stillwaterrotter's reviews
41 reviews

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett

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adventurous funny inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

You should eat the apple. Just saying. 
Egghead: Or, You Can't Survive on Ideas Alone by Bo Burnham

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fast-paced

1.0

Apparently you can survive on ideas alone. Or at least monetize ideas alone. 
All My Sons by Arthur Miller

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emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

“I guess to him they were all my sons.”
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

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sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams

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emotional funny reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Nevada by Imogen Binnie

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emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

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adventurous dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I read this first when I was a sixteen year old adolescent who still thought he was a girl. I identified with the angst, the delirious anger, and a general preference to feel sorry for oneself instead of opting for vulnerability and opening up. 
Because I, too, thought that I was being rebuffed and ignored and I, too, was being rebuffed and ignored because I couldn't fully get out the thing that wanted to come out without giving myself away. 
Now that I've read it again as a twenty three year old trans guy I don't have much in common with Holden except for our mutual concern for the ducks' wellbeing in winter. 
Falling Man by Don DeLillo

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challenging slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Teeth-grindingly slow, messy, tangled, and tragic. I personally didn't find the book very engaging or immersive, but it was apt for my Contemporary Literature course in college when discussing postcolonial neocolonialism. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami

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slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

1.0

Don't read this book. Unless you suck as a person in which case you will love it. 
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

This was the first Casey McQuiston book I read out of their four and it took me a second read to fully fall in love with the story. I have yet to read more of their work — I think I'll aim for One Last Stop next — but I know that this helium light, airy feeling in my chest will undoubtedly be back when I do. There's an undeniably happy quality to their prose; it's almost like the words themselves float above their inky counterparts. I just feel light and happy and inspired. A new comfort author.