Book Review

‘The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All, Vol. 1’ by Sumiko Arai

Borrowed this one from my Teen, and found it to be surprisingly wholesome, though it is always so funny to read about modern teenagers viewing themselves as edgy and alternative just for listening to the music that I grew up with. That being said, I do feel like this kind of story definitely resonates with teens who don't feel like they quite fit in with modern social pressures. I feel like those of us who grew up in the 80s and early 90s had a lot more role models for walking our own path and just being ourselves even if that didn't quite fit in with our peers. Would have loved to see some references to icons like Annie Lennox and Skunk Anansie, or later stuff like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but perhaps the author was either unaware of their influence or didn't care for their vocal styles. Happy to see a non-toxic friendship/crush depicted alongside the message that it is okay to be yourself and to dress in the ways that you find comfortable and enjoy the things that bring you joy.

#bookreview #reading #manga #translatedfiction #queerstories #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk

Book Review
In the spirit of continuing to try to make better use of the library system and to cross books off my long-term TBR, I saw that a book I’ve been wanting to read for about five years was available digitally and decided to make it my first book review for June: ‘Semiosis’ by Sue Burke (published in 2018).

This one is about colonists starting a new life on a planet they call Pax, and explores the challenges that the colony faces as well as the alliances they form with indigenous species.

If anyone hasn’t picked up this one yet, the vibe is somewhat similar to the more recently published ‘Alien Clay’ by Adrian Tchaikovsky. I enjoyed both stories, and found them interesting but not particularly inspiring if that makes sense.

I know that not every story can be, or even needs to be, something that blows your mind - and ‘Semiosis’ is definitely much better than a lot of stories - but it lacked a truly alien feel to any aspect of what could have been a fascinating exploration of a vast intellect spanning generations. The book moves along and deals with issues that face the colonists through the lens of a character from each generation. In some ways it felt kind of like Asimov’s Foundation series but with Hari as a plant system.

This is the first book in a trilogy, and I would recommend giving this one a read if you like stories where humans have to try to survive on a planet where we are the aliens - just don’t expect anything too deep.

Q. Have you read any of the books in this series? Can you recommend anything similar?

#bookreview #reading #scifibooks #aliencontact #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk #readingbuddy #catsandbooks #booksandcats

Book Recommendations

I tend to read a mix of new and backlist titles - so I might read and equally love both a book published that year and another that came out ten years ago. I’m always looking for book recommendations, so I thought I would share my top five favourites from the past two years in case anyone has missed any of these gems.

In 2024 I read a total of 67 books, and rated 16 of them 5-stars.

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett (fifth place)
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky (fourth place)
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum (third place)
All Systems Red by Martha Wells (second place)
Ocean’s Godori by Elaine U. Cho (the winner, in first place)

In 2023 I read a total of 49 books, and rated five of them 5-stars.

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean (fifth place)
Dragonfall by L. R. Lam (fourth place)
Starter Villain by John Scalzi (third place)
Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman (second place)
Weyward by Emilia Hart (the winner, in first place)

Q. Have you read any of these books? Or, are any on your TBR list?

#books #bookrecommendations #readingrecommendations #reading #bookcollection #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk