m4heeen's reviews
55 reviews

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

4.0

We Are Still Here: The Women of Afghanistan by Nahid Shahalimi

hopeful informative reflective

"I believe one woman's liberation is tied to all women's liberation. We can't breathe freely in Paris if our sisters are chained in Kabul." [Rada Akbar]

What is at times a superficial collection of the experiences and stories of Afghan women, both in the nation and in the diaspora, is an important collection nonetheless. It serves to show those disconnected from the oppression of Afghan women that they are not mere victims. They will not wait for God to rid them of their hardship, but fight to rid it themselves. 

I think the most important take away from this book is that their struggle is not singular. The struggle of Afghan women is linked to the struggle of American women, their struggle linked to that of Sudanese women, theirs linked to Palestinian women and so forth.  

The oppression of women in Afghanistan is not an isolated terror, it is a systematic, global effort to suppress women everywhere. To strip one woman of her rights, is to strip us all.

Banthology: Stories From Banned Nations by Sarah Cleave

3.5

Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth

dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Tangi by Witi Ihimaera

challenging emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Manifesto of the Communist Party by Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels

5.0

We Could Have Been Friends, My Father and I: A Palestinian Memoir by Raja Shehadeh

informative relaxing sad tense medium-paced

4.5

I had my own immature ideas, based on sentimental Hollywood dramas, of how it should be between father and son, and made no effort to understand my father on his own terms. Now that I know how much we have in common, what I regret most of all is the fact that we could have been friends.

Straight from the Horse's Mouth by Meryem Alaoui

funny tense medium-paced

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

3.0

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I found her writing style engaging and the initial premise of the book was interesting, but then it all got so... random?

I think the author was trying to explore so many different societal nuances (..?) i.e

colourism, passing for white, being transgender, and inter-racial relationships

, but she got so caught up in how much she was trying to stuff into this book, none of it was ever deeply explored. 

Kennedy as a whole just pissed me off, I don't know how much of that was intentional, but I couldn't stand her. Maybe it's just impossible for me to tolerate characters who get everything handed to them. She was so unapologetically spoilt it got on my nerves. 

I also don't understand what she was trying to convey with that whole Frantz relationship. She talked about Kennedy having childhood crushes on Black men, and the way in which she spoke of them made them sound less like people and more like objects..? Maybe not objects but definitely not people she felt equal to. I think their entire relationship was just mutual fetishisation. Kennedy had always wanted to date Black men but never could, and Frantz was on his fourth White girl. I also found it odd that Bennett added the fact that Kennedy would call Frantz the n-word during sex (per his request). I know it's a very real thing but I just can't understand what she was trying to convey with it. 

Another thing, I found it incredibly unrealistic how quickly Stella and Desiree's relationship returned to normal for the moments they were together in the diner. It felt like a lot of the time she was just trying to avoid dialogue between characters because she couldn't figure out what anyone would say in a situation like that.

I think most of my gripes from this book just come from my confusion and lack of understanding. If anyone does actually see this and has actually read the book, please provide me with some explanation. 

Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr.

4.0