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malayapapaya's reviews
53 reviews
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
loved returning to the humor, ensemble, escapism, and beautiful queerness of a casey mcquiston book.
was so lovely to read two characters who know each other so well getting to fall back in love. especially lovely to see kit fall in love with a theo who has discovered they are trans and read that from kit's perspective. so affirming and validating and a little magical.
the descriptions of the setting, the food, the wine were so lush and beautiful. it made me want to be a little more indulgent in my day to day life and take my time to enjoy my surroundings (the whole "light the good candles, living is a special occasion" mindset). also, kit is beautiful and reading/resonating with his point of view was so affirming, even though our specific taste isn't the same. between henry and kit, cmq knows how to write a taurus.
something about a genderqueer romance between two very genderful people, seeing the beauty in each other, and getting to face their flaws in a new light after much growth was so beautiful. also, as someone who is not a big reader and is still earlyish in unlearning a lot of internalized toxic and heteropatriarchal narratives around sex, i really enjoyed that many of the scenes were about enjoying it and being in your body instead of giving stage time to the power dynamics that seem to often come with the territory.
i did a bunch of journaling throughout this book, whether that was "what is it about kit that resonates? what aspects do i see and want to honor in myself and esp my gender presentation?", "what do i dream of that i don't let myself have?", "where am i too self-righteous?", "how do i honor these parts of me that are imperfect but that these characters have such love for anyway?" and more.
was so lovely to read two characters who know each other so well getting to fall back in love. especially lovely to see kit fall in love with a theo who has discovered they are trans and read that from kit's perspective. so affirming and validating and a little magical.
the descriptions of the setting, the food, the wine were so lush and beautiful. it made me want to be a little more indulgent in my day to day life and take my time to enjoy my surroundings (the whole "light the good candles, living is a special occasion" mindset). also, kit is beautiful and reading/resonating with his point of view was so affirming, even though our specific taste isn't the same. between henry and kit, cmq knows how to write a taurus.
something about a genderqueer romance between two very genderful people, seeing the beauty in each other, and getting to face their flaws in a new light after much growth was so beautiful. also, as someone who is not a big reader and is still earlyish in unlearning a lot of internalized toxic and heteropatriarchal narratives around sex, i really enjoyed that many of the scenes were about enjoying it and being in your body instead of giving stage time to the power dynamics that seem to often come with the territory.
i did a bunch of journaling throughout this book, whether that was "what is it about kit that resonates? what aspects do i see and want to honor in myself and esp my gender presentation?", "what do i dream of that i don't let myself have?", "where am i too self-righteous?", "how do i honor these parts of me that are imperfect but that these characters have such love for anyway?" and more.
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
Did not finish book. Stopped at 14%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 14%.
Really want to restart but got distracted again. Also was not sure I was prepared for how sad I know this book is
Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb
Did not finish book. Stopped at 8%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 8%.
I enjoyed this so far and would revisit but fell into the trap of not finishing books I start
Nevada by Imogen Binnie
funny
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse and Drug use
A Strange Loop by Michael R. Jackson
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
just reading doesn’t do it justice of course, but having seen it/heard the soundtrack and now getting to see how it’s written, how it changed from offbroadway to broadway, and look at moments that move quickly when you watch it is a great way to dig deeper. watching this show was incredible half because i’ve seen a lot of shows and it was really incredible to see these things being addressed and talked about like this in a broadway theatre. it’s so refreshing to see something so different from the same shit that broadway loves to churn out, that criticizes the constant centering of white queer people, and does so while making you feel literally every emotion and also showcasing so many queer (and also so many trans cast/understudies?!!) and Black artists and people being incredible!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Body shaming and Gaslighting
Minor: Rape, Slavery, Transphobia, Police brutality, and Alcohol
All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
Moderate: Incest, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Death
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
challenging
emotional
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Hate crime, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Outing, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Deadnaming, Infertility, Suicide, Blood, Car accident, Abortion, and Pregnancy
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Writing this review a few months later, so I have a little distance from it, but wow wow wow. This was one of my first forays into queer fiction since coming out as a lesbian myself, and the way it explores the feeling of discovering this on your own in some isolation plus the intersection of this process with being an Asian woman was so so life-affirming as a fellow API lesbian. Even if the world is vastly different in many ways, there are so many emotions that resonated and hit in the best way. Also, reading about what sapphic culture was like back in the 1950s was really moving and made me so excited to move to a city and find my own queer community. I feel very grateful to not live in an environment where it's as risky as it was then, but it was so surreal to read this and know that Lily is around the same age my grandparents were and that this stuff is not that far off from the way things are now. The book treats all these subjects so beautifully while also being realistic about what the characters were facing in the time. It made me want to start learning about Asian and queer culture in San Francisco, which I have heard about but don't know too intimately.
#Entry Level Boss: How to Get Any Job You Want by Alexa Shoen
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
lost focus/busy w school and had to return