fruitea's reviews
78 reviews

An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley

Go to review page

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

5.0

inspector goole says fuck capitalism. like cheers i'll drink to that bro, i hate capitalism too. for real, he is always on point with his arguments which are still relevant today. it's infuriating how the birlings don't care about the working class, how they're able to ignore their struggles and live comfortably with their wealth. how they care more about their own reputations than other people's lives. how easy it is for them to forget and move on, because they're so detached from real life, the life that most of the population leads because they have no other choice but to work, simply to survive. okay i got a little carried away there but it's true. the way mr & mrs birling (and gerald) refuse to take responsibility for their actions (and the way they don't change at all) just emphasises how privilege they are. sheila and eric are more lenient, they actually listen to the inspector (but nothing can excuse their actions either - sheila knows that. eric doesn't. what he did was horrible).

the thing that stuck with me the most was inspector goole's final speech. especially after watching the bbc's adaptation of it. because he was right. this is a result of his anger and frustration slowly building up throughout the play, yet he still remains incredibly eloquent. our society may be more modern than the one in an inspector calls, but it hasn't changed. not really. the fact that inspector goole's arguments are still being used today proves it. the fact that the rich hoard their wealth while people starve because they can't afford to buy enough food. this is the one case where i wish literature wasn't so... timeless. it's a little depressing knowing that we haven't made much progress since the 1910s (when the play is set). anyway the quote i mentioned before is in the spoiler. i want this projected onto every rich person's house(s) and every government building. mr inspector goole, i will continue your fight against capitalists. ily <3

one eva smith has gone - but there are millions and millions and millions of eva Smiths and john smiths still left with us, with their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering and chance of happiness, all intertwined with our lives, and what we think and say and do. we don't live alone. we are members of one body. we are responsible for each other. and i tell you that the time will soon come when, if men will not learn that lesson, then they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish. good night.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Hamlet by William Shakespeare

Go to review page

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

5.0

fun to read by yourself. annoying when you have to study it for a level. honestly though, as with any other play, you really have to watch an adaptation as well. especially with shakespeare, since the english he's writing in is so different from the english we speak today (i wouldn't call it an entirely different language but it has different grammar and syntax rules, different words and spellings, different punctuation conventions. i will die on this hill.) it helps you visualise everything.

also somebody get hamlet a therapist and let him kiss horatio
The Tethered Mage by Melissa Caruso

Go to review page

adventurous tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

a very enjoyable read with great worldbuilding and lore. i really did care for the main characters (except the villains ofc) and i loved that the character development wasn't so rushed, that their changing personalities/views/etc. were nuanced. the diversity in this book doesn't make a big deal of itself and i found that very refreshing. queer characters aren't discriminated against because of their identity, there are openly queer characters in relationships, there's poc characters
in positions of power!!
and powerful women. you love to see it.

update after 2nd read: actually amalia is calm, i thought i didn’t like her (after finishing the series) but she’s alright. sometimes annoying but all super smart people annoy me like that. like yeah okay we get it you’re smart but i’m stupid and funny so who’s the real winner here. but also i will protect her. but also also she needs to learn how to throw a decent punch
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Unbroken by C.L. Clark

Go to review page

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

5.0

i don't really know how to describe this book. it was so different to the other kinds of books i read (in a good way!!) and really made me reflect on a lot of things. particularly touraine - she's such a complex character and you really get to see her inner conflict with herself. to be honest, i feel like i'd spoil it too much if i explained further. this book will make you think a lot about things society has kind of swept under the rug.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Go to review page

funny lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

love how gratuitously dramatic catherine is. i know it’s satirical but i don’t care. catherine and i are both dramatic yearning bitches with uncontrollable imaginations. 4.5 stars because i don’t have a rich neighbour who invites me to bath for holidays. also i don’t care if it was “normal” at the time but henry tilney you stay away from catherine she is seventeen years old and you’re twenty six.
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Go to review page

dark reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

scary how timeless this book is. some parts of society today are reminiscent of gilead. though i don’t think i’ll reread it for a while because it was depressing, it’s definitely a book you should read if you consider yourself a feminist. it’s not perfect, a little confusing at times too, but it’s a worthwhile read.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Go to review page

4.0

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Go to review page

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

3.0

bruh i reviewed the wrong thing anyway im not sure i comprehended much of this book because there were so many. words. like i know every book has words. maybe im illiterate. but im telling you i had no idea what was going on, also why were the sentences so long.
The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter

Go to review page

challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

studied for a level, became numb to the disturbing content within a couple of weeks. while i think angela carter is a talented writer, this isn't something i can pick up again and read casually. i think i would lose my mind at the amount of graphic and, for lack of a better word, straight up nasty content within. it's too complex of an issue to discuss without going on for ages, but it's something i wanted to address because it is quite distressing at times and i wish we'd been warned beforehand. however, i will hesitantly admit that it will change how you view traditional (european) fairy tales. i like how there's a sort of shift in the perspective from the beginning of the collection to the end and the subversion of the usual fairy tale tropes. my favourite story is the lady of the house of love and not just because it's about vampires. i think the way she changes the traditional themes and character archetypes is the most effective in this story, and it's probably the least disturbing one in the collection. seriously though, it's difficult to give an overall rating because my opinion changes with each story. 4 stars for the subversion of tropes and the thought provoking retellings
and the piano tuner
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Selected Poems of Christina Rossetti by Christina Rossetti

Go to review page

reflective

5.0

rossetti's poetry is so lovely to read. she explores so many different themes, structures, & perspectives and i kinda envy how adaptable her poetry is, like how she uses the usual techniques but in ways i hadn't seen before. there are poems that are self-reflective, poems that show her own viewpoints about various historical events, about marriage and love and religion. she tends to use a lot of techniques to do with sound, like alliteration and plosives and rhythm, so you won't get as much out of the collection if you don't hear it out loud. if you don't want to do that then i'm telling you to go and read goblin market, no thank you john, and maude clare aloud at least. very fun. that sounds sarcastic but it's not. like i studied these poems for a level and those were the three i liked the most. plus they were easy to remember because of their rhythms/rhymes/sounds. the worst poem is in the round tower at jhansi i say this as a south asian. it's racist. fuck the british empire i dont care if the story the poem was based on is fake, take your colonialism and shove it up your asses

ok wait here's a better (short) list of poems you should read if you're not gonna read the whole thing:
goblin market
from the antique 
no, thank you, john
maude clare
remember