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Jaypa/Jepah

@brokebookmt

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Impulsive book hauler and ranter.

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⌞ taipei story ⌝

"We spend our lives planning to ask the right questions once our language catches up. We never imagine running out of time before the vocabulary arrives."

★★★

I don't think I've included everything I thought about as I read the book because I have the memory of a goldfish, but even then I guess I've yapped long enough for this one.

Note: Do excuse the typos! I wrote this on a whim in my notes app and may have edited some sentences as I pasted them into canva, only to miss some words anyway. And I realize now that whenever I use the background remover tool on canva, my post will be labeled AI content :( I'm human leave me alone 👨🏻‍🦯

#bookreview #rfkuang #taipeistory

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More from Huzaifah’s big milestone 🎓

#pennstatephotography #pennstategraduationphotography #pennstategradphotos #altoonaphotographer #photographer

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Big congratulations to Huzaifah on graduating from Penn State 🎓 Thank you for letting me capture this moment.

#altoonaphotographer #pennstategraduationphotography #statecollegephotographer #graduationphotography

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Whoo, I can’t believe I’ve made it through this 600-pager! Don’t get me wrong, I love me some thick books, as long as they keep you engaged. Jonas Hassen Khemiri does keep you guessing and takes you through about thirty years of the characters’ lives. The only issue is that the POV is switched each chapter from third person (talking about the sisters) to first person (the narrator, who met the sisters and wrote their story). Although the chapters are well connected, it was a low/high type of reading, when it gets exciting, but you have to move to another character who’s in a different place.

The story opens on New Year’s Eve in 1999 in Stockholm, where three sisters - Ina (the eldest, tallest, most responsible one), Evelyn (the charming storyteller), and Anastasia Mikkola (the artist who didn’t yet get to do art) are out at a party. From the first chapter, their dynamic, feelings for each other, and insecurities are expressed through their words and thoughts: Ina met Hector at the party, whom she likes and is reluctant to introduce to her more beautiful and interesting (in her opinion sisters); Evelyn organised the party and is at the heart of it, charming people with made-up stories that feel real; Anastasia is desperate to find her on/off boyfriend, Matias, who get her hook on drugs.

The next chapter takes us to the 90s, where the narrator, Jonas, recalls the impact the Mikkola sisters (especially Evelyn) had on him when they lived in the same building as teenagers. Jonas and the sisters come from mixed families, half-Tunisian, half-Swedish and struggle with identity and finding themselves.

(1/2, Cont’d in comments)

#andreeareviews #bookreview #contemporaryfiction #TheSisters #JonasHassenKhemiri #swedishfiction #bookstagram #bookish #bookrecommndation #litfic #readersofIG #reading #readers

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BAHASA MELAYU BOOK RECS FROM BOOKSTAFRIENDS

I'm trying to include more Bahasa Melayu books in my diet, for my own good, and also to support local authors.

This is the full list, in case the reel is too long for you ☺️

1. Sayang Ustazah Sayang by Salmi Manja, recommended by @brokebookmt

2. Batara Guru (Kronikel Dewata) by Lokman Hakim, recommended by @mirareadbooks

3. Kunang Pesisir Morten by Raiha Bahaudin, recommended by @naddie.reads

4. Yang Paling Patah Antara Kita by Ainul Farihah, recommended by @readingoftrisy and @liyareadstoomuch

5. Puteri Naga Tiberius by Sri Rahayu Mohd Yusop, recommended by @meownbooks

6. Merantau ke Deli by Hamka, recommended by @aminatuhanani

7. Teme Abdullah's books recommended by @rahayu.reads :
(i) Pelukis Jalanan
(ii) Bayang Sofea

Drop me your favourite Bahasa Melayu book recs, if you've got any!

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𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒛𝒛𝒐 is 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 at her best, even if I think she is just getting started. 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑧𝑧𝑜 is very differently structured and written compared to Rooney’s other books. There is an evident maturity in character building and writing, giving the book uniqueness. Even though the book is not Rooney-like, it also keeps elements that made me love her: complex, flawed characters that go through a personal crisis (or tragedy), complicated relationships that don’t fit the societal norm of monogamy, social commentary around issues that I care about, and intimate moments delivered with such delicacy and gentleness that they made me crave for closeness. Needless to say, I loved the book and I can’t stop thinking about it. The novel is great from both objective and subjective point of view.

The plot is nothing special at first sight: two brothers, Peter (32, barrister) and Ivan (22, chess master and occasional freelancer to pay the rent), have just lost their father. He had cancer, so his death was not unexpected but extremely painful for both of them regardless. The brothers process grief differently, as they have opposite characters: Peter is an extrovert, successful, obsessed with being right and wealthy, and has a carefully curated set of rich friends that are meant to make him forget that he is the son of an immigrant. Ivan is quiet, hinted at as autistic, and has a very small circle of close friends. He’s not very good with people, in social situations, or sharing his feelings in a way that doesn’t upset or offend others.

(1/4 Cont’ed in Comments - I told you this review would be wordy!)

#andreeareviews #bookreview #Intermezzo #SallyRooney #Irishliterature #contemporaryfiction #literaryfiction #litfic #reading #bookstagram #reader #bookish #booklover #bookworm #Roonyfan #irishbooks #loveSallryRooney

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literally. she ate and left no crumbs

📖 part of your world by abby jimenez

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2023 reading recap 🌞

It has come—that time of year of reflection, wrap-ups and evaluation! Honestly, where has the year gone, I swear it feels like I just did an end-of-year wrap up a few months ago 🫣 i had to change my reading goals halfway through the year, sometimes life gets in the way or reading slumps get the better of us, but I’m glad to have still consumed beautiful, exquisite writing that I’ll never forget—ever.

My reading recap takes a look at some stats and my greatest hits from 2023, swipe swipe swipe away 🧡

Do we have any favourites in common? Please tag me in your wrap ups, I love to see them!! And before I forget, happy 2024 lovelies!!!! 🌞✨😘☀️🌸🌱🩷

Edit: also oops, forgot to add in my top genres—
☀️ contemporary
☀️ literary
☀️ thriller
☀️ romance
☀️ short stories

#bookstagram #readingyear #reading #recap2023 #bookyear #booksta #bookish #books #currentlyreading #bookrecs #bookrecommendations #bookblogger #booklover #igreads #instareads #bookworm #bookshelf #ilovebooks #bookaddict #bookphotography #booksbooksbooks

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📌 book title: never never
📌 author: Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher
📌 rating: 3 ⭐️

Never Never had me thinking in the beginning that this could be at least 4.5 stars, but it lost me as it progressed.

started off with charlie (female mc) and silas (guy mc) not remembering any single thing, any single person, in their life. not even each other. heck they couldn’t even remember who they are, their own name, what they like and hate. so they had to pretend to their friends and family (who aren’t experiencing this weird thing) that they… know what’s going on. like nothing is happening to them.

the whole part 1 was purely intriguing i wish i could give 5 stars to only the first part. i also love how charlie and silas slowly fall for each other again, like they’re familiar with one another and it’s always been each other.

as charlie and silas unravel the truth, the book started to lose me since the plot is not executed well. things started to not make sense realistically, at least to me. their chemistry also began to feel forced as the story continued, because look, them forgetting again for every 48 hours and restarting everything— they couldn’t have fallen for one another that fast, EACH time huh?

the resolution to nash-wynwood conflict (one of the conflicts in the book) was also rushed and,…. simple? no way in real life it could end just like that..?

nonetheless, i genuinely enjoyed the reading process of Never Never. would i recommend? you can try. would i hold a gun to your head and make sure you read this book? not really.

thank you miss @putrifariza & @times.reads for a copy of the book in exchange of an honest review! 🌷

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i was ready to come back home with “here are the books i finished during my vacation” LMAO u wish! the only “picture for bookstagram” that i took was the first clip (i thought i could get a lot ANOTHER LMAO)

tell me i’m not the only one with this problem HAHA

p/s: on a side note, that means vietnam was REAL fun. tôi muốn bánh mì AGAIN 🥹

another p/s: audio inspired by meg girlie @bibliophilogy 🌻🤍

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📌 book title: the snow in kuala lumpur
📌 author: Daryl Lim
📌 rating: 4 ⭐️

i had a love-hate relationship with this book, but it sort-of redeemed itself in the end.

it started off with intriguing storyline of two cousins in the 1960s Malaysia, Ah Tat and Kin Chew, whose families leave together in a kampung house; to be precise, Kin Chew and his mother had been living with Ah Tat's family since KC's father left them to work in town. this book revolves around Ah Tat’s growth in life and his friendship with KC.

Daryl Lim’s writing style is not too descriptive, which is to my liking, so i might consider reading other books written by the author. in fact, lots of reviews have said that it’s too heavy on politics, but i found myself enjoying the discussion so this book works for me. though not all opinions of the author align with mine, it’s refreshing to read about malaysia’s historical events from the perspective of a chinese main character.

one part which could’ve been improved is the story-telling of historical events; the May 13 incident in this case (the worst racial riot in malaysia). though i understand that one of the main points of the story is to portray the racism issue that the chinese main character experienced, the story-telling on the May 13 incident should’ve been told for both parties; what i meant by this is there should’ve at least been an acknowledgment or description of how not just the chinese were killed, but some malays were too (my point is: innocent people on both parties were killed during the riot, but none of the latter was mentioned or addressed in the book). for reference, ‘the weight of our sky’ by hanna alkaf has a great story-telling of the tragedy as it made me open my mind and think about the violence that BOTH parties had made, since it addressed the selfishness of *both* races at that time.

overall, it’s a brave and thought-provoking book which could either be a hit or a miss. thank you so much to @penguinbookssea @chai_n_books for a copy of this book! ✨❄️

other reviews on this book: @elvinareads | @shahridzuanpages | @lysareading | @legenbooksdary | @zeebooksandmojito

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pretty lil turquoise #bookishcolorstudy + #readingupdate

finished the first year of my degree mid july (!!!) so i’ve had lots of time to read recently :) i’m currently knee-deep into ‘the night shift’ by alex finlay (which has been on my tbr for a looong time) but i’m not finding it as engaging as the other thrillers i’ve read this month? maybe it’s just cause i haven’t made it to the juicy parts yet idk. i’ll give it till the 50% mark before i decide whether or not to continue

i’m in the midst of curating a thriller/crime/horror tbr and i’ve been sourcing recs from goodreads, booksta, storygraph, etc. so far i have 14 books and the overpowering urge to start all of them at once 😮‍💨 there are some that stand out more, though, like ‘the last one’ by will dean, which is about a woman waking up on a cruise and finding that she’s the only one on board, ‘dead silence’ by s.a. barnes, about a crew stumbling upon a haunted space cruiser, and ‘this is how we end things’ by r.j. jacobs—a psychological thriller in a dark academia setting. need i say more?

i’ve read two other thrillers this month—'hide’ by kiersten white and ‘sundial’ by catriona ward—and they both lived up to my expectations (even exceeded them, really). i’ll be posting a rave review for sundial soon bc at no point was i able to predict where the storyline would lead. it was so weird but at the same time deliciously creepy and engrossing and i could NOT get enough of it (why did it have to end the way it did 😕). cat ward’s latest book ‘looking glass sound’ is also on my tbr so i can’t wait to get around to reading it!! some other books by familiar authors are ‘all the dangerous things’ by stacy willingham and ‘the only one left’ by riley sager. hoping that they’ll absolutely blow my mind <3

qotd: what are you currently reading and how are you enjoying it so far? (more thriller/horror recs are also welcome 😋)

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