lydiature_'s reviews
295 reviews

ok confession. i read evelyn hugo last year and i despised it. but i decided to give malibu rising a shot. i was open minded. i actually liked the premise of the story. it seemed like it would be a good balance between cheesy and mysterious. and i really liked the flashbacks. 

around 70% through, things just kind of fell apart. there were too many characters that were flat. and because reid focused so much on unnecessary characters, i began to care less and less for both the story and the riva siblings. also, micks reason for bailing on his family was wack. i understand he was a jerk, but his reason wasn’t characteristic of him. that was stupid as hell.

and the ending. my god. what was the point of making a big deal about some fire…that only ended up being bland? like what. make that make sense. i hate when stories do that.

but i still recommend it! it’s a light read, something not to take seriously if it’s not your typical genre 🤷🏾‍♀️ the writing is as you’d expect, nothing special. but still bearable. i still wouldn’t mind reading anything from reid in the future! and i still would buy the physical copy of this.

it’s 3 ⭐️ but not one where i regret reading it! again, it was a light fluffy book. i’ve unfortunately read much worse this year (cough cough *cleopatra and frankenstein* cough).

so if you’re confused, read this if:

1. this is your preferred genre (you’ll prob enjoy it more than me)
2. you’re in a reading slump 
3. you’re mentally burnt out and you need something chill to read.


trigger warnings- alcoholism

reading this felt like i was having a very cozy chat with a dear friend of mine. patti’s love for art, music and literature is clear and contagious. this was a fantastic follow up to her “devotion” book. if you haven’t read her before, you should try “just kids” first. this might be too abstract. it’s not the best introduction to her writing, in my opinion !

i really enjoyed this collection! i would say it’s more like a series of reflections on random topics that come together like a nonlinear memoir. it’s not really an ESSAY collection per se because nothing actually comes across like an essay. 

but aside from that, i really loved this! koul’s writing style was so personal and funny. and just like ziwe, very relatable and yet deep. this isn’t the most remarkable collection like what you’d expect from joan didion or even james baldwin, but i still liked it a lot. i felt seen.

when i reached the end, i was so sad. the way that koul wrote made me feel attached to people i have never met before and never will meet. i normally don’t care for memoirs because the way that a lot of authors approach them is very exclusive and slightly impersonal. but koul did an outstanding job!

if you liked “black friend” by ziwe or “my body” by emrata, you will absolutely love this. def adding this to my wishlist !!

i had no idea who ziwe was before i read this, but this book made me want to watch her videos!! she was so funny and real. she approached very serious topics like racism and cancel culture in such a funny and interesting way. her entire collection felt like a breath of fresh air. she wasn’t trying to convince anyone of anything. it was like i was just chatting with a best friend. honestly i loved everything about this. i completely forgot that i was even reading an essay collection. i laughed so much, and she wasn’t even trying to be funny. she was just naturally funny and yet perceptive. 

put this on your tbr asap. you won’t regret it.

this was pretty good. i wish that the relationship between ifemelu and obinze would have been more developed. it was great that they had a connection, but we never got to fully see why it was so strong in the first place. the characters themselves were in love with one another but i personally never understood why. 

the writing style was also good, but i wish it was more passionate. i noticed that in this book and “purple hibiscus”, the styles seemed very passive and not passionate, so it seems to be adiche’s personal writing style. its not bad obviously, but just something i noticed!

ok so confession: i tried reading this last year but i dnfd right when amir saw what happened to hassan. SA is such a difficult and sensitive subject in general and i (back then) couldn’t grapple with the fact that the main character basically saw someone getting assaulted and wouldn’t say anything. so i dnfd.

cue a couple of days ago. i saw the physical book at the thrift store for 50 cents and i was like 👀 i’m a simple girl. if i see a book (especially a cheap one), i will buy. so i bought it and i decided to try it again like 2 days ago.

this is one of the most heartbreaking books i have read in a long time. it was uncomfortable all the way through. especially since cruelty and all its nuances were explored in various ways. we have the cruelty of assef (the main bully. may god punish his soul) and the taliban, which is more overt and dark. we have the cruelty of cowards, like amir who watches a life altering event occur. in this story, there are victims, abusers, cowards, and everything else in between. sometimes, characters play all roles at the same time. such is life. sometimes, we might wish to be the hero, but like amir, we might realize that there are shades to heroes. it isn’t so black and white like people tell us.

even though i despise amir for what he didn’t do, i felt myself empathizing with him later on. i never excused his act, but i commended him on his actions later on. and that’s what the author i think was trying to convey. being a hero, coward, and abuser aren’t so clear cut.

i was honestly surprised by this story. it kept exceeding my expectations. i felt so many emotions and deep connection with the characters, despite the very difficult subject matter. i’m so happy that i gave this another shot. i’m definitely adding this author to my “automatic buy” list.

so amazing!!! i’ve said this before but so many short story collections fall flat for me- i can’t explain it. but this was absolutely a banger!! each story was beautifully (and vividly) written.

this was an excellent exploration on race, colorism, gender, and history. even though the stories were very short, they still felt like fully fleshed out novels with vivid characters and well-rounded plots. there wasn’t a single story in there that i gave less than 4.25 ⭐️.

the ones that stood out to me were: “the thing around your neck” and “the headstrong historian.” absolutely amazing and memorable.

i’m so sad this is over 😭 the characters really grew on me 😭😭

i don't know what to say. me and short story collections have a complicated relationship. they're really just hit or miss for me. and those that are "hits" i stop thinking about weeks after finishing, if i'm being honest. so when i saw that this was available on libby, i hesitated. 

i'm so glad that i read this. i was instantly hooked by the first story, "the rockpile." it was so interesting to see how baldwin was able to build up tension in a domestic, delicate setting. i felt the dread that elizabeth experienced as a wife to a volatile husband. the writing style in particular was lush and vivid. i was pleasantly surprised to see that the second story, "the outing", was connected. we got to see more of johnnie and the dynamics between him and his step-father gabriel. 

i can truly say that all the stories were amazing. the writing style was so vivid and beautiful and raw. baldwin handled each of his narrators with respect and fondness. he explored gender dynamics, race relations from the white and black perspectives, and sexuality. it was a very interesting and thorough collection of short stories that left me wanting MORE. they were all distinct, which impressed me a great deal. many collections that i've read by other authors had narrators that blended in with one another, narrators that weren't very interesting or fleshed-out even. but baldwin took great pains to give life to each of his narrators and everyone had a distinct way of speaking that was so remarkable to me.

there were only 8 stories, but i could see them each being developed into longer works (like a novel or novella). the lowest rating that i gave was 4.5 stars. like i said, all of the stories were amazing but the ones that completely stood out to me were: "the man child", "sonny's blues", and "going to meet the man." they left me absolutely shaken, especially "the man child" and "going to meet the man." when i finished them both in particular, i wanted to throw UP.

man, i'm really kicking myself for not buying the physical copy, because then i would've been able to annotate. but whatever, i can just buy the physical copy and re-read it next year. because honey, i will most definitely be re-reading this.

RATINGS OF STORIES:
1. "the rockpile"- 5 ⭐️
2. "the outing" - 4.75 
3. "the man child" - 5 ⭐️
4. "previous conditions" - 4.75 ⭐️
5. "sonny's blues" - 5 ⭐️
6. "this morning, this evening, so soon" - 4.5 ⭐️
7. "come out the wilderness" -  4.5 ⭐️
8. "going to meet the man" - 5 ⭐️

i 100% recommend this, and i definitely think that this should be required reading. this is an american book.