doesn't shy away from the reality of what women, especially indigenous women, have to endure. For readers interested in BETTY, definitely check out the trigger warnings and take care of yourself before diving in.

What I love most about BETTY is how McDaniel crafts Betty's voice to become more layered and nuanced as she ages. We see her grow from an innocent girl to a resilient woman, and it's a journey that is both painful and beautiful. The story hurts so much that I found myself crying in the dentist's office, and not because of my root canal