Soma
A brilliantly British book by the superbly splendid Stephen Fry. His witty writing style coupled with the hearty humor of his narration made the audiobook a very amusing and a very entertaining “English” experience, if you will. As you can tell, the amazing alliterations and adjectives were a highlight for me (and they seem to have caught on)
Beautiful beyond words.. The loss of a parent.. is perhaps one of those realities one can never prepare for. Even when it's close. Michelle Zauner wrote her heart out, raw with emotion, trying to navigate through the grief as she took care of her dying mother, dealing with her loss, sharing memories of her in different roles, commemorating all that she had done for her daughter, the selfless, constant and doting love of a mother and the importance of Korean food in their relationship.
I would just like to say I've found the face Dorian Gray had.
sharp inhale
Its Troye Sivan
Its like he was MADE with dorian gray's description as reference. fightme.
About the book. Hmm. 3-3.5 coz I'm that much of a millenial. Some parts of the writing really struck me. Fairly relevant premise even today. Could give it a read if its for, say, a class?
I'll probably think better of it if I read it a couple decades later so Im just gonna leave it at that.
3.5
If there is one thing I want to say about this book, it is that VE Schwab has written it with flowers. No no, literally. If words were flowers and they were woven together to an exquisite pattern, one that could tell a tale, this book would be the result.
As much as I love flowers, and her writing style, too many of them can be intoxicating and eventually pointless, and so one star less. At times, and I mean throughout the book, the writing was “too pretty” and the substantial material a tad lesser to carry me along. That slowed me down and got annoying after about 35% of the book. Nonetheless the premise itself was intriguing, the story well told. I wish there was more world building because the potential just sat there. I also wish Addie's character as a lover of arts and learner of languages was highlighted more than her one night stands.
It ends well- feels complete with just enough to assure room for more.
I highlighted a lot of quotes but one, a description of March, comes to mind:
“March is such a fickle month. It is the seam between winter and spring—though seam suggests an even hem, and March is more like a rough line of stitches sewn by an unsteady hand, swinging wildly between January gusts and June greens. You don't know what you'll find, until you step outside.”
Son of Magic was so good! Haley Riordan did a splendid job.
At first I thought, why would a demigod fighting for Kronos care about any mortal's life? Afterall Kronos was gonna wipe out all of civilization right?
I suppose it can be attributed to the fact that it had been 8 months since Alabaster fought alongside Kronos which gives him a lot of time to remorse over his siblings' deaths. Maybe being alone made him realise the worth of other lives..
Secondly, Hecate's children side with Kronos not to support all his ideas but simply to take revenge on the Gods. So even though his thinking is misled, its good to see Alabaster live a somewhat better life now.
Staff of Hermes was a short, sweet read. Glad to see Percabeth have that one date (finally!).
A heartwarming story about two strangers, both of who were ‘trapped' for some time intervals in their lives, subtly playing the role of Hope in each other's. A reminder of the warmth relationships can offer and that human beings can not, truly, live happily “alone”. Thought provoking, at how horrible stigmas can be and what millions of people have had to go through because of them.
Unrelated- The author also offers fantastic ‘answers' to questions like “Why are kids who die as young as 2years of age even born? Isn't their life meaningless?” I think we all know deep down or feel that life of every being has meaning. This book just did a great job at putting this belief into words.
Edit1: I need to reread this. I feel like I don't remember it enough, especially the ending is such a blur, because reading this book was like swimming along the chaotic edges of an emotional whirlpool. I think I hope to make it to the eye of the storm this time.
Edit 2: The book has problematically retold Chinese history and it breaks my heart. Please do your research before reading it.
This book is like a big, warm hug while also being Informative and emotive. So thoughtfully written. It demands empathy right out of the depths of you. Compelled me to think - Man. I wonder how all the existing mental illnesses came to be classified.. How many had to suffer until someone finally cared enough to start putting the pieces together? How many were left to die, declared possessed or simply not worth living?
And when these questions arise, the book pulls you into a long and comforting embrace. Man is flawed. No doubt about that. But we did a few things right, here and there. You will find glimpses of both, the flaws and the rights, in this book.
It makes you a more sensitive human being. Scientifically informative with writing that is brilliant. Read it!
It is by far the most useless and annoying book I have ever read. What a waste of my time. I swear I tore hair from my scalp because of this book.
Nothing to learn if you aren't a loathsome, rich brat of a teenager yourself or have been one before.
I don't want to use the word “dislike” lest it dilute what I am trying to convey and actually felt. I hate it.
