Easily one of the best books I've read so far. Hanna Alkaf's books have always felt like home to me, but this one, I feel like is her best work yet. The writing itself, perhaps it has something to do with the protagonist being a scrabble nerd, but it's just so brilliant. I've highlighted a major part of this book and I'm not ashamed to admit that 😌

All of the characters, from our protagonist Najwa all the way to the monotonous waitress and that one super polite opponent Najwa had. I felt like all of them were so well-constructed, had so much depth that it was just so fun to read. I also really enjoyed the interaction between Najwa and Alina—their sisterhood felt so authentic and even though Alina wasn't there that much, she's kind of my favourite? Also, there were so much more malaysian and pop culture references that I SO RELATE TO I LOVE IT SO MUCH AAAGHH 😫😫💓💓

And the plot?? JUST WOW. Every time I thought it was going this way, it went into a whole other direction. The foreshadowing, the word play, the atmosphere—all of those were just stunningly executed. I gasped way too many times while reading this. I also felt like screaming once but it was late and I didn't want to wake my roommate. However in my opinion the ending fell a little flat. I'm glad everything was resolved, but I don't know, I just felt a teeny bit unsatisfied?

And I don't really like Puteri and Mark but whatever.

The themes covered in this book (panic attacks, grief, ptsd, etc.) I think was done quite accurately, and the writing was just *chef's kiss 🤌💋 As I was finishing this book, I felt a little melancholic because I know I'll never get to experience reading this for the first time again :')

Update:
Okay the ending bugged me more than I thought.

it's just—so basic? I mean, it's so obvious that she did it from the beginning. And like, I just don't like the dude character (sorry I forgot his name) and like, it's so weird that he got back together with the other girl even though it would've been more ridiculous if he ended up with the mc

Content Warnings

Educated by Tara Westover

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emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

🌺 Tara Westover grew up in a family of survivalists in rural Utah and she was 16 when she first stepped into a classroom. We explore her journey to Cambridge and Harvard and also as she revisits her past and her family.

I'm pretty sure this is the first memoir I ever read, so I genuinely have no idea how to write a review on it. The experience was definitely a shock to me, because the thing about fiction is, no matter how awful it gets—at least in the books I'm used to reading—you can always count on the happy ending. There's always a resolution. So like, even though you feel bad for the character, you know they're gonna turn out fine, or if they don't, it's fictional, nobody's hurt. As you can guess, a bunch of bad stuff happens in this book, and as I got to the end, I was hopeful, you know. Things are gonna work out. But nope, it didn't. Well, not in the way I thought it was going to, anyway. And like I literally could not believe it. Some of the things that happened in here, I had to read twice because I was like, hang on, that didn't just happen right? So yeah, my brain was definitely buffering. Okay so that's less of a review than it is actually my take on reading a memoir for the first time.

Aaanywaaaayyyy, this was really really good. The writing itself, was 💫immaculate💫. Even if there were parts where not a lot was happening, you would stay because of the writing. It is THAT good. Which, when you think about it, all this came from someone who couldn't even spell much at 16. Aaand that made me stare at a ceiling for the better half of an hour last night.

This book explores the education system, how mental illnesses affect the people around you and how bad it is if it goes undiagnosed. It's also about familial relationship and self-invention, how do you construct yourself, basically from scratch and remove what you've known all your life because now you found out how untrue and harmful it actually is.

Content Warnings

Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen

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funny lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

It's just soooo cute!!!! The movie is one of my comfort films and I just found out it was actually an adaptation. It's so fun reading the book and noticing so much similarities. I don't think there's much to say, but I guess that's what I like about it.

How to Make Friends with the Dark by Kathleen Glasgow

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dark emotional inspiring sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

It would be nice if once, someone would just say, “Girl, you are in the shit and you will not be getting out soon. So here's how to make friends with the dark."

NEW FAVOURITE BOOK! 💯💖💖💖

Make sure to look at the content warnings first though, cause it gets pretty messed up. This book has a WHOLE LOT of childhood trauma in it too.

First of all, the writing is STUNNING 💫 I think Kathleen Glasgow is on her way to becoming my favourite author. She just hits all the right spots for me. All the metaphors being repeated throughout the book e.g. girl-bug, the grand canyon sized hole, being sucked into a black hole. The way she writes all these devastating scenes makes it all the more sad. Truly, truly amazing.

Now, I'm gonna be honest with you, I wasn't really a fan of Tiger in the beginning. But her character growth was so incredible. And just seeing how she went from goody-two-shoes to going to juvie to picking herself back up again—that was just WOW. Tiger really went through A LOT and that moment at the end when she sort of regained hope? My heart is a puddle bye 😭💓

I also liked that there was barely any romance in here, cause really, that was not the point. Instead, we get to see a whole lot of friendships. Like how Tiger's and Cakes's grew deeper. And how she found new unexpected friends like Lupe and Mae-Lynn. And the SISTERHOOD?? JUST WOW. I think the author has a knack of turning the characters I hate to making me think twice about them and teach me to not be so judgmental. Shayna turned out to be a pretty cool sister. And she's trying her best.

I liked how the book tells you about horrible adults and parents but also the adults who care and are trying their best to help them. Most of all and kind of obviously, it teaches you a lot about grief. How you never really move on, you never really patch up that hole in your heart. You just find a way to keep living like that.

My review with my very limited vocabulary and above average writing skills will never do this book justice. I think it was, well, not perfect because I'm kind of unsatisfied with how we left things with Kai, but yeah it was very very nearly perfect ✨💫💥♥️♥️♥️

Content Warnings

The Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

The Colors of the Rain by R.L. Toalson

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The story and prose is beautiful, about how a small child finds hope and love through all the darks days he's been through and the what the world is going through too.

I love how it also touches a little bit on bullying. I don't think I've ever read a book where the protagonist himself was the bully. I was mad at first and came close to dnf-ing it because I despise this sort of stuff. But I like how the author wrote about it. It's sort of refreshing. Like the bully is just someone really hurt who doesn't know the right way to cope with his issues. I like how Paulie and Greg become friends.

I think this book would be a huge help for children who are struggling, and adults too. But I say children specifically because the way it's written is from a child's standpoint so it made all the complicated/heavy stuff like racism, abandonment, grief and healing comprehensible for younger audiences.

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durrareadsstuff's reviews 154 reviews

durrareadsstuff's reviews
154 reviews