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itshaldun's reviews
29 reviews
Eleven by Patricia Highsmith
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Collection of short stories by Patricia Highsmith. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the stories, especially the ones that involved very low level of supernatural (instead of none).
All stories share a crushing sense of dread, as you know things will end up horribly somehow, but don’t know just how horrible or when. I was constantly reminded of Junji Ito while reading this, as his stories also evoked a similar anxious emotions in me.
My favorite stories were The Snail Watcher, The Terrapin, and The Empty Birdhouse.
All stories share a crushing sense of dread, as you know things will end up horribly somehow, but don’t know just how horrible or when. I was constantly reminded of Junji Ito while reading this, as his stories also evoked a similar anxious emotions in me.
My favorite stories were The Snail Watcher, The Terrapin, and The Empty Birdhouse.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Did not finish book. Stopped at 54%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 54%.
Too slow, story is almost identical to “If We Were Villians”, although that’s not the fault of this book, since it came before. I just happened to read the “copy” first.
But seriously, the first chapters be like:
“Character X was picking his nose. I didn’t know at the time, but this was going to be a horrible reveal later OooOoOoOo”. Don’t get me wrong, it is creating suspense, but it is about as subtle as crushing your car head-first into a concrete wall.
But seriously, the first chapters be like:
“Character X was picking his nose. I didn’t know at the time, but this was going to be a horrible reveal later OooOoOoOo”. Don’t get me wrong, it is creating suspense, but it is about as subtle as crushing your car head-first into a concrete wall.
The Bridge to Lucy Dunne by Exurb1a
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays by Albert Camus
challenging
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
3.5
Titular essay of Sisyphus is amazing and the single best summary of absurdism (some say anti-nihilism) that there is. The other essays kind of went over my head, but it’s not because I’m dumb, YOU’RE DUMB
The Stranger by Albert Camus
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The Stranger has the strongest opening sentence of any book, ever. That alone makes it a masterpiece.
Albert Camus masterfully uses short, exact sentences to capture the distant, removed outlook of our main character, but still manages to paint one of the most vivid descriptions of a city life.
The last chapter where main character talks with a Priest is one of the most thought provoking passages I ever read.
I don’t want to write a whole essay here. It is an unconventional but thought provoking book, read it or I’ll eat your chips.
Albert Camus masterfully uses short, exact sentences to capture the distant, removed outlook of our main character, but still manages to paint one of the most vivid descriptions of a city life.
The last chapter where main character talks with a Priest is one of the most thought provoking passages I ever read.
I don’t want to write a whole essay here. It is an unconventional but thought provoking book, read it or I’ll eat your chips.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
As a retelling of one of the most famous stories of all time, with an already established mythology, setting and characters, this book had the easiest job imaginable, yet still managed to fell flat.
The book is a young-adult romance trying to disguised as a Greek epic. It does neither of these jobs adequately. Romance is extremely standard and predictable, stops developing abruptly around halfway point so the actual story of the epic can continue.
Speaking of the Epic part, it portraits events in a way that is removed from the grandiose of the actual story to make way for realistic proportions and subdued language, which is one of the biggest insults to the Epic genre. It is a story about a Demigod, no-one is expecting a language grounded in reality.
So in the end, the story features the characters and the mythology, but doesn’t feel like a story of a Greek demigod. As it stands, it basically reads like a fan-fiction you’d find on Tumblr, a good one sure, but certainly not a Best Seller.
2/5 - One Point for Achilles who is still the most interesting character, one point for the actual Greek Mythology, zero points for creativity.
The book is a young-adult romance trying to disguised as a Greek epic. It does neither of these jobs adequately. Romance is extremely standard and predictable, stops developing abruptly around halfway point so the actual story of the epic can continue.
Speaking of the Epic part, it portraits events in a way that is removed from the grandiose of the actual story to make way for realistic proportions and subdued language, which is one of the biggest insults to the Epic genre. It is a story about a Demigod, no-one is expecting a language grounded in reality.
So in the end, the story features the characters and the mythology, but doesn’t feel like a story of a Greek demigod. As it stands, it basically reads like a fan-fiction you’d find on Tumblr, a good one sure, but certainly not a Best Seller.
2/5 - One Point for Achilles who is still the most interesting character, one point for the actual Greek Mythology, zero points for creativity.
The Tatami Galaxy by Tomihiko Morimi
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
It is a wholly interesting book that I’d describe as the mix between “Groundhog Day” and “Notes from the Underground”, but ending on a more profane and hopeful note.
As someone who watched the anime adaptation around the end of my bachelor’s, and the book around the end of my master’s, it’s really easy to identify with the struggles and the mindset of the protagonist. And it is immensely satisfying to see him understand what is really important in life through a unique combination of circumstances.
While I personally prefer the anime over the book just because how unique the visuals of it are, this book has one of the most hopeful messages I’ve ever read such that it’s hard to give it anything less than a perfect score.
It is a masterpiece, and if it connects with you, it’ll hit harder than anything. Also go watch the anime.
As someone who watched the anime adaptation around the end of my bachelor’s, and the book around the end of my master’s, it’s really easy to identify with the struggles and the mindset of the protagonist. And it is immensely satisfying to see him understand what is really important in life through a unique combination of circumstances.
While I personally prefer the anime over the book just because how unique the visuals of it are, this book has one of the most hopeful messages I’ve ever read such that it’s hard to give it anything less than a perfect score.
It is a masterpiece, and if it connects with you, it’ll hit harder than anything. Also go watch the anime.
The Fifth Science by Exurb1a
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It’s a collection of short stories, so it’s hard to give an overall rating to the book.
What all stories have in common is that they are related to a future human galactic empire, and they explore various scientific, philosophical and sometimes metaphysical concepts. Out of these, the ones that concert human psyche and sense of self are the highlights, such as “Water for Thought” and “The Want Machine”.
Overall, it’s a really good read if you’re a sci-fi enjoyer with some interest in philosophy.
What all stories have in common is that they are related to a future human galactic empire, and they explore various scientific, philosophical and sometimes metaphysical concepts. Out of these, the ones that concert human psyche and sense of self are the highlights, such as “Water for Thought” and “The Want Machine”.
Overall, it’s a really good read if you’re a sci-fi enjoyer with some interest in philosophy.
Die Verwandlung: in Einfacher Sprache by Franz Kafka
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
German? Never heard of it!
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
slow-paced
2.75
Words are too wordy, but other than that, I think if this Shakespeare guy keeps going for it, he might be big someday…
This book really makes me feel like coming up with random Shakespeare quotes at the sight of murder…
But seriously, just watch the play, it is so much more captivating than just reading old english prose.
This book really makes me feel like coming up with random Shakespeare quotes at the sight of murder…
But seriously, just watch the play, it is so much more captivating than just reading old english prose.