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abenit21's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
3.0
I found this book quite boring and slow at times making it difficult to finish. I would still give it three stars, however, because Felicia Luna Lemus is just so good at evoking feelings of comfort and familiarity during certain chapters. I did not find Nathalie's proximity to the manic pixie dreamgirl archetype to be useful for the plot. If Lemus' wanted to use this archetype to criticize Frank and his relationship to Nathalie then I fear it was not as successful as it could have been.
silodear's review against another edition
2.0
I really, really wanted to like this book, but honestly, it was quite boring.
Though, it is refreshing to read a book about a trans character that isn't all about gender stuff. That being said, I expected more from the story itself.
Though, it is refreshing to read a book about a trans character that isn't all about gender stuff. That being said, I expected more from the story itself.
meganmilks's review against another edition
2.0
couldn't get into the narrative voice: at. all. ambitious story, historically sweeping, but the magical/extrareal elements are too consistently undercut by needless and mundance details. etc. didn't like. wanted to like, hard. which made me like it even less. did not live up to my hopes and dreams! bad book! bad!
elibrooke's review against another edition
4.0
Nahui Olin + ftm genderqueer narrator = Oh, my heart!
mc900ft's review against another edition
3.0
there are lots of good things about this book, really a 3.5
- it's a transgender read involving a relation with girl turned boy and father - which was the best part for me. the relationship with his/her partner is good as well, but gets bogged down at times. glad i read it
- it's a transgender read involving a relation with girl turned boy and father - which was the best part for me. the relationship with his/her partner is good as well, but gets bogged down at times. glad i read it
pastelwriter's review against another edition
I can't seem to figure out what to rate this book. I think my last two brain cells were trying their best as I read this book, but there was only so much they could do. This was a book I read towards the very end of my uni semester, and I think my comprehension of it suffered because of it. I feel like I should reread it before being able to rate it. Nevertheless, I still have some thoughts on it.
My main issue as I read this was that, for the majority of it, I couldn't stop seeing Nathalie as a manic pixie dream girl. If I'm to trust the word of my professor, the novel is trying to criticize how the narrator views Nathalie in such a toxic way that she's constantly put on a pedestal, but I thought it was ineffective. I didn't think it was handled well enough that this came across clearly. It just translated into me not being able to stand Nathalie because I was seeing her through Frank's seriously twisted lens. I was just not a fan. If this had been written using dual perspective, Nathalie's pov could have been a vehicle through which we could see she was more dynamic and substantial than what Frank saw her as. Unfortunately, I was left struggling to resist the urge to fight her and Frank for being so unbearably superficial and concerned with their appearance and aesthetic. Ugh. Barf.
Furthermore, the ending of this novel was unsatisfactory because it wasn't conclusive enough. There's a positive and a negative way of viewing the ending of this novel, and both interpretations are valid, but only because of how vague the ending was. If I'm being honest, I side with the pessimistic interpretation. I don't think Nathalie or Frank learned shit in this novel. I think they're just going to continue to spiral deeper into their super toxic relationship, and I'm not into it. I could try to go for the positive spin on the ending, but I find it unrealistic. The character growth in this novel was so minuscule that it was laughable. Therefore, I find myself hard-pressed to believe that Frank or Nathalie learned anything from their experiences.
When I started this novel I thought I would thoroughly enjoy it, even though I found it excessive and over-the-top from the get-go, but it just lost me. I was pleased with how this book centered on a trans man but didn't focus on his transition, but this wasn't enough to make me adore the novel. There were some good scenes relating to Frank's gender, but, once again, these scenes alone could not save the novel.
In general, I feel like I should give this novel a reread, but I'm not sure I could. I've discovered that I'm severely not into following the perspective of unlikable characters, and I don't think I could stand revisiting Frank's perspective. He wasn't the worst dude out there, but he wasn't the best either. Plus, the book was just so subtle with its "message" that I don't find it worth it to reread it just for the sake of trying to justify how I disliked the book but it was doing something "valid." I felt sad, though, that this was my professor's favorite book and I disliked it so much. Oh well!
My main issue as I read this was that, for the majority of it, I couldn't stop seeing Nathalie as a manic pixie dream girl. If I'm to trust the word of my professor, the novel is trying to criticize how the narrator views Nathalie in such a toxic way that she's constantly put on a pedestal, but I thought it was ineffective. I didn't think it was handled well enough that this came across clearly. It just translated into me not being able to stand Nathalie because I was seeing her through Frank's seriously twisted lens. I was just not a fan. If this had been written using dual perspective, Nathalie's pov could have been a vehicle through which we could see she was more dynamic and substantial than what Frank saw her as. Unfortunately, I was left struggling to resist the urge to fight her and Frank for being so unbearably superficial and concerned with their appearance and aesthetic. Ugh. Barf.
Furthermore, the ending of this novel was unsatisfactory because it wasn't conclusive enough. There's a positive and a negative way of viewing the ending of this novel, and both interpretations are valid, but only because of how vague the ending was. If I'm being honest, I side with the pessimistic interpretation. I don't think Nathalie or Frank learned shit in this novel. I think they're just going to continue to spiral deeper into their super toxic relationship, and I'm not into it. I could try to go for the positive spin on the ending, but I find it unrealistic. The character growth in this novel was so minuscule that it was laughable. Therefore, I find myself hard-pressed to believe that Frank or Nathalie learned anything from their experiences.
When I started this novel I thought I would thoroughly enjoy it, even though I found it excessive and over-the-top from the get-go, but it just lost me. I was pleased with how this book centered on a trans man but didn't focus on his transition, but this wasn't enough to make me adore the novel. There were some good scenes relating to Frank's gender, but, once again, these scenes alone could not save the novel.
In general, I feel like I should give this novel a reread, but I'm not sure I could. I've discovered that I'm severely not into following the perspective of unlikable characters, and I don't think I could stand revisiting Frank's perspective. He wasn't the worst dude out there, but he wasn't the best either. Plus, the book was just so subtle with its "message" that I don't find it worth it to reread it just for the sake of trying to justify how I disliked the book but it was doing something "valid." I felt sad, though, that this was my professor's favorite book and I disliked it so much. Oh well!
eyegee's review
4.0
I enjoyed the writing, but not the book. Too dark, or maybe just the wrong time to be reading something dark. But in spite of being in a rush for it to end, I was impressed by the writing and the strong central character.
claben's review
3.0
Meandering and at times improbable (you bought persimmons at the Union Square farmers market? Really?) this book is nevertheless a quick, engaging read. Frank and his father are both well-drawn; one wishes the same courtesy had been extended to the female characters - at least the ones alive in the present. Neither Frank's mother nor his girlfriend appear to have much purpose in life except to cause emotional crises for Frank. The poet/idol and Frank's paternal grandmother come out a bit more rounded, ironically, since they are both convenient dead icons for Frank to project his own emotions and thoughts onto and thus actually get to have emotions and thoughts. That said, the way in which gender and racial identity exist for Frank as real factors in his life without being The Big Message seems to me well-handled.
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