There’s so good stuff here like guided meditations and ways to disrupt unhelpful thoughts and such but overall I’m disappointed because it feels like surface level bandaids for societal failures. Breathworth and holding our faults with compassion is powerful but when the problem is the violence of oppression in late stage capitalism it just hits weakly. It all seems very self focused and I think the approach could benefit by prioritizing community care. 

So good! I really loved the depth of these characters and their relationships (both good and bad) with their families. The romance was sweet and earnest and unlike a lot of queer high school stories the responses and growth around queerness felt authentic and not overly simplistic. It’s also an powerful commentary on cultural appropriation that really humanizes the issue and I think creates a lot of empathy and understanding. 

brilliant. made me cry over fish and humans. excellent for people enchanted with fun animals facts. beautiful storytelling. 

tbh, it was just so slow in the beginning and I’m so tired of edgy brothers and I read some reviews that didn’t give me high hopes for the rest of it. And it’s long and my library holds are stacked up right now so it’s a no for me. 

It’s hard when an author writes about religious trauma in such a poignant way because wow it’s good to put words to those wounds but gosh I hate that anyone else has to be made to understand them on that level. But this series does it in such a beautiful way filled with youthful resilience and the power of found family maybe you lacked along your own way. I know I wish I’d had the scapegracers at my side. 

I want to believe we could achieve this type of society. This book/series encourages me to hope for a better future.