pickOn this third reread I find myself looking back at previous times I've reviewed it and wanting to amalgamate.
First read review:
Unbreakable meets V for Vendetta.
Vicious and fascinating and fairly feminist and inclusive.
Does not pull any punches (pun intended) in examining the hypothetical fall out of super humans, 1/?
“I cannot help but wonder what they have been calling us behind those charming smiles that just happen to be the way their mouths curve?“ 😏🐬🫢
pickPoetry that reminds me why I continue to explore in this genre, when the average collection may include moments of total incomprehension.
Still processing how heavier entries made me feel, how vulnerable Limón can be, but there are plenty of beautiful, even uplifting moments that caught me as well.
1/2
New favourite poem.
“...cotton candy-colored blossoms to the slate sky of spring rains,“
“...a new slick leaf unfurling like a fist,“
pickI had no idea what this book would be when I picked it up but it turned out to be everything I wanted.
When it comes to genre distribution I think it's an even split between sci-fi and horror with a sprinkle of fantasy. I adore the writing, how the multiple POVs and time jumps were expressed via the formatting, the sci fi twists on classic horror/adventure figures, the banter, the occasional dark humour, the emotional heart, 1/?
...but can it occur under capitalism?
A just redistribution of resources...
pickNot your grandfather's Marx. My head is now stuffed full of degrowth communism and participatory socialism, among other well-explained concepts, but what really comes through is Saitō's determination to breakdown long-standing outdated misconceptions about Marxist philosophy, about previous ill-conceived applications and views of communism, 1/?
Third time reading this book. HOW have I never taken note of this dedication? 🥺
pickStrange. My experience with both poetry and picture books is usually that the way I start out is the way I'll finish, but a third of the way in, the words and the art started to speak to me.
I love that poetry adorns a spacecraft sent out in the name of science, to discover more about Europa.
The author's note illuminates the significance of the water themes in the verse and the illustrations.
pickPer the usual, I'm hampered from a completely fair judgement of any work of poetry by my varying levels of reading comprehension. A collection including many poets means even more variance in my ability to understand, to feel that I fully received the message the poet meant to capture, or that I found something for myself within the poem.
1/?
Traci Brimhall another candidate in this collection, love her way with words enough to look up her other poetry.
so-soToasty autumn gothic aesthetic wrapped around an Alice-in-Wonderland plot backgrounding teenage drama morphing into multiple therapeutic encounters.
When I say it left me wanting more, I mean that in both senses.
It ended a bit too abruptly, it could have had better pacing, it involved A LOT of young adults emoting/yelling at each other. 1/?
Gorgeous use of words, might have to look up more Dorianne Laux after this collection.
pickA visual feast, and an excellent introduction.
Within the format of coffee table book, this gets close to being 'The Complete Story' as the subtitle touts, because it covers a lot of ground. Divided into different types of drag, historical and radical, butch and black, comedy, movie, popstar, art, glamour (not in that order), you get a sense of the phenomenon's origins, its struggles and evolutions, its contributions to art, society, 1/?
Yes please!
“...poems are like trees in this way...poems can be a place to stop and remember that we too are living.“ 🌳💚 💌
Stop me if you've heard this one.
New horror premise: badly tipped waitress serial killer. 😑🔪
pickWould love to be able to hand this book out like a pamphlet.
An incredible resource, full of both vulnerable personal experience and great research, clearly stating the troubled history, the debunking, the way forward for each myth.
I love that each chapter ends with action items and/or reflection questions. I love that Gordon is consistently thinking in nuanced terms of people representing multiple marginal identities. 1/?
A damn low bar for decency, but I'm glad we're leading the pack in some ways. 🇨🇦♥️
“...let us name our own bodies.“
...“all of us have a responsibility to get support in a way that doesn't threaten someone else's dignity or healing.“
“Capitalism is not and will not be a source of justice for any of us.“
To be fair, I feel like that's Steward's default position. 🙄😏
pickTo absolutely no one's surprise, I loved it! As always this series earns my admiration with the balance of fantastical and down-to-earth, drama and healthy communication, ancient Greek myth and modern urban fantasy, the complex adaptation of mythical figures into people with flaws and traumas, the spectacular art and the healthy dose of humour and warm fuzzies.
1/2
EeeeeeeeEeeeeeeeeeeeEeeeeeeee!!!!🥰
Ahem, pardon the squee. ☺️
pickAlways reassuring when a long running series has a particularly good entry in a later volume. As has happened in the past, this one shone not because it was particularly zany (though the comic quality of this series is to be treasured) but because it managed a multi-episode narrative that was semi-serious in tone, and, as has regularly appeared in the series, commentary on how war affects people as individuals.
1/?
pickWell that was intense! Possibly the most fantasy-horror leaning of the series. I get why in the acknowledgements, the agent suggested not releasing this one in 2020. If I can extrapolate from there, I also get why a particularly dark story would get written in 2020.
Did not see the first reveal coming, or the second for that matter, but the first one gave me a chill and an aha moment, and the second one was just more darkness.
1/2
Reminder for my fellow weekend crafters and makers : “...the creative process does not require a product, and sometimes that process produces a failure.“ It's all part of the process! ❤️
Regular academia is stressful enough, but having demons as your field of study?! 🫣😅
pickEmphasis on the Bedlam. There is much in this book's intent and its writing to recommend it, but that doesn't stop it from feeling messy overall, in a way that I'm fairly certain the publishers wanted to present as charming, but mostly felt distressing. Gow excels at describing larger than life characters he's encountered as well as wildlife and their natural settings. His rueful reports of various wildlife encounters are hilarious, provided 1/?
LOVE his descriptions and similes.
“...a cattle trailer with hiccups.“ 🫣😆
pickThe ART. The WHIMSY! 😍 An exceptional project making an incredibly important statement. A staggering amount of work for a 48 page 'picture' book, but so worth it. Love, love, love. Sincerely hope this becomes a classic for the next generation.
That's right, not drawn, not digitally fashioned, actual artworks made for the book and photographed. 🤯
So grateful for such an important message rendered in such an accessible fashion.
“If people before us could do it, why not me? Why not you?“
I was surprised by how well this story balanced a clear-eyed cold-blooded revenge plot and its inevitable costs against showcasing vulnerability and yearning in interpersonal connections. 16h
I have a great soft spot for shitty temp job solidarity, and demonstrating the power of organized information. 16h
While there were indeed awesome gadgets, lairs/strongholds and action sequences, there was also body horror I wasn't quite prepared for (should have read the blurbs/synopsis!) 16h
Another marvelous reread. Though I surprised myself by being less satisfied by the ending than I was the first time. As much as there is a full arc for the main character, there are platonic and potentially romantic relationships that feel like they were just getting started. Likewise, there's a major character or two who, while the backstory was important, I also feel is just getting started in their own arcs. 16h
⚠️Violence, body horror 16h