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allymute's reviews
314 reviews

The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner

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challenging dark sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The Mars Room will be a frustrating read for those who seek answers. Kushner sits in the discomfort and moral ambiguity of her characters. She examines the violence built into the penal system, and the violence incites women’s everyday life in and out of incarceration. I appreciated the novel being set in 2003, as militaristic violence incites the rampant growth of mass incarceration. 
Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful 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

4.25

What a marvelously sultry story on gender and lesbianism in England's fin de siècle. The narrative is a big clogged, but worth going through. Nancy is a painfully realistic main character who is trapped and enamored, like many of us are, by the vision of a "good life." Waters has a fabulous attention to detail in her historical accuracy. Incredible sex scenes, no notes on that front. 
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The Z Word by Lindsay King-Miller

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

3.25

Unshrinking: How to Face Fatphobia by Kate Manne

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challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.25

Manne's book dives into the insidiousness of fatphobia's part in contributing towards socioeconomic, educational, and medical suppression. This is a great resource in considering how anti-fatness connects to white supremacy, misogyny and other identity based structural issues. 
Lavender House by Lev AC Rosen

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emotional mysterious tense medium-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
Blessed Water by Margot Douaihy

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challenging funny 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

4.0

A Short History of Trans Misogyny by Jules Gill-Peterson

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challenging informative reflective slow-paced
The Goodbye Cat by Hiro Arikawa

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emotional lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Loving Sylvia Plath: A Reclamation by Emily Van Duyne

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challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

4.5

Van Duyne's biography of Sylvia Plath uses feminist theory, psychology, and literary criticism to understand why the Hughes family was able to so easily alter Plath's cultural image, and why we don't take women's claims of abuse seriously. Van Duyne reckons with the dismissal of Plath’s creativity from literary critics, and recognizes her remarkable contribution to English literature.
A Sunny Place for Shady People: Stories by Mariana Enríquez

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challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-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

4.0