jaxguillette's reviews
193 reviews

Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History by S.C. Gwynne
Did not finish book. Stopped at 17%.

There's a particular Victorian understanding of the world and it's people that places British and American culture at the apex of civilization, and everyone else as somewhere behind them on the path to that "more advanced" level. This is the framing that the author uses throughout the book, that the Comanche subjects were uncivilized and savage, people who didn't "advance" to agriculture. This might be something one could look past in a book from 1910, but not in one from 100 years later. He also portrays American settlers as "steely-eyed" people who "knew in their hearts that the land was there". I don't doubt that he did his research, and that what he says has its basis in fact, but the framing and the interpretation are just so grating at best, and inspire a lack of confidence at worst. I'd rather spend my time with a different book on the same subject. Quite disappointing. 

Horns by Joe Hill

challenging dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Thought I might give up on the book halfway through, ended up sticking with it and glad I did. The characters, including our protagonist, are not always (or even often) sympathetic, but they do consistently develop over the course of the book, and Joe Hill knows how to write a compelling story. 

Why Does He Do That? by Lundy Bancroft

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

Very informative about abusive patterns in relationships. I'm trying to inform myself better to support a family member, and I think this was really illuminating in making sense of her ex partner's behavior. Some references are dated now, but overall a great resource. 

How to Resist Amazon and Why : The Fight for Local Economics, Data Privacy, Fair Labor, Independent Bookstores, and a People-Powered Future! (2nd Edition) by Danny Caine

hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

4.5

Loved it. Great mix of information about the problems of how Amazon works as a company and how being part of a community around a local business is just so much more satisfying. 

A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? by Kelly Weinersmith, Zach Weinersmith

adventurous funny hopeful informative lighthearted medium-paced

5.0

What a lovely book. It does one of the best things that I think writing can do, which is to condense and relate a long journey of information gathering into a work that's parseable. It is funny and lighthearted, but that doesn't take away from the footnotes and deep research that the authors went through to present this book to the world. Plenty to chew on for a long time. 

For Antifascist Futures: Against the Violence of Imperial Crisis by Simón Ventura Trujillo, Alyosha Goldstein

challenging informative inspiring medium-paced

4.5

Great collection of writing that coheres well

Witch King by Martha Wells

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

It's a dense thicket of world building especially since it's about the building of a world in the wake of an empire torn down, but I found it compelling. 

A Country of Ghosts by Margaret Killjoy

adventurous hopeful inspiring 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? No

3.75

Octavia E. Butler: The Last Interview and Other Conversations by Octavia E. Butler, Melville House

emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

Hunter's Oath by Michelle West

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

The pitch feels like pretty standard fantasy fare, but there's a ton of tantalizing world building in this book, while still being populated with people with very real feelings. There's a lovely mix of mystery about the world and character vignettes over the years of time this book covers. So pleased to have found a new author to dig deep into.