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rainbopagn's reviews
122 reviews
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was born and raised in West Virginia. Judging by the way it's written, Demon is only a few years older than me. You can tell Kingsolver is Appalachian herself because this is a haunting account of poverty in this area. The depiction of the prevalence of substances and the ease to get it in the early 00s is so vividly real I wonder if the author had family fall victim to it like mine did. My grandmother was one of the first victims of opioid abuse and it distorted the way my childhood should have been.
This is not a book for the faint heart. I had to stop several times as passages brought my own traumas back up. But this is a masterwork in not only literature but life in some of the poorest parts of the United States.
Oh and she name dropped Purdue. That gets an extra star alone.
This is not a book for the faint heart. I had to stop several times as passages brought my own traumas back up. But this is a masterwork in not only literature but life in some of the poorest parts of the United States.
Oh and she name dropped Purdue. That gets an extra star alone.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Minor: Car accident and Abortion
Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall
challenging
informative
fast-paced
5.0
In a book that mixes Angela Y. Davis' directives and demands with the research of sociologists like Mathew Desmond, Kendall has crafted a masterpiece that is part history, part manifesto and completely unapologetic. There is no sugar coating of facts here, but those facts are also approachable. Kendall offers both personal anecdotes and years of listening to other marginalized voices. This book belongs on a shelf next to Women, Race and Class, Stamped from the Beginning and Evicted.
Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II by Douglas A. Blackmon
challenging
informative
tense
slow-paced
5.0
This is not a fun book to read, but it is very needed. This takes a look at how enslavement for Black Americans went well into the 20th century. It details the beginnings of convict labor and how that sets the stage for the the current penal system and the disproportionate number of Black persons in the criminal justice system.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Addiction
All the Living and the Dead by Hayley Campbell
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 40%.
I just did not enjoy this.
The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
I could not get into this book. I think because it is young adult and dealing with religious trauma (of which I have plenty), I just couldn't enjoy it. I typically struggle with books surrounding a cult regardless of age demographic.
This is not for me but I can tell that it is well written and other people would enjoy it.
This is not for me but I can tell that it is well written and other people would enjoy it.
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
5.0
This is a quick read and I read and listened to the audiobook as well.
The author provides quick information and context on a variety of racism and racial topics, including the ever popular "but my family didn't have slaves!". He broke everything down into a quick history, what makes us (white people) uncomfortable about it and ways to help work to better things. I think this is another great introductory piece for white people who don't know where to begin in antiracism work.
The author provides quick information and context on a variety of racism and racial topics, including the ever popular "but my family didn't have slaves!". He broke everything down into a quick history, what makes us (white people) uncomfortable about it and ways to help work to better things. I think this is another great introductory piece for white people who don't know where to begin in antiracism work.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Police brutality, Colonisation, and Classism
Gender Outlaw: On Men, Women and the Rest of Us by Kate Bornstein
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
Overall I enjoyed the audiobook. The author reading it makes it feel like you are having a conversation with someone. I appreciated that she recognized that her terms might be outdated, but at the same time she used what felt right for herself. The humor hit well and this provides a valuable look at transgender lives that is still so needed in 2024.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, and Cursing
Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century by Alice Wong
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
5.0
This selection of essays is important representation of disability and the many forms it can take. Each perspective brings something a little different to the conversation and I find that Wong did well in editing and choosing the order of them. That said, this is a hard read for anyone who is disabled or has a disabled loved one. Some of the essays are a brutal look at eugenics, ableism and more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting
Moderate: Addiction and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Homophobia and Classism
You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue
3.0
I had to switch to the audiobook to be able to finish this. I am not sure if there is something lost in the translation, but each character is identified by two or three different things; sometimes first or last name, some times title, and that makes it incredibly hard to follow.
The biggest problem I had with the book itself and why I had to switch to audio is the fact that there is no separation between the text and when someone is speaking. It is hard to tell when something is being thought versus being spoken and by whom.
SPOILERS
The ending being semi open doesn't accomplish what I think the author intended. If he intended for this to be the "what if" of Cortez's mission failing and the Maya Empire surviving him, then it is too ambiguous.
The biggest problem I had with the book itself and why I had to switch to audio is the fact that there is no separation between the text and when someone is speaking. It is hard to tell when something is being thought versus being spoken and by whom.
SPOILERS
The ending being semi open doesn't accomplish what I think the author intended. If he intended for this to be the "what if" of Cortez's mission failing and the Maya Empire surviving him, then it is too ambiguous.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Incest, Racism, Xenophobia, Blood, and Colonisation
Monster, She Wrote: The Women Who Pioneered Horror and Speculative Fiction by Lisa Kröger, Melanie R. Anderson
informative
slow-paced
2.75
While informative, the book feels rushed. The introductions to the subgenres are the most lengthy sections of the book and the women themselves often only get what amounts to 3-4 pages (in the Kindle edition). It is a surface level look at the history of women in speculative fiction and I wish the author took a deeper look at the topics chosen and then cultural views that drove them.