Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - Another Appalachia: Coming Up Queer and Indian in a Mountain Place

Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Another Appalachia: Coming Up Queer and Indian in a Mountain Place by Neema Avashia

9 reviews

heyitsneen's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

4.0

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singsandreads's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

3.5

A super unique upbringing, that I’m sure many people have lived but don’t talk about. I loved that it was all grownup Neema talking in past tense. It didn’t infantilize any moments.

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readingpicnic's review against another edition

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3.75

I appreciated the overarching dichotomy between having love for your rural small town and its people while also acknowledging the racism and harmful beliefs held by the majority of people in your small town; that you can only be acceptable to them if you "don't get political," while their Facebooks are filled with harmful rhetoric about minoritized communities. I haven't gotten to the point where I'm proud to come from a rural small town (Midwest not Appalachia), but I suppose me constantly reading rural queer books shows some fondness on my part? I do love a short book, but this didn't feel like it had quite enough time to round itself out. Although I enjoyed the book for the most part, I didn't love the narrator of the audiobook. Speaking of, crazy thought, but what if non-Black audiobook narrators didn't read the full n-word out loud even if the non-Black author of the book wrote it in full...

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llumber_jack's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

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buttermellow's review

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informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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maceydowns's review against another edition

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informative reflective medium-paced

3.25

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lyzz's review against another edition

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funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.5

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clayby's review

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emotional funny informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

Another Appalachia: Coming Up Queer and Indian in a Mountain Place, by Neema Avashia

I came across this book in an online discussion about Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, by J.D. Vance (which I haven't decided on reading yet). In her stunning collection of essays, Avashia offers a unique LGBTQ+ perspective of Appalachia and challenges harmful stereotypes, while also acknowledging the very real issues that plague the region.

As a man who grew up "hillbilly" in the Midwest and later discovered things about himself that didn't quite fit into the picture, some of Neema's experiences really resonated with me, especially her reflections on Mr. B. I also really appreciated the insights from a queer woman with an immigrant background.

At the end of the day, I would recommend this book to LGBTQ+ people, immigrants/children of immigrants, or anyone who's simply interested in learning more about Appalachia.

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mmcloe's review

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challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

Beautiful collection of essays, all of which continually push back on outdated images of the region while carving out a new space for new writers and artists to emerge.

I'm particularly struck by Avashia's experimentation with structure. Many essays are centered around a single object or action and the structure of the prose often reflects or elaborates on that central metaphor.

Excited to see what she writes next!

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