deldc's reviews
128 reviews

so beautifully written and authentic characters 🥺

3.5

this is one of the books that i added to my TBR with so much excitement, but come the first time i finally get to read this book, my excitement lowered... because this didn't easily turn out as i expected it to, compared to the other nonfictions i've read before, or the contemporaries i usually venture into.

ultimately, this book is challenging with all its open-ended prose intended to prompt the reader how to "read more", "to read now, and NOW", but it became even more challenging because the language and the contexts used didn't penetrate me as much intellectually, being an entry-level reader, who have this book as a first step in digging the depths and authenticity of decolonial reading. so i figured, this is not for kickstarters, and i find that it serves a disadvantage and as barrier between the reader and the author. for me, accessibility is as important as the intention. on the other hand, it made me realize that i have so much yet to learn, which drives me to seek more so i can fully consume this book with all its value, truth, and seemingly profound message, after further rereading. it's a shame, however, because i badly wanted to applaud this book according to its greatness but i was limited to my humble intelligence as mirrored by what i can share in this review. nonetheless, i'm still convinced that this book is a must read for everyone.

to the best of my comprehension, elaine castillo emphasized that readership is not reduced only to literature. rather, it encompasses everything we consume through media and art; and it's a "political act that implicates everyone", culminated by the concept that "i was a reader before i became a person". through such criteria, everyone should pass as a reader. however, she reiterated that we have not read as we ought we have read because apparently, there is a "biased" kind of reading that we have inherited from generations. 

for this, and among the other discussions she hosted in the book, i conclude that miss castillo encourages us to look back and dig and learn how much of our histories are shared and interlaced with one another, thus, realizing that we are not alienated from history, from one another, and utimately, from the art we create or consume, or at least should; to challenge the readership that favors the whites, the straights, the males, and the rich, that greatly impacted and contributed to much of that history glazed with oppression, inequality, extortion, genocides, injustices, environmental disasters, and colonialism; and to delve into the kind of reading that provokes our thinking in order to read now with an authentic, grave, and uncomfortable sense of criticism, conviction, relevance, integrity, and responsibilty as readers of the world and society.

4.25

it started out good but it dragged on? im not sure... maybe it's the fact that it involves a timeloop so it really drags on lol. nevertheless, it was a good plot. even if the end was predictable, i enjoyed clark's journey while he was stuck: his self-discovery and quest to go outside of his comfort zone -- to meet new people, and intimately at that. actually, it wasn't the ending that this book had point me towards, but the entirety of clark's experience in the loop.  i like that it allowed me in, as a reader, to ponder and dare to see miles of my own. i just wish i had the talent and skill to dissect this more deeply than i ought to feel, but i'll just leave it to the next reader. 

i hope you enjoy this with deepness and reflection it requires. 

recommended for psychology interests.