Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Americas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature. Commended) by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Whelp I read that book in one day. One ugly fucking day where I cried tons of ugly fucking tears. Like fuck this beautiful world, I'm not ready for it. I carry a lot of internalized homophobic bullshit about myself and this is a book of healing. Because there are some major horrible moments it opened some wounds for me but I feel like I was taken care of. Serious trigger warnings for violence. Fuck this book in the best way possible.
I mean it fills that marshmallow shaped hole in my soul....
This book really messed with me. There were so many times when I was reading it where I thought "This is terrible," yet there was something about this book that kept me going. Something about this book that kept me reading.
Sure, the book itself is beautiful, the pages are stylized just enough to really add to the experience. But that shouldn't be enough for me to push through a mediocre book. So after sitting with this book for a while (and inflicting it on a friend for her thoughts) I realized that real reason I cared so much about Celaena Sardothien is that... she's Sailor Moon...
I mean think about it. She's this blonde (kind of), peppy, sometimes klutzy, but bad-ass when she needs to be, somehow endearing, resilient, and mildly annoying protagonist that might as well be two people. Like people sneak up on the world's greatest assassin all the time... but she's so good at archery and champion things that we don't even need to see them half the time. You geaux girl! (I guess?) My point is, Celaena is not wholly believable in the role she's set up to be.
Still, the book manages to do some interesting things with magic, fae, and demons. It also has glimmers (oh so small glimmers) of lasting effects from traumatic events and her living in a "death camp." Plus it promises a future full of pirates and assassin lords. So I guess I'll read the next book and hopefully the giant question mark above my head will get a real answer.
For now, let's just say that sometimes the things show more we like are problematic. And that's okay. show less
Sure, the book itself is beautiful, the pages are stylized just enough to really add to the experience. But that shouldn't be enough for me to push through a mediocre book. So after sitting with this book for a while (and inflicting it on a friend for her thoughts) I realized that real reason I cared so much about Celaena Sardothien is that... she's Sailor Moon...
I mean think about it. She's this blonde (kind of), peppy, sometimes klutzy, but bad-ass when she needs to be, somehow endearing, resilient, and mildly annoying protagonist that might as well be two people. Like people sneak up on the world's greatest assassin all the time... but she's so good at archery and champion things that we don't even need to see them half the time. You geaux girl! (I guess?) My point is, Celaena is not wholly believable in the role she's set up to be.
Still, the book manages to do some interesting things with magic, fae, and demons. It also has glimmers (oh so small glimmers) of lasting effects from traumatic events and her living in a "death camp." Plus it promises a future full of pirates and assassin lords. So I guess I'll read the next book and hopefully the giant question mark above my head will get a real answer.
For now, let's just say that sometimes the things show more we like are problematic. And that's okay. show less
Puppet Skin is like an existential creation myth. I'm not entirely sure that makes sense, but this book fucked me up in a way I wasn't expecting. Love it.
Night Vale exists in a strange place - is it horror? is it comedy? is it some kind of mainstream bizarro? This review does not set out to answer that question. I'm happy that it sits on that weird in between line.
KING CITY the paper in my hand would probably say if it could speak.
In fact, I really enjoyed this book. A lot of people in my social network don't seem to share my enthusiasm for it. The biggest complaint amount those lesser people who hate change is that this book is not as good as the Podcast, or that it somehow doesn't translate well in a novel form. Again, lesser people.
KING CITY the note in my hand just actually said. It had a slight accent which was kind of cute.
See, this book is incredibly character focused. We get to see the inner workings of the PTA, why libraries are truly so terrifying, and we learn about KING CITY and a ton about what makes a good father, and the tale of the man in the tan jacket. Some character will grow in your heart so much that you won't be able to pick a form that contains your love for them.
The only thing that stops this novel from being given 5 Stars is that Welcome to Night Vale missed an opportunity to expand it's unique Night Vale-ness beyond just the story. The physical book itself could have been way weirder. They could have redacted parts that the Sheriff's Secret Police didn't want us to see, they could have used rotating fonts, colors, or explored bending this medium of storytelling in ways similar to [book:House show more of Leaves|24800]. I kept waiting for something like that the physically connect me with the world of Night Vale - but I was unfortunately let down in that area. I mean, the hard back copy I have is beautiful, but it isn't strange. The creators of Night Vale often pull us into their world by shaking up their podcast formula, that creativity simply wasn't carried over into this book. In that one way, and that one way only, I agree with the lesser people and their lesser opinions.
Still a great journey I say. KING CITY the paper in my hand will say. show less
KING CITY the paper in my hand would probably say if it could speak.
In fact, I really enjoyed this book. A lot of people in my social network don't seem to share my enthusiasm for it. The biggest complaint amount those lesser people who hate change is that this book is not as good as the Podcast, or that it somehow doesn't translate well in a novel form. Again, lesser people.
KING CITY the note in my hand just actually said. It had a slight accent which was kind of cute.
See, this book is incredibly character focused. We get to see the inner workings of the PTA, why libraries are truly so terrifying, and we learn about KING CITY and a ton about what makes a good father, and the tale of the man in the tan jacket. Some character will grow in your heart so much that you won't be able to pick a form that contains your love for them.
The only thing that stops this novel from being given 5 Stars is that Welcome to Night Vale missed an opportunity to expand it's unique Night Vale-ness beyond just the story. The physical book itself could have been way weirder. They could have redacted parts that the Sheriff's Secret Police didn't want us to see, they could have used rotating fonts, colors, or explored bending this medium of storytelling in ways similar to [book:House show more of Leaves|24800]. I kept waiting for something like that the physically connect me with the world of Night Vale - but I was unfortunately let down in that area. I mean, the hard back copy I have is beautiful, but it isn't strange. The creators of Night Vale often pull us into their world by shaking up their podcast formula, that creativity simply wasn't carried over into this book. In that one way, and that one way only, I agree with the lesser people and their lesser opinions.
Still a great journey I say. KING CITY the paper in my hand will say. show less