The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin

My rating: 4.5/5 stars

“Life isn’t about defying death. It’s also about defying yourself, about insisting on transformation. As long as you can transform, my friends, you cannot die.”

This is a book about death but it’s also a book about life.

Simon, Klara, Daniel & Varya are siblings. As kids, they go to a fortune teller who tells them exactly what day they’re going to die. Aside from the intro, the book is pretty much split up into four parts. Each part telling the story of each sibling and how they lived up until they died.

The Immortalists is such a beautiful story. It’s overwhelmingly sad, yet beautiful and the small moments of happiness made my heart swell with joy. I loved all the siblings but Simon and Klara were definitely my favourite.

I don’t think it’s possible to read this book without thinking about the mechanics of life and death. Do we die because of the choices we make (conscious or not) or is everything just fated to happen? Is it better to throw caution to the wind or plan meticulously ? Does living longer necessarily mean living better?

These are questions that you can see each sibling battle with. The fortune teller’s prophecy took a toll on each of them in different ways.

“Give me one good reason why you shouldn’t start your life.”

Looking forward to reading more of Chloe Benjamin’s work !

 

The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan

My rating: 3/5 stars

When I search for myself in the bathroom mirror
I cannot find her at all.

When I am alone
I do not know who I am.

When I am alone
I am nothing.

Kasienka and her mother migrate from Poland to England in search of Kasienka’s father, who left them without any real explanation. Kasienka struggles to fit in at her new school and life at home with her mother isn’t any better. She often feels alone, misunderstood, and neglected not only by her peers, but also by her mother who is overly consumed with the idea of finding and reuniting with Kasienka’s father.

Through pages of poetry, Crossan portrays the hardships of adjusting to life in England.

This book did start off a bit slow, but gradually the story became more interesting and the poetry more in depth.

 

Batgirl Volume 4: Wanted by Gail Simone

My rating: 3/5 stars

In Batgirl: Wanted, Barbara is trying and failing to deal with the death of her brother, failing so much to the point that she is seriously considering hanging her bat cape for good.

Another person struggling with the death of James Gordon Jr is Barbara’s dad, police chief Jim Gordon. He blames Batgirl for James’s death and is determined to bring her down no matter the cost.

While the story and the events that unfolded were interesting, I felt Batgirl’s inner dialogue with herself was repetitive and sometimes annoying.

 

 

 

The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis

My rating:  4.5/5 stars

“But ‘boys will be boys’, our favourite phase that excuses so many things, while the only thing we have for the opposite gender is ‘women’, said with disdain and punctuated with an eye roll.”

Some books have such an impact that after turning that last page you find yourself emotionally paralyzed. This is one of those books. I cannot form a coherent sentence on why this book is important, much less a paragraph; and whatever I do come up with would not do it justice. So just believe me when I say that: if you read this book, you will not regret it. It’s got:
– undeniably imperfect loveable characters
– important take on rape culture
– strong female friendship

& it’s just an incredible freaking story okay? okay.