Scan barcode
darshreads's reviews
572 reviews
How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Claudia and the New Girl by Gabriela Epstein, Ann M. Martin
The quest to read all of the babysitters club graphic novels continues! To the library!
Just by Looking at Him by Ryan O'Connell
dark
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
One of the reasons that I adore book clubs is that they introduce me to books that I would have never read on my own - a sort of exploration of my bookish palette, you might say.
I don’t think I would have picked up or stuck with ‘Just by Looking at him’ had it not been for a pride book club that I ironically ended up not being able to go to BUT I did keep on reading this and found an immense amount of joy in it.
'Just by looking at him’ is the story of a Hollywood screenwriter, Elliot, who’s dealing with a stale relationship with his boyfriend of nine years atop a shared alcohol addiction. Elliot has cerebral palsy as does the author and this informs the writing very well as we get to see how ableism really hampers Elliot’s life and relationships.
Funnily enough, I noticed how different my queerness is from Elliot’s and ~it’s all so beautiful~ *wipes a tear*
I found Elliot’s narrative hilarious and adored the relationship with his dad. I do wish the book had some more meat to it especially with regards to addiction but I do understand the creative choices that were made.
I can also see why the criticism of ‘this is just about rich white people problems’ was levelled against the book but the book feels genuine and I would rather have an honest portrayal of someone’s life than not have it? Or worse, have them appropriate experiences that are not their own for the sake of it. Pain is pain and privilege is privilege. It can all exist in literature as it does in the world? I don’t know.
In any case, I really enjoyed the book and I might check out the author’s show some time. Fin
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism and Alcoholism
Time Is a Mother by Ocean Vuong
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Ocean Vuong’s 'Time is a mother' is a poetic stake to the heart. There were so many poems in this collection that made me pause and almost weep and I say almost because the shock at Vuong's brilliance overpowered all other emotion.
How does one write like this? Put all of this pain and love and life(one 'and' away from laugh) into paper and mould it seamlessly into a thing of beauty?
This was heartbreaking and messy and cracked open a small wound in my pathetic heart, like all good poetry is wont to do.
Shy by Max Porter
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Reading Shy is like dipping your toe into a swimming pool and being swiftly pulled into a swirly whirlpool of emotion. Max Porter has this uncanny knack of writing prose that almost moonlights as poetry. His ability to transcend genre serves him well with the subject matter of this book- Which is that you're the reader inside the head of Shy, the titular character who’s coming to terms with his life in Last Chance, a last resort for “troubled boys” like him.
Shy has a laundry list of offences built up through his adolescence and the book takes us through a night of inner reckoning for our main character. Right off the gate, We are unceremoniously dropped into his head and the inner monologues take over, sometimes incoherent, most times tragic as it weaves the story of Shy.
This is a short volume but it took a bit out of me to read because of my not wanting to be in the narrative and not wanting to feel Shy's pain or of those around him.
I did want more of a cohesive or finite ending for the book but leaving it open ended was clearly a conscious choice. Looking forward to your next one, Max porter.
Throne of the Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I picked up 'Throne of the Fallen' after a slew of unsettling short books. I wanted it to be a long and well-sustained palate cleanser.
Did I obsessively read the first 80 percent of it, while ignoring some of the repetitive and ‘tell-not-show’ aspects of the writing, up until the main couple hooked up? Yes, yes i did.
Did I obsessively read the first 80 percent of it, while ignoring some of the repetitive and ‘tell-not-show’ aspects of the writing, up until the main couple hooked up? Yes, yes i did.
Did I immediately get bored once the main leads did the nasty, said nasty being some boring sex on the dude’s throne ? Yes, yes I did.
Kerri Maniscalco has great ideas! I loved the setting and the ambience of the book and I thought that the combination of fantasy elements alongside victorian propriety really worked well. The chemistry and the banter between the main love interests were great and the spicy scenes leading up to the full on smutty scene were nicely built up but after that dopamine hit of them finally hooking up hit me in the brain, said brain could no longer ignore the issues with the writing.
First of all, the book could have been significantly shorter and did not need as many secondary characters as it did. I think the latter criticism might be fall on me because I haven’t read the original series that this books act as a companion piece to so maybe, fans of that series really enjoyed the peek-a-boo’s from the Special guest stars. I don’t know- I ain’t hooting and clapping as the apartment door opens.
The plot was quite intriguing in the beginning but the ending might have been betrayed by how well the build up to it was? The reveals towards the end of the book felt slightly anti-climatic.
It was a chore to get through the last twenty percent but I do believe Kerri Maniscalco knows how to write a great romance and it would be even greater if she’d just trust the reader to know what she means
Why She Wrote: A Graphic History of the Lives, Inspiration, and Influence Behind the Pens of Classic Women Writers by Lauren Burke, Hannah K. Chapman
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
Two weeks ago, I found myself in the library, endlessly scanning the shelves to find a compelling enough read to end the year with. I didn’t want something too cumbersome. I also did not want to read something that would overload my ever-diminishing attention span and so I thought, it’s time! *Cue Mariah Carey* to grab a graphic novel.
I thought I’d pick up Saga or a memoir but what caught my eye was this quaint little pink volume about the lives of 12 classic women writers. Not giving it much thought, I checked it out of the library’s expecting it to gather dust in my room until it was time to return it.
However, what did end up happening was my being immersed in the lives of these legendary writers for the last couple of weeks.
Why she wrote offers a brief description of the lives of these women writers followed by a graphical illustration of a particular episode that influenced their writing.
The book has a great structure to it that gives you an idea of the environments and cultures that these women grew up in and wrote in. It also does a great job detailing the shared struggle that some of them faced and showcased the sheer determination they all needed to get through to being published and being acknowledged for their talents.
I felt a sense of loss by the time I turned the last page, having been kept company by these intelligent women and witnessing the rich and complicated lives they led. It almost felt like I bid farewell to a comforting group of friends and isn’t that what we all want in a good book?
Fun! Wish I would love a similar book about the lives of other marginalized writers.
So Late in the Day: Stories of Women and Men by Claire Keegan
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I started off 2023 with Claire Keegan’s ‘Small things like these’ and as luck would have it, my library hold for her book ‘Late in the day’ came through on Dec 31. Glorious glorious bookish destiny be thanked!
This kind turn of fate has led me to declare that Claire Keegan is a great way to bookend a year because you can always bank on her to craft the perfect short story.
How she is able to confine full universes and rich characterizations within 3-4 pages, I will never know but I am thankful to be able to be privy to the creative output.
'Late in the day' is a collection of three short stories that investigate the dynamics of gender and power structures that crop up even in the smallest of interactions between men and women. The conflict in the three stories all exist under the same umbrella of the patriarchy but present varying degrees of threat, that you as a reader will find yourself constantly assessing, much like marginalized people do in the real world. What’s especially impactful is how the undertone of violence in the first two stories culminates in real violence in the third, a blatant nightmare scenario that plays as an endless cautionary tale in most women’s minds.
I am so in are of how Keegan encourages the reader to comfortably seat themselves deep into her stories and then she pulls the rug from under them. I am eagerly awaiting a full length novel to really sink my teeth into!
All in all, 2024 is off to a great literary start!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny