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Confidence by Rafael Frumkin
“It seems now like everything I’ve done in my life I’ve done because of love, a useless, gutting love that left me devoured from the inside.” Fans of books exploring white-collar crime and/or conmen & scammers should definitely give Rafael Frumkin’s sophomore novel Confidence a shot. There were aspects of the storyline that reminded me…
1st pov, 3.25 stars, Adult, America, American dream, bad love, Confidence, Contemporary, CRIME, cults, disabilities, gay, heartbreak/breakups, jealousy, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, LITERARY FICTION, Longing, m/m, masculinity, morality, obsession, prison, PRIVILEGE, psychological, published in 2023, queer, Rafael Frumkin, read in 2022, rich people, SEXUALITY, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, summer camps, toxic relationships, unrequited love, wellness culture, white-collar crime -
Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America by Laila Lalami
Drawing from her own experiences as a Moroccan immigrant living in the States, in Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America Laila Lalami presents us with an impassioned and thoughtful social commentary. With piercing clarity, she touches upon Islamophobia, xenophobia, racism, and sexism. She reflects on the many flaws and conditions of citizenship, specifically American citizenship,…
1st pov, 2000s, 2010s, 4 STARS, America, American dream, belonging, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, books about writers, Conditional Citizens, Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America, cultural dissonance, ESSAYS, female authors, history, identity, Islam, Laila Lalami, MEMOIR, migration/immigration, Moroccan American author, morocco, Nonfiction, politics, published in 2020, RACE, read in 2022, reading, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, social issues -
Joan Is Okay by Weike Wang
Studying so much had its consequences. It caused me to wonder, for instance, if I might be a genius. Bursting with wry humor and insight Joan Is Okay makes for a quick and quirky read about a woman who doesn’t want to change to fit in with society’s standards. In spite of what the people…
1st pov, 3.25 stars, Adult, America, American, American dream, asian american, China, chinese american author, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, doctors, family, female authors, GRIEF, HOSPITAL, HUMOR, intergenerational, introspective, Joan Is Okay, LITERARY FICTION, loneliness, medical, mental health, migration/immigration, Neurodiversity, NEW YORK, pandemic, published in 2022, quirky reads, read in 2022, sardonic humor, siblings, SLICE OF LIFE, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, weike wang, work culture -
The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen
“My American adolescence was filled with tales of woe like this, all of them proof of what my mother said, that we did not belong here. In a country where possessions counted for everything, we had no belongings except our stories.” The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen is a collection of short stories centring on…
1970s, 3 STARS, Adult, America, American, American dream, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, collection of short stories, Contemporary, conversational style, cultural dissonance, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), family, gay side characters, HISTORICAL FICTION, identity, intergenerational, lgbtq+ side, LITERARY FICTION, m/m side, male authors, migration/immigration, My reviews, PUBLISHED IN 2017, read in 2021, reading, short stories, social issues, The Refugees, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Vietnam, vietnam war, Vietnamese American Author -
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
Written in a direct yet luminous prose, Behold the Dreamers chronicles the trials, and occasional joys, of a Cameroonian couple in New York. The Jongas move to America to improve their circumstances. In pursuit of the elusive American Dream Jende secures a position as chauffeur to a Wall Street senior executive while his wife Neni…
2000s, 3.5 STARS, 3rd pov, Adult, America, American, American dream, Black & Black heritage authors, Cameroon, Cameroonian American author, class, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, drama, family, female authors, gay side characters, lgbtq+ side, LITERARY FICTION, MARRIAGE, migration/immigration, NEW YORK, Poverty, published in 2016, RACE, read in 2021, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, work culture -
Infinite Country by Patricia Engel
“What was it about this country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy?” Infinite Country shares much in common with two of other novels by Patricia Engel, The Veins of the Ocean and Vida. While I do enjoy certain aspects of her storytelling—which at times reminds me of authors such as Alice Hoffman and Isabel…
3 STARS, Adult, America, American, American dream, Colombia, Colombian American author, Contemporary, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), family, female authors, FOLKLORE, heavy on telling, Infinite Country, latin america, latin american, latinx author, MARRIAGE, migration/immigration, motherhood, mothers & daughters, netgalley, Patricia Engel, published in 2021, rape, read in 2020, road trip, sexual assault/abuse/rape, social issues -
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald — book review
“It is invariably saddening to look through new eyes at things upon which you have expended your own powers of adjustment.” F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby has its entertaining moments. The narrative seems intent on evoking a certain atmosphere. The people populating this novel meet up over drinks or dinner, where they divert themselves…
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The Affairs of the Falcóns : Book Review
The Affairs of the Falcóns: A Novel by Melissa Rivero ★★★✰✰ 3 stars This novel was unrelentingly depressing. There might have been two instances which didn’t make me feel anxious or sad. The dialogues are the best thing about The Affairs of the Falcóns. Rivero has an ear for the way in which people speak,…
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The Other Americans : Book Review
The Other Americans by Laila Lalami ★★✰✰✰ 2.5 stars (rounded down) I’m really disappointed by this book. It tells a predictable and unevenly paced story which focuses on flat stereotypes whose different point of views merge into one indistinguishable passive voice. Not a bad novel but…far from good. If you haven’t read novels similar to…
2.5 STARS, Adult, America, American, American dream, Booklr, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, drama, family, female authors, GRIEF, intergenerational, Laila Lalami, LITERARY FICTION, migration/immigration, Moroccan American author, morocco, RACE, REVIEW, SMALL TOWN, social issues, The Other Americans
luce [is reading] 