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marywahlmeierbracciano's reviews
825 reviews
Consider the Turkey by Peter Singer
challenging
dark
informative
sad
fast-paced
4.75
Peter Singer's book on the journey of the factory-farmed turkey is mercifully concise as it contains such horrible truths about the plight of these beautiful birds. Even I, as a vegan, was shocked. Singer gets right to the point and doesn't waver. He even offers an option for those who "must" have turkey at their holiday meal: i.e., a pasture-raised heritage breed, rather then the white broad-breasted monstrosity humans have bred for profitability. If you're going to eat them, please inform yourself of all in which you are complicit.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Sexual violence
Everything Is Poison by Joy McCullough
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Much like her debut, Blood Water Paint, Joy McCullough’s Everything Is Poison is inspired by a real historical figure, sidesteps romance, and packs a powerful feminist message. Adapted from a stage play, this novel follows a group of women running an apothecary in seventeenth-century Rome, interspersed with haunting vignettes in verse. Aside from providing remedies for a variety of ailments and maladies, their mission is to help those who have nowhere else to turn—from domestic violence or an unwanted pregnancy, perhaps. This is a book about honoring and continuing the legacy of the women who came before. Readers of Dana Schwartz’s Anatomy should check it out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Pregnancy
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infertility and Fire/Fire injury
I Dream of Joni: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell in 53 Snapshots by Henry Alford
informative
slow-paced
4.0
I very much enjoyed Henry Alford’s humorous voice and commentary in I Dream of Joni, a book that is about Joni but also about what she means to people, including the author. Moments of Joni’s life are told in nonlinear snapshot form, with a linear overarching structure concerning her in relation to her daughter. It’s a unique and personal book about the kaleidoscope that is Joni Mitchell, and it doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
The Tea Dragon Tapestry by K. O'Neill
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
elseship: an unrequited affair by Tree Abraham
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
Elseship is an account of a complicated relationship for which there is no name. Tree Abraham falls in love with her housemate, who does not feel the same, and after this love is professed, the two remain housemates and maintain an intense friendship that is more than friendship. In this work of creative, lyric nonfiction, Abraham’s incredibly intimate musings and confessions are interspersed with photos and illustrations concerning the first year of this relationship, all loosely organized around the eight Greek words for love. I found it fascinating and compulsively readable.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Sister Snake by Amanda Lee Koe
challenging
dark
funny
medium-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
4.5
After hundreds of years of self-cultivation, two snakes—sworn sisters, now immortal—take on human forms. For one, the goal is to become the perfect woman; the other is more interested in getting high on life—all while keeping their true selves secret. Their fierce love for each other borders on erotic, and it never fails to bring them back together after decades apart. They reunite in present-day Singapore, made semi-dystopian by government overreach. This darkly funny novel boldly confronts assimilation and celebrates queerness and found family.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Transphobia
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Domestic abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Vomit, Car accident, and Deportation
A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
A Psalm for the Wild-Built is a lovely, cozy, optimistic cli-fi story that made me cry from feeling seen. Sibling Dex—a non-binary tea monk, very talented at helping people process through tea and time—is having a quarter-life crisis. They enjoy what they do but can’t help but feel like something’s missing—a purpose? In walks Mosscap, a robot with a fauna affinity, built from the parts of others, whose quest is to answer the question, What do people need? These two cuties go on a journey together, searching for meaning in the divine. A soft, beautiful parable that you’ll want to reread.
Little Shrew by Akiko Miyakoshi
5.0
Little Shrew is a perfect book. I'm literally obsessed with every detail. Three slice-of-life snippets are beautifully illustrated, alternating color and black-and-white. This relatable creature of habit will steal your heart, and you'll want to read his stories over and over.
Ghosts of Gold Mountain: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad by Gordon H. Chang
challenging
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Ghosts of Gold Mountain is one of very few books chronicling the fascinating story of the Chinese workers who built much of America’s Transcontinental Railroad. Even as not a single firsthand account from the Railroad Chinese has been found, Chang does a great job of piecing together what little exists in historical records. He paints a picture of enterprising young men from the Pearl River Delta, dreaming of Gold Mountain fortune, who brought their culture with them to California and beyond. Despite their incredible accomplishments—hand-built tunnels and retaining walls, endless miles of efficiently-laid track, and a successful strike—the Railroad Chinese were dehumanized to the point of being nameless and numberless, most even to this day. It’s a shame we don’t know more, but this book is a great start.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Death, Hate crime, Racism, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Slavery, Kidnapping, Abandonment, and Colonisation