endemictoearth's reviews
3543 reviews

Roaming by Jillian Tamaki, Mariko Tamaki

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The art is stunning, and the art direction, with the black page edges for night and purple for dusk were so thoughtful. The dialogue is realistic, funny and occasionally a bit brutal. Love the self contained aspect . . . just the time they were in NYC, we have to imagine what life is like when they get home. The more I think about it, the more I like it . . . talked myself from a 4 to a 4.5.

More Me With You by Alex Bertie

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.75

I did get a bit frustrated with Will's inability to tell Ben that he is trans. I understand why he hesitated, but it got to be a bit ridiculous near the end. But, as this is a short novella that is more a character study with a dash of romance, I understood that was how this was meant to go, and I enjoyed a lot of other things about this, so it isn't hard to be charitable in my rating. 

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Very much a "WTF did I just read" book, but in a good way. The vocabulary was next level, tho; I had to look up a lot of obscure terminology, but there's textual evidence for why the narrator would speak/think that way so I couldn't be too mad at it.

It is extremely gross, but in a sort of triumphant way? I think I'd recommend it.

I think.

Sign of Spring by Kate Lowell

emotional hopeful

2.25

Zodiac: A Graphic Memoir by Ai Weiwei

challenging informative reflective sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Happy Stories, Mostly by Norman Erikson Pasaribu

challenging funny mysterious reflective sad

3.75

Two stories stood out to me: A Young Poet's Guide to Surviving a Broken Heart and Welcome to the Department of Unanswered Prayers. Those were five stars and worth buying the collection for them alone. I don't think I got all of the connections, but I could tell that we were getting the same characters or iterations of those characters in some cases. Overall, I quite enjoyed this (but the stories are not happy, mostly.)

How to Hook a Vampire by Holly Day

adventurous challenging dark funny lighthearted tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

The Other World's Books Depend on the Bean Counter, Vol. 4 by Yatsuki Wakatsu

adventurous challenging lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

A Gathering Storm by Joanna Chambers

emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

This was a re-read for me, and I enjoyed it more the second time. The audio narrator performance is five stars. 

Young Men in Love by Joe Glass, Matt Miner

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

While there were obviously stories I enjoyed more than others, this was a very solid selection overall. My favorites were The Treasure Map to My Heart, Living, Act of Grace, What Do I Get?, Love Yourself, and Big Man made me tear up, which is a feat for such a short comic.