Xandra > Recent Status Updates

Cory Doctorow my beloved, thank you for always maintaining your optimistic worldview in the face of doom and despair and also for coining a funny word that I can use in very specific academic settings

If this book ends up being really good I still won't be able to recommend it because it just assumes you're deep into Warcraft lore already

If anyone asks, I'm reading this because it is a well written dystopia that says a lot about our society and totally not because there was a sexist meme disparaging how women's fiction is all about breeding and this was the only book I hadn't read and I'm going for a completionist run out of spite

I'm probably dropping this book, it feels so surface level or corporate that it's almost painful. It's like taking a required Title IX or DEI course for a job/school. I was hoping at this point the book would be beyond subjects like "what does disability mean?". This shit is truly a manifesto, in the way that a small leaflet hand-out is, but it's frustratingly long

I feel the reading hyperfixation fading, I need to read something super trashy to maintain it

I feel the reading hyperfixation fading, I need to read something super trashy to maintain it

Rereading this book because I legitimately believe it's one of the more important texts in 3rd wave feminism. A lot of of modern sexism often comes from everyone being victimized because of transphobia. The most extreme example is invasive searches of women's bodies in sports, but smaller instances of femininity being slandered by targeting trans women happens a lot.

Okay yes, the book is exactly what you think based on the title and cover, but hear me out. A friend recommended this to me saying that the worldbuilding and characters were legitimately wonderful, and omg they were totally right. The world being human-centrist and making other species conform in a world not built for them is fascinating.

It's like if Monster Musume was way more lewd and actually explored the world

Not gonna lie, I'm bored out of my mind reading this. It feels like a very surface level discussion of ableism that you would get in like an hour long DEI seminar at work. It feels very safe and corporate and much more like "check your privilege and examine your inherent biases" rather than anything radical or promoting change.

At first I was like "wow this book is so cool" but now the author keeps going on tangents on his time in the IDF which feels like when a professor starts bragging because they have extra time when they finish their lecture. There's also the general ickiness of him glazing the IDF when they're currently instigating a genocide that was arguably well underway 15 years ago when this book was written

I'm emotionally invested in the book and want to see where it goes, but so far it's been a tough read. The best characters from the first book are gone and the format of the book is incredibly fragmented and all over the place. I'm gonna let Muir cook, but I need a bit of a break from this dense, confusing read for something more pulpy and fun before I go back to finish Harrow the Ninth.

I love her poetry so much, but there's something both magical and slightly exhausting about a novel length shit post. It's a new experience and I'm having a great time!