Category: brief reviews

Gently to Nagasaki by Joy Ogawa [NF Review]

20 March 2024 / brief reviews / 4 Comments
Gently to Nagasaki by Joy Ogawa [NF Review]

Gently to Nagasakiby Joy KogawaSource: paperback/libraryPublished: Sept 2016Publisher: Caitlin Press Length: 214 pagesGenre: MemoirTarget Age: Adult (suitable for 16+) A nisei psychiatrist in Toronto told me he had not heard from any of Dad’s victims.“Not one?”“Not one.”“If you write about your father,” he said, “it will act as a lightning rod. And not all the anger will have anything to do with you or your father. You’d be inviting controversy. You’ll be targeted. My advice […]

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1 Wayward Children and 4 Middle Grade [2024 Review Round Up #1]

11 March 2024 / brief reviews / 5 Comments
1 Wayward Children and 4 Middle Grade [2024 Review Round Up #1]

Overview Somewhere at the end of December, I remember considering the idea of doing mini review round ups throughout 2024… I did a post in January with all the books I read in 2023 but didn’t review. This is basically a way to get ahead of having to do one massive post like that for 2024. Thank-you to Annemieke @ A Dance with Books for writing Pocket Reviews and reminding […]

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Tolkien and Alterity edited by Christopher Vaccaro and Yvette Kisor [Review]

27 February 2024 / brief reviews / 4 Comments
Tolkien and Alterity edited by Christopher Vaccaro and Yvette Kisor [Review]

Tolkien and Alterityedited by Christopher Vaccaro and Yvette KisorSource: paperback/ownPublished: Aug 2017Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (Springer Nature)Length: 261 pages Genre: Literary criticismTarget Age: Adult (suitable for 17+ due to academic language) Tolkien and Alterity features essays dedicated to Jane Chance, who has been publishing on Tolkien since 1980. As per the book’s introduction, “[d]ifference in Tolkien’s work is an abiding concern for Chance” (pg 5). Now, I am all over the place when it comes to […]

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The Singing Hills Cycle #1 & #2 by Nghi Vo and Sweet Bean Paste [Reviews]

13 February 2024 / brief reviews / 6 Comments
The Singing Hills Cycle #1 & #2 by Nghi Vo and Sweet Bean Paste [Reviews]

The Empress of Salt and Fortune/ When the Tiger Came Down the Mountainby Nghi VoSource: Paperbook/libraryPublished: Mar 2020/Dec 2020Publisher: TorDotCom (MacMillan)Length: 121/125 pages Series: The Singing Hills CycleGenre: FantasyTarget Age: Adult (suitable for 13+)Representation: Nonbinary protagonist, China-analogue fantasy world, WLW Sweet Bean Pasteby Durian SukegawaTranslator: Allison WattsSource: Paperbook/libraryPublished: Oct 2017Publisher: OneWorld Length: 218 pagesGenre: ContemporaryTarget Age: Adult (suitable for 14+) **Spoilers ahead: Contains discussion of Tokue’s past**

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The Bellwoods Game by Celia Krampien [MG Review]

5 January 2024 / brief reviews / 6 Comments
The Bellwoods Game by Celia Krampien [MG Review]

The Bellwoods Gameby Celia KrampienSource: Hardcover/libraryPublished: July 2023Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (S&S)Length: 305 pages Genre: HorrorTarget Age: +9Representation: Supporting characters incl Black boy and Hispanic girl coded autistic Summary 💬 Everyone knows Fall Hollow is haunted. It has been ever since Abigail Snook went into the woods many years ago, never to be seen again. Since then, it’s tradition for the sixth graders at Beckett Elementary to play the Bellwoods Game on […]

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