mollykxo's review against another edition
4.0
Ahhh.
Okay I’m so confused as to how to rate this because the first half I was about to DNF and the second half I could not put down. I will say, a lot of my criticisms are subjective / based on my personal opinion, for this is, objectively, a bloody good book.
‘Darling Days’ is a book centred around self-identity, following our main protagonist I.o; as they face themes of poverty, addiction, isolation and the struggle of gender / sexuality.
It is frightfully honest and the author is an artist - it comes with an entire ensemble of supporting characters, each painted in a vivid light.
To be transparent, I really did not enjoy the first half or so of the book. Whilst the authors beautiful writing never faltered, it felt repetitive, cyclical and like nothing happened - I struggled to motivate myself to pick it back up. I of course understand the intended artistic effect, it is intended to reflect the characters sentiments of isolation, but it did make for a somewhat dull read.
Given this is a coming of age story of sorts, it comes into its own once the character reaches their teenage years. I was fascinated hearing their tales of boarding school and their perpetuate struggle to fit in; the book as a story develops far better at this part.
A really interesting memoir - unsure as to whether I’d ever re - read.
laurielaurie's review against another edition
3.0
Ik vond het boek de eerste helft pakkend, maar dat hield hij voor mij niet helemaal tot het einde vol. Desalniettemin interessante memoires binnen het Amerikaanse-eind-20e-eeuwse queer-coming-of-age thema. iO's relatie met zijn ouders en zeker met zijn moeder is er één die waardig is om over te vertellen: hoe verhoudt je je tot iemand die je als één van de weinigen volledig en zonder vragen steunt wanneer je als jongen door het leven wilt, maar die tegelijkertijd op geen enkele manier geschikt is om je op te voeden?
Ik vond het boek tegen het einde een beetje langdradig en onsamenhangend worden, maar ik heb erg genoten van de kleurrijke en treffende schetsen van de mensen om iO heen.
Ik vond het boek tegen het einde een beetje langdradig en onsamenhangend worden, maar ik heb erg genoten van de kleurrijke en treffende schetsen van de mensen om iO heen.
saintcormorant's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
hopeevey's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
Poetry made of shattered glass
carlamarcella's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
paulinskiii's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Violence, Addiction, Alcohol, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Grief, and Toxic relationship
Incredibly sad and hopefully at the same time. It's filled with love and truthvgillispie's review against another edition
4.0
I was floored by iO’s podcast (The Ballad of Billy Balls) and the book provided more context for the extraordinary characters that populate iO’s life—and for the extraordinary iO himself. A childhood of neglect and adventure, and a journey to understand one’s own gender, gender expression, and attraction, this is a life story that will stay with me for a long time.
bookingood's review against another edition
3.0
A lot of people say writing a memoir in your 30s is too soon. You are too young, and you still have much to learn. I would like to challenge that notion. Many of us, in our 30s or younger can write a memoir if we truly wanted to about our experiences and how it has impacted our lives. This is what iO does, in Darling Days written in diarist’s style of writing. Every chapter is a moment he felt that was worth telling. Several chapters are dedicated to his mother who is dysfunctional, abusive, and most likely undiagnosed with mental illness(es). While memoir is meant to reflect what growing up like was for iO, who was born male in a female’s body, much of the memoir skims past the gender identity journey I was expecting to find. There were a lot of sad broken hearted moments in the memoir, such as child services being involved, poor living conditions, hunger, bullying, and the want to just belong. Reading the memoir was very much a laborious task and I wanted to DNF many times, but slowly and surely I finished it. I found the need to include every description of a bottle, sidewalk, nightstand etc to be very dragging and often boring.