Edie Fields > Recent Status Updates

Mostly i am angry at men so far

This book is as good as i was hoping! Dark, seductive, and exciting. I wonder if anyone has ever cooked along with this novel the way people do with like the great british bake off. I think it would add to the already rich sensory experience of reading this novel

1/4 update: i loveee this book! The descriptions of food are so rich and reverent, and it’s the same with the way Tokyo is woven into the stories of Rika and Kajii. Also Rika is DEFINITELY a lesbian xoxo

Oh my god its happening…….. this book is really good so far. Richly descriptive but not so much that it becomes tiresome. Beautifully translated as well.

I really like it so far! I think this will be a quick, enjoyable, and enriching read. The review was kind of right, it is giving secret history so far

Oh my god its happeninggggggg it’s so on 😈😈

i found i was better able to follow the analysis of the history here, or maybe it was combined with more narratives. Also horrified at the description of her neo nazi encounter on the train because the one i worked with was exactly like this and it was disgusting. Also she still hasnt said WHY she moved to germany. Did i miss it??

Wanted to make a note that i want to read the poems Neal is referencing here: “Mamillates and Tresses” by Romaine Moreton and “Taxi Conversation” by Aileen Corpus

Ohhhhh baby its getting a little slow here
Like this is all important information but i am getting lost in all of these dates and laws and discussions of other colonies and im losing sight of the bigger picture

Anyway. I’m sort of confused on the through-line between Neal’s negative experience and academic critique of the colorism present in Japan’s culture and her exploration of Japanese and Black history. I was sort of left wondering well how did these decades of academic collaboration and mutual sharing of propaganda turn into your modern day experience? But I suspect I may have missed something on my end. Idk

I made it to the Australia section and im still thinking about the Japan section. I really loved it!!! Neal combines her experiences in Japan in with historical analysis of the interactions between Black and Japanese history in such a rich and enjoyable way. I didn’t know that when Megan Thee Stallion said im a weeb and a baddie she was in fact connected to a long line of history between the two cultures !

Sometimes the sheer verbosity and meandering focus of the writing feels like an accurate depiction of the characters’ minds and like a challenge i could benefit from, and sometimes it just feels like a pompous dumping of research on the reader. I feel bad saying this because i know i could not do better but this style is just not very reader friendly, at least in my opinion !

Wowee zowee i sure am learning a lot about english ecology (a lot more than i am learning about the characters…)
I fear st aubyn may be over-romanticizing the inner life of the ecologist; i don’t think many of us are attuned to the thrumming of unseen life etc. like… all the time
Maybe that’s just me
I like his style though!

Despite the critic reviews in the front suggesting that this is a fast-paced read, i am finding the opposite. Not because it is boring! I find the voice(s) very well written and translated. I am intrigued by the characters and the central crime and the relationships/themes explored in the story. But i get a feeling when i read too much at once that i should be lingering on the details more than i am

Ehhhhh… enjoyable enough story but the writing itself often falls flat for me. On the one hand i am pro romance in the middle of a mostly action- and history-packed novel…but getting hit with a “and there was only one bed” moment was a bit of an eyeroll for me. I am learning some history! But a lot of it comes with more gratuitous research-filled internal monologue than i would like.

Eh… the flashbacks/exposition aren’t very smooth and the writing style isn’t my favorite, but the story is engaging and it reads quick, so that’s nice

Very sad! Sort of a story of community as well as this one guy. I feel like ive been reflecting on the ways i exist in relationships but honestly is it that or do i just feel bad because i am sympathetic to the main character and he is messing things up
Whos to say i guess!

Dayum !
Like i THINK i know whats going on! But i am still enraptured
Many themes at play as well ie colonization and class and privilege but i dont think i know what the ending is going to end up saying about those themes

Deeply intriguing… making me wish i could stay up and read all night :,)

Well paced and intriguing voice so far!

Taking a hiatus as this is a library book and i am going back to ca. hopefully will acquire my own copy!

The beginning of this book made me cry with love and appreciation for how much i love my friends; the vulnerability section is showing me how much better i could have done in past and present friendships. Only way out is through i think!

Section about old guys singing country roads by john denver made me cry

“‘I’m living a violation, not a life!’” Very apt

I remembered how to read yesterday
Feels like talking to a(n extremely intelligent and well informed) friend about something terrible that happened to them, but then i remember that none of this is even remotely similar to my life and i will probably never fathom the extent of the trauma that Ahed and her family have been through. Much to think about

Good read so far (good in the sense that it is well written and engaging, and also in a “good for you” sense—Tamimi provides good insight into organization strategy and the thought that goes into their actions). Finding it sad that the “childhood” section is so overtaken by descriptions of the history of israeli occupation of Palestine and that the childhood section ends after she turns nine.

Finding this a very engaging and fast read. Enjoyable! But do feel like i’m being beaten over the head with the themes of grief and childhood trauma a bit. Like does everyone in this story have to have a dead mom and abusive dad. It feels a little heavy but to be fair if i wasnt being beaten over the head with these themes i might not have noticed ! So

Didnt love the style at first—introductory few chapters felt full of unnecessary description and character introductions were saved until like page 20? Which was confusing. But im getting into it and enjoying the plot so far

Enjoying the breakdown of her research methods and explanations of the ways lesbian behaviors appeared in British culture during the time period of study

It is an honor to reread this book-beautifully crafted in narrative and prose, and very engaging. I don’t annotate many books these days, but this one is definitely deserving of meditation and digestion