vanessa_issa's review against another edition
4.0
Thanks to Book Enthusiast Promotions for the ARC via NetGalley!
This book is a great material for those who want to understand how americans feel now, only a few months after Donald Trump's election. Each author talks a bit about their families and experiences. They also share opinions and real facts, showing how scary it is to live in a world where this kind of behavior is still accepted, where history repeats itself and the mistakes keep coming.
People are sad and scared. They can't even understand how this nightmare is happening in real life. In times like these, we always ask ourselves what we can do to help. These authors said, "We can write. We can send a message out there. We can find more people who are willing to do something too."
I hope lots of people read this book and reflect on it.
This book is a great material for those who want to understand how americans feel now, only a few months after Donald Trump's election. Each author talks a bit about their families and experiences. They also share opinions and real facts, showing how scary it is to live in a world where this kind of behavior is still accepted, where history repeats itself and the mistakes keep coming.
People are sad and scared. They can't even understand how this nightmare is happening in real life. In times like these, we always ask ourselves what we can do to help. These authors said, "We can write. We can send a message out there. We can find more people who are willing to do something too."
I hope lots of people read this book and reflect on it.
dlhill216's review against another edition
5.0
The words I feel. The words I speak. The words I say every single day. This book gripped me from the very first passage. I almost wanted to cry because this book is me. It put beautifully into words everything I feel and talk to my husband about on a daily basis. It put into words some things that I didn't know how too. My fears and worries for my children and this country I have to raise them in. This book gives me hope because there are people out there who feel like me and have the same fears, worries, hopes and dreams. This book is inspiring and although it's really deep and reaches a place some people want to ignore, it put a smile on my face because it proves that I am not alone in my feelings. I always enjoy reading or hearing anyone's opinion whether I agree with it or not. I feel I learn more that way. I will know more that way. The current political climate has proven how divided our country is and as much as I dislike this, I also feel like I am learning more than I ever have about myself and other people as well. This past year has made me take more time to reflect on myself and take more time to read and learn. Not just run with whatever someone is saying. Knowledge is definitely power. Thank you so much to all of the authors who contributed a piece to amazing piece of work! Thank you for your courage to speak your feelings in a positive way. I wish people would realize that it's all in the way you speak that determines whether others will really "hear" you. No matter what your opinion is.
elephant's review against another edition
3.0
This is a collection of essays and poems and stories about political resistance. It is about resisting bigotry and racism and the patriarchy and the current repressive political environment.
thequeerbookish's review against another edition
2.0
I feel so bad for typing this review but I will always review honestly, so...
I expected lots of powerful, sad, emotional, moving (you name it) poetry and interesting essays with this. I didn't get what I expected. I wasn't really moved, but that may be a personal thing.
And it's not like everything in this book is bad, it's just... I can get a lot of texts like this for free on the internet. A lot of those texts will be even way better. So... why pay for it?
Don't lynch me now! I'm just speaking from a not rich reader's pov. The Resistance is currently on German Amazon for 2,99€ for the e-book and 8,05€ for the paperback. According to Goodreads it's under 160 pages. Like I said, I can get better stuff for my money.
And yes, I do know that the description on NG says, that "100% of proceeds are being donated to ACLU". I don't know anything about that organisation, but... I could give them my money directly and read stuff online for free.
I have dreaded writing this review so much. But like I said in the beginning, I'm all for honest reviews. Had I bought this book I would have been really, really disappointed, so...At first I had the feeling like I needed to be all positive about this book because it's about social things and the like, but... no. I won't give a good rating to something I did not like simply because it's theme is important.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.
I expected lots of powerful, sad, emotional, moving (you name it) poetry and interesting essays with this. I didn't get what I expected. I wasn't really moved, but that may be a personal thing.
And it's not like everything in this book is bad, it's just... I can get a lot of texts like this for free on the internet. A lot of those texts will be even way better. So... why pay for it?
Don't lynch me now! I'm just speaking from a not rich reader's pov. The Resistance is currently on German Amazon for 2,99€ for the e-book and 8,05€ for the paperback. According to Goodreads it's under 160 pages. Like I said, I can get better stuff for my money.
And yes, I do know that the description on NG says, that "100% of proceeds are being donated to ACLU". I don't know anything about that organisation, but... I could give them my money directly and read stuff online for free.
I have dreaded writing this review so much. But like I said in the beginning, I'm all for honest reviews. Had I bought this book I would have been really, really disappointed, so...At first I had the feeling like I needed to be all positive about this book because it's about social things and the like, but... no. I won't give a good rating to something I did not like simply because it's theme is important.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.
thehermitlibrarian's review
3.0
Rating: 3.5 Stars
A collection of varying pieces, from essays to poems to free form works, The Resistance utilizes personal experience to detail feelings of hope, of fear, of worry. There are pieces that may mean more to some people than to others, but the collection as a whole showed a solidarity among these authors to lend their voices to a collection that, I feel, needs to be shared.
For Who? by Danielle Allen was the piece that stood out the most to me as the one that summed up the collection best, the one that needs to be shared the most. It spoke about how the current administration (45) preaches about "make America great again", but asks the important question: for who? The Natives who've been murdered, whose descendants were/are forced off their land? Those of African descent who were seen as 3/5 of a person? For women, told that sexual assault is their fault, paid less because of their gender regardless of their abilities? For Who? is best summed up by this excerpt:
The poem that felt the most personal to my person was Do You See Me? Because I See You by Danielle Allen. It spoke to the hypocrisy of people that proclaim to support their friends and family of targeted genders/sexualities/etc., but at the same time shout out their support for the oppositional administration.
I have family and friends that I simply cannot understand that would benefit from reading this collection, especially Danielle Allen's poem. A position such as this is not only hypocritical, but it's dangerous because it makes them blind to not only what happens to their friends & family, but to the millions of other citizens in this country.
I was saddened when I read Your Son by Amalie Silver and it was almost more personal than Do You See Me? because while that poem spoke to me, this essay spoke to my experience with my son. He's a special needs child and I recognized him in this story. He was born as a child that I loved, but that others recognized needed help. Because of them, he's been learning things I could never have taught him on my own because I'm too close to him. This essay understood that, but it also made me realize how very real the fear is that the programs that help him could and very well may disappear with the current Secretary of Education. A woman who doesn't believe that children like my son deserves help, that money is more important than helping him and children like him. How horrifying, that reality.
As a whole, this collection had an 85-90% rate of success with the content. There were some pieces that I thought either didn't fit or were not edited as well as I would have liked, regardless of content. Regardless of the minimal disappointments, this collection was important. While the pieces did lean toward a certain liberal mindedness, there were many authors that reminded us that we should be there for each other. We have to protect one another and work toward a safe environment despite what the current administration is trying to do to us, to our friends and families. Remember, that for all our differences, we still have in common our humanity.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
A collection of varying pieces, from essays to poems to free form works, The Resistance utilizes personal experience to detail feelings of hope, of fear, of worry. There are pieces that may mean more to some people than to others, but the collection as a whole showed a solidarity among these authors to lend their voices to a collection that, I feel, needs to be shared.
For Who? by Danielle Allen was the piece that stood out the most to me as the one that summed up the collection best, the one that needs to be shared the most. It spoke about how the current administration (45) preaches about "make America great again", but asks the important question: for who? The Natives who've been murdered, whose descendants were/are forced off their land? Those of African descent who were seen as 3/5 of a person? For women, told that sexual assault is their fault, paid less because of their gender regardless of their abilities? For Who? is best summed up by this excerpt:
Instead of the current administration holding on to the reigns of discrimination and oppression to “make America great again” for only one very specific group (wealthy, heterosexual, Christian, white men), all of us, regardless of race, class , gender, sexual orientation, religion, etc., need to step up so we can make America great (for all of us) for the first time.
The poem that felt the most personal to my person was Do You See Me? Because I See You by Danielle Allen. It spoke to the hypocrisy of people that proclaim to support their friends and family of targeted genders/sexualities/etc., but at the same time shout out their support for the oppositional administration.
When you say that we’re friends and that you love me Do you not think of that when you blindly agree With the hateful words and derogatory tone Of an administration whose intentions were known?
I have family and friends that I simply cannot understand that would benefit from reading this collection, especially Danielle Allen's poem. A position such as this is not only hypocritical, but it's dangerous because it makes them blind to not only what happens to their friends & family, but to the millions of other citizens in this country.
I was saddened when I read Your Son by Amalie Silver and it was almost more personal than Do You See Me? because while that poem spoke to me, this essay spoke to my experience with my son. He's a special needs child and I recognized him in this story. He was born as a child that I loved, but that others recognized needed help. Because of them, he's been learning things I could never have taught him on my own because I'm too close to him. This essay understood that, but it also made me realize how very real the fear is that the programs that help him could and very well may disappear with the current Secretary of Education. A woman who doesn't believe that children like my son deserves help, that money is more important than helping him and children like him. How horrifying, that reality.
As a whole, this collection had an 85-90% rate of success with the content. There were some pieces that I thought either didn't fit or were not edited as well as I would have liked, regardless of content. Regardless of the minimal disappointments, this collection was important. While the pieces did lean toward a certain liberal mindedness, there were many authors that reminded us that we should be there for each other. We have to protect one another and work toward a safe environment despite what the current administration is trying to do to us, to our friends and families. Remember, that for all our differences, we still have in common our humanity.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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