A book review as a meal: A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood

George, the protagonist, is adjusting to life on his own after the sudden death of his partner, determined to persist in the routines of his daily life. An Englishman and a professor living in suburban Southern California, he is an outsider in every way, and his internal reflections and interactions with others reveal a man who loves being alive despite everyday injustices and loneliness. Wry, suddenly manic, constantly funny, surprisingly sad, this novel catches the true textures of life itself.

A small meal but a full meal. An array of flavors but all cohesive and satisfactory circular. A firm patty, tough yet tender, buttery crumb. Pickles and mayo. Hand whisked, hand sliced, hand salted. Right after your carnivorous heart. Splash o’ intoxicant. Beauty and insecurity. Quite devastating in the end but only for the question, what if, what if there was more? All the more gustatory pleasures, that mouthfeel of balanced richness and common ground, those swirls dispersed in between that spoke of faraway things here contained. (Almost like (dark)chocolate in a burger.) Oh just what if! But that meal, it was there. Are you ravished or are you famished?

What do you think?
Beez.

The truth about keeping secrets is just another Young Adult book. By Savannah Brown. Claps.

Sydney’s dad is the only psychiatrist for miles around their small Ohio town.
He is also unexpectedly dead.
Is Sydney crazy, or is it kind of weird that her dad-a guy whose entire job revolved around other peoples’ secrets-crashed alone, with no explanation?
And why is June Copeland, homecoming queen and the town’s golden child, at his funeral?
As the two girls grow closer in the wake of the accident, it’s clear that not everyone is happy about their new friendship.
But what is picture perfect June still hiding? And does Sydney even want to know?
THE TRUTH ABOUT KEEPING SECRETS is a page-turning, voice led, high school thriller.

This is: Just another YA book. Complete with script and absent parent and angsty child voice. Maybe a little better than many. With this skirted off mystery on the top. A poor rendition into grief and death. With a smacking coping mechanism to go with. A strange half-present friendship. And an unfulfilled heart. Another friendship. The one from that John Green book. Overall nothing really special. Or new. Just your typical. YA book

All of this is to say that. I hate genre publishing. And that fiction should be a cause for digging into something. Not to tie the strings and resolve a long chapter. And I like deeper contemplation. And that this is this authors’ debut. And she’s hardly 20. Which means she’s allowed. All the tropes and tribulations. All the better if she gets to make the sweet dough for life through it. Even better if it appeals to other people. I just hope the industry makes spaces for spillings.

This is also to say. That I hate myself the most. But the review wouldn’t come out any other way. Take my lackluster apology.

Beez

(Does anybody reading this care about this blog? Should we just shut it?)

A convenient inconvenience?: Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

Keiko Furukura had always been considered a strange child, and her parents always worried how she would get on in the real world, so when she takes on a job in a convenience store while at university, they are delighted for her. For her part, in the convenience store she finds a predictable world mandated by the store manual, which dictates how the workers should act and what they should say, and she copies her coworkers’ style of dress and speech patterns so that she can play the part of a normal person. However, eighteen years later, at age 36, she is still in the same job, has never had a boyfriend, and has only few friends. She feels comfortable in her life, but is aware that she is not living up to society’s expectations and causing her family to worry about her. When a similarly alienated but cynical and bitter young man comes to work in the store, he will upset Keiko’s contented stasis—but will it be for the better?

That blurb! I’d like to know the amount of people it fooled into believing that this book is a quirky romance. I know it did me! It’s fine though, because it’s infinitely better than any romance could be.

A Vicious review(?) for Vicious by V. E. Schwab

So, Schwab…
Boy! does she come with the hype.

She’s okay.

Nothing more, nothing less, not astounding, not even great. Vicious is just fine (mediocre fine, not fine as in fine ass specimen fine). It’s a light, simple, easy fantasy that sacrifices a possible deeper level to be the commercial-friendly semi suspenseful thriller that it is. You can probably predict the end fairly easily. NOthing new.

It started out smashingly well, I have to say. I loved the dichotomy and dynamic of the slightly erratic and mysterious Eli and the jealous Victor. I love writing that explores jealousy instead of directly villainizing or dehumanizing it. (Give me more please). The chopped-up timeline worked to a tee and it gave off the whiff of the future antagonism in the past parts, while also keeping it fluid and grey. That was fun. Eli and Victor are also pre-med students and I like science so that was alSO fun.
And then the story progressed. Ie, became the fantasy that you’ve read/watched/know endless times before, has little to no depth and is over-the-top easy storytelling.

An Absolutely UNremarkable thing by W(h)ank Green

This book will only get good reviews.

Not because of the book oH no! It’s because Hank Green,- the entire vlog brothers enterprise – are Great Advertisers.

L00k at the title! It’s BAIT for their baby minions to write in their squeal reviews that An absolutely remarkable thing is An absolutely remarkable thing. They love being told what to think. And you don’t get better than the Vlogbrothers at it.

#i have not read it #don’t think i intend to #it’s going to be such a self important book #why is this my second youtuber book rev in a row hang me

Secrets for the Mad by Dodie Clark [YouTube is actually a wannabe writers detour]

a youtuber book

I mean, I picked it up so blame me.

I believe in principle that YouTubers should not write memoirs and self-help books unless they’re an in-depth one on YouTube specifically. But that’s not how the world works is it? This world works on a if-it-cashes-in basis.

Top 5 Wednesday: Authors we look up to for inspiration!

As hardcore bookworms we always come across great books. But how often is it that we come across many books by the same author that are equally amazing? And the authors also tend to be super cool people? The answer (for us at least) is “rarely” but that doesn’t mean there aren’t enough to be put into a top 5 category.

So here’s our list of authors we look up to. Because if we can write stories like them, our life would be set!*

*Completely ignores the fact that just writing really good books doesn’t mean fame because the publishing industry is a fire maze.

Seven Surrenders by Ada Palmer [A sequel where shit hits the fan]

It’s absolutely impossible for me to talk about the plot of this book without giving away major spoilers of the first book (review here) AND this book. So in an attempt to keep this review SPOILER FREE, I’ll try to be as vague as possible.

The Sun is also a Star by Nicola Yoon [cute, but not so satisfying]

I read this book right after Age of Swords which left me an empty shell, so naturally, reading a light and fluffy book helped. However, in all honesty, it didn’t satisfy me as much as I’d have liked.

Age of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan [The EPIC high fantasy sequel I needed!]

“Funny how things that shouldn’t matter actually meant so much and how things as permanent as homes moved”

THIS. BOOK.