pickThe title felt a bit gratuitous to me, but then I thought, what would I title this novel?...There are moments that read like a charming coming-of-age tale, others that twist your heart [...] What a gift to be able to see ourselves through her eyes, to laugh at our silliness, to cry at our cruelty, to empathize with our pain. FULL REVIEW: https://readingrantsandraves.blogspot.com/2025/10/2025-45-beautyland-bertino.htm... #TOB2025 #TOB25
pick...beautiful, tragic, funny,...There's even a plot twist -- handled deftly by Akbar, without resorting to clichéd sentimentality. ... lays bare themes of addiction, abandonment, artistic impulse, religiosity, media filters, racism, sexuality, and yes-- martyrdom-... like one of those rare honest conversations one might have with a close friend #TOB2025
Full review: https://readingrantsandraves.blogspot.com/2025/10/2025-43-martyr-akbar.html
pickI…was not expecting that ending. And then I remembered that Bertino totally blindsided me with the ending of the only other book I‘ve ever read by her (2AM at the Cat‘s Pajamas, about a decade ago). So, that‘s on me! Fool me twice. I write that with trepidation not gleeful surprise. I was upset the last time she did it and I think I‘m upset this time, too. I THINK. 👇🏻
pickPhoebe is an amazing protagonist, and the book is full of characters who are hiding behind façades, and Espach lets us see that so that they don't become caricatures. The initial premise doesn't seem like it would be very funny--and it isn't--but the story is so very human and redemptive in that the characters get to be real people, making real choices. A delightful read. #TOB2025
August ended up being a slower reading month than anticipated, but I‘m pleased to have crossed of three #TOB2025 books. Waiting on The Wedding People and Martyr from the Library.
pickShort version: “Ambivalent“ is the right word to describe how I feel about this book. There were parts of this book I LOVED and parts I really did not love.
Suzie? I kept forgetting she existed and then she'd pop up like a game of whack-a-mole. The mushroom “scene“ was off the rails--these types of things made the plot feel like a game of yo-yo. Jinx was a GREAT character. Full review in comments. #TOB2025
pickIt isn't just simply “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as told by Jim.“ The messages aren't subtle, but it is an invitation to think about an old character (or actually old characters--Huck, too), in a new way. There are parts that drag a bit, but overall the novel illuminates the privilege of “adventures“ and how characters can reclaim and change the archetypes to which they've been relegated. #TOB2025
so-soWell, I tried. I had a really hard time relating to the relentless onslaught of the narrative. I felt like I was a therapist, and I was simply reading a transcript of sessions of a woman in an unhappy marriage. As a child of divorced parents, it did make me think a bit, but mostly the book just tired me out. I needed more shape and direction. #TOB2025
“I began to understand what a story is. It‘s a manipulation. It‘s a way of containing unmanageable chaos.” Finally something resonates in this book. #TOB2025
