R.F. Kuang has accomplished a lot with the Poppy War trilogy. Reinventing grimdark fantasy with a magical world that parallels the real-world events R.F. Kuang has accomplished a lot with the Poppy War trilogy. Reinventing grimdark fantasy with a magical world that parallels the real-world events in Chinese history, most notably the Opium Wars, World War II, and the Communist Revolution. *chefs kiss* This series is honest and brutal. The characters are all deeply flawed (except Kitay, who is flawless), and the main protagonist, Rin, is an anti-hero of the highest Mao Zedong-mimicking-caliber. The protagonist Rin is somehow a sympathetic and unlikable character running around with the most atrocious of war crimes. Kuang torments her character like god treats the poor and the sick; striping them to their very foundations, base instincts with addiction, madness and horror. To say nothing of managing the dynamics and relationships Rin has with other people around her (along with the Maoist purging, temper-tantrums and massacres that entails). Plus, it's the first time I've seen a book accurately describe the orders of consequence of war with more than a cutesy hand-wave.
The violence of the war is surpassed only by the misery and famine that the war leaves in its wake. Rin may be good at waging war, but like Mao she is completely inept as a post-war leader.
Only minor criticisms I can find: -the map in the book doesn't quite match the description -The role of opium in accessing the power of the gods is inconsistent. Sometimes it helps characters access magical powers, and sometimes it prevents them from doing so. ... let's be candid, I'd need the the finest of tweezers to even locate them.
(view spoiler)[ BEST ENDING LINES of a book so far this year: The epilogue was hilarious. Told in Nezha’s point of view, he holds Rin’s dead body, cursing the woman he loved and hated for leaving him alone. The world does not have peace, it might never, but it is up to Nezha to decide.
“You can’t do this for me,” he said. “I won’t let you.”
“It’s not for you. It’s not a favor. It’s the cruelest thing I could do.” (hide spoiler)] ...more
The second book in The Poppy War series written by R.F. Kuang. The first book was a huge success in the fantasy community with the Asian-inspired fantThe second book in The Poppy War series written by R.F. Kuang. The first book was a huge success in the fantasy community with the Asian-inspired fantasy setting really drawing fans into some unique and fun, largely criticised for using conventional tropes with smatterings of historical fact.
The protagonist, Rin, began life as a nobody in a small town and has become embroiled in a war that will change the continent forever. Like in the prior book, Rin's complicated relationship to Altan rebounds, stacking layers in Rin's mind: putting an idealized version of him on a pedestal, falling for an idealized version of a broken, damaged man, taking his punshes to feel some form of warmth. (Nice take, people often romanticize their abusers.)
Kitay’s arc, in particular, hits home from people I've seen in person. He is no longer the lighthearted kid from the first book—soft, book-loving and undamaged—but a tempered, damaged and ruthless version of himself.
Criticisms: -I found this plot to be very similar to the first: there’s a lot of people talking about war, then there’s some fighting and then more people talking about war. Which is fine, just written in a cinematic nor engaging style. Feels like filler, a rough recounting by someone who doesn't find it interesting but knows that the reader might.
All in all, The Dragon Republic is even better than the initial installment, and I've already bought the final part of the trilogy....more
Anthropologist-turned-astronaut Halisi Mwangi's lifelong mission is to bring the past to the stars, bringing carefully chosen priceless antiquities deAnthropologist-turned-astronaut Halisi Mwangi's lifelong mission is to bring the past to the stars, bringing carefully chosen priceless antiquities designed to reconnect space colonists to their cultural heritage back on Earth.
One unexpected malfunction later, however, and Halisi is space-shipwrecked on a strange alien world. She struggles to survive and find a way back home, she finds herself with a new mission: to teach the local alien denizens about humanity and their history, armed with only the contents of her pockets.
Many people often read books about war and tyranny and stuff of the like, most of it being fiction.
Struggling to eat, is not something I grew up withMany people often read books about war and tyranny and stuff of the like, most of it being fiction.
Struggling to eat, is not something I grew up with but know due to being at the wrong time and place. It is one thing to see adults in it, another to witness children conscripted and brainwashed into appreciating it.
Anxious to participate in a nearby talent show, Beah and his rap group are away from home when war descends on their village. The civil war that's gripping Sierra Leone still seems a like a suggestion until it isn't. At the talent show they escape the butchery that took their families.
Fleeing as refugees from village to village often "so hungry it hurts to drink water," they are separated during a rebel attack. Now alone, Ishmael wanders for weeks until meeting boys he knew from school. Joining forces, the boys look for somewhere, anywhere, they can feel safe. They think they've found it in a town controlled by government troops... only for them to get dosed with drugs and turned into child soldiers.
This was excellent. The deprogramming I've seen with former child soldiers and cult members is accurate to a T. It's harrowing, painfully honest, and horrific story of a boy whose teen years became a killing field is ultimately a story of hope that things can turn out....more
So, having had a rough year, I figured I'd try a end it with a happy story about a boy and his dogs. A classic is something everyone wants to say, theSo, having had a rough year, I figured I'd try a end it with a happy story about a boy and his dogs. A classic is something everyone wants to say, they read,. In this case, it's one of the books I would consider worth the title. Robinson Crusoe, Hatchet by Gary Paulson, and now this, it follows the theme of self relience.
For years I've been meaning to cover it. Elementary/middle school kids in class talking about how good it is. It is well written, flows well, and takes the reader on a series of emotional highs and lows. When it is over you will be satisfyingly exhausted, and sad. Doubly so if you're a dog person....more
Everything was good until the Fire Nation attacked. Wait. We are the Fire Nation. Where is drug man? — Rebecca F. Kuang describing The Poppy War in lesEverything was good until the Fire Nation attacked. Wait. We are the Fire Nation. Where is drug man? — Rebecca F. Kuang describing The Poppy War in less than 140 characters
Best fantasy book I've read in several years. Rin, the protagonist, is a war orphan raised by opium dealers in fantasy counterpart china. To escape her arranged marriage she enters a competitive exam to get accepted to the most prestigious military school in the empire.
The world is fantastic. The tribalism and the factions politics and the way it reflects (and doesn't) the society and culture of the lived reality of its inhabitants. It was well-flushed out and I loved that everyone had a motive and it wasn't just two color-coded sides squabbling over whatever.
The Magic system is unique!
I thoroughly enjoyed this initial entry for the trilogy and it has me excited to read the next two. The worldbuilding is exquisite. A blender of Chinese classics, history, mysticism, and a uniquely engaging story. Sitting down to read it at on break, I'd finished.
5/5 Only criticisms I can think of are that the plot has some pacing and tone shifts that made the story feel like it’s sectioned into 2 or 3 separate chunks, but all were enjoyable.
While it could be argued that the tropes it pulls are derivative, this seems dismissive. There are very few truly original things, what this offers is something. That said I can understand why the use of East Asian mythology could be seen as reductive. Personally, my best gauge of a novel? 1. Impulsively reading it from front to back. 2. Thought provoking. 3. Worldview changing. 2/3 tell me it checks out. Bonus points for having a deeply sympathetic/unlikable protagonist AND making her compelling....more
A.A. Freda’s Goodbye, Rudy Kazoody is nostalgic of a lot of the old Bronx-stories I read growing up, brief glimpses into the lives of immigrants in NeA.A. Freda’s Goodbye, Rudy Kazoody is nostalgic of a lot of the old Bronx-stories I read growing up, brief glimpses into the lives of immigrants in New York. Narrated first-person by Joey, an Italian immigrant in the 60s Bronx. The story follows Joey, his cousin Spike, and their small street gang the Black Knights.
The story begins with Spike having a mental breakdown, telling the story of being a New world boy-surrounded by old-world family and customs. All while his personality is bouncing around between the two. The reader can feel the securities stemming from this conflict. Having lived among large groups off immigrants, many of whom are relatives, it is good to see the hidden conflict put into words.
With Freda’s great use of dialogue helps bring the scenes to life. Going over the Italian-american life in the ghettos of New York, morphing as the boys get older by involving sex, gangs, family and heartbreak. It is a bittersweet ending, but it has a lasting bittersweet flavor of humanity....more
While I was expecting some nauseatingly happy candyfloss novel, never have I been happier being surprised, the main villains reveaeled to be Nazis... While I was expecting some nauseatingly happy candyfloss novel, never have I been happier being surprised, the main villains reveaeled to be Nazis... points for the surprise I suppose....more
