sarai0410's Reviews (404)

To save a life is to save the world.
Marjorie, Dr. Banting's collie who survived 70 days post-depancreatization was proof that science needed to begin human testing of isletin - insulin's initial form. Her life, her sacrifice, Dr. Banting, and the insulin discovery team changed and saved the world for millions of diabetic patients.

This was a remarkable read, and I appreciate the style that the author used to tell the story of insulin discovery, between the lives of scientists in the process to the life of a diabetic child that quite literally lived by the 'to starve is to survive' practice. When reading a book about scientific discovery, no matter the discovery, remembering those that have lost their lives to a disease that never saw the light of treatment or cure is humbling. Twenty-nine years ago, at the age of 2, my best friend and partner was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, and he is only here today to share his life with me because of the discovery of Dr. Banting and his team. Without him, the lives of diabetics and their loved ones would have been at a significant loss. 

“Banting’s initial idea was neither original nor successful, but he persisted in it, and his persistence led to a solution that was both original and successful. He would later say that if he had been more familiar with the literature on the subject and had known about the previous attempts, he would not have pursued his idea at all. Fortunately [..] for millions of children, he knew next to nothing.”

Cozy fantasy mixed with (not so surprisingly) violent faeries is always a recipe for success in my mind. I love how the author made this feel like a nonfiction, scientific story; the 'book within a book' trope is one of my all-time favorites. While it started slow, and the plot was a little scattered, it fit the vibes, and honestly, I'm not mad about it. The interactions with the different faerie species were great, and I'd love an actual encyclopedia (illustrated, of course) to pair with this series. 

This was really interesting - the history of medicine (and not-so medicine) is fascinating, and I love to learn the reasoning behind quack medicine. I definitely found some topics to explore further. The author did a great job of inserting humor throughout to make it less dry, and the narrator was fantastic. 

This was cute - I enjoyed the characters and the confident plus-size character rep that is missing from many romance books. Insta-love/lust is usually a no-go for me, but I think the way the author went into the story and the romance between them worked. Low stakes, good spice, good story. 

It was okay? Coming from ACOTAR into this, I expected it to be different in terms of writing style and skill, so I didn't really have an issue with that. It was just..ok. Good enough to keep me reading and wanting to continue. 

Look...is this the type of "romance" I recommend to the average reader? Absolutely not. Am I proud of how thoroughly I enjoyed it? Maybe not. Did I enjoy it anyway? Hell yes. 

Seriously though, study the trigger warnings if you plan to read this story because it 100% hits them. Outside of the smut, the plot is genuinely interesting and kept me reading. So, there's that. 

I can't give enough praise to this book - it's equal parts heartwarming and heartbreaking. When you start, you walk into a beautiful world next to a Robot full of hope and wonder, and then you're hit with thoughts and reflections on human beings that you wouldn't expect from a book so short. But somehow, in so few words, Chambers heals your heart and soul with hope and inspiration for how we treat the world and ourselves with kindness, patience, and respect.