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Unwind by Neal Shusterman - A sci-fi where the premise is that abortion is legal, but you have to keep the kid alive until they're 13, and if the parents still don't want them they can sign them off to be "unwound", to have their body parts disassembled and used for organ donations, transplants, etc, so they're still technically "alive" in other people. Plot follows 3 mcs in different situations scheduled to be unwound. - Very solid read for a YA novel. Light read. - Chekhov's gun is used very well. Beginning and middle seem a bit slow but the ending delivers punch after punch. Nothing is written without a reason. - Roland sequence was horrifying. Something that is built up to throughout the entire book. - I got the feeling of danger from the kids being on the run. - Solid questions brought up about the human soul and where life/consciousness starts and ends. Member of the Family by Dianne Lake Have not finished reading as of June. - An autobiographical retelling of the author's life and their involvement as a member of Charles Manson's cult at 14. - Though I had actually only read up to the very events that led her there. - A completely different world than the one I know. Insight into the movements of the 60s. - Could not have been an easy book to write, let alone publish. - Contains discussions of sexual, mental, and physical abuse, please tread carefully should you look into it. Maus by Art Spiegelman - Comic book styled memoir of the author interviewing his father's experience surviving Auschwitz. - The book that made me start wearing a Star of David at all times. - Segments of the young adult author having conversations with his now-elderly father are juxtaposed with the retelling. The book gives weight to the past by showing the present. June My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Nagata Kabi - A book I've known of for a while, but never read until now. I think it came at a good time for me. - Memoir-style exploration of the author's sexuality and mental health. My Solo Exchange Diary by Nagata Kabi - Less clearly structured than her other works, but you find soon that it is a book about the author's mother - Very touching memoir, hits close to home about the complexities of a difficult home life My Alcoholic Escape from Reality by Nagata Kabi - I feel as though this is one of those books I may resonate more with when I have more experience with the subject at hand. An enjoyable read nonetheless. My Wandering Warrior Existence by Nagata Kabi - I'm a fan of the Japanese title -- "Wandering Warrior Nagata Kabi" - A reviewer said that there seemed like there were many Japanese concepts for gender and sexual identity that didn't lend well to being translated straight to English - Explored what love actually means in society, felt like I understood my vague feelings about my own relationship a little more |