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nuhafariha
Thank you to Columbia University Press & NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy.
Available August 4th 2020
Set in the aftermath of the American War in Vietnam, "Other Moons" is one of the first English translations of Vietnamese writers. While the editors do discuss the impact of the current geopolitical atmosphere in Vietnam and their limitations on content, this was a diverse collection that is well worth the time.. Romantic stories are not what you would expect from a collection of war stories, but they fit nonetheless. The best part of the collection is the way it catches the pervasiveness of war time trauma. Even for those who are not on the battlefield, the women and children, feel the effects of violence. I applaud the editors for centering these voices & painting a poignant image of postwar Vietnam, one that outsiders rarely get to see.
Available August 4th 2020
Set in the aftermath of the American War in Vietnam, "Other Moons" is one of the first English translations of Vietnamese writers. While the editors do discuss the impact of the current geopolitical atmosphere in Vietnam and their limitations on content, this was a diverse collection that is well worth the time.. Romantic stories are not what you would expect from a collection of war stories, but they fit nonetheless. The best part of the collection is the way it catches the pervasiveness of war time trauma. Even for those who are not on the battlefield, the women and children, feel the effects of violence. I applaud the editors for centering these voices & painting a poignant image of postwar Vietnam, one that outsiders rarely get to see.
I think so few love stories imagine what love is like for disabled populations or chronic pain populations. There are so many subtle, yet important differences - the deep seated shame about our bodies that we hold at our core, the vulnerability from letting someone share what we carried on our own for so long, the extra tenderness and empathy that forms between partners as they try to battle the condition together, about knowing our limits and finding someone who respects us enough to understand. I loved Talia Hibbert's Get a Life Chloe Brown because she draws out those moments so well between Chloe and her new beau Redford. Personally, though, the plot line could have been made more concise without as many "meet cutes" and sidelines, so much of it is the reader caught in Chloe Brown's upper middle class British upbringing. Hibbert could expand more about the class differences between Redford and Brown, adding yet another dynamic to this somewhat staid romance. Steamy but not too much, Hibbert strikes the right balance for a feel good rom com for Book Club Moms TM
Thank you to Running Wild Press and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available August 6th 2020
Set in modern day Okinawa, Japan, 20 something year old blonde haired wide eyed Lucy is taken for the adventure of her lifetime when she sets off to be a foreign correspondent and uncover the mystery behind her ephemeral love affair with Owen Ota, a rich Japanese exchange student at NorthWestern. When she arrives in Japan, however, Lucy is in for a rude awakening as the people of Okinawa are in the middle of a protest against a US Solider accused of brutally raping a local Okinawan resident. Unwittingly thrust into the middle of racial tensions in her small town, Lucy starts to question her own motives in coming to Japan.
What strikes me the most is Lucy's constant claim to victimhood. She is always "misunderstood" by the Ota family, by her peers at the local newspaper, by the general public. She inherently believes that as an American citizen, she would be welcomed anywhere with open arms and cannot believe it when she isn't.
I did more reading on the history of sexually violent crimes by US military in Okinawa. In the 1950s, when occupation of Okinawa just began, conservative Japanese historians estimates that there were 330 sexual assault incidents per day by US military forces in the Far East. Since 2015, 65 US Marines have been charged with sexual assault crimes, though many more go unreported. 46 of those targeted children. In most of these trials, the US military members are given significant considerations due to their status. In light of these facts, Sleeper's portrayal of the court case seems almost superficial and pallid.
What is disappointing about this book is that Sleeper had a real chance at creating a cohesive work that explores the underside of US military occupation, that creates solidarity between Okinawans and the US. But she instead chooses to focus on the plight and naivety of a single, class and racially privileged white woman.
Available August 6th 2020
Set in modern day Okinawa, Japan, 20 something year old blonde haired wide eyed Lucy is taken for the adventure of her lifetime when she sets off to be a foreign correspondent and uncover the mystery behind her ephemeral love affair with Owen Ota, a rich Japanese exchange student at NorthWestern. When she arrives in Japan, however, Lucy is in for a rude awakening as the people of Okinawa are in the middle of a protest against a US Solider accused of brutally raping a local Okinawan resident. Unwittingly thrust into the middle of racial tensions in her small town, Lucy starts to question her own motives in coming to Japan.
What strikes me the most is Lucy's constant claim to victimhood. She is always "misunderstood" by the Ota family, by her peers at the local newspaper, by the general public. She inherently believes that as an American citizen, she would be welcomed anywhere with open arms and cannot believe it when she isn't.
I did more reading on the history of sexually violent crimes by US military in Okinawa. In the 1950s, when occupation of Okinawa just began, conservative Japanese historians estimates that there were 330 sexual assault incidents per day by US military forces in the Far East. Since 2015, 65 US Marines have been charged with sexual assault crimes, though many more go unreported. 46 of those targeted children. In most of these trials, the US military members are given significant considerations due to their status. In light of these facts, Sleeper's portrayal of the court case seems almost superficial and pallid.
What is disappointing about this book is that Sleeper had a real chance at creating a cohesive work that explores the underside of US military occupation, that creates solidarity between Okinawans and the US. But she instead chooses to focus on the plight and naivety of a single, class and racially privileged white woman.
Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available August 4th 2020
Like all good slice of life TV dramas, Mike Gayle's "Half a World Away" has all the elements to make for a good tea time story. From a young age, Kerry has had to carry the world on her back whether it was caring for her drug addled mother, fighting to find her younger brother in the foster care system or single-handedly raising her young child. She is the heart and soul of this engrossing drama set in the heart of London's estates and the wide, tree lined suburbs. Little did she know that her younger brother, Jason, had grown up just half a block away in a well to do upper middle class family. Even so, Jason, or Noah as he changed his name, has his own troubles at home. When the two reunite, it is clear to see how little of human nature changes even with class status. A warm, sprawling read that will leave you bawling unexpectedly.
Available August 4th 2020
Like all good slice of life TV dramas, Mike Gayle's "Half a World Away" has all the elements to make for a good tea time story. From a young age, Kerry has had to carry the world on her back whether it was caring for her drug addled mother, fighting to find her younger brother in the foster care system or single-handedly raising her young child. She is the heart and soul of this engrossing drama set in the heart of London's estates and the wide, tree lined suburbs. Little did she know that her younger brother, Jason, had grown up just half a block away in a well to do upper middle class family. Even so, Jason, or Noah as he changed his name, has his own troubles at home. When the two reunite, it is clear to see how little of human nature changes even with class status. A warm, sprawling read that will leave you bawling unexpectedly.
Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available August 4th 2020
Like all good slice of life TV dramas, Mike Gayle's "Half a World Away" has all the elements to make for a good tea time story. From a young age, Kerry has had to carry the world on her back whether it was caring for her drug addled mother, fighting to find her younger brother in the foster care system or single-handedly raising her young child. She is the heart and soul of this engrossing drama set in the heart of London's estates and the wide, tree lined suburbs. Little did she know that her younger brother, Jason, had grown up just half a block away in a well to do upper middle class family. Even so, Jason, or Noah as he changed his name, has his own troubles at home. When the two reunite, it is clear to see how little of human nature changes even with class status. A warm, sprawling read that will leave you bawling unexpectedly.
Available August 4th 2020
Like all good slice of life TV dramas, Mike Gayle's "Half a World Away" has all the elements to make for a good tea time story. From a young age, Kerry has had to carry the world on her back whether it was caring for her drug addled mother, fighting to find her younger brother in the foster care system or single-handedly raising her young child. She is the heart and soul of this engrossing drama set in the heart of London's estates and the wide, tree lined suburbs. Little did she know that her younger brother, Jason, had grown up just half a block away in a well to do upper middle class family. Even so, Jason, or Noah as he changed his name, has his own troubles at home. When the two reunite, it is clear to see how little of human nature changes even with class status. A warm, sprawling read that will leave you bawling unexpectedly.
Thank you to Greenleaf Book Press and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available August 4th 2020
Set between the Cultural Revolution and the Shanghai War, Dina Gu Brumfield's "Unbound" is a breathtaking work spanning three generations of Chinese women's lives. From strong willed Mini to her daughter, duty bound Mei to her daughter, skeptical Ting, Brumfield explores what it means to survive as a woman in China. "Unbound" is unflinching and unbiased examination of sex and relationships, how one doesn't dictate the other and how both can be used to leverage freedom and privilege, as though the woman themselves have shaken loose from history's shackles. As time moves forward, I hope we see more and more of these narratives, of the comfort women, of the many underhanded interactions that happen in the shadows to keep empires afloat.
Available August 4th 2020
Set between the Cultural Revolution and the Shanghai War, Dina Gu Brumfield's "Unbound" is a breathtaking work spanning three generations of Chinese women's lives. From strong willed Mini to her daughter, duty bound Mei to her daughter, skeptical Ting, Brumfield explores what it means to survive as a woman in China. "Unbound" is unflinching and unbiased examination of sex and relationships, how one doesn't dictate the other and how both can be used to leverage freedom and privilege, as though the woman themselves have shaken loose from history's shackles. As time moves forward, I hope we see more and more of these narratives, of the comfort women, of the many underhanded interactions that happen in the shadows to keep empires afloat.
Thank you to Perseus Books and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available August 11 2020
Before I read Belabored, I had no idea who Lyz Lenz was. By the end of the book, I am hoping we will one day cross paths and share a good laugh. Part political commentary, part medical history, part autobiography, Belabored discusses various aspects of pregnancy from conception to postpartum care. With a keen eye, Lenz hones in on various medical, social, and political "innovations" which greatly restrict pregnant women's rights and freedoms. Anything is game from vaginal secretions in pregnancy to a critique of Dr. Sims to Lenz's own upbringing in a conservative Christian household. Lenz's unique conversational, almost conspiratorial tone made it a far more enjoyable book than I would have expected. Definitely recommend!
Available August 11 2020
Before I read Belabored, I had no idea who Lyz Lenz was. By the end of the book, I am hoping we will one day cross paths and share a good laugh. Part political commentary, part medical history, part autobiography, Belabored discusses various aspects of pregnancy from conception to postpartum care. With a keen eye, Lenz hones in on various medical, social, and political "innovations" which greatly restrict pregnant women's rights and freedoms. Anything is game from vaginal secretions in pregnancy to a critique of Dr. Sims to Lenz's own upbringing in a conservative Christian household. Lenz's unique conversational, almost conspiratorial tone made it a far more enjoyable book than I would have expected. Definitely recommend!
Dispatches from the Vanguard: The Global International African Arts Movement Versus Donald J. Trump
Thank you to Repeater Books and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!
Available August 11 2020
Led by an extraordinary leader himself, Patrick Howell's "Dispatches from the Vanguard" builds on a tradition of oral excellence in the Global International African Arts Movement through a series of interviews, works of art and descriptions of artists including poet extraordinaire Nikki Giovanni, science fiction author Nnedi Okorafor, designer Rich Fresh among others. It's conversational and quite sensational. I greatly enjoyed reading the samples of poetry, pondering the gorgeous works of art and reading. What somewhat limits the book, due to the nature of the pandemic, is that the interviews seem to have been all conducted virtually. This makes the reading somewhat staid instead of the more dynamic and lively version I know the author has the potential to be.
Available August 11 2020
Led by an extraordinary leader himself, Patrick Howell's "Dispatches from the Vanguard" builds on a tradition of oral excellence in the Global International African Arts Movement through a series of interviews, works of art and descriptions of artists including poet extraordinaire Nikki Giovanni, science fiction author Nnedi Okorafor, designer Rich Fresh among others. It's conversational and quite sensational. I greatly enjoyed reading the samples of poetry, pondering the gorgeous works of art and reading. What somewhat limits the book, due to the nature of the pandemic, is that the interviews seem to have been all conducted virtually. This makes the reading somewhat staid instead of the more dynamic and lively version I know the author has the potential to be.