Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Joan Is Okay

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

bookishcori's review

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funny reflective medium-paced

3.5

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becaroniandcheez's review

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emotional reflective

3.0

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readerette's review

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emotional funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

There were some strangely unresolved character threads in my mind (

Spoiler

Why was Reese suddenly so bland after his time off? Was Joan ever going to speak to Mark again? Was the food basket from other tenants a one-time thing?

), but for the purposes of this story not everything felt like it needed a wrap-up.

Overall, it came across to me as a slice of life for the professionally satisfied but somewhat socially isolated daughter of immigrants, but not sugarcoated or idealized. Joan is relatable and likeable, but not in an "everywoman" way. I really felt like I got to be in someone else's shoes for a few hours. Someone smart and dedicated and who still gets confused and stressed about family and friends and culture and self.

Somehow the year of the setting didn't register for me at first (or perhaps was not specified), so when the covid-19 pandemic came up in the second half it almost shocked me, since the book had felt relatively timeless (though certainly in the era of mobile phones). But the inclusion of the pandemic leads to some of the most poignant observations in the story, so it was worth the slightly jarring sensation.

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amandalorianxo's review

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informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Everything about this book screamed how did you look into my own life so clearly ?! Joan is 36 and is a doctor in NYC. Her father sadly passes away early on in the book & that seems to be a turning point for Joan. People start to question her a lot and it’s about parts of her life that people have no business questioning - Why aren’t you married yet? Do you want to have kids? Why do you not want them?On top of that, Joan is seen as a standout employee & is told to take time off. There is a lot of introspection revolved around being the daughter of immigrants, first Gen American and the trials & tribulations of being Asian. COVID is brought up gradually during the last 20/15 % of the book & I didn’t mind it, since this is part of our global history after all.

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