![luce [is reading]](https://wishfullyreading.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/9429655-1.jpeg){kind=small}
-
Ru by Kim Thúy
I was born in the shadow of skies adorned with fireworks, decorated with garlands of light, shot through with rockets and missiles. The purpose of my birth was to replace lives that had been lost. My life’s duty was to prolong that of my mother. Ru is a short read that blurs the line between…
1970s, 1980s, 1st pov, 2000s, 20th century, 3 STARS, Adult, autofiction, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, canada, CHILDHOOD, cold tone, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, DEATH, female authors, HISTORICAL FICTION, introspective, Kim Thúy, language, LITERARY FICTION, lyrical prose, Malaysia, MEMORY, migration/immigration, motherhood, mothers & daughters, My reviews, neurodivergent side characters, Poverty, published in 2009, Quebec, read in 2022, reading, restrained prose, Ru, style over character, TRANSLATED FICTION, trauma, unnamed characters, unnamed narrator, Vietnam, vietnam war, vietnamese canadian author, vignettes, war -
Heaven by Mieko Kawakami
A few weeks ago I read Mieko Kawakami’s acclaimed Breasts and Eggs and suffice to say that I was not a fan. While Heaven was clearly written by the same author of Breasts and Eggs (both novels implement similar imagery and even use the same metaphor comparing the legs of a young girl to poles)…
1st pov, 2000s, 3.5 STARS, Adult, ALIENATION, ANGST, boyhood, bullying, coming of age, Contemporary, existentialism, female authors, friendships, Heaven, HIGH SCHOOL, introspective, japan, JAPANESE AUTHOR, LITERARY FICTION, loneliness, Mieko Kawakami, navel gazing, netgalley, philosophical, published in 2009, read in 2021, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, TRANSLATED FICTION, violence -
Mouthful of Birds by Samanta Schweblin
Like most collections of short stories Mouthful of Birds has some stories that are hits and ones that are misses. I think the collection definitely showcases Samanta Schweblin’s creativity and versatility. While most of the stories are permeated by the surreal they differ in tone and subject. Schweblin makes the familiar feel unfamiliar. Many of…
3 STARS, argentina, argentinian author, collection of short stories, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), female authors, grotesque, HORROR, latin america, latin american, latinx author, MAGICAL REALISM, Mouthful of Birds, psychological, published in 2009, read in 2020, Samanta Schweblin, short stories, surreal, SUSPENSE, weird -
Tunneling to the Center of the Earth: Stories by Kevin Wilson
A very Wilsonesque collection of stories: dysfunctional families, spontaneous human combustion, surreal scenarios, and plenty of eccentric characters. Each story in this collection held my attention, and while they share similarities, they also showcase Wilson’s range: from lighthearted tales (such as “Grand Stand-In” and “Tunneling to the Center of the Earth”) to more bittersweet stories…
4.5 STARS, Adult, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, bad love, collection of short stories, Contemporary, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), family, favourite authors, friendships, great storytelling, HUMOR, Kafkaesque, Kevin Wilson, lgbtq+ side, LITERARY FICTION, m/m side, MAGICAL REALISM, male authors, museums, published in 2009, queer side characters, read in 2020, short stories, siblings, SPECULATIVE FICTION, surreal, toxic relationships, Tunneling to the Center of the Earth, weird, what ifs, work culture -
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel — book review
To simply define Wolf Hall as being a historical narrative seems unfair. The word ‘historical’ conjures a sense of events that happened a long time ago. Wolf Hall, unlike most historical fiction, struck me for the immediacy and urgency of its narrative. While the events Hilary Mantel writes have occurred nearly half a millennium ago,…
1500s, 16th century, 3.5 STARS, anne boleyn, big books, BOOK REVIEWS, booker-prize, Booklr, British author, british history, court intrigue, england, female authors, Henry VIII, Hilary Mantel, HISTORICAL FICTION, LONDON, philosophical, political intrigue, politics, psychological, published in 2009, Putney, read in 2020, Religion, royals, Thomas Cromwell, tudor period, Wolf Hall -
HIS MAJESTY’S DRAGON: BOOK REVIEW
His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik ★★★✰✰ 2.5 stars of 5 stars You would think that dragons + the Napoleonic Wars = entertaining story . . . yet His Majesty’s Dragon managed to be consistently boring. I was expecting something in the vein of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell and Sorcerer to the Crown but…
17th century, 2.5 STARS, 3rd pov, adventure, alternate history, AMERICAN AUTHOR, DRAGONS, england, FANTASY, FANTASY OF MANNERS, favourite authors, female authors, FRANCE, His Majesty’s Dragon, HISTORICAL FICTION, magic school, Naomi Novik, Napoleonic Wars, political intrigue, published in 2009, READ IN 2019, Temeraire, war
luce [is reading] 