drekklin's reviews
168 reviews

Nobody Move by Denis Johnson

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dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Tense, dark, violent, and funny in moments. This was sort of whirlwind with less of a resolution than a release of tension at the end. Not my favorite by Denis Johnson but still glad I read it.
Fire Sea by Tracy Hickman, Margaret Weis

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adventurous emotional funny
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Another great installment in this series. It felt tonally different from Elven Star, but not outside of the range I’d expect. A satisfying story that keeps the pages turning
Coriolanus by William Shakespeare

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I read this because I saw a live production. It is an interesting, out-of-the-norm play for Shakespeare— I think I need to read his other plays in earnest
Scrambled Eggs & Whiskey: Poems, 1991-1995 by Hayden Carruth

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dark emotional funny reflective sad

4.5

Hayden Carruth is quickly becoming one of my favorite poets to read. He has some of the approachability of Billy Collins while being able to dig deeper into darkness.
Monster Colored Glasses by Ken Yoshikawa

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funny sad

4.5

Ken Yoshikawa is a great performer. Hearing him read his poetry in the Pacific Northwest was worthwhile. Some of the poems in this collection lend themselves more to being heard out loud than being read on the page
The Boss by Victoria Chang

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4.0

I like Chang’s lack of punctuation and how she plays with overlapping phrases and lines, taking the reader into stream-of-consciousness, word-association madness. Some of the rhyming and wordplay felt forced or unnecessary, but mostly she hit the mark for me. Will definitely read more from her
Footnotes in the Order of Disappearance: Poems by Fady Joudah

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emotional funny sad medium-paced

5.0

His poetry contains a lot of variety , but a great vocabulary and unique way of phrasing things is present across every poem. Great collection 
Lamb to the Slaughter and Other Stories by Roald Dahl

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dark funny medium-paced

4.0

Good short stories. Not sure which was my favorite — The Bookseller was great but ended abruptly, I felt. Each story sort of reaches the same conclusion in its own way, or so it felt.
Reconnaissance: Poems by Carl Phillips

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reflective

5.0

Blown away by this little book. What a poet. I’ll definitely be reading more of his work 
Labors of Mercy by Zia Pollis

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emotional hopeful reflective

5.0

A potent little collection from Zia Pollis. The language flows freely and easily, even when the poet covers emotionally raw subject matter