Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Canciones desde la Osa Mayor by Emma Brodie

15 reviews

moonlightreads007's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow, this one was a ride! This is a story about a courageous young woman who chooses herself in an industry and society that consistently tries to tear her down, to pressure her to mould herself into someone she doesn't want to be, and to sacrifice her biggest dreams just so that she can "get in line" with everyone else. Janie Q paves her own path in life and doesn't allow anyone or anything to deter her from her dreams and ambitions. In turn, she achieves more than she ever could have imagined for herself. It goes to show that saying yes to the things that are meant for you first requires you to say no to the things that are wrong for you, even when it's hard. Furthermore, what people feel they want might not be what they actually need because maybe they deserve better and are meant for more than they could have ever imagined
(This was especially evident in the way that her relationship with Jesse was portrayed; even though she clearly loved Jesse, she didn't want to be known solely as his love interest and managed to foresee how his addiction issues could affect their relationship down the line. It must have been a really hard choice for her to make to walk away from someone she dearly loved, but I understand how important it was for her to set that boundary with Jesse so that she could be there for him without having their relationship be completely engulfed by his issues)
. The story progression was well-paced, from her career beginnings with her band to her solo debut, and all of the transitional phases in between. Thematically, the book covers a lot of different topics such as women's rights and freedoms, mental health and addiction, family dynamics and friendships, music publishing and rights, just to name a few. I loved seeing how the different characters evolved, how the dynamics of their relationships changed over time (especially with her former band), as well as how their choices influenced their life experiences. There were also lots of unexpected twists and turns which kept the readers on their toes
(I did kind of foresee her mom's mental health issues because there was quite a bit of foreshadowing there, but it was also ambiguous at times so it was kind of hard to tell for sure. It definitely came as a bit of a shock when Jesse initially confronted Jane about it but thinking back, it does make sense because some elements of her story didn't really add up)
. Another issue that was highlighted in this book is about how men are often asked serious questions about their music while women are often questioned for their fashion choices or scrutinized for the relationships they pursue. As an example, it makes me think about how Taylor Swift's relationships are more dissected in the media than those of literally any other artist. Jane's songs were about Jesse to some extent, but they were also about more personal life experiences that she went through which had nothing to do with him
(she did write some songs about her mom's mental health issues and about the connection she feels to her, after all)
. I think I have written out pretty much most of my takeaways and I should probably stop writing now before Storygraph caps my book review limit (if there is one), but overall TL;DR this is an excellent book and I would highly recommend it to music lovers who are passionate about social issues. To whoever ends up reading this full review, thank you for taking the time to do so - I know it's long and sort of in a rant style but I appreciate the time you have taken to do so and I hope you enjoyed it lol 😂

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jujube2387's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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darbyart's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0


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kyrajg's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This one is a difficult book for me to review. I absolutely tore through it and couldn't put it down. But I felt there were some major issues with pacing and a few of the plot points felt really rushed/characters weren't fully flushed out. I also wish the epilogue had given a bit more closure as I still had a lot of questions. It's not as well put together as Daisy Jones and the Six, but if you liked that book you'll probably enjoy this one too.

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justreads93's review against another edition

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

5.0

If you liked Daisy Jones & the Six then you lay like this even more! I loved the main character and I could really feel her drive and passion for music and performing come off the page. 

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cosmicsapphic's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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lilianmelanie's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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eviecheesepuff's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Let’s set the scene ✨it’s 1969✨ you're in a Jesse Reid concert…but a band you’ve never heard of comes on stage. You’re upset and about to leave. Then the singer opens her mouth and…well, now you’re glad you're here to witness the birth of a legend. That is Jane Quinn and she doesn’t know yet, but this won’t be the last time her fate and Jesse Reid’s gets intertwined.

Look 👀 the blurb says that this is a love story. It's so much more. Don’t get me wrong! There is a love story in here but a very bittersweet and turbulent one. So if you’re looking for a sweet rom-com this is NOT it fam! 😭

Our mc Jane is a firecracker with no filter. This makes it hard for her to navigate the music world of sexism she’s thrown into. That was definitely my favorite theme in here👩‍🎤

Mental illness was a very big part of the story. I really liked how the author portrayed dealing with addiction and the boundaries you must set in order to heal from it. It was written in a really kind and understanding manner, which was lovely to see.

We also have some LGBTQ+ representation. We stand!

A lot of people are comparing this book to Daisy Jones and the Six and tbh the vibe is definitely matched but there are differences.
DJATS is a beautifully knitted story. The characters...I didn’t really like as people... but I was drawn to them by their flaws and personalities throughout the interviews.
Songs In Ursa Major is the opposite, I like the characters and I want them to thrive but the storytelling is not as impactful.

The songs however…are amazing. I need these songs to be recorded in real life so I can listen to them ❤️

Lessons learned

- Be more like Jane and do not lower your standards because society thinks you should. You know what you want, go out there and get it.

-Appreciate the family that stays instead of dwelling on those who left.

notes

- Inspired by the affair between Joni Mitchell & James Taylor BUT in my head ✨ Harry Styles & Victoria De Angelis ✨ were cast as the mcs. Not even sorry… 

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sundayray's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.75


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hollymileham's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i am so stunned by this wow. the writing was so beautiful, ive annotaed so many amazing descriptive passages. cannot believe this is her debut novel... the themes were presented so expertly, the plot twist was really helped by the choice of narration, wasnt expecting it at all. you go into it expecting celebrity romance and you get that and its done so well, but you also get such emotional journeys of fame, family, addiction, mental illness and loss. i am biased because i love hollywood glamour esque books but this lived up to my expectations and more 💗 i loved it sm

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