Concise and thoughtful graphic memoir by a queer biracial woman who’s diagnosed with breast cancer at age 25. I appreciated Kimiko Tobimatsu’s honestyConcise and thoughtful graphic memoir by a queer biracial woman who’s diagnosed with breast cancer at age 25. I appreciated Kimiko Tobimatsu’s honesty in this memoir, writing about meaningful and important topics such as not forcing people to think about the positive and instead giving them space to honor their sadness, how cancer recovery narratives often center white straight people, and how physical, mental, and relational health intersect with one another. The combination of illustrations and her narrative helped provide a sense of realness to how Tobimatsu coped with her illness in her day-to-day life. I hope this book will augment the empathy people have for those struggling with cancer and related conditions, especially people who aren’t often highlighted in these narratives.
The concision of this graphic novel was an interesting strength and maybe drawback? I wanted a little more self-reflection about, for example, the role of race or being mixed race and how that affected Tobimatsu’s experience. Especially how racial dynamics intersected with gender dynamics within her family to influence communication. However, I recognize she may have wanted to keep it short and sweet on purpose. I’m curious what my Philly book club will think of this one....more
Really great academic book about Palestinian American youth living in the United States after 9/11. Thea Renda Abu El-Haj does a wonderful and thorougReally great academic book about Palestinian American youth living in the United States after 9/11. Thea Renda Abu El-Haj does a wonderful and thorough job of writing about several important topics, such as how Palestinian American kids and teens navigate their identities both as Palestinians and as Americans. She highlights the racism they face from their teachers as well as how everyday nationalism contributes to stereotypical and violent assumptions about Arab individuals and Arab Americans. What I most loved about this book is how Thea Renda Abu El-Haj interviews Palestinian American kids and teens and highlights how they practice resistance of racism in the United States and how they cultivate pride in their identities as Palestinians. Amidst the horrific ongoing genocide in Palestine now it was heartwarming to read these narratives that portrayed Palestinian American youth in a more three-dimensional light.
Given that it’s an academic text sometimes the writing is a little dry though I found the content important and meaningful regardless....more
Thoughtful, well-written, and well-argued book about the underfunding and undermining of public schools in the United States, with an emphasis on how Thoughtful, well-written, and well-argued book about the underfunding and undermining of public schools in the United States, with an emphasis on how this negatively affects Black and Latinx students. Dr. Noliwe Rooks does a great job of explaining and providing evidence for her term “segrenomics,” in which wealth disparities within education create wildly disparate and unequal opportunities for Black and Latinx students compared to wealthy white and Asian students. She makes several great arguments, including advocating for the importance of integration as opposed to allocating funds toward private schools and criticizing programs like Teach for America for not doing enough to dismantle root causes of educational inequity (e.g., poverty, policies that create segregated educational opportunities).
I liked too toward the end of the book how she emphasizes the need for us to actually listen to teenagers about their experience. It was nice that she ended the book with the perspectives of two Black educators who had themselves attended underfunded schools as children....more
What a messy, entertaining, yet sometimes quite deep book! I liked this novel about three white gay men more than I thought I would. Ways and Means foWhat a messy, entertaining, yet sometimes quite deep book! I liked this novel about three white gay men more than I thought I would. Ways and Means follows Allistair McCabe, a young, conventionally attractive gay college student who’s goal is to get a lot of money. But when his ambitious plans for a high-rolling banking job don’t work out, he turns to shady work for an enigmatic billionaire who’s motivations are much darker than they may initially seem. Meanwhile, Allistair’s lovers, an older couple named Mark and Elijah, are facing troubles of their own – Mark is at the end of his trust fund and takes a job with his father’s immoral business, and Elijah turns to similarly unsavory work to keep himself afloat amidst his failing relationship with Mark. These three men’s lives twist and intertwine in searing, sexual, and fearsome ways that eventually come to a satisfying climax.
What I liked most about this book was its commentary about growing up poor and intergenerational financial trauma. I skimmed an interview from Daniel Lefferts awhile ago and it seems that he wrote Allistair’s perspective at least a bit from his own experience of not having much money growing up. I found Allistair’s obsession with money – especially in the context of his father’s death and witnessing his mother’s poverty – well-written and emotionally convincing. I also enjoyed how Allistair, Mark, and Elijah all grew as characters. Even though I did find Lefferts’s writing a bit intellectualized at times, to me each of these characters did have a well-earned and meaningful development arc.
I also found the plot and the writing rather thrilling (and even downright scary) in parts. I don’t really see anyone pegging this book as a thriller and I probably wouldn’t either, though there was a suspense element that kept me on my toes. Lefferts’s writing is high quality enough that I felt immersed in the story. I rolled my eyes a bit at the preponderance of messaging about fit, athletic, slim bodies, though I suppose that this messaging was realistic given the intense body dysmorphia and fatphobia in the gay male community.
Overall, I didn’t love this book, but I did enjoy it and think it has interesting themes related to class and queerness. I’m curious what my book club will think!...more
Unfortunately I did not enjoy reading this novel. I thought all the characters sounded the same voice-wise even though the book featured multiple poinUnfortunately I did not enjoy reading this novel. I thought all the characters sounded the same voice-wise even though the book featured multiple points of view. In addition to the dry writing, I felt that Godkiller focused so much on action (e.g., character does X, character does Y, character does Z) that it sacrificed more of the emotional component of each character and each character’s interiority. The characters were doing things and I found it hard to care. I don’t always naturally lean toward fantasy so maybe that contributed to my dislike. We’ll see if my book club liked it more than I did!...more
Initially I felt posting a negative review of this book because I’m also queer and Vietnamese, and then I was like, that doesn’t mean I’m obligated toInitially I felt posting a negative review of this book because I’m also queer and Vietnamese, and then I was like, that doesn’t mean I’m obligated to like this novel (e.g., white people can dislike white authors’ books and it’s not representative of their entire race)! I just did not resonate with Time is a Mother. There are some brief flashes of something deeper, like Ocean Vuong’s relationship with his mother, his grief, some thoughtfulness about how race/racism/tokenization plays out in publishing, though overall I felt like these poems were not substantive or that meaningful. I say this with the kindest tone possible though it felt like words were being strung together and that was kind of that. I also didn’t understand Vuong’s writing about Peter and found it melodramatic and again, lacking more depth to make me care. I wouldn’t have read this poetry collection if it hadn’t been chosen as the book for a Philly book club I’m in. Onto the next!...more
I liked learning about lesbians throughout history, especially given the erasure of queer romantic love between women. I thought Amelia Possanza did aI liked learning about lesbians throughout history, especially given the erasure of queer romantic love between women. I thought Amelia Possanza did a sufficient job of paying attention to intersecting dynamics of class, race, and queerness when reflecting on these different lesbian narratives. Unfortunately I found the writing style a bit dry and the toggling back and forth between describing history and writing memoir clunky. Read for a book club so we’ll see what others think!...more
Wanted to get into this one but couldn’t, sad to say it’s my third two-star review in a row. I think within The House of Doors lies some interesting tWanted to get into this one but couldn’t, sad to say it’s my third two-star review in a row. I think within The House of Doors lies some interesting themes related to the secrets we keep in our relationships as well as how power dynamics related to gender, race, and sexual orientation affect our relationships. Unfortunately I struggled to feel invested in the story and the characters though. One, the writing style felt both flowery and dull – like it came across as both intellectualized and distanced, while still trying to convey emotion, and it didn’t work for me. The characters also felt flat and unintriguing. We’ll see what my book club thinks of this one....more
I liked the message about how women face so much pressure to get married and live a heteronormative, amatonormative life by their late 20’s. Other thaI liked the message about how women face so much pressure to get married and live a heteronormative, amatonormative life by their late 20’s. Other than that, though, this book confused me – I found the pacing off and the fantasy elements difficult to buy into. Appreciate the naming of racism and sexism, though unfortunately this book won’t stick with me much....more
I liked this graphic memoir about a queer Wuhanese American’s coming of age. Laura Gao portrays her journey to self-acceptance, especially pertaining I liked this graphic memoir about a queer Wuhanese American’s coming of age. Laura Gao portrays her journey to self-acceptance, especially pertaining to her racial identity after growing up in a predominantly white town. I appreciated Gao’s honesty about confronting her internalized racism, in particular when she moved from Texas to Philadelphia for college. She doesn’t sacrifice complexity in this memoir either; she writes and draws with honesty in relation to her complex dynamic with her father. At the same time, her story exemplifies the importance of embracing and loving oneself and one’s roots, and it’s wonderful that she’s able to honor her heritage and her parents even if her relationship with her father isn’t 100% perfect.
This felt like an easy read, though not in a negative way. For some reason I wanted a bit more punch, though perhaps that would’ve detracted from Gao’s story. Either way, an enjoyable graphic novel that Asian immigrants to the United States may relate to....more
Read this one for book club and was pleasantly surprised. The novel follows a trans criminal defense attorney who represents a young Black tr3.5 stars
Read this one for book club and was pleasantly surprised. The novel follows a trans criminal defense attorney who represents a young Black trans woman accused of murdering a rich white man. I thought Robyn Gigl did a nice job of portraying the horrendous transphobic violence encountered by trans women, both in terms of grotesque physical assault as well as awful interpersonal jabs. At the same time, I liked how she represented a trans female lawyer doing her best to navigate life post-transition, across her job, family, and romantic relationships. There were a few passages where I could sense a, “this is here to educate cis people about this topic” vibe, though they were brief and didn’t detract from the book much in my opinion.
I didn’t love the thriller aspect of By Way of Sorrow. I didn’t feel like the legal drama stuff was written in a particularly suspenseful or compelling way. I understand that Gigl is a lawyer herself so it makes sense to write what she knows. Overall, I found the book a pleasant read and a positive representation of transgender characters, and I appreciated this representation coming from an author who identities as trans herself....more
Okay this book was so messy and unenjoyable, I’m crying and shaking and not in a good way. I just don’t like how so many novels about gay men are abouOkay this book was so messy and unenjoyable, I’m crying and shaking and not in a good way. I just don’t like how so many novels about gay men are about gay men in unhealthy, abusive relationships in which the abuse remains unaddressed?? This novel features a young gay man who falls into an obsessive relationship with a man ten years older than him. Aside from the general unhealthiness of their relationship, there’s one scene where the older man sexually assaults the younger man and the repercussions of that assault are never really contended with throughout the whole book. Also, the young gay male protagonist is described as “chubby” and the novel definitely contains at least one scene where a thinner physique is glorified – again, this fatphobia is never written about in a way that indicates growth, unlearning internalized fatphobia, etc.
I guess I’ll give this book two stars for the gay representation but even that feels amiss because I question whether representation like this is better than no representation at all (not a question worth exploring because there is indeed better gay representation out there.)...more
I liked this memoir more than I thought I would based on some of the negative reviews I read! In particular, I enjoyed reading Elliot Page’s raw refleI liked this memoir more than I thought I would based on some of the negative reviews I read! In particular, I enjoyed reading Elliot Page’s raw reflections about his life, both related to his trans identity and his family dynamics. Though he uses a nonlinear frame in Pageboy, I still felt invested in the memoir because he writes each scene with enough specific detail that I could visualize his experiences and get a strong sense of his emotions. I found the nonlinear approach effective in this memoir because Page has a *lot* of trauma and life stuff broadly to share about, including parental stuff, coming out as a lesbian initially, then coming out as trans, sexual trauma, messy relationships, connecting with nature, and more. Getting snippets from each component of his life as opposed to a linear timeline of everything probably saved this memoir from being 600 pages long.
I hovered around a 3.5 for a lot of this book so I’ll share what tipped me over to a four. First, I did get a sense of Page’s genuine healing and self-growth in this book, such as when he reflected about how he’s working on his attachment issues, setting better boundaries, and going to therapy. He also acknowledges his privilege, especially in regard to his wealth, which is something I appreciate in art. He doesn’t do it in an in-your-face “I have X privilege and Y privilege which means I was able to do A thing and B thing,” rather, he slips it in in ways that felt both subtle and important (though perhaps he could’ve named the problems with the cult of celebrity that contributed to people being obsessed with him in the first place, but anyway.) I liked too that he was real about his family estrangement and his separation from his father and his father’s current wife. Bio family members can be toxic, unwilling to change, and totally oppressive, and in my opinion it’s great for more people to be honest about that (my favorite read of the year so far, the novel Post-Traumatic by Chantal Johnson, addresses family estrangement from the perspective of Black Latinx woman. Would highly recommend this novel.)
I don’t think this was a perfect memoir and I agree with other reviewers that Page could have tightened up some of the different narrative threads or provided a little more direct reflection on his emotional growth and healing journey. Still, with the rampant, horrible, just heinous transphobia in the United States right now, I do believe it’s courageous for him to share this account, even with his white privilege, wealth privilege, immense social capital, etc. Curious what others think of this one!...more
Kind of a mess! I missed this book and it missed me. I respect the presence of themes related to ghostliness and corporeality, myth and immigration, aKind of a mess! I missed this book and it missed me. I respect the presence of themes related to ghostliness and corporeality, myth and immigration, and family. These short stories though unfortunately felt too surreal to me, surreal to the point that there wasn’t anything tangible enough in the plot or the characterization to hold onto and savor. I picked it up for a book club I ended up not being able to attend because of food poisoning :/ (food poisoning I’ve now fully recovered from, yay)...more
A unique novel about family estrangement and forging one’s path in life regardless of what you’ve inherited. I appreciated that the When We Were BirdsA unique novel about family estrangement and forging one’s path in life regardless of what you’ve inherited. I appreciated that the When We Were Birds l is steeped in Caribbean culture. I wasn’t a big fan of the book’s pacing or the magical realism – both of which distracted me and made it hard for me to connect with the characters – though for those who can tolerate a more winding plot and are fans of magical realism, you may enjoy this one more than I did....more
Such an interesting and well-written book about a somewhat narrow topic – Asian Americans and white Americans at suburban well-resourced schools. I thSuch an interesting and well-written book about a somewhat narrow topic – Asian Americans and white Americans at suburban well-resourced schools. I thought Natasha Warikoo did a great job of describing her interviews with her research participants and applying critical analysis to develop themes such as: white parents criticizing Asian American parents for their parenting styles when it threatens white children’s success, Asian American parents distancing themselves from the “other” Asian American parents who white parents criticize, and white parents focusing on non-academic extracurriculars so that their children can get ahead. One aspect of this book that I enjoyed is that it is both academic and highly readable. It’s not full of jargon and I felt like I was reading this book for fun and not just poring through a boring academic text.
I also highly appreciated that Warikoo both was adept at conveying her research findings and at the same time did not shy away from naming the centering of whiteness and some of the subtle racism white parents practiced toward Asian American parents, even though these white parents often identified as liberal. Warikoo’s research has many important implications for race relations and what happens when the dominant racial group is challenged. I can definitely see how some white people and white parents will get defensive and angry reading this book (as you may observe from a couple of the reviews on Goodreads already… anyway!) I feel like it’s tough to critique racism in and of itself but as a researcher I can imagine it’s even more intimidating to name some of the racism practiced by your research participants, who may feel upset toward you for portraying them in that way.
I think this book is narrow in scope on purpose, though it’d be interesting to read more about the ways in which both Asian American and white parents practice racism and exclusion against Black, Latinx, and Native American children and their families. Then we can take action to prevent that. Warikoo names the exclusion of these racial groups a few time in the book, but I couldn’t help but want a little more especially given the news stories about how some Asian Americans are aligning with white supremacy by supporting affirmative action.
Anyway, in sum I read this for a book club at my job and enjoyed it. I’m probably partial to this book because I attended a well-resourced, academically-rigorous high school that was predominantly Asian American and white (I actually started my Goodreads account 14 years ago when I was a freshman at that high school, whew!) Reading this book made me reflect on my own academic journey and the many privileges I had that propelled me to where I’m at now professionally. I liked that Warikoo did not stigmatize Asian Americans’ parenting styles because even though my parents were/are imperfect in many ways, I now can view how they pushed me with appreciation because they did instill in me a rigorous work ethic that’s benefitted me in many ways. So… if you may be interested in this book, I’d recommend it for sure. Perhaps great to read alongside The Asian American Achievement Paradox....more
Huge swing and miss for me. I can see elements of what people would appreciate about this book, the idea of someone leaving and coming back and being Huge swing and miss for me. I can see elements of what people would appreciate about this book, the idea of someone leaving and coming back and being different and how to cope with that within a relationship. The intrigue and the angst of it all. However, I found the quality of writing a huge detriment to enjoying this novel. The two characters’ voices sounded too similar, there was a lot of abstract language that I think tried to make “deep” points though fell flat, and the tone of the prose was cold and distant though not in a way that felt purposeful or executed well. I really agree with luce’s point that Julia Armfield seemed intent on creating a certain atmosphere instead of developing more nuanced and fully dimensional characters.
I only read this book for a book club so hopefully the discussion is at least somewhat satisfying! I know I’ve been reading a bunch of three-star reads lately so I am trying to find an at least four-star read soon, wish me luck (and so I don’t come across as a book hater on Goodreads (: )...more
I liked the representation of queer people and people of color in The Space Between Worlds, as well as the themes related to privilege, power, and oppI liked the representation of queer people and people of color in The Space Between Worlds, as well as the themes related to privilege, power, and oppression. Unfortunately, other than that I didn’t find much else to appreciate. The worldbuilding and plot were extremely confusing to me and the writing felt stiff and forced. Keeping this review concise so I can move onto my next read!...more
I appreciated the themes and messages of this book, centered on the stories of enslaved pregnant African women. There’s a lot in this novel about inteI appreciated the themes and messages of this book, centered on the stories of enslaved pregnant African women. There’s a lot in this novel about intergenerational trauma and the power of memory and what gets passed on. I didn’t love the execution or the writing style; I found the prose a bit difficult to follow. Still, I recognize this book’s importance or why others may have enjoyed it more than I did....more
I want to give this book props for its themes of queer inclusivity and acceptance toward people’s differing sexualities (not just sexual orientations)I want to give this book props for its themes of queer inclusivity and acceptance toward people’s differing sexualities (not just sexual orientations). That said, the writing in All My Mother’s Lovers was such a slog for me to get through. It felt like telling instead of showing even when there were scenes that were showing instead of telling. The plot’s pacing was off – and thus boring to me – and I felt emotionally distant from all the characters. Looking forward to better queer reads in the future....more
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