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torishams's reviews
295 reviews
The Mothers by Brit Bennett
4.25
4/4.5 stars
I really enjoyed this book, perhaps even more than The Vanishing Half. It was such a unique story with beautiful writing that explored the nuances of abortion, motherhood, religion, community, family, and mental health. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
* oh girl, we have known littlebit love. that littlebit of honey left in an empty jar that traps the sweetness in your mouth long enough to mask your hunger. we have run tongues over teeth to savor that last littlebit as long as we could, and in all our living, nothing has starved us more. (10%)
* grief was not a line, carrying you infinitely further from loss. you never knew when you would be sling-shot backward into its grip. (21%)
* but she hasn’t yet learned the mathematics of grief. the weight of what has been lost is always heavier than what remains. (77%)
I really enjoyed this book, perhaps even more than The Vanishing Half. It was such a unique story with beautiful writing that explored the nuances of abortion, motherhood, religion, community, family, and mental health. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
* oh girl, we have known littlebit love. that littlebit of honey left in an empty jar that traps the sweetness in your mouth long enough to mask your hunger. we have run tongues over teeth to savor that last littlebit as long as we could, and in all our living, nothing has starved us more. (10%)
* grief was not a line, carrying you infinitely further from loss. you never knew when you would be sling-shot backward into its grip. (21%)
* but she hasn’t yet learned the mathematics of grief. the weight of what has been lost is always heavier than what remains. (77%)
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
emotional
fast-paced
4.5
4.5/5 stars
I love Elizabeth Acevedo's writing. She's one of the few middle-grade/YA authors that I can still read and enjoy. Her writing is beautiful and I love the themes of religion, family, and using your voice that she explores in this book.
Favorite quotes/poems:
* Except. I once heard a rumor / that goldfish have an evolutionary gene / where they’ll only develop as big as the tank they’re put into. // They need space to stretch. And I wonder if / Twin and I are keeping each other small. / Taking up the space that would have let the other grow. (74)
* If I were on fire/who could I count on/to water me down? // If I were a pile of ashes/who could I count on/to gather me in a pretty urn? // If I were nothing but dust/would anyone chase the wind/trying to piece me back together? (310)
* That love can be a band:/tears if you pull it too hard,/but also flexible enough/to stretch around the most chaotic mass. (340)
* “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” -Psalm 119:130... I think when we get together and talk about ourselves, about being human, about what hurts us, we’re also talking about God. So that’s also church, right? (356)
I love Elizabeth Acevedo's writing. She's one of the few middle-grade/YA authors that I can still read and enjoy. Her writing is beautiful and I love the themes of religion, family, and using your voice that she explores in this book.
Favorite quotes/poems:
* Except. I once heard a rumor / that goldfish have an evolutionary gene / where they’ll only develop as big as the tank they’re put into. // They need space to stretch. And I wonder if / Twin and I are keeping each other small. / Taking up the space that would have let the other grow. (74)
* If I were on fire/who could I count on/to water me down? // If I were a pile of ashes/who could I count on/to gather me in a pretty urn? // If I were nothing but dust/would anyone chase the wind/trying to piece me back together? (310)
* That love can be a band:/tears if you pull it too hard,/but also flexible enough/to stretch around the most chaotic mass. (340)
* “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” -Psalm 119:130... I think when we get together and talk about ourselves, about being human, about what hurts us, we’re also talking about God. So that’s also church, right? (356)
Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! I think there were some loose strings that didn't quite get tied up or were mentioned but not followed up on (like the brother's alcoholism, how Jeff/Barney respond to her voicemail, etc.), which was a bit frustrating. However, I thought this book portrayed mental illness in a very realistic way and was a very easy read. I enjoyed the discussions of humanity, existentialism, sexuality, religion, and living a meaningful life.
* “when did you come out?” Eleanor asked me… i never know how to answer that question because i don’t feel like i am out. i feel like i am in a constant state of coming out, and like i always will be. i have to come out every time i meet someone. we were at a restaurant. earlier the waitress asked us if we were sisters. neither of us came out to her; we just said no. technically, therefore, i was not out at that Applebee’s. (51-52)
* i came to the realization that every moment exists in perpetuity regardless of whether it’s remembered. what has happened has happened; it occupies that moment in time forever. i was an eleven-year-old girl lying in the grass one summer. i knew in that moment that was true and recognized that i would blaze through moments for the rest of my life, forgetting things, and becoming ages older, until i forgot everything—so i consoled myself by committing to remember that one moment. (164)
* the only time i have been happy at all recently was when i was watching a movie with Eleanor and she was laughing. when i think about the Catholic church, and about most religions in general, my theory is that they came to be as a solution to our existential dread. it’s comforting to imagine that everyone who is dead is just waiting for us in the next room. it’s calming to imagine that we have an all-powerful father who is watching over us, and who loves us. all of it makes us feel like our lives have some divine meaning; it helps us feel happy. it’s ironic that a belief system theoretically created to help me feel safe and meaningful takes away one of the few things that makes me feel like my life is worth living at all. (170)
* “when did you come out?” Eleanor asked me… i never know how to answer that question because i don’t feel like i am out. i feel like i am in a constant state of coming out, and like i always will be. i have to come out every time i meet someone. we were at a restaurant. earlier the waitress asked us if we were sisters. neither of us came out to her; we just said no. technically, therefore, i was not out at that Applebee’s. (51-52)
* i came to the realization that every moment exists in perpetuity regardless of whether it’s remembered. what has happened has happened; it occupies that moment in time forever. i was an eleven-year-old girl lying in the grass one summer. i knew in that moment that was true and recognized that i would blaze through moments for the rest of my life, forgetting things, and becoming ages older, until i forgot everything—so i consoled myself by committing to remember that one moment. (164)
* the only time i have been happy at all recently was when i was watching a movie with Eleanor and she was laughing. when i think about the Catholic church, and about most religions in general, my theory is that they came to be as a solution to our existential dread. it’s comforting to imagine that everyone who is dead is just waiting for us in the next room. it’s calming to imagine that we have an all-powerful father who is watching over us, and who loves us. all of it makes us feel like our lives have some divine meaning; it helps us feel happy. it’s ironic that a belief system theoretically created to help me feel safe and meaningful takes away one of the few things that makes me feel like my life is worth living at all. (170)