alf_read's reviews
113 reviews

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

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

1.0

150 million copies sold?! Surely this must be the most overrated book of all time. 
Lysistrata by Aristophanes

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funny inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

A delightfully farcical comedy that still resonates today. 
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

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

5.0

A masterpiece and a modern classic. While it’s perhaps not as dynamic as the The Secret History and is much more emotionally exhausting - its profound statement about art and beauty cements it as an epic for the ages.  
Cell by Stephen King

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challenging 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? Yes

1.5

Maybe the worst Stephen King book? It’s certainly down there, for abandoning all the characterisation and depth we usually enjoy from the master of horror. 
Notes on 'Camp' by Susan Sontag

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challenging funny informative lighthearted reflective fast-paced

4.75

I’m not familiar with Sontag but I think I ought to be since this essay was brilliant and spoke to me personally while still providing a perfect summary of the camp sensibility. 

I appreciated the stipulation that pure camp requires innocence and a serious intent as many modern artists approach camp with too much self-awareness and so it doesn’t feel as authentically campy. 

It’s also important to note that camp isn’t an exclusively gay identity, its role is to entertain the modern privileged dandy in a culture that’s oversaturated with art so terrible it’s brilliant. 
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

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

4.75

In a word: phenomenal. I was blown away by this writer’s painstakingly epic depiction of two centuries worth of black history and colonialism. As historical fiction it shrewdly challenges the inherent bias of the subject while delivering a profound message on the cyclical nature of time. 
Morning Star by Pierce Brown

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

3.5

I don’t hate this series but it’s overhyped and suffers from major pacing issues. The social politics continue to leave a bad taste in my mouth, both in Pierce Brown’s reductive treatment of female characters and his neglect for anything outside of the heteronormative experience. I don’t expect every book to be lgbt+ inclusive but then maybe don’t create a futuristic society where sexual gratification is a core aspect.  
Golden Son by Pierce Brown

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adventurous sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I’d hoped. Darrow’s character regresses just so his arc can be stretched over two more books, he’s suddenly quite stupid and makes lots of mistakes that catch up to him in the end. The story is so plot focused that I feel as though I don’t get to know the characters and the universe as much as I would like to. 
Red Rising by Pierce Brown

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

3.5

Generic to the point of parody, Red Rising amalgamates every trope of YA sci-fi while still managing to be reductive in its treatment of female characters. 
Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa

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hopeful lighthearted reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

I found this book to be a rather forgettable non-entity. I don’t dislike it but at least then I would have something passionate to feel about it. The tone was strange and the characters were one-dimensional, I also thought it was trying too hard to relate to readers.