bandysbooks's reviews
181 reviews

Isaac's Song was one of my most anticipated reads for 2025. I previously read Dr. Daniel Black's book Don't Cry For Me and it was so emotionally moving and complex, so I had high expectations for this read. I'm happy to say that I was not disappointed. 

This book follows Isaac, a young man struggling to find peace between his identity and the way he was raised. As an artistically inclined, young Queer Black man he felt unaccepted by his father's traditional views of masculinity. It led to him suppressing a lot of his dreams and desires. As an adult he is reckoning with his upbringing in therapy. At his therapist's encouragement, he begins writing down his story and goes on a journey to his ancestral home in Arkansas as well as through the nation's dark past. 

I'll be honest and say that this book wasn't an easy read. As with Dr. Black's previous book, this book is emotionally complex, heavy, and deals with traumatic incidents. There were moments in reading this that I had to stop and take a break before returning. That said, there is nothing gratuitous about the writing. These moments fit together to create a clear picture of Isaac's life and the obstacles he's overcome to get there. 

This book could definitely be read as a standalone, but I think it's even more impactful when you've read Don't Cry For Me previously which covers Isaac's father's perspective. It gives you a well rounded perspective of how generational trauma can be passed down from generation to generation.    

I also really love that in Isaac's Song, Isaac is in therapy and doing the work to process this family trauma. I think portrayals of healing are so important and while that road isn't always easy for Isaac, he is doing the work. We see him really grow and challenge himself and that is a beautiful thing.

That said, did I find Isaac's Song equally as impactful as Don't Cry For Me? Honestly, no. It is beautifully written and still impactful, but I had zero expectations going into Don't Cry For Me, so it was a complete emotional blindside. Going into Isaac's Song I had such high expectations and there was just really no way for it to catch me off guard the way Don't Cry For Me did. Either way, it's still a stunning, moving book.

Not only did I purchase a lovely hardcover copy of this book from BOTM, but I also listened to the audiobook of this too. The narration was handled very well and the feelings and emotions were conveyed through the narrator. JD Jackson did a fantastic job of bringing Isaac to life. 

All in all, I would recommend any book written by Dr. Daniel Black. He has certainly become an auto-buy author for me at this point. Isaac's Song has just cemented my respect for his talent

Thank you to Netgalley, Dr. Daniel Black, and Hanover Square Press for the Audio-ARC. 

This book came onto my radar during to my book of the month predictions and stayed on my radar because it’s so hard to summarize. I feel like I read the summary seven times and still didn’t really understand what the book was about, so I was nervous that I might not understand the story. Luckily, that was not the case.

This is a wild ride of a story that follows Kembral, a recent mother who has yet to decide if she wants to come back to work. She’s at a party when things start to go sideways and she finds herself in an alternate world with only her enemy, notorious burglar, Rika to rely on. This had sort of an acid trip mixed with fantasy vibe that kept me interested. 

The audiobook of this was narrated well as well. I felt like the pacing was good and the acid trip fantasy vibe found its way into the narration too.

All in all, I enjoyed my time with this book. I see that it’s the first in a series, so I would consider reading the next one.

I’ve read every installation of The Wayward Children series and really enjoyed it. This was another solid addition. This time, we learn about Nadya and how she found her door. Her story starts in Russia in an orphanage and moves on from there. While the circumstances that led her to a door were similar to other stories, the origin of her story is quite a bit different from the rest. I won’t say that it was super original, but if you’ve enjoyed the series thus far, you’ll likely enjoy this one too.

As an adult, I haven’t read many classics due to bad experiences with classics in school growing up. I was forced to read so many dry, dusty old books that it’s made me hesitant to revisit them, but when I saw that Percival Everett was releasing James as the other side of Huck Finn’s story, I knew I wanted to reread Huck Finn first.

Immediately, I struggled with the language and treatment directed at Black characters in this book. I think it was especially disconcerting because it was so casual. I understand that that was common in the slavery era, but as a modern reader it was extremely jarring and uncomfortable. 

Huck Finn does at least seem to be a more tolerant person than the people around him. He is mostly kind to Jim as they travel down river together, although it is clear that Huck thinks Jim to be of lesser intellect. As the story progresses, it seems that Huck does start to become friends with Jim and that that really begins to shift his views.

I ended up reading James back to back with Huck Finn and honestly, James makes it clear why it is the far superior story. It adds layers of nuance and understanding that Huck Finn lacks. It’s told from the perspective of someone who understands the world all too clearly, where as Huck Finn constantly misses the things happening around him. 

All in all, this reread of Huck Finn won’t change my mind about classics, but I do think that if you plan to read James, you should reread Huck Finn first.

I was once told by a friend who grew up in Appalachia that it’s a place one can visit and love, but that one can’t deeply understand without having lived there. If that’s true, then this book is spot on in its portrayal as there are things I loved, but I’m not sure that I all the way understood it. 

Smothermoss follows two young sisters in a relatively poor family as they start to come of age. They are social outcasts at school due to their economic situations and each girl has a variety of idiosyncratic hobbies and  preoccupations that would make it harder for them to relate to children their age. While our MCs are young, this is in no way a YA book. 

Typically, I love when a book takes on complex themes and Smothermoss is full of them. It touches on sexuality, gender, poverty, sexual assault, eating disorders, and more. Unfortunately, this was a case where it felt like nothing got the attention it deserved because it was so jam packed. Add in magical realism and literary elements and you have a book that just isn’t quite sure what it wants to be. 

All in all, I feel like this was an ambitious debut where the author tried to pack in every idea she had. A bit more editing might’ve made this more successful. That said, I would consider reading this author’s next book as the ideas are definitely there. 

I initially came across this book because of the cover and then when I read the summary it sounded just like the sort of thing I enjoy. Literary, speculative, horror. I’m here for all of it. 

Mothtown is about a boy named David who has never really fit in. The only person who truly understands him is his grandfather, going as far as communicating with him in strange clicks and pops. When Grandpa disappears, David is curious about where he went and starts investigating the concept of other worlds. He’s certain grandpa found his doorway. But his family is scared that David will disappear like his grandfather and the many others who have chosen to leave society behind. 

We see the story through David’s eyes and he’s clearly an unreliable narrator. He sees only part of the story, doesn’t have all of the information, and has a very specific perception of things. It creates a purposefully disjointed, fever dream kind of narrative (similar to Awad, Broder, etc) 

Ultimately, this reads like a book about someone’s descent into mental illness and the contemplation of ending one’s life. While the concept of becoming a mother is unique, I have seen mental health treated similarly. I’m not sure that there is enough in this book to make it stand out spectacularly. The writing is lovely and dream like and there are some good ideas. I just found myself left wanting a bit more. 

I really struggled with how to rate this book. I really loved some aspects of it, but struggled with other parts. Betty follows a young half white half Cherokee girl growing up in small town Appalachia as she deals with trauma after trauma.

Betty is the youngest daughter and she is curious about everything. She loves her father and his stories. She loves her siblings too, but it becomes clear quickly that Betty’s life is not destined to go the way she thinks it is. 

Tragedy strikes the family one after another in unrelenting waves. At times, it made the book hard to continue. I felt like I had no time to process one traumatic event before the next one would hit. It left me feeling a bit numb as I was reading instead of emotionally connecting with what was happening. 

All in all, if you like slow moving emotional explorations of coming of age on a traumatic situation you may like this book. 

*Please, check the trigger warnings as there are a lot of them. 

I loved The Beekeeper of Aleppo, so I was really excited to read Lefteri’s most recent work. It was actually one of my most anticipated reads this year. It’s described as following an artistic family living out in the woods whose lives are destroyed by a forest fire and by a mother who does something shocking without thinking. I envisioned an eco-thriller with some emotional gut punches.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t really any of those things. It was a more quiet, reflective story that flashes between different POVs and different timelines. There isn’t really anything thrilling or mysterious. Everything is pretty straightforward, making for a read that sort of plods along.

Where this book does really shine is in its portrayal of post traumatic stress disorder and how it affects different people differently. I think Lefteri really captured some of the more subtle parts of PTSD effectively. She also illustrated just how hard it can be to break free of it. 

I also appreciate that this book touches on the climate change that made the fire grow out of control, but I actually wish it delved even deeper into this issue. I wish it had been more straightforward in its criticisms. 

All in all, this was a decent book and maybe it was hurt by the fact that it was following such a stunner in Beekeeper. If you like modern historical fiction with some current topics and portrayals of PTSD, you may enjoy this one. 

I came across Malas on a recent trip to San Diego. I was doing a bookstore crawl and in one of the shops I stopped in, Malas was prominently displayed. I was immediately attracted by the cover and title, but knew I was sold once I read the summary.

I love the supernatural feeling that weaves through the storyline in the past initially. There are mysterious things happening and not a lot of explanation, but it beautifully creates a creeping sense of dread. 

The present day POV, which centers on a young woman named Lulu as her quinceañera approaches. She’s despondent over the loss of her grandmother and rage filled at her father’s irrational behaviors. She’s also figuring out her bodily autonomy and relationships. I found this POV a bit more tiresome than others as we are essentially trapped in the head of a teenager. What I will say is that I found it fairly realistic. 

In terms of character development, both of our main characters grow quite a bit. There are definitely some messy family dynamics at play and seeing what changes that thrusts upon each of them was very interesting. In particular, Lulu experiences a sort of coming of age, being forced to deal with some things that most teenagers don’t have to reckon with. 

That said, about halfway through the book, the conclusion becomes fairly obvious, so it sucks a bit of tension out of the narrative. I did still enjoy reading till the end. It just didn’t feel as urgent as it moved toward the conclusion. 

All in all, I thought this was a solid debut novel with an interesting plot and believable characters. I will definitely read Fuentes’ future books and in particular, think this book would suit someone who enjoys complex family dynamics, coming of age, and the lightest touch of mystery. 

In 2024, I made it a goal to read more nonfiction books, so I’ve been on the lookout for books covering topics that interest me. I found out about Tias and Primas after receiving an ARC copy from Seal Press. I love books that reflect on the roles society forces people into and that’s essentially what this book does. It deep dives into the roles of the different women in a family. 

Mojica Rodriguez is Nicaraguan and sometimes she speaks specifically on Nicaraguan cultural norms, but I think a large majority of this book will resonate with women of any cultural background: All too often women are shoe horned into specific roles to make the men in their life comfortable and Mojica Rodriguez explains how and why brilliantly. If the characters she draws in this book don’t resonate with you personally, you’ll at least be able to identify the people in your life who fit these roles.

I ended up alternating reading portions of this book in the hardcover and listening to the audiobook for other sections. I highly recommend the audiobook. It was narrated perfectly and helped further bring characters to life.

This will definitely be in my top nonfiction reads of the year. Thank you to Seal Press, Netgalley, and Priscilla Dorcas Mojica Rodriguez for the early copies!