august books

birth month!

the poppy war

Rating: 3.2
Would I recommend: Yes, I would to fantasy readers since it was very entertaining but TW violence, war, SA, and annoying main character
Would I re-read: No, idk if I even read the rest of the series

i feel ambivalent towards r.f. kuang writing - love her concepts however idk if the execution is strong. the poppy wars was very entertaining but the main character, rim was too intense for my liking and her commentary i was rolling my eyes and thinking ‘girl grow up’. even though it was fantasy and built in a fictionalized world i was annoyed that they cussed and used 21st century nomenclature when it was based around the 20th-century during china's conflicts with japan, like around 1920s-1940s. it took me out of it.

i really do like the premise and the inclusion of religion, historical wars, and the fantasy of it all but rim is so pick-me which is fine until its bothersome. i don’t have to agree with a main character’s thoughts or even like them but i cANNOt find them annoying. she’s a strong, independent woman but rim is so argumentative and hypocritical. like girl learn from the past ! how the fuck u pass the hardest test in your region but do not have critical thinking skills !! </3 me displaying woman on woman hate and thAT’s modern feminism!

War doesn’t determine who’s right. War determines who remains.

disappoint me

Rating: 4.3
Would I recommend: Yes, if they like literary fiction
Would I re-read: Yes

yes - modern literary fiction at it’s best! nothing happens but the characters are complicated AND the characters UNDERstand that they themselves, other characters, and life is complicated ~which is the true human experience~. such a realistic story with refreshing takes and points of views. healing your relationships with yourself, your partner, your friends, and your family - it’s sad, it’s funny, it’s heartfelt, it’s realizing life is grey not black or white, it’s digestible, it’s beautiful, it’s real **** !

This is also the world where people, often women, are doomed to spend much of their lives forgiving the errors of others and suffering for the sake of other people’s growth. Sometimes there’s nothing to do but leave, and sometimes there’s nothing to do but forgive.

the marriage plot

Rating: 3.6
Would I recommend: No
Would I re-read: No

a literary fiction about a love triangle with pretentious college students studying literature and science. the characters are distinct and memorable - i kinda love how str8 white men write women. its so bad, cringe, and unrealistic how a woman would actually react or think~.

i loved the literary theories and college classes piece but it sadly only carried on these parts for half the book. the rest of the book fell flat. the ending was so abrupt i had to check if someone ripped out the pages!

Friendship was witnessing another's slow drip of miseries, and long bouts of boredom, and occasional triumphs. It was feeling honored by the privilege of getting to be present for another person's most dismal moments, and knowing that you could be dismal around him in return.

It’s the oldest story in the world. One day you’re seventeen and planning for someday, and then quietly and without you ever really noticing, someday is today, and that someday is yesterday and this is your life.

the stone diaries

Rating: 3.8
Would I recommend: No, carol shields is a acquired taste and the taste is unsalted crunchy crackers
Would I re-read: Yes, i already forgot this book so could read it again

i love boring writing!! this book was so boring but a dull book is such a august vibe. i love carol shields and how verbose, deep, and matter fact she is - i love that her characters are always fully fleshed out and hyper-specific. i love that i can skim and not miss anything AND miss everything! i love that whenever i read her i gain empathy and realize that everyone’s life is multi-faceted and life is a kaleidoscope! <3 i would love to love bomb carol irl

There are chapters in every life which are seldom read, and certainly not aloud.

The larger loneliness of our lives evolves from our unwillingness to spend ourselves, stir ourselves. We are always damping down our inner weather, permitting ourselves the comforts of postponement, of rehearsals.

We are all of us trapped within the stone walls of our own skins, and some of us are merely more aware of it than others.