sp1derfairy's reviews
146 reviews

Butter Honey Pig Bread by francesca ekwuyasi

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

this book was so poignant and i really enjoyed how it explores forgiveness and growth and the ties between family.
i really enjoyed seeing taiye be able to realize that the sexual assault wasn’t her fault either. seeing the sisters be able to open up with one another was very moving. all the pain they had held with them finally had a space to breathe.
i’ve been thinking about this book for an hour after finishing it and i keep thinking about the decision to solely put kehinde in 1st person (besides kambirinachi taking control of her own story and it being first as well) and the decision to break up the sections into butter, honey, pig, and bread. 

on the subject of food, the heavy focus on food wasn’t my favorite in the beginning, but it definitely began to grow on me and food is definitely a way love is shown in the book. it gave me a new appreciation for food and cooking and how it can bring people together. 
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The Sandman Vol. 4: Season of Mists by Neil Gaiman

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medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

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adventurous dark sad tense 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

4.0

I really enjoyed this book and Shelley Parker-Chan does an incredible job paralleling their characters with each other. I felt so tied to these characters and their journeys and I enjoyed seeing them change over the book, for better or for worse. I really just love these characters so much I could gush over them for so long. Shelley Parker-Chan does a remarkable job at making you connect to characters who are unlikable as people. It’s also formatted so nicely to be adapted into a tv show almost. It would be a very fun show to watch. 

I also could not go on without commenting on the queerness of this book and how lovely it is.
Zhu’s exploration through gender and learning who she is is a wonderful journey to read through and
it’s lovely to read something that explores gender so in depth. It  explores the social role of womanhood and manhood in many characters relationships with others and themselves and I just love it so much.

The book includes several
twists in it and it’s interesting to see what choices and thoughts lead up to these and often times I found myself underestimating Zhu’s thirst and let out an audible “wow”. 

I’m not a huge fan of historical fiction as it can be a bit dense for me, but this book’s setting is absolutely fascinating and I really enjoyed the environment built here. 
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The Collector by John Fowles

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dark tense medium-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

3.0

The Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman

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dark mysterious reflective 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

2.5

not really huge on the short story format. 
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

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adventurous emotional funny tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

A really great start to the series and I enjoyed my first introduction into the series. I loved the characters and I’m so attached to them and can’t wait to read more about them.  I can see how beautifully this series gives people a sense of home and a place to feel like they belong. It’s a common thread that links each character beyond the action and adventure. I’m also excited to see how it builds on the festering hurt the Gods have inflicted upon their children. 
The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman

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

4.0

I adored the second installment to the Sandman series and I’m excited to read what the next one has in store. I love having things slowly unravel as I read. I like getting to look more into this universe. 

This one revolved around Desire, both in endless form, and its effects on people. We are forced into thinking about our own autonomy and how we have gotten to where we are. Dream and Desire have differing beliefs of who is in control. I don’t either are entirely wrong, but it needs more thinking on. That’s what I really like about this comic series; at every turn you have to think about what opinions the characters are presenting. The balance to be found between differing beliefs. I’m rambling at this point, but I do really like it.


Corinthian’s “death” almost comes as an abrupt surprise. It’s a very simple end to the havoc he’s brought. I guess it goes to show how he wasn’t as great as he believed himself to be. All of those people were relishing in their self-importance. I only bring this up because Corinthian (so far) seems to have a larger role within the Sandman show. This death in comparison to that was a little surprising and I’m interested to see how he’ll meet his end in the show.
The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book was so lovely I highly enjoyed my second reading of an Ozeki book. I loved how she referenced herself and A Tale for the Time Being in subtle ways inside of the book. I can definitely see the influence of her environmental concerns and activism within this book. It is masterfully done. I also adored the characters and Annabelle reminded me of hoarding fears I have about myself that I wish to avoid. I became very personally invested in Annabelle’s journey. Each character is well-crafted and I felt so much love for each and every one of them. They each provided different insight of the world and we can see these perspectives shaping Benny’s impressionable world as well. Benny was also an unreliable narrator at times, and I enjoyed reading through his perspective, even when it was painful. 

I really enjoyed the brief snipbits we got of Cory’s perspective in particular. Her rationality served as a calming palette cleanser and it was relieving to read through her observations. For such a brief character, she was definitely one of my favorites.


Due to the slow pace, I did struggle to finish the book, but it was still thoroughly enjoyable. This book gave me a different perspective on the books I read and the objects I surround myself with and it’s nice to think back on it and look at things through a different lense. The spirits of my objects is something I’ve considered less as I’ve grown, and this book made me consider it again. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Benny navigate the world and the different ideas and philosophies each of his companions ascribed to. We get a first hand look into how susceptible he is to not thinking through different ideas, as we once were (and still can be). I think this connects to how the Book describes how each book leaves a different impression and story on each person.
I could even say that Benny is a blank slate throughout until the end where he stands up (literally and metaphorically) to take initiative in his life and what he wishes to do.


One thing that did make me uncomfortable was the Aleph’s sort of reciprocation towards Benny. 
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Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

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

5.0

Oh my gosh!!! This book was absolutely wonderful to read and I loved learning about Igbo culture and I cannot wait to do research of my own to learn more as well. Emezi’s writing is overwhelming and beautiful and it fills you up, takes you a minute to digest every imagery-rich word. It’s hard to process, you’re confronted with each of these sentences, faced with something bitter, like the Gods are and how they show you. I really loved it and how Emezi crafted this around their own experiences and I adored seeing the perspectives of the Gods as they all had so many unique thoughts and perspectives to offer. This book is about existing as who you are and being in touch with that. 
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The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really liked this book and a lot of parts about Charlie resonated with me. I loved the hopeful atmosphere nearing the end and the collection of things to look forward to and the peaceful attitude that is extended towards the future. It is one of my favorite feelings. I am glad Charlie started to see and recognize himself and it was painful when he continued to neglect to. Sam’s words to him near the end hit me deeply as well. I liked how he came to terms about things and how we can deliberate over how things in our past should affect us, or we can try to simply live and see how they affect us day by day. It can differentiate, and getting lost in our heads denies us of that variation. Nothing has to be absolute. But then again, I may be projecting in that bit! Which is okay. I also liked how we (Charlie) come to terms with how people are people with all of their flaws. 

I’ll end off with the importance of honesty and truth and Charlie coming to terms with it. Letting yourself be walked over to accommodate to what you think is needed can be what you think is right and good, but at the end of the day, you become too absorbed in your environment and forget to reaffirm your own presence. Your presence is important and getting to know yourself is far more fulfilling. This endless accommodation is based off of perceived things and denial of your own importance, and I am glad Charlie began to recognize that and I hope everyone who sees that similarity between them is able to do that as well (without dating someone several grades above you in highschool). I’m interested to see what I’ll think if I reread this book when I’m older.