Soop’s Reviews > The Emperor of Gladness > Status Update

I’m starting to think nothing I thought would happen in this book will happen lmao. Which is good and bad. I want something to happen between Hai and Russia (obviously), but of course (obviously) I want Sony to have an incredible happy ending. I also want Hai to reunite with his mom, but I don’t know how that will happen without a huge fight.

Yep it’s gay now let’s GOOO it’s not like because ocean is gay he has to only write gay characters but like do we need more straight male protagonists—no. And ocean’s writing on sexuality is among the best writing PERIOD so I would have been very disappointed if his long awaited second novel didn’t comment on societal conceptions of sexuality and masculinity.

If anything happens to Sony I’m throwing a bitch fit and taking everyone down with me.

Yeah. I kinda like it now. Note to self to analyze the meaning of corn bread in this book. What does it symbolize? What purpose does it serve in this book?

Near the end of the scene where they ride the bathtub I started to get the scene. I saw it and it was beautiful and sad.

Had to pop in to say a few things. 1. The first chapter was so intriguing. I loved the writing, even if at times I was like “bro it’s just Connecticut”. In the end I bought that CT was a deep place forgotten by the world and a land of broken dreams. 2. But I’m not buying this Grazina woman and I definitely don’t buy that Hai suddenly got an epiphany crushing bread. Very disappointing so far tbh