So if you're like me, you probably have seen this book pop up in recommendations on apps like Instagram and TikTok. Because I've seen this so many times and I study/do research on tyranny, dictatorships, and uprisings, I decided to buy and read it. The thing is is that it's okay, but this is still an important read. While the content in this book is pretty basic, it's still important to read and reinforce within yourself the lessons that the author writes about. What I like specifically is that the author uses history from WW2 along with the first Trump administration to back up each lesson in the book. While I think it is very Western-focused, the author utilizes/references said history in an interesting way. 

Aside from my critique that this is pretty basic, I found it ironic and upsetting that the author used the g slur to reference the Romani people when talking about the people who were imprisoned and killed by the Nazis. I know that this is one small little thing, but use of such slur not only is harmful against people from that background, but also reinforces beliefs of people like Hitler and groups like the Nazis. It's just so ironic because the whole book is about things to do to fight tyranny and the author does/says something that tyrants would do. 

Other than that, this book was okay. Nothing necessarily profound, but I still argue that people should read this then continue on reading more while trying to connect with themselves and their community. It's times like these where we have to improve our mental/physical/emotional health, knowledge, and relationships with our families and communities so we can fight against facist administrations, and institutions. No one can do it alone so let's fight together. 

This book is okay. If you are someone who knows nothing about LGBTQ+ history in the United States, this would be a good place to start off. The thing is though is that it's very LG (lesbian and gay) focused and only brings up bisexual and transgender people when needed (ex. Stonewall Protests) so in a way, you end up getting sold sort on LGBTQ+ history. It's pretty basic, but makes some good points while looking at different aspects of queer American history. 

Ngl, my head hurts and I have teared up too many times while reading this; it's criminal that it took me so long to actually read it. I remember seeing this book in a recommendation on an Instagram post and bought it a little over a year ago from Thriftbooks. It came to me in that crisp plastic protective covering that libraries would put books in. Then it sat in my room. I ended up living and studying abroad in South Korea for four months. In that time, I learned all sorts of Korean history. I even went up to Seoul a few times, going to different museums including the Seodaemun Prision Hall where Korean independence activists were imprisoned during the Japanese colonial period. 

It's been almost six months since I came back from Korea. I missed it so much, it feels like a second home to me. A little while after I had my floating bookshelves up, I kept looking over at this book and thought that it was time I finally read this. 

From the first page, I felt like I was watching a movie or strolling through those museums, becoming immersed in the history. I love epics like this. They really take you on such a journey. To see characters flourish and wither along with everything happening in the world was something to witness. While this may be a historical fiction book, a lot of it rings true. I really enjoyed reading this book. In some ways, I love it. I hope to learn more Korean history and I hope to find another Korean historical fiction book like this one. 

I had no clue what I was getting myself into when I read this and holy shit. I was balling my eyes out. Like you think things were going good then something happens and it just leaves you there tearing up. I even cried a bit. This book feels like if it was a movie, it'd be an Oscar winner. You know? Like every single shot is a canvas oil painting masterpiece. Totally different from other kinds of historical fiction that I read (and just totally different from what I usually read for that matter), but it was great. It is a great book. 

Well, this left the top of my brain smooth to say the least. The first three words that came to mind when I finished this were "What the fuck?" I don't know. I like this book but on the other hand, I don't know what to feel about it, but that's not in a bad way. 

Literally I do like this book and it's not just because I was a competitive swimmer (a queer one) and the fact this takes place in Pittsburgh/Western PA, I think I can (in some ways) relate to Ren. At least when I was a teenager. Just the way that extracurriculars can take over your life and be your whole world and exhaust you is real. Wanting to change yourself or make yourself go through pain in order to release pressure is something that a lot of people go through whether they want to admit it or not. 

To be honest, I did find Ren and Cathy to be insufferable, but I found them to be (in a way) reflections of queer teen girls like me. I also think that Coach Jim should be removed from the swim team and put in jail. Also everyone in this book needs therapy but I believe that is just a symptom of being from Western PA. Still, in the end, I found this to be an interesting read. 

Honestly, I really enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It explored other parts of Gilead and the people in it along with rebel organizations and other countries. Going back and forth between the three main characters the book focuses on did confuse me in the beginning, but as I got further along with this, everything started to make sense. I just found it to be interesting and I really did enjoy reading this. 

This was okay. If you are like me and don't know much about voodoo and the Nola area, then this is a good book to begin learning. It just gets into the surface of the history, significant figures, practices, altars, and other components important to the practice. 

This is one of those books where I just couldn't put it down; I just had to read it to the end because I wanted to know more and see it through. To say this book makes me feel a lot is an understatement. It just hurts how things in this book are becoming reality, already are, or have always been a reality. 

I know that there is a lot of debate surrounding this book (especially since it is also a banned book), but I do believe that this is something everyone should read. It just shows how authoritarianism directed against marginalized communities like women, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled, and so on are just hell for everyone unless you are in the ruling elite. The division created between classes and groups is how they thrive. They want you to focus on differences and sneer at other people whom you view as the enemy or your rival. They want you to believe that people should be controlled and that you believe you should be controlled too. 

If I was some kind of literature professor, I'd make my students read this. Not only is it timeless but as long as capitalism, racism, misogyny, ableism, and homophibia rages on, it will forever be relevant. The themes and motifs in this book are not a thing of the past, they are current and could be the future if nothing is done. It's a book that makes you think and reflect. It's just good. 

So I was gifted this book by a journalist I had met through a friend while studying abroad in Gwangju. Because the book is in English, he told me that it was not use to him and that I could have it. To this day, holding the book in my hands makes me feel this wave of gratitude and grief. I had put off reading this till the 45th anniversary of the uprising as I thought it would be fitting to read it during the time frame. 

If there was one book I could pick to recommendation to people to learn about the Gwangju Uprising, I would pick this one. It lays out practically everything that had happened. Lee talks about how the community came together to stand up against the military dictatorship and also to help one another during the liberation commune period. Then at the end, Tim Shorrock talks about how the US was involved in the uprising. This book is heavy just as every other book on the uprising is, but there is something special about this one. I wish more people knew about the Gwangju Uprising and what the people of Gwangju did. Hopefully if more do, I hope they come across this book. 

This book gives great insight into how South Korea's democracy came to be. Through modernization theory, economic development, political turmoil and protest, the author uses datasets to examine the characteristics of the advancement of democracy in Korea and how multiple factors influence and contradict one another. 

Personally, I say that this is a very political oriented book (not necessarily a historical one). However, the author does a great job of laying out her thesis and data while also threading in the history behind it all. This book helps give greater understanding of Korean democracy and how it came to be which can help us as readers understand democracy in other countries around the world.