seawarrior's reviews
1659 reviews

Kingdom Hearts is a light-hearted story about the magic of friendship and the rewards of courage. I have never played the games that the novel recaps, so I am unable to compare how well it follows the events of its source material. However, I had a surprisingly difficult time staying interested in the novel because the writing was so dry at times. Some chapters recapped fight scenes with too much detail, and neglected elaborating on the characters' emotional worlds. Still, I am glad that I finally understand more of the story, which once felt much more challenging to piece together. 

Nursery Earth is a enthusiastic book that highlights the importance of overlooked babies as a facet of Earth's ecosystem. The book is primarily focused on the genetics and developmental biology of invertebrates, which made it more challenging for me to read than I had expected, since I wrongfully assumed it would discuss mammalian behavior. Still, Staaf's excitement for creatures great and microscopic was infectious, and I feel a sense of pride for managing to read and mostly make sense of scientific subjects I often struggle to understand.

Chlorine is a brutal, brilliant coming-of-age tale of a young woman determined to carve herself the destiny she aches for. Ren Yu tells her narrative with a distanced, combative air. She is uninterested in the reader's sympathy or judgement, her story belongs solely to her, and she knows it. I was quickly drawn to Ren's defiant and tenacious nature. She refuses to be anyone other than herself, even when deemed disturbed and mutilated by those she once trusted. Song perfectly captures the weight of pain in adolescence and the impossible, frenzied want to transcend human perils and emerge triumphant. This is a grisly, unparalleled gem of a story.