imjustannaok's reviews
51 reviews

Lady Tan's Circle Of Women by Lisa See

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

3.0

Informative about Chinese medicinal practices and social politics. The takeaway being that women can support each other in amazing ways, but it is hard to relate to the lives & matter of fact hardships (foot binding, women as property, isolation) described in the book. Pace fluctuated and the last half dragged for me. 
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

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emotional funny inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

The most beautiful cast of characters that I want to hold close to my chest forever. A lesson in how life & others should be approached and what you'll gain from being vulnerable! 
In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by Gabor Maté

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challenging informative sad medium-paced

4.0

Dense dense audiobook I'll probably revisit in hardcopy. Heartbreaking and brutal stories that shed empathy on addiction & why we could all use some more love. MUCH TO THINK ABOUT
Jam on the Vine by LaShonda Katrice Barnett

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challenging emotional hopeful sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

The story of ivoe is a testament to the art of living.
her father's absence due to incarceration highlights the unfairness to her family & black folk. Broke my heart.
Lovely and wretched sapphic characters. I need more of this type of queer writing
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

Frank and journalistic and makes me wonder how many other stories like this haven't been told
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

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adventurous emotional funny reflective 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

"The unknowable nature of the ones we love." This feels like a modern Russian writing style I LOVE IT. Truly no character's story is neglected. Significant character depth & development. And audio performance absolutely crushed it - great job Edoardo!
Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.75

Lovely lovely lovely to be inside of her head. Thoughtful and vivid and close-to-the-heart. 
Burn the Place: A Memoir by Lane Regan

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dark sad slow-paced

2.5

Clearly this book comes from a passion about food and sharing that with others. It was plain and sometimes painful to hear the damage she did to herself and others. A few time jumps were unclearly set up in the flow of her writing, and left me wondering what connections we were supposed to be drawing.
The food concepts were interesting to learn about, and how her relationship with food & the land developed into her fine dining. 
The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

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emotional funny informative sad slow-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

4.0

Magic realism remains undefeated. The family dynamics are well-developed. The antagonists are humanized but not excessively. The women are strong and the men suffer. The genre's whimsy keeps the book from lurching too deeply into the straight-up horrors of the political atmosphere in South America at the time
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Tremor by Teju Cole

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challenging emotional hopeful medium-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The shifting perspectives & lack of chronology are not for everyone. But I love this style, and it makes you work for the reward. I found myself in love with the frankness of this writing style. I felt like I was reading a journal - those thoughts in our heads that surely we would not write down in a public place. The stories of humanity are universal and unique experiences, and this book exposed a selection of these stories beautifully and painfully.