Scan barcode
jaygabler's reviews
120 reviews
Strip Tees: A Memoir of Millennial Los Angeles by Kate Flannery
dark
informative
medium-paced
3.5
The pictures told the story. At one point in Kate Flannery’s American Apparel memoir, she receives a series of photos for store display that depict a girl she’d recently hired as a high schooler, posing provocatively for the company’s 37-year-old male leader. The teenager was seemingly becoming a “Dov girl,” one of the employees who shared Dov Charney’s bed.
For consumers who didn’t know the photo subjects personally, American Apparel’s problematic yet iconic ads told a different story. They saw a clean and sexy look (Charney couldn’t abide tattoos or facial piercings) for the 2000s, a retro romp they could join with a clean conscience. The products were made in the U.S.A., after all.
Strip Tees is both a direct indictment of Charney’s culture and an indirect critique of the broader forces that allowed it to flourish.
For consumers who didn’t know the photo subjects personally, American Apparel’s problematic yet iconic ads told a different story. They saw a clean and sexy look (Charney couldn’t abide tattoos or facial piercings) for the 2000s, a retro romp they could join with a clean conscience. The products were made in the U.S.A., after all.
Strip Tees is both a direct indictment of Charney’s culture and an indirect critique of the broader forces that allowed it to flourish.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexual assault
Moderate: Emotional abuse
The Chuckling Fingers by Mabel Seeley
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A lodge with an audible underground stream and five creepy stone "fingers" rising out of the ground? A driverless car rolling into Lake Superior? Multiple desperate drives to Grand Marais? Here for it. Best quote: "My head ached, and my mouth felt like the inside of a ski boot, including the extra woolen sock."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Canto Bight by Rae Carson, Saladin Ahmed, Mira Grant, John Jackson Miller
lighthearted
tense
fast-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? No
4.0
The awkward reality is that each of these four stories is more engaging and less cringe than what happens in Canto Bight in the movie this book was published to promote.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping and Murder
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you Penguin Random House Audio for the free audiobook. I love that the author said, "On my gravestone, it will read: for fans of Sally Rooney." For me, that perfectly encapsulates the appeal of this novel — which is, indeed, for fans of Sally Rooney, but is a lighter and more accessible read than, say, Normal People.
The common thread between the two authors, aside from their generation and nationality, is a concern with romantic relationships built on mutual respect and intellectual rapport. How do you break up with a lover when you don't want to break up with a friend?
The common thread between the two authors, aside from their generation and nationality, is a concern with romantic relationships built on mutual respect and intellectual rapport. How do you break up with a lover when you don't want to break up with a friend?
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Abortion
Phasma by Delilah S. Dawson
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Dawson absolutely nailed this assignment, creating a Phasma origin story wrapped in a compelling story of internecine conflict far richer than the usual bad-guy sniping. Introducing Vi Moradi to boot! 5/5, no notes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and War
The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-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
This is so old-school, it’s perfect. Also, a good read if you’re looking for a lot of information on how Starkiller Base is actually supposed to work.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Murder, and War
Jaws by Peter Benchley
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The conventional wisdom I've always heard about this book is that the movie's perfection is all the more impressive given how bad the novel is. After listening to the audiobook (with incredible narration by Erik Steele), I don't think that's fair.
I understand why the book disappoints many latter-day readers, especially those familiar with the movie: it includes a lot of relationship drama, and reflects some hoary attitudes about gender and race. It's also not exactly "a novel of relentless terror," as the '70s paperback cover suggested: there's terror, all right, but there's a lot of slow-going character development stuffed in there as well.
That said, this is ultimately a highly effective feat of storytelling that established the parameters for a thriller about a killer who shouldn't be all that terrifying: after all, you can always escape it by staying on land. These characters, though, just can't stay away — and by the end, we understand why.
I understand why the book disappoints many latter-day readers, especially those familiar with the movie: it includes a lot of relationship drama, and reflects some hoary attitudes about gender and race. It's also not exactly "a novel of relentless terror," as the '70s paperback cover suggested: there's terror, all right, but there's a lot of slow-going character development stuffed in there as well.
That said, this is ultimately a highly effective feat of storytelling that established the parameters for a thriller about a killer who shouldn't be all that terrifying: after all, you can always escape it by staying on land. These characters, though, just can't stay away — and by the end, we understand why.
The Last Action Heroes: The Triumphs, Flops, and Feuds of Hollywood's Kings of Carnage by Nick de Semlyen
funny
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
5.0
Thank you Penguin Random House Audio for the free audiobook. I laughed my way straight through this chronicle of the absolutely ridiculous era of steroid cinema, when actors could take a punch anywhere but in the ego. Bonus: ‘80s icon Bronson Pinchot narrates!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence and Violence
Minor: Sexual assault
The Glow by Jessie Gaynor
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
Thank you Random House for the free book, in which an ambitious marketer rebrands a sexy guru’s wellness retreat — and, in the process, learns that achieving an outer glow is much easier than finding inner peace.