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rebeccazh's Reviews (2.89k)
4.5 stars. This series goes from meh to extremely addictive from just book 2 to book 4.
Gave this another try. The last 10-20% were exciting coz there was actual plot. Hopefully the next few books are better.
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This book is pure exposition. DNF at 30%.
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This book is pure exposition. DNF at 30%.
Can't go wrong with Sanderson nor the Stormlight Archives but the pace was truly glacier slow - even more so than the first book. I started to skim pages and skip some paragraphs. We finally get some answers! And Kaladin still remains a favorite - most of the best scenes in the story happen to him - and Shallan is much improved though she is still quite annoying from other people's pov lol. I think this book could have done with some trimming just so the wait between actual plot and action is less lengthy. Also now I understand why people disparage his romances - the Kaladin Shallan subplot is so awkward
Surprisingly philosophical, like a book about the philosophies and ethics behind the case studies in [b:Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future|54814834|Under a White Sky The Nature of the Future|Elizabeth Kolbert|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1608039192l/54814834._SY75_.jpg|85515756]. Marris looks at the ethics around human-animal relations and conservation. Parts of this were dry because it is after all, an abstract discussion about ethics, but Marris uses real-life conservation examples to illustrate many of her ideas and ask hard questions. Note that Marris is not trained in philosophy but a scientific journalist by trade. Marris also highlights indigenous perspectives that are very welcome as she questions the capitalist/colonialist logic of human-bad, nature-good, especially quoting [b:Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants|17465709|Braiding Sweetgrass Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants|Robin Wall Kimmerer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1366775928l/17465709._SY75_.jpg|24362458] a few times.
I appreciate Marris' willingness to look at the bloody, ugly, and dark side of conservation, to ask the hard questions, and to acknowledge that quite frankly we humans know a lot less than we think we do.
I appreciate Marris' willingness to look at the bloody, ugly, and dark side of conservation, to ask the hard questions, and to acknowledge that quite frankly we humans know a lot less than we think we do.
![聲の形 1 [Koe no Katachi 1] by Yoshitoki Oima](https://cdn.thestorygraph.com/v7pe7hj3q42ynr5w76vbfc3w65su)
Couldn't find the edition I was reading and am just using this. This is the 2024 book in Japanese I read (before my Kobo broke down). Easier than Kimi no Na wa.
Alice Wong's voice is assertive and playful and this book is really fun to read because it's written in such a creative way - it is part essay, interview transcript, recipes, graphics, and autobiography. This book has also prompted a lot of reflection about how ableism has shaped the way I think and see things.
I found Wang's writing style a bit detached and abstract, and I initially struggled to connect to the book, as other reviews have mention. She goes through nuanced and complex issues around those with schizophrenia, pointing to the way the system (healthcare, psychiatry) has failed this group, and I found the chapters on children, disability, and the last chapter on spirituality (?) most interesting though I saw there was a review criticizing that last chapter.
As other reviewers have pointed out - Wang doesn't touch on her privilege and cursorily brushes past the topic of internalized ableism. Even in such a detached tone, this collection of essay-memoir left me anxious and unsettled on behalf of the author and her family. Going through something terrifying, horrifying, and beyond comprehension with no or little support from the system is beyond difficult and traumatizing. This is a memoir that will stay with me.
As other reviewers have pointed out - Wang doesn't touch on her privilege and cursorily brushes past the topic of internalized ableism. Even in such a detached tone, this collection of essay-memoir left me anxious and unsettled on behalf of the author and her family. Going through something terrifying, horrifying, and beyond comprehension with no or little support from the system is beyond difficult and traumatizing. This is a memoir that will stay with me.
4.5 stars for Ily & the men's relationship, the banter, the fun. What this series excels at, it excels at. It's wonderful to spend time with the gang we know and love.
3 stars for everything else, starting with. I also felt the first half kind of dragged, the stuff happening to Isobel is veering into trauma porn, and there is so much going on idk how the ghost and goddess stuff will be resolved by the last book and the growth in relationships in the group feels quite uneven still.
Still such a fun series - I am definitely reading the last book and rereading the good parts in this one (aka group banter), but this book was really ruined for me by the.
3 stars for everything else, starting with
Spoiler
Teak losing her wife and potentially getting together with BraunStill such a fun series - I am definitely reading the last book and rereading the good parts in this one (aka group banter), but this book was really ruined for me by the