samikuwu's reviews
114 reviews

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

adventurous dark emotional sad 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? No

3.5

the start felt like a bit of a drag but once i got into it it was pretty entertaining.

the prose is amazing and i grew to love the characters but when i finished i felt empty and wished it gave me more. the ending felt like it just slowly fizzled away like a half empty soda can i left on my radiator. wished there was just... something, that it kept going for just a few more chapters and did *something*. but alas...

i keep reading ishiguros books hoping to recreate the feeling i had when i read klara and the sun, but it just doesnt have that impact. 

also do NOT watch the movie its awful compared to the book and they did my girl Ruth so bad!!

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

emotional lighthearted mysterious fast-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

4.5

love me a good wlw romance, liked the scifi twist and the amount of cool characters

The Art of Kaneoya Sachiko by Sachiko Kaneoya

dark medium-paced

5.0

absolutely love the artist, and this book is beautiful 

My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Nagata Kabi

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

loved it. art was amazing, though it felt less like a manga and more like just a book with pictures. i guess being a memoir theres not much of a plot and you cant show that much only in drawings. i still wish the art was more incorporated into the story and felt less like just an afterthought.

Three Women by Lisa Taddeo

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.5

My Brother's Name is Jessica by John Boyne

emotional funny hopeful fast-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

0.0

i initially gave it 4.5 stars after bing-reading it in one morning, however after reading the reviews, i have to lower the rating. 

i still think it's an interesting read; as a trans man, i could deeply relate to Jessica's situation, and it felt somewhat cathartic to read.

however, the deadnaming was NOT necessary. i completely understand that it takes time to adjust, it even took me some time to start using my new name, and to 100% see myself as a man, and i think that as long as the person tries, i dont care if they slip up and accidentally misgender me. however the characters just didnt even try, and it sucked. 

Jessica felt like a side character, barely had any voice, i just wanted to hold her the whole time i was reading and tell her its gonna be okay.

a lof of people said that this wasnt the author's story to tell. i dont mind cis people writing trans stories, as long as they do enough research. but alas, boyne have done zero research, and is actually transphobic, as he wrote in his article “Why I support trans rights but reject the word ‘cis,'”;

“it will probably make some unhappy to know that I reject the word ‘cis,’ the term given by transgender people to their nontransgender brethren. I don’t consider myself a cis man; I consider myself a man.”

fuck you, actually. had he done the tiniest bit of research, he would've understood everything wrong with what he wrote, both in the article and in the book.

also the title is awful.

as i wrote this review, i kept lowering the score. looks like we finally got to 0.

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin

dark emotional funny sad 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

ive never felt more seen in a book. hooked from page one, couldnt put it down. this book could have me laughing out loud one page and then making me want to curl into a ball and cry the next one. cant wait for the next book from this author to come out

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy

hopeful reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

a truly beautiful book, something to keep on your shelf and flip through when youre in the mood. the artwork is amazing.

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

emotional 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? No

3.5

ok maybe i did cry reading it but thats just because i like dogs ok? it was a quick read, nothing ground breaking or something that would leave a mark, but thats fine, not every book has to shatter my worldview and change my life

Galatea by Madeline Miller

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

a solid retelling considering the source material and the length of the story.