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sarahxify's reviews
669 reviews
James by Percival Everett
adventurous
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Long Island by Colm Tóibín
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Read this in an effort to tidy up the unfinished fantasty series I have laying around. This trilogy feels incredibly stretched out; I feel a duology would have been more than sufficient for the story that's there. This last installment really dragged, and unfortuantely it mostly felt reading this that the series has well and truly run its course.
The main issues here were too many POVs and the characters are not very deeply drawn, so it ends up feeling quite messy as a story, and unengaging.
The main issues here were too many POVs and the characters are not very deeply drawn, so it ends up feeling quite messy as a story, and unengaging.
Motherhood by Sheila Heti
challenging
informative
slow-paced
4.0
An open and intimate examination of the life of a mid-thirties woman thinking about having children, reflecting on her own childhood, her relationship with her own mother, and her relationships with her friends, both parents and child-free. There is some beatiful writing in here with stark observations about motherhood/parenthood in general, the societal pressure to become parents, what we expect of women in the 21st century, and how to balance that strange feeling of both wanting children and not wanting them. Well worth reading, particularly if you are in your thirties.
The Bluffs by Kyle Perry
Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.
Clumsy and obvious writing, really not for me
Hospital by Sanya Rushdi
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Me: This has nothing to do with lithium, my mood was always stable. I was angry, it seemed wrong to force medication on me, and that was mistaken for mood instability. I'm not angry anymore because I have explained to myself that if I refuse the prescribed drugs, I'll be given others instead. Which is why I've decided that I'll continue to take lithium, even though it's poison. Or else I'll be killed even more quickly with other kinds of poison.
Dr Nevin: I can see you're still lacking in insight. You still don't realise there is something wrong with you.
Me: There's nothing particularly wrong with me. And even if there is, medication is not the right way to treat it.
Dr Nevin: What is the right way in your view?
Me: With language. Through conversations.
Dr Nevin: That's possible too. Counselling can be arranged simultaneously with medication.