Eighties teen bf & gf switch bodies because of a fairy godfather who lives in a computer (of course), and the sex-obsessed boy never feels up theEighties teen bf & gf switch bodies because of a fairy godfather who lives in a computer (of course), and the sex-obsessed boy never feels up the breasts he suddenly has.
You can guess which part of this I simply don't believe.
Look, this book is not very well written. No human being has ever behaved or spoken like the characters in this book, ever. But beyond the stiltedness of the prose, you can see Smith trying to get across some real, honest messages about the pressures teens feel: to have sex, to succeed, to conform to societal norms. Smith is clearly constrained by the time and the medium, or maybe her own discomfort -- hey, I don't know this lady -- and the inability to actually talk about bodies when talking about sex makes even the book's best moments feel corseted. And yet: ultimately, this is a screed against toxic masculinity. A quiet, restrained, 1986 teen lit screed, but one nonetheless.
So, four for you, Susan Smith! A noble effort....more
I was primed to love this, as I adored Lee's A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue, and baby Loki gives me lots and lots of emotions. But thisI was primed to love this, as I adored Lee's A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue, and baby Loki gives me lots and lots of emotions. But this suffers from prequelitis bad. As a lead-in to the first Thor movie, I found it both boring and unconvincing: it not only doesn't take Loki anywhere new, it's redundant to existing canon in a way that doesn't even really make sense?
Moreover, the pacing feels off: the plot on Midgard doesn't kick into gear until a third of the way through, which makes the relationships Loki develops there feel rushed. In theory, I am a huge fan of Loki having a romance with a sweet 19th Century Englishman, but in practice there was no real tension between him and Theo, no spark, nor even particularly good banter, which I know Lee is capable of. The whole exercise felt very, very flat. Which is the last thing the God of Mischief should ever be....more
I adored Rogerson's debut, and in comparison I'm sad to say I struggled with this sophomore effort. It's much slower out of the gate than AnI adored Rogerson's debut, and in comparison I'm sad to say I struggled with this sophomore effort. It's much slower out of the gate than An Enchantment of Ravens. With this story, Rogerson has set herself up for much more worldbuilding--as opposed to the standard, if vivid, faerie of Ravens--and I think she struggles with it. The setting is vaguely 19th century but an alternate universe with magic and demons; there's a conflict between wardens--keepers of magical books--and sorcerers that's never adequately explained. The society's social mores don't quite make sense either: what is the role of women? When the love interest confesses to the heroine that he's (view spoiler)[bisexual--awesome-- (hide spoiler)]how much of a risk is he taking? The reader never really knows, and thus never fully understands the stakes.
The plot takes about 250 pages to kick into gear and the romance and two main characters felt like things of a type I usually like, but in this case found a bit sketchy and underwritten.
And yet there is Silas. Silas, the demon slave/servant/something more complicated is SUCH a great character. So so great. Conflicted and complex and, y'know, a shapeshifting demon, so obviously I was sunk. I lit up every time he appeared on the page. He absolutely rescued this book for me. Give me a whole novel about Silas, please--I will ready the necessary sacrifice....more
I love these characters, but I don't think I would have if I'd just read Oseman's novel, Solitaire, in which they first appear, instead of herI love these characters, but I don't think I would have if I'd just read Oseman's novel, Solitaire, in which they first appear, instead of her subsequent webcomic (now a print graphic novel), Heartstopper. Heartstopper is warm and sweet, while still dealing with serious (mental health) issues. This novella is pretty much just one protracted argument between its main characters--characters who I liked because they were warm and sweet. There's little pleasure to be found in them fighting with each other.
Ultimately, I don't think I respond well to Oseman's prose. I'm going to stick with Heartstopper from now on....more
Perfectly pleasant but sort of aimless and unremarkable YA romance. It was sort of strange to me how juvenile the characters and their problems feltPerfectly pleasant but sort of aimless and unremarkable YA romance. It was sort of strange to me how juvenile the characters and their problems felt to me, actually, compared to a lot of other YA, even by these same authors....more
You know, taking a relatively simple story and making it complicated does not inherently make it better. Especially if most of the complication comesYou know, taking a relatively simple story and making it complicated does not inherently make it better. Especially if most of the complication comes from thin characters, muddled world-building, a heavy-handed plot, and a general atmosphere that's more Hot Topic Goth than anything actually morally complex or dark. No, those ineffective changes just make it longer, and boring, and kind of stupid.
Separately, I'm sure this was an accident, but what an odd choice for Christo to give her main characters the same names as the protagonists of other other, better YA books -- Lira (The Golden Compass, spelled differently) and Elian (The Scorpion Rules, which, like this book, also features a Tallis (spelled differently)). This only served to make me really, really wish I was reading those other, better YA books.
Y'all, go read The Scorpion Rules (I'm going to assume that most of you have already read The Golden Compass). It's a brilliant, under-appreciated piece of fiction -- the type of work that keeps me coming back to YA, even when dross like this makes me want to quit it forever. And if this recommendation reaches even one person, then maybe my slogging through this book will have been worth it....more
I love Oseman's ongoing webcomic, Heartstopper, which features the same characters as this, her first novel, although from different perspectives.I love Oseman's ongoing webcomic, Heartstopper, which features the same characters as this, her first novel, although from different perspectives. Unfortunately, I didn't like the perspective in Solitaire nearly as much. Occasionally, Oseman gets a great line in or says something meaningful and important about mental health issues, but mostly this book feels like being forced to hang out with a group of self-centered, incredibly extra teens with terrible pop culture opinions* for 350 pages.
Really, this feels like a novel written by an extremely young person -- probably because Oseman wrote it when she was an extremely young person (17!). From Heartstopper it's clear her voice has continued to develop, so I will look for more of what I love from that in her future work. But I wouldn't recommend this.
*Every mention of fandom or fanfic made me gag. It felt like the worst of Tumblr culture and something penned by an out-of-touch journalist who's just discovered Harry Potter porn AT THE SAME TIME. How is that even possible?...more
Three stars for execution, infinite stars for ambition, so we're averaging, kind of. (This kind of work would not enable me to pass the Mathy exam.)
Three stars for execution, infinite stars for ambition, so we're averaging, kind of. (This kind of work would not enable me to pass the Mathy exam.)
The concept is beyond brilliant: in the world of Munmun, a person's physical size is directly related to how much money they have. So the poor are rat-size and trying to not get murdered by animals or stepped on, and the rich are monstrous giants who gobble down whole herds of cattle and roasted hippopotami. Oh, but if the poor just worked harder, they could afford to size up!
*Poor people scurry and hide to avoid being mauled by a cat*
So lazy!
Anyway, the social commentary is razor-sharp, and Andrews moves imaginatively through the world he's created. However, the book suffers from having almost too many ideas at play: the characters all inhabit a shared dreamworld, which could pretty much sustain a whole book on its own. There's so much going on that some character moments don't quite land -- Kitty, for example, the protagonist's wealthy benefactor, comes across much more odiously than I think she's meant to. I loved that Andrews in no way paints her motivations as pure, or her as a saint, but the fact that Warner, the main character, still sees so much more in her than the reader makes some emotional moments not quite land. And if she's meant to be the unworthy Daisy to his Gatsby, that doesn't fully work either.
It's possible the narrative is trying to have it both ways. That seems to be the case with the question of whether this is meant to be a dystopia that evolved from our world, or an alternate universe. There are a frustrating amount of hints at the former without the point ever truly being made. I also really wish that Andrews hadn't copped out and made the skin tones of everyone in this world rainbow-hued -- as in literally, some people have purple skin or yellow skin or grey skin or orange skin (good throwaway Trump joke there though). I'm sure race just seemed like another complicating element in an already overly complicated book, but I'm sorry, ignoring it is a cop out when economic disparity is so tightly tied to racial inequality.
But despite its flaws, this remains a book that posits literally eating the rich as a real, viable option. I can't help but appreciate that -- in a big, big way....more
Sobbed at the end, maybe even harder than at the end of The Fault in Our Stars, because these tears were less easily earned.
Heartfelt. Important. DoesSobbed at the end, maybe even harder than at the end of The Fault in Our Stars, because these tears were less easily earned.
Heartfelt. Important. Does not nail fandom or fanfic, and I don't really care. Comes real real close to nailing female friendship, and does nail its importance. Knows mental illness inside and out and brings it wrenchingly to the page -- but also to real characters and a real story. This isn't an Issue Book. This isn't sicklit. I hate when people are reductive like that. Why shouldn't an author write about real things that matter, especially when they do it so well?...more
Ahh, that sinking feeling when you near the end of a book and realize its plot is not going to resolve, but hang you from a cliff.
Still, this was veryAhh, that sinking feeling when you near the end of a book and realize its plot is not going to resolve, but hang you from a cliff.
Still, this was very enjoyable -- and captivating even though I have mush-brain from packing for a cross-country move. Plot and characters are like a mix between Warm Bodies and The 5th Wave, but with a unique setting and pair of narrative voices. The version of sign language in this book, and the ways in which Raven and Eighth come to communicate with and understand each other, is really quite beautiful. I'm going to look for the sequel -- even though I'm annoyed to have to wait for it....more
A realistic and powerful depiction of a teenage girl's ascent into feminism -- and truly badass activism. Mathieu does an incredible jobFuck. Yes.
A realistic and powerful depiction of a teenage girl's ascent into feminism -- and truly badass activism. Mathieu does an incredible job depicting the myriad ways we're societally conditioned to accept the status quo, with loads of empathy for all the girls and women (and even guys) at different stages of this journey. Moxie is also funny, diverse, and stylish -- the feminist zines the protagonist is inspired to make are true works of art, and I wish they were real and I owned them.
I want girls everywhere to read this book and be inspired. I want to be a Moxie Girl. It's time to fight back....more
Incredibly powerful,Me on Page 1: Oh great, another novel in verse.
Me on Page, like, 5: HOLY SHIT.
Then I read the whole thing in one sitting.
Incredibly powerful, beautifully written. Reynolds doesn't use the device of verse as a crutch; he wields it like a weapon. I think I held my breath for the entire book, and the ending left me gasping. Truly unforgettable....more
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