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ambershelf's Reviews (1.3k)
This collection with interconnected characters portrays individuals straddling belonging & loneliness and life & death following misfortunes that befall those living in a remote village. I adore the lyrical prose and dreamlike quality, while the non-linear stories can be disorienting.
favs
• Permission to Land: a man remembers his childhood friends and their drifting apart
• The Little Bell: a young girl living with her grandma and dog waits for her mom to return home
• The Cliff: a man recounts the life and death of a woman and considers how one is remebered
favs
• Permission to Land: a man remembers his childhood friends and their drifting apart
• The Little Bell: a young girl living with her grandma and dog waits for her mom to return home
• The Cliff: a man recounts the life and death of a woman and considers how one is remebered
gifted by the publisher
Weaving glimpses of fantasy and the anxieties of living as Black, this gorgeously written collection pushes the boundaries of reality and fantasy. With hints of BLISS MONTAGE (Ling Ma), WBG invites readers on a wild ride to experience friendship, love, and betrayal through the eyes of Black individuals. I love how unique each story is, but the overwritten prose impedes my interpretation at times.
favs
• The Switchin’ Tree: a tree "terrorizes" Black kids
• Triggered: the complex relationship of two women as they organize community activism
• Things I Learned in Caitlin Clarke’s Intro to Acting Class: a gay couple realizes their touch leads to something more
Weaving glimpses of fantasy and the anxieties of living as Black, this gorgeously written collection pushes the boundaries of reality and fantasy. With hints of BLISS MONTAGE (Ling Ma), WBG invites readers on a wild ride to experience friendship, love, and betrayal through the eyes of Black individuals. I love how unique each story is, but the overwritten prose impedes my interpretation at times.
favs
• The Switchin’ Tree: a tree "terrorizes" Black kids
• Triggered: the complex relationship of two women as they organize community activism
• Things I Learned in Caitlin Clarke’s Intro to Acting Class: a gay couple realizes their touch leads to something more
gifted by booksparks
Set against the heroin epidemic that ravaged Madrid in the 1980s, HABIT follows the coming-of-age of an unnamed girl who is trapped in a boy's body. Feeling alienated from her working-class suburb, she finds kindship within a queer community. But at every turn, she is confronted with violence and death—against her community and even herself.
HABIT is an introspective novel examining the experiences of growing up with gender dysphoria compounded with cultural misogyny. The stream-of-consciousness writing style reflects the inner psyche of our protagonist's dilemma—she can only live in her head to find liberation from her body.
I loved the exploration of gender and class and how one finds camaraderie within their queer community. While there is heartbreaking violence, small glimpses of joy and solidarity exist. I highly recommend HABIT to fans of DETRANSITION, BABY (Torrey Peters) and NEVADA (Imogen Binnie)
Set against the heroin epidemic that ravaged Madrid in the 1980s, HABIT follows the coming-of-age of an unnamed girl who is trapped in a boy's body. Feeling alienated from her working-class suburb, she finds kindship within a queer community. But at every turn, she is confronted with violence and death—against her community and even herself.
HABIT is an introspective novel examining the experiences of growing up with gender dysphoria compounded with cultural misogyny. The stream-of-consciousness writing style reflects the inner psyche of our protagonist's dilemma—she can only live in her head to find liberation from her body.
I loved the exploration of gender and class and how one finds camaraderie within their queer community. While there is heartbreaking violence, small glimpses of joy and solidarity exist. I highly recommend HABIT to fans of DETRANSITION, BABY (Torrey Peters) and NEVADA (Imogen Binnie)
Read in mandarin first and then English (gifted by HarperVia Books)
First off, definitely check TW! Especially since this book is based on the author’s own experience, it might be helpful to first read about Yi-Han’s life—a literary star that was gone too soon. May she rest in power.
The Mandarin has more complex language that takes a bit getting used to. Sometimes the sentences read a bit confusing. Whereas the English translation is more straightforward, and I personally prefer my experience reading in English, even though that means the ancient Chinese texts lose its flavor.
The themes of “misinterpreting” literature as a means to grooming is very unique and fascinating. The author brilliantly delineates how “useless/dangerous” literature is when all it does is give power to perpetrators to justify their actions rather than protect girls & women.
Another thing to note is that the “epilogue” is a bit confusing… in the Mandarin version it’s more clear that’s the author’s notes given it occurs after afterwards/reviews of the book. In the English version, it can seem like it’s an extra chapter of the novel—which I don’t think it is. But it’ll be interesting to see how English readers interpret the epilogue.
Finally, in the mandarin version, there’s an afterward titled 「任何關於性的暴力，都是整個社會一起完成的。」(roughly translates to: any sexual violence is perpetrated by the entire society). It really helped me interpret the novel on my second read. An absolutely heartbreaking yet essential read
First off, definitely check TW! Especially since this book is based on the author’s own experience, it might be helpful to first read about Yi-Han’s life—a literary star that was gone too soon. May she rest in power.
The Mandarin has more complex language that takes a bit getting used to. Sometimes the sentences read a bit confusing. Whereas the English translation is more straightforward, and I personally prefer my experience reading in English, even though that means the ancient Chinese texts lose its flavor.
The themes of “misinterpreting” literature as a means to grooming is very unique and fascinating. The author brilliantly delineates how “useless/dangerous” literature is when all it does is give power to perpetrators to justify their actions rather than protect girls & women.
Another thing to note is that the “epilogue” is a bit confusing… in the Mandarin version it’s more clear that’s the author’s notes given it occurs after afterwards/reviews of the book. In the English version, it can seem like it’s an extra chapter of the novel—which I don’t think it is. But it’ll be interesting to see how English readers interpret the epilogue.
Finally, in the mandarin version, there’s an afterward titled 「任何關於性的暴力，都是整個社會一起完成的。」(roughly translates to: any sexual violence is perpetrated by the entire society). It really helped me interpret the novel on my second read. An absolutely heartbreaking yet essential read
Most of the book is world building and setting up for the series. Things didn’t get interesting until after 50%, and even then the pacing varies greatly from character to chapter. It’s a bit hard to feel connected to the characters because there are so many of them. I kind of wish the author would’ve saved some characters to book 2 and focus on fewer individuals. I’m excited to see what happens in the sequel because I want to know how the mystery is resolved. I’d recommend waiting until the entire series is out to decide if one should pick it up or not
Gifted by bibliolifestyle & the publisher. 2.5/5 stars
This books has potential but the execution fell flat. It’s a curious case of trying to do too much in covering lots of topics, and not doing enough in developing anything further for both plot and characters.
There is mention of grief, generational trauma, climate change, “survival” for Black individuals in white institutions—both during school integration in the past and currently for Black students in higher education. The most interesting aspect for me is how Black vs white activists are treated very differently when engaging in civil disobedience, and I so badly wish this topic were expanded. But instead, the readers get half-baked topics thrown around.
The other issue is the plot—it’s too shallow and thus, the author had to throw in a bunch of unrelated backstories/dialogues to bulk up the book.
sadly, this one is a miss for me.
This books has potential but the execution fell flat. It’s a curious case of trying to do too much in covering lots of topics, and not doing enough in developing anything further for both plot and characters.
There is mention of grief, generational trauma, climate change, “survival” for Black individuals in white institutions—both during school integration in the past and currently for Black students in higher education. The most interesting aspect for me is how Black vs white activists are treated very differently when engaging in civil disobedience, and I so badly wish this topic were expanded. But instead, the readers get half-baked topics thrown around.
The other issue is the plot—it’s too shallow and thus, the author had to throw in a bunch of unrelated backstories/dialogues to bulk up the book.
sadly, this one is a miss for me.
gifted by the publisher
In the near future, our unnamed half-Cambodian, half-white FMC assists Commander Graham Gore, an "expat" time traveling from 1847, to assimilate into society. As the duo falls in love, the time-traveling program erupts into chaos.
TIME is a lit fic-heavy and sci-fi-lite tale of displacement, both in the physical and psychological sense. The juxtaposition between the FMC and Gore's diasporas is a unique aspect of the story, even though I'm apprehensive about learning about colonizers' "displacements" lol. Another topic I appreciate is the protagonist's battle of assimilation vs. complicity.
Unfortunately, the middle dragged, and the ending was utterly baffling. I'm still unsure how time travel works in TIME, as it doesn't follow any rules. I felt underwhelmed by the ending after all that built up, and really wished for a different conclusion
In the near future, our unnamed half-Cambodian, half-white FMC assists Commander Graham Gore, an "expat" time traveling from 1847, to assimilate into society. As the duo falls in love, the time-traveling program erupts into chaos.
TIME is a lit fic-heavy and sci-fi-lite tale of displacement, both in the physical and psychological sense. The juxtaposition between the FMC and Gore's diasporas is a unique aspect of the story, even though I'm apprehensive about learning about colonizers' "displacements" lol. Another topic I appreciate is the protagonist's battle of assimilation vs. complicity.
Unfortunately, the middle dragged, and the ending was utterly baffling. I'm still unsure how time travel works in TIME, as it doesn't follow any rules. I felt underwhelmed by the ending after all that built up, and really wished for a different conclusion