dernichtraucherin's Reviews (216)

Fourteen Days: A Collaborative Novel

Douglas Preston, Margaret Atwood, The Authors Guild

2.0

reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: N/A

this was an unbelievably boring read for a pitch that could have made an amazing book. it would have needed a better editor and maybe different authors aswell, the storytelling was sloppy, there was so little happening between each "story telling nights" that it was impossible to build a connection to anyone. the butch lesbian super could have been so much more as a protagonist but smh they chose to give her one personality trait (alcoholic) and i could bring myself to care for any of the other tenants either.

in hindsight (knowing the plot twist at the end) it makes a lot of sense why it would have been written that way but that doesnt excuse how boring it was. i read it for magaret atwood alone and she only sponsored a single story that also wasnt her best effort so i was pretty disappointed overall. i didnt check which story was hers before i read the book so i made a little game of it. having read a lot of atwoods work i thought it would be funny for me to guess which story was hers to see if i could recognise her writing and i guessed wrong but that didnt matter cause the only good thing that came from this book was that i discovered one (1) new author im interested in!

the writer i mistook for margaret atwood was in fact charlie jane anders and im looking forward to reading some of her work!

The Essential Dykes to Watch Out For

Alison Bechdel

5.0

emotional funny fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian

Marina Lewycka

3.5

dark emotional funny fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

t'was a confusing read. i would have liked a much more critical feminist analysis towards valentina but it fell extremely short because while the protagonist considered herself a feminist it was clear that she isnt. instead i would have loved a deeper exploration of the relationship between her and vera. if the whole book would have been like the last few chapters i mightve loved it! at times it felt like her father was the only three dimensional character which made him really interesting but sadly because he was a horrible person... im not sure how to feel about this book yet- it explained a lot of ukranian history to me (and a lot of unnecessary fun facts about tractors but alas here we are)