rip franz kafka you would have loved real estate brokers
some of these stories were really good and really captured the kafkaesque scary grueling monotrip franz kafka you would have loved real estate brokers
some of these stories were really good and really captured the kafkaesque scary grueling monotony of bureaucracy in modern life: undergoing MRIs you don't think you need, that elif batuman rendering of buying an apartment.
some of these were really good but not kafkaqesue: yiyun li's carrollian dialogue between punctuation, tommy orange's look at k-holes.
some stories were not good, but kafkaesque, which is kind of a compliment in and of itself really — rarely do you break from actual kafka to take the time to be like, wow, this is so lovely.
and some of course were neither good nor kafkaesque.
that's the trade you take, i guess.
bottom line: i mostly read this as an excuse to say kafkaesque, in case you couldn't tell.
(thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)
--------------------- tbr review
an all star lineup of authors writing like kafka? am i dreaming...more
horror retelling of beauty and the beast focusing on the impossible beauty standards of today as unwillingly passed down from the women that came befohorror retelling of beauty and the beast focusing on the impossible beauty standards of today as unwillingly passed down from the women that came before us...
this was brilliant before i even started reading it.
i wish i hadn't read all's well before this, because the two are sadly very similar (with nearly identical protagonists, writing styles, and meltdown arcs) and this one is much more interesting to me.
instead, i felt pretty irritated by the middle of this book, which was not only a bit repetitive in and of itself but far too reminiscent of that one.
do i feel like it was necessary to make tom cruise and a surfer bro window-washer and a cop character with a romance hero's name major characters? no. but who am i to question whatever was going on here?
mona awad's writing is so, so weird. and if the beauty industry was any less freakish, it wouldn't work. but thankfully we don't have that problem, and the two fit well!
bottom line: in a weird-off, mona wins every time.
if i five star a book by an author, i will read everything they write for the rest of forever.
including amazon-exclusive essays with old-timey standupif i five star a book by an author, i will read everything they write for the rest of forever.
including amazon-exclusive essays with old-timey standup titles.
this was so totally charming and lovely. i find greer's writing style funny as always, and his real cast of characters in his life i found so unforgettable i almost wish he would write full-on nonfiction instead of very lifey and very whimsical metafiction. my only complaint is that it's too short! the ending was abrupt and unwelcome.
lame.
bottom line: why can't things i like go on forever?
now for all the tiktok girls engaging in stolen valor...THIS is peak delulu.
i found part one of this, about a woman who convinces herself and herha ha
now for all the tiktok girls engaging in stolen valor...THIS is peak delulu.
i found part one of this, about a woman who convinces herself and her husband that a man flirting with her means they basically had sex, and thereby she is in love with him and ultimately must leave her marriage, so bizarre and interesting.
chris and sylvere's descent into obsession is really fascinating, and its implications about monogamy and misogyny even more so.
part two, which kind of devolves into unrelated essays, not so much.
bottom line: women should be allowed to be insane, as a treat.
the rumors are true: this book is poorly researched, and wildly pretentious, and mostly full of opinions and feelings it is thinly veiling as fact.
i athe rumors are true: this book is poorly researched, and wildly pretentious, and mostly full of opinions and feelings it is thinly veiling as fact.
i also really enjoyed it.
and lauren oyler would probably not like me much at all. a lot of these essays are rants about things that are almost exactly behaviors that oyler engages in, but (for reasons that will not be disclosed) worse: spending time on social media, when that site is goodreads instead of oyler's favored twitter; writing reviews for goodreads instead of for pay, as oyler does; if you must spend time on goodreads, doing so for more than 5 minutes a day and unironically, rather than as a bit, the way her friend does.
anyway. none of this bothered me because i really liked her.
these essays are actually very amusing, and even though i was one of the dreaded goodreads plebeians who panned her first book on here, i found i was able to enjoy this book a lot when i turned my critic-brain off.
when it was on, oh boy, was there a lot to say: oyler loves the same 3 sentence structures and run ons. she got famous for criticizing jia tolentino for covering well-tread territory (disclaimer: in a moment of parallel thinking, so did i), and yet none of this rings particularly original. moments like gawker's downfall and ben mora's firing are to internet leftists what jia tolentino's girlboss t-shirts and reality tv are to mainstream feminists.
but i digress. i chose to turn my critic brain off because it was too exhausting, and the joke was on me, because i had a great time when i did.
awkward.
bottom line: this is not a good book, but i had a good time.
3.5
-------------------- currently reading update
of all the reasons people are mad at this book, i have seen nobody complaining about how factually inaccurate the goodreads chapter is.
as someone who has (mostly) accidentally become the best reviewer, i can tell you the only way you become the #1 best reviewer in azerbaijan is by...living in azerbaijan.
although it is very funny to imagine this guy who's trying to become a top poster frantically searching up azerbaijani users, thinking their voting power is inflated.
-------------------- tbr review
i love drama, and i'm one of the dumb goodreads plebs who didn't like lauren oyler's first book, so i wanted to read this even before bookforum published the meanest review i've ever read about it.
getting to read the inspiration behind "the renata adler of being on your phone a lot" only adds to that masochism.
i love books and food and books about food, and i love laurie colwin.
anyone who can call a terrible dinner one of "the myriad surprises and challengei love books and food and books about food, and i love laurie colwin.
anyone who can call a terrible dinner one of "the myriad surprises and challenges in this this most interesting and amazing of all possible worlds" is someone i'll read everything by.
i enjoyed so much about this book, especially when i was able to look past the profusion of mayonnaise salads and beef teas and general english foods it foisted upon me.
in other words, good writing is timeless...but good recipes are not.
just kidding. that is not a problem i'm looking to solve.
morrison never holds your hand and walks you throughhelp, i can't stop reading toni morrison!
just kidding. that is not a problem i'm looking to solve.
morrison never holds your hand and walks you through it, even though sometimes you (read: i) wish she would.
this finale in the beloved trilogy has so much to say about violence and oppression, but still i somehow wish it said more.
we follow the residents of a town and of a convent as we crawl toward the act of violence that ends the life they know, but i was jarred by the act and how quickly and confusingly it was over. the writing didn't seem like the same standard i've come to know, and the ending was a strange abrupt where are they now while the credits rolled.
the vibes were off.
bottom line: my least favorite toni morrison, and i still liked it.
this book is A LOT. these poor teens are going through it all: coming out, mourning, coming of age, rumoreturning to my first love (ya contemporaries)
this book is A LOT. these poor teens are going through it all: coming out, mourning, coming of age, rumors about hired hitmen, racism, homophobia, so much death.
they are also putting themselves and each other and their parents through even more. the fringe characters here are a little over the top, and so are a lot of the actions themselves, but i'm also adjusting this for the being-a-grownup-reading-about-teenagers tax. when you're 17, leaving your dying grandmother alone at home until the wee hours maybe is nbd.
even if right now it's like...oh my god. can you guys please be nice to each other and maybe send your mom a text?!
bottom line: reading YA as an adult is equal parts fun, nostalgic, and nightmarishly frightening.
this is a super accessible and effective introduction to the work of abolition, which rocks. what's not to like about burning it alsounds like a plan!
this is a super accessible and effective introduction to the work of abolition, which rocks. what's not to like about burning it all down and starting over in a way that actually benefits people and not money or capitalism or business or other synonyms.
in other words, the "How Everyday People Are Fighting Oppression and Changing the World" part was great.
i will say i was slightly disappointed because i don't think it accomplishes the "How You Can, Too" in a comprehensive or effective way. and that's the call to action of the whole thing.
but the rest of this was impressive and enlightening. and that's enough for me!
bottom line: abolition 101, in a non-intimidating way!...more
it's a spoiler, but (view spoiler)[fox girls (hide spoiler)] are so in right now! this is the third new release i'vi hope this series goes on forever.
it's a spoiler, but (view spoiler)[fox girls (hide spoiler)] are so in right now! this is the third new release i've read about them this year, and i'm not mad. they're cool as hell.
this didn't feel at all like an installment of this series, which is normally slow, storytelling-centered, and thematically meaningful.
this was a fun creepy mystery with a plot twist. not what i expected, but again, good with me.
i do think this fell apart towards the end, having bit off more than its barely 100 pages could chew, but who can blame it.
i don't think we needed all of these characters, and i was annoyed by the traces of romance, but if you have the opportunity to cram upsetting taxidermy, crumbling old castles, scary girls, fatal flaws, mysterious teapots, talking birds, booby trap planning, messy libraries, murder-based secrets, manually turning a mansion haunted, estranged adult sons who are biters, and bad seafood in one book, you take it no matter the cost.
and the cost is not that steep.
bottom line: this book has everything. except the right page count.
(3.5 / thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)...more
my fiance's family shares a heritage, a similar story, and the same favorite dishes as this author and her family, so reading about alli love memoirs.
my fiance's family shares a heritage, a similar story, and the same favorite dishes as this author and her family, so reading about all three was a really lovely way to get to know my future in laws better! this story is packed with emotion, but it felt like sometimes what the author wanted to convey surpassed her writing experience, leaving us with repetitive and showy language.
as an eldest, i found myself sympathizing a lot with this youngest daughter's siblings and her husband. i wish there was more reckoning with the fact that she thought her mourning was the only acceptable kind, and that her loved ones had to deal with a lot as she went through this process and publicly performed their story in multiple ways. there was a lot of emotion and development that i wish extended more to the author, who didn't change much.
but also in spite of all of that, i have a really positive impression of this book and smile whenever i see it in a bookstore. so take everything with a grain of salt.
bottom line: this is a strong debut and i'm excited for more from this author <3
(3.5 / thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)...more
this is in many ways the ideal book: perfect title, feminist, slightly creepy, slighow did my journal get published?
get it? because i'm a void?
anyway.
this is in many ways the ideal book: perfect title, feminist, slightly creepy, slightly funny.
it proves its point — that women are seen as worthless unless they're bringing life into the world, and that they're treated in society accordingly — in the most effective and entertaining way possible.
i wanted to read this because it just seemed so goddamn cool. and then it WAS so goddamn cool.
the art of this was incredibly beautiful, AND the story i wanted to read this because it just seemed so goddamn cool. and then it WAS so goddamn cool.
the art of this was incredibly beautiful, AND the story was so cool. that combination deserves the graphic novel achievement award.
i wish there were more time to spend on the romance so it'd be less insta-love-y, but that's often the tradeoff you take with mythology / fairytales anyway.
and i'll take it!
bottom line: all the highs and lows of mythology and graphic novels. but mostly the highs.
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