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gabsalott13's reviews
403 reviews
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
4.0
Crazy Rich Asians was such a joy to read! I agree that we would’ve gotten the picture with a bit less brand-dropping, but also think the stylistic extravagance is merely form mirroring family—and what an enjoyable family Kevin Kwan has introduced us to!!
I loved all of the Youngs, Shangs, and T’siens (specifically Oliver!) even when I wasn’t supposed to, and am impatiently awaiting the day I can pick up their continued stories from my library.
Also, I’m not sure *exactly* what to make of this yet, but I’ve read some really interesting interviews Kwan gave about his books, all of which made me wonder if we're selling his aspirations with the series a bit short. My large thematic question—can (delicious, shameless) soapy novels make political statements about the particular strain of Western greed and traditional Asian sensibilities so beautifully combined in these characters? I’m excited to dig into Kwan’s next books (and August film!) to find the answer.
I loved all of the Youngs, Shangs, and T’siens (specifically Oliver!) even when I wasn’t supposed to, and am impatiently awaiting the day I can pick up their continued stories from my library.
Also, I’m not sure *exactly* what to make of this yet, but I’ve read some really interesting interviews Kwan gave about his books, all of which made me wonder if we're selling his aspirations with the series a bit short. My large thematic question—can (delicious, shameless) soapy novels make political statements about the particular strain of Western greed and traditional Asian sensibilities so beautifully combined in these characters? I’m excited to dig into Kwan’s next books (and August film!) to find the answer.
Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth by Warsan Shire
3.0
I read this chapbook for the Lemonade unit of a course about the Knowles and Carter families' connection to American music. I forgot and quickly remembered that I've seen many of these poems on my various social media timelines, which I'll get to later. With that said, I really enjoyed:
1. Shire's uber-accessible brand of poetry, which seems made for the women she writes about to actually read
2. Shire's inclusion of her religious teachings, language, and culture throughout her work
3. Her exploration of faux-innocence in “Birds,” which asks us to question the intelligence and agency of the allegedly helpless women choosing to live in traditional environments.
4. “You Were Conceived," which shows her rare grace for wronged wives *and* wronged mistresses. This one reminded me of Esther Perel’s work in [b:The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity|34017010|The State of Affairs Rethinking Infidelity|Esther Perel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1495687620s/34017010.jpg|55014433], one of my favorite January reads. It also made me wonder: in an album Doreen St. Felix memorably described as Beyonce "seriously [getting to] know a matriarchy," what sympathy did she offer to the other women?
What I don't like about these poems all nails down to their repetitive and trite moments, which I believe is separate from their accessibility. It's definitely a fine line, but as a student privileged with an elite education, I'm not sure it's mine to draw. I've been in academic spaces that mocked the "seriousness" of slam and Insta-poets, which often felt like not-so-coded racism and classism. However, I still thought many of these were just sentences chopped up into lines, like those [b:Milk and Honey|23513349|Milk and Honey|Rupi Kaur|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1491595510s/23513349.jpg|43116473] parodies that took over the internet a while back. Whatever's here, I really wish I saw it!
Our class is also grappling with black women and cultural canons: Beyonce next to Dylan and co., Julie Dash's place amongst more celebrated filmmakers, and now Instapoets next to traditional writers. All this makes me long for the day when we lit snobs can fully celebrate women like Shire, who have truly democratized a long-lofty art form. Sadly, at least for me, it is *not* today.
1. Shire's uber-accessible brand of poetry, which seems made for the women she writes about to actually read
2. Shire's inclusion of her religious teachings, language, and culture throughout her work
3. Her exploration of faux-innocence in “Birds,” which asks us to question the intelligence and agency of the allegedly helpless women choosing to live in traditional environments.
4. “You Were Conceived," which shows her rare grace for wronged wives *and* wronged mistresses. This one reminded me of Esther Perel’s work in [b:The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity|34017010|The State of Affairs Rethinking Infidelity|Esther Perel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1495687620s/34017010.jpg|55014433], one of my favorite January reads. It also made me wonder: in an album Doreen St. Felix memorably described as Beyonce "seriously [getting to] know a matriarchy," what sympathy did she offer to the other women?
What I don't like about these poems all nails down to their repetitive and trite moments, which I believe is separate from their accessibility. It's definitely a fine line, but as a student privileged with an elite education, I'm not sure it's mine to draw. I've been in academic spaces that mocked the "seriousness" of slam and Insta-poets, which often felt like not-so-coded racism and classism. However, I still thought many of these were just sentences chopped up into lines, like those [b:Milk and Honey|23513349|Milk and Honey|Rupi Kaur|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1491595510s/23513349.jpg|43116473] parodies that took over the internet a while back. Whatever's here, I really wish I saw it!
Our class is also grappling with black women and cultural canons: Beyonce next to Dylan and co., Julie Dash's place amongst more celebrated filmmakers, and now Instapoets next to traditional writers. All this makes me long for the day when we lit snobs can fully celebrate women like Shire, who have truly democratized a long-lofty art form. Sadly, at least for me, it is *not* today.
China Rich Girlfriend by Kevin Kwan
4.0
I've really appreciated the indulgent break from reality [a:Kevin Kwan|634694|Kevin Kwan|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1412808034p2/634694.jpg]'s books so easily offer! China Rich Girlfriend features considerably more plot twists, copious amounts of label-dropping, and considerably fewer pages, but also feels more self-aware than [b:Crazy Rich Asians|16085481|Crazy Rich Asians (Crazy Rich Asians #1)|Kevin Kwan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1364852559s/16085481.jpg|21571970].
Let me explain: personally, I found the book's most interesting subplot to be the saga of Kitty Pong, a soap opera star turned billionaire housewife who, despite her past, desperately longs for a place in Hong Kong's high society. She hires an incredibly blunt "lifestyle consultant," Corinna Ko-Tung, whose detailed makeover guide provides a most memorable assessment. My favorite quote from China Rich Girlfriend is the following tutorial from Corinna:
"Your true spiritual affiliations do not concern me—it does not matter to me if you are Taoist, Daoist, Buddhist, or worship Meryl Streep—but it is absolutely essential that you become a regular praying, tithing, communion-taking, hands-in-the-air-waving, Bible-study-fellowship-attending member of this church. (This has the added bonus of ensuring that you will be qualified for burial at the most-coveted Christian cemetery on Hong Kong Island, rather than having to suffer the eternal humiliation of being interred at one of those lesser cemeteries on the Kowloon side.)"
The socioeconomic ascension these characters attempt to engineer lead to stunning reflections about the ultimate futility of these great ambitions. I say stunning because of my literal shock—one minute, I was laughing at the ridiculousness of trying to ensure access to a VIP graveyard, and the next, a lightbulb was going off in my head about Kwan's major point in the series. While still ludicrously, entertainingly over-the-top, China Rich Girlfriend seems to be asking tougher questions about what all this wealth does to these incredibly damaged families.
From the description, it appears that [b:Rich People Problems|29864343|Rich People Problems (Crazy Rich Asians, #3)|Kevin Kwan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1493727003s/29864343.jpg|50231439] will tackle questions of mortality head on. I'm (beyond) excited to read Kwan's final verdict on these characters!
Let me explain: personally, I found the book's most interesting subplot to be the saga of Kitty Pong, a soap opera star turned billionaire housewife who, despite her past, desperately longs for a place in Hong Kong's high society. She hires an incredibly blunt "lifestyle consultant," Corinna Ko-Tung, whose detailed makeover guide provides a most memorable assessment. My favorite quote from China Rich Girlfriend is the following tutorial from Corinna:
"Your true spiritual affiliations do not concern me—it does not matter to me if you are Taoist, Daoist, Buddhist, or worship Meryl Streep—but it is absolutely essential that you become a regular praying, tithing, communion-taking, hands-in-the-air-waving, Bible-study-fellowship-attending member of this church. (This has the added bonus of ensuring that you will be qualified for burial at the most-coveted Christian cemetery on Hong Kong Island, rather than having to suffer the eternal humiliation of being interred at one of those lesser cemeteries on the Kowloon side.)"
The socioeconomic ascension these characters attempt to engineer lead to stunning reflections about the ultimate futility of these great ambitions. I say stunning because of my literal shock—one minute, I was laughing at the ridiculousness of trying to ensure access to a VIP graveyard, and the next, a lightbulb was going off in my head about Kwan's major point in the series. While still ludicrously, entertainingly over-the-top, China Rich Girlfriend seems to be asking tougher questions about what all this wealth does to these incredibly damaged families.
From the description, it appears that [b:Rich People Problems|29864343|Rich People Problems (Crazy Rich Asians, #3)|Kevin Kwan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1493727003s/29864343.jpg|50231439] will tackle questions of mortality head on. I'm (beyond) excited to read Kwan's final verdict on these characters!