Tsundoku finished reading Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
Science fiction and East Asian myth combine in this dazzling retelling of the rise of …
Oh god I have to wait until next year for the next book
Reviews and Comments
Author, Voracious Reader, Crocheter of many things, Very Autistic
Languages: EN, ES (B1)
(Pronouns: they / them) Mainly reads: Young Adult (contemporary, sci-fi or fantasy), Japanese Literature, Romance, and Fantasy / Sci-fi for adults
https://lapiswrites.xyz - Official ™ Blog with pictures @lapis@booktoot.club - Book & Riverdale account @lapis@elekk.xyz - General Shitposting, sometimes game related
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Tsundoku commented on Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
Science fiction and East Asian myth combine in this dazzling retelling of the rise of …
Aaaaahhhh will review when I coherent.
Tsundoku reviewed People from My Neighborhood by Hiromi Kawakami
From the author of the internationally bestselling Strange Weather in Tokyo, a collection of interlinking …
Fantastical Palm-of-the-Hand Stories
4 stars
Yasunari Kawabata coined the term 掌の小説 ("Palm-of-the-Hand Story" not giving the Japanese reading because it's apparently up for debate lol) which is a concise story that fits into 2-3 pages. He wrote over 100 of these. I'd estimate (due to the way publishing and translation works) I've read about 70 of them. This is not about him, exactly.
This is Hiromi Kawakami following in that tradition, all variations on a theme. Admittedly, my memory is shoddy, and I just SAID I didn't get to read all of Kawabata's stories, but all of these Palm-Of-The-Hand Stories involved the same characters and location. Some are about schools made of sweets, some are about angry farmers. Some are about the lottery to loan out an expensive kid.
I recommend it.
Tsundoku rated People from My Neighborhood: 4 stars
People from My Neighborhood by Hiromi Kawakami, Ted Goossen
From the author of the internationally bestselling Strange Weather in Tokyo, a collection of interlinking stories that masterfully blend the …
Tsundoku finished reading Across a Field of Starlight : (a Graphic Novel) by Blue Delliquanti
This graphic novel is an epic science fiction romance between two non-binary characters as they …
SO GOOD
Tsundoku reviewed Right Where I Left You by Julian Winters
Kacen Callender meets Becky Albertalli in a deliciously geeky best friends-to lovers romance from award-winning …
Great look at a summer before College
5 stars
Content warning Family issues; infidelity, discussion of children forced to parent (in background)
I don't want to call this "Fluffy" because most of the book is extremely tense (at least to me lol) with "why is my friend mad at me?????" But if I recall, Teenagers are bad at handling their feelings. Not like I can talk, I'm not much better.
This book's sub-plot regarding Disaster Academy did not head the direction I thought it would (maybe I'm just a little Disney / Marvel focused right now if you consider news as of late) but I'm not complaining.
Also I nearly included "this is a nice debut". Reader. This is not a debut. Julian Winters has written several other books, I'm just oblivious.
I will say this is mostly a safe queer space. There's a bit of discussion about slurs, but no actual experience.
There is this family subplot that hits a bit close to home (For different reasons, but you don't need me to write an essay about my mom) and I won't lie, it HURT. It felt like the book was telling me to reconcile regardless of what my mom has done (And to be clear: it was not. I just read too much into it).
Anyway, sorry if this isn't a great review. I've been struggling with my thoughts for a while now.
Tsundoku commented on Lifetime Passes by Terry Blas
I have to return this (it's actually overdue lol) so I had to rush through it, and this is a good book to take your time with. It's very thoughtful (though in my opinion it's slow at first, so keep that in mind)
Tsundoku commented on Right Where I Left You by Julian Winters
Kacen Callender meets Becky Albertalli in a deliciously geeky best friends-to lovers romance from award-winning …
The references to other YA are cute (one of the fanfic authors is "OkayDariusOkay" a reference to Darius the Great is Not Okay) but part of why I like them is if they go over your head it's not a big deal.
Wei Wuxian was once one of the most outstanding men of his generation, a talented …
If you're new to this genre, get at least 4 bookmarks
No rating
I will say it might be easier to read digitally, but I knew there were illustrations (though they're B&W if that matters) so I wanted a physical edition (my e-reader is e-ink)
I was completely new to the Chinese wuxia (or danmei) novels.
I do not remember struggling this much when I started reading "authentic" Japanese manga with all the honorifics, but I was also like..... 8? I'm 30 tomorrow, maybe my mind is going lol.
Anyway, this is a bit of swimming in the deep end, but it has a name guide (though there Are spoilers so if that matters only check as you need it) glossary, and terms appendix among others. Yes, I had 4 bookmarks while I was reading this. I still can't use the correct terms for everything, (maybe I should make an anki deck lol) but by the end I could keep track of the …
I will say it might be easier to read digitally, but I knew there were illustrations (though they're B&W if that matters) so I wanted a physical edition (my e-reader is e-ink)
I was completely new to the Chinese wuxia (or danmei) novels.
I do not remember struggling this much when I started reading "authentic" Japanese manga with all the honorifics, but I was also like..... 8? I'm 30 tomorrow, maybe my mind is going lol.
Anyway, this is a bit of swimming in the deep end, but it has a name guide (though there Are spoilers so if that matters only check as you need it) glossary, and terms appendix among others. Yes, I had 4 bookmarks while I was reading this. I still can't use the correct terms for everything, (maybe I should make an anki deck lol) but by the end I could keep track of the characters (as they go by many names), and if you want an interesting MLM romance, I do recommend this one. I'll probably try MXTX's other works
Tsundoku finished reading JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Part 1—Phantom Blood Vol. 03 by Hirohiko Araki
Jonathan Joestar and his mentor Zeppelli continue their pursuit of the villainous vampire Dio, but …
Arc finished
Tsundoku reviewed Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram
A smart, sexy YA novel about a boy band star, his first breakup, his first …
Very thoughtful book about intersections of privilege
5 stars
Content warning CW: Sexual Harassment, Racism,
If you just see "Boy band" or "Fake relationship" and stop reading the blurb to borrow the book like I did (lol) you will assume this is a fluffy book. It is NOT a fluffy book.
It is a very thoughtful book, like Khorram's previous works.
The protagonist is a white gay boy in a boy band struggling with both his privilege and tokenism.
the problem being: He's so far up his own ass he's forgetting everyone else in his band may be straight, but they all deal with racist crap.
Basically this story is one of "I'm alone, no one understands me" and people going "Well actually, I can kind of understand that, but from a different angle" and "NO! I said NO ONE understands me!"
If you can tolerate the self-centered troubles of the protagonist (and I want to be clear: he has extremely valid problems, and he is doing the best he can at the time to deal with them) you should read this book. I think it could be a good way for young people to recognize the intersections of privilege.
Tsundoku started reading Relish by Lucy Knisley
"Lucy Knisley loves food. The daughter of a chef and a gourmet, this talented young …
I love Lucy Knisley but hate cooking! How will I feel about a comic memoir filled with recipes?????
Tsundoku commented on Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, Vol. 1 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
Wei Wuxian was once one of the most outstanding men of his generation, a talented …
The perspective seems to be limited omniscient. You get a lot of people's thoughts, I think for context?
Anyway I am gradually adjusting to this. The chapters are much longer than I expected. I just finished chapter 4.
Tsundoku finished reading Logan Likes Mary Anne! by Ann M. Martin
Had to return it to the library so I had to rush through it . I really like the new artist's art. I hope she does more of these.
My brother tried to read this, and went "The art is nice but I'm clearly not the target audience" lol
Tsundoku finished reading Sleepless Domain - Book One by Mary Cagle
God I forgot how depressing the first few chapters are. Good comic