bookreview

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/6PMdioZEtSI8wetgIC4uxO" rel="nofollow">The Wake</a> 🌕🌑🌑🌑🌑 <br>An Irish play about a woman&#x27;s homecoming and family conflict over inheritance. Lots of drinking &amp; moaning, unclear what&#x27;s actually going on. Not sure how this got on my to read list. Maybe it works on the stage?</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/play/" rel="tag">#Play</a> <a href="/tags/script/" rel="tag">#Script</a></p><p><a href="https://wyrms.de/user/wildwoila/review/71280/s/lots-of-drinking-moaning#anchor-71280" rel="nofollow" class="ellipsis" title="wyrms.de/user/wildwoila/review/71280/s/lots-of-drinking-moaning#anchor-71280"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">wyrms.de/user/wildwoila/review</span><span class="invisible">/71280/s/lots-of-drinking-moaning#anchor-71280</span></a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/4f0sKsIvCokPVQtc0mjsqg" rel="nofollow">Leviathan Wakes</a> 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 <br>What&#x27;s all the fuss? Just a space thriller with so-so characters. A gritty future where humanity has colonised the solar system, but it&#x27;s as corporate, politically riven &amp; prejudiced as today. Some intrigue and a fair bit of action, but to what end?</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/scifi/" rel="tag">#SciFi</a> <a href="/tags/theexpanse/" rel="tag">#TheExpanse</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/4qZewAvA1TvXiNSE6TcYJO" rel="nofollow">Purple Threads</a> 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑 <br>A fictionalised autobiography of growing up Indigenous on the outskirts of Gundagai. A tribute to her Aunties &amp; Nan, strong &amp; colourful independent women, but otherwise lacks purpose. Telling family stories through dialogue gets a bit boring.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/bookwyrm/" rel="tag">#BookWyrm</a> <a href="/tags/autobiography/" rel="tag">#AutoBiography</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/0wHPKMQNnATtTNZXa8qKat" rel="nofollow">Free and Equal: A Manifesto for a Just Society</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>Presents Rawls&#x27; philosphical framework for a better &amp; more robust liberal democracy, and real-world policies for bringing it to life. A valuable foundation for considered &amp; effective progressive politics. Convincing &amp; hopeful.</p><p>Reading time 18 days, 15 pages/day</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/bookwyrm/" rel="tag">#BookWyrm</a> <a href="/tags/philosophy/" rel="tag">#Philosophy</a> <a href="/tags/economics/" rel="tag">#Economics</a> <a href="/tags/progressivepolitics/" rel="tag">#ProgressivePolitics</a> <a href="/tags/politics/" rel="tag">#Politics</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/3Zg2KiGJq0MkfrBOO9SVKi" rel="nofollow">Radicalized</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑 <br>Four dystopian novellas about the worst parts of Western society: <a href="/tags/enshittification/" rel="tag">#enshittification</a>, systemic <a href="/tags/racism/" rel="tag">#racism</a>, dysfunctional <a href="/tags/healthcare/" rel="tag">#healthcare</a> and sociopathic preppers. Gets increasingly dark.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> </p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/5ZmT0cP4pI3e92xdFnFBQd" rel="nofollow">Nine Lives: My time as the MI6&#x27;s top spy inside al-Qaeda</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>Traces the evolution of a (very) young jihadi from the Bosnian front, to bomb-maker for al-Quada, to (still young) spy for MI6. A lot of extreme living! Valuable insight into motivations &amp; rationalisations of jihadism.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/biography/" rel="tag">#Biography</a> <a href="/tags/terrorism/" rel="tag">#Terrorism</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/4K1fuNdkcg7K2eFsc3XD2H" rel="nofollow">Weyward</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑 <br>A line of women connected by their suffering at the hands of psychopathic men, and their uncanny affinity for the natural world. Witchcraft wins.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/witchcraft/" rel="tag">#Witchcraft</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/730KrZh1WQARtSEwV9Rf0G" rel="nofollow">The Book of Longings</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑 <br>What if Jesus had a wife? Great premise and recreation of that world, but the characters didn&#x27;t draw me in, nor did it explore the theological ramifications his marriage would have had.</p><p>Reading time 6 days, 68 pages/day</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/bookwyrm/" rel="tag">#BookWyrm</a> <a href="/tags/historicalfiction/" rel="tag">#HistoricalFiction</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/2BsWfixsc9SUIAM2dXdiUL" rel="nofollow">Transcendent Kingdom</a> 🌕🌗🌑🌑🌑 <br>Can science and God be reconciled? Why are some people prone to addiction? How not to deal with trauma. Struggled to hold my attention or interest.</p><p>Reading time 8 days, 33 pages/day</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a><br></p>

<p>started listening <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/podcast/episode/7cDCNBicnGdIUXm50j9Oze" rel="nofollow">- The Little Prince (Audiobook with Rain Sounds) - Down To Sleep #123</a><br>I don&#x27;t get it. Too obscure for a <a href="/tags/sleepstory/" rel="tag">#SleepStory</a>.</p><p><a href="/tags/podcast/" rel="tag">#Podcast</a> <a href="/tags/audiobook/" rel="tag">#AudioBook</a> <a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/04nlXkTPHl7fRU9LFmcmMd" rel="nofollow">Purple Hibiscus</a> 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 <br>Religiosity, colonial worship &amp; domestic violence make for a sparse &amp; traumatic family life. </p><p>Reading time 4 days, 77 pages/day</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/7BL7YwZduX3UtL3Zu9O648" rel="nofollow">The Kiss Quotient</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑 <br>An autistic woman decides she needs to learn how to have good sex, and falls big time for the escort she arranges to teach her. All a bit silly &amp; obvious but reasonably well done, and the sex is explicit &amp; steamy without being ridiculous. I do wonder if autistic traits can be magically turned off by Mr Right, though ....</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/eroticfiction/" rel="tag">#EroticFiction</a> <a href="/tags/autism/" rel="tag">#Autism</a> <a href="/tags/neurodivergence/" rel="tag">#Neurodivergence</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/7cCAv8luz2Zo69u2RLfV5J" rel="nofollow">Frederica</a> 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 <br>An aromantic period romance. Not a lot of plot, but a lot of sometimes impenetrable banter. Disappointingly, the strong capable female protagonist gradually becomes more &amp; more dependent on the rich &amp; unflappable lord.</p><p><a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/periodromance/" rel="tag">#PeriodRomance</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/4V6cGsh8l3FW9ZCIxKj6N2" rel="nofollow">Ocean&#x27;s Echo</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>A queer romance set in a space-faring future where humans have developed telepathic abilities. Two telepaths are thrown together by political expediency, and despite initial incompatibility (they are both very different sorts of neurodiverse) they build a strong partnership, and eventually love. The two protagonists are well portrayed, and very likeable despite their foibles.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/queer/" rel="tag">#Queer</a> <a href="/tags/romance/" rel="tag">#Romance</a> <a href="/tags/spaceopera/" rel="tag">#SpaceOpera</a> <a href="/tags/scifi/" rel="tag">#SciFi</a> <a href="/tags/sff/" rel="tag">#SFF</a> <a href="/tags/neurodiversity/" rel="tag">#NeuroDiversity</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span> <span class="h-card"><a href="https://friendica.world/profile/wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila@friendica.world</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/1yWS2aSz7uW3nbAXkUu8am" rel="nofollow">The Shadow King</a> 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 <br>The invasion of <a href="/tags/ethiopia/" rel="tag">#Ethiopia</a> by <a href="/tags/italy/" rel="tag">#Italy</a> under <a href="/tags/mussolini/" rel="tag">#Mussolini</a>. Brutal violence and horrific use of modern weaponry against poorly armed but committed defenders. Operatic &amp; impressionist, oft-times too much.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/historicalfiction/" rel="tag">#HistoricalFiction</a> <a href="/tags/africanliterature/" rel="tag">#AfricanLiterature</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/5hHgFZIZzuHoNAfnn347CY" rel="nofollow">The Labyrinth</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑 <br>A woman struggles for wholeness after her son commits an unspeakable crime. She finds it through building a labyrinth, and relationships with those that help. Very readable and engaging, but its deeper purpose evaded me.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/literature/" rel="tag">#Literature</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/4fXcEI9vSxihQ3pD6S0hRT" rel="nofollow">Taming Toxic People: The Science of Identifying and Dealing with Psychopaths at Work &amp; at Home</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>A notable proportional of people are psychopaths (aka malignant narcissists, sociopaths) and they cause havoc because they have limited empathy and care nothing for social norms. Has given me a valuable appreciation for this form of neurodiversity to help understand and manage those fraught situations that are otherwise inexplicable. The science is interesting - it&#x27;s more likely neurological than upbringing or trauma. Ironically, the author doesn&#x27;t show much empathy for the psychopaths!</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/nonfiction/" rel="tag">#NonFiction</a> <a href="/tags/psychology/" rel="tag">#Psychology</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/0mexOnR5ROKl7za2mhZaM8" rel="nofollow">Lola in the Mirror</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 <br>A homeless girl searches for identity while on the run from organised crime, expressing herself through art, finding solace in dreams of a glorious future, with support from Brisbane&#x27;s idiosyncratic &#x27;houseless&#x27; community. A rivetting, energetic story with a distinct &amp; under-heard voice.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> </p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span> <span class="h-card"><a href="https://friendica.world/profile/wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila@friendica.world</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/46P1aRpDXueCzs5VobjDc3" rel="nofollow">The Island of Missing Trees</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑 <br>Through the tragedy of Cyprus, explores the intergenerational trauma of civil war &amp; exile. How the opportunity for a new life is unmoored from culture and weighed down by grief &amp; guilt. I liked the fig tree as narrator.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/cyprus/" rel="tag">#Cyprus</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/5Sn3RLerjNoDhagsQ3J8Fo" rel="nofollow">The Trouble with Peace</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>A cynical take on the deep power of finance &amp; capitalism in an age of rapid industrialisation. Numerous players (pawns) strive for &#x27;power&#x27; with varying degrees of cunning &amp; strategy. Provides his usual hefty dose of backstabbing and dry wit, and a touch less graphic violence.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/fantasy/" rel="tag">#Fantasy</a> <a href="/tags/sff/" rel="tag">#SFF</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/3AzfJSV83NEnlttrqbIosP" rel="nofollow">The Deluge</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 <br>A US-centric view of the coming two decades as the climate and social cohesion rapidly break down. Amplifies the worst of current political &amp; economic trends to create a truly terrifying but not-impossible dystopia. Told from a rich variety of perspectives, though compresses the pace of climate change improbably (I hope!). Intense, scary &amp; draining.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> <a href="/tags/clifi/" rel="tag">#CliFi</a> <a href="/tags/climatebreakdown/" rel="tag">#ClimateBreakdown</a></p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/2csTUrbPKqpjn3xXUwqjKo" rel="nofollow">Isaac and the Egg</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>The mind goes to extreme lengths to protect itself from sudden loss &amp; crippling grief. Everyone needs a good egg to help put the pieces back together again. Touching &amp; distinctive.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> </p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/71eb70l9mFCATQ78gn4t50" rel="nofollow">Little Men</a> 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 <br>A series of cloyingly moralistic tales from Jo&#x27;s school of wayward boys, where love &amp; kindness are all that&#x27;s needed to create fine upstanding gentlemen.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> </p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/5IP4ZXqgO61tA1l3Fmv8nE" rel="nofollow">Small Things Like These</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 <br>A penetrating snapshot of Irish life under the suffocating weight of Catholic dominance. But true moral strength cannot be suppressed, and every small act erodes that edifice. Beautifully crafted.</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a><br></p>

<p>finished reading <a href="https://reviewdb.app/search?r=1&q=https://reviewdb.app/book/5luDMuwOyEAiKkz7JGX40c" rel="nofollow">Young Mungo</a> 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 <br>Similar premise to his first book: gay boy with alcoholic mother in Glasgow. But different enough and also superbly executed. Full of precisely drawn, skin-crawling characters &amp; behaviour, from the psychopathic but protective brother, the deadly Protestant vs Catholic brawls, and the slimey alcoholic older male &quot;&quot;role models&quot;&quot;. Such an unattractive cover!</p><p><a href="/tags/bookreview/" rel="tag">#BookReview</a> <a href="/tags/books/" rel="tag">#Books</a> <a href="/tags/bookstodon/" rel="tag">#Bookstodon</a> </p><p><span class="h-card"><a href="https://aus.social/@wildwoila" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>WildWoila</span></a></span><br></p>