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Jamie (131 KP) rated When Dimple Met Rishi in Books
Aug 15, 2017
Sweet romance (1 more)
Great commentary about cultural identity
Underdeveloped plot (2 more)
Unconvincing setting
Frustrating main character
A sweet summer romance with potential that just didn't work for me
Sigh. It’s hard for me to decide how to start this review because I found myself confused and disappointed when I finished. I think I suffered a little bit from overhype about this book since it was recommended so highly and talked about like mad over the summer. I wanted to love this book because everything just sounded so perfect: a strong willed STEM girl heroine, a clash between cultures, a sweet summer romance with lots of laughs, and one of the cutest book covers I’ve seen in a long time–I was all over it!
I absolutely adored the first half of this book. I could sympathize with both of the main characters, especially Dimple, whose mother reminded me of my own. I too was that nerdy awkward girl that felt uncomfortable wearing makeup and dresses and found happiness in front of a computer screen grinding out code to make websites and browser games. Like my mom, Dimple’s mother pushes her to be more feminine and doesn’t fully understand modern western culture. Dimple struggles with feeling like an outsider in both of her worlds, an experience shared by many American children with immigrant parents. It made me happy that this duality is explored in the novel as I think it’s important for children and teens that, like me, had difficulties with their cultural identity.
On the other hand there’s Rishi, who embraces his cultural heritage and doesn’t care whether or not he “fits in” with either group. He is still a modern young man adapted to western culture that also values tradition and believes with all of his heart in the fairy tale romance of his parents. He is exceptionally sweet and witty and is pretty much the ideal cute nerd boyfriend. The romance between Dimple and Rishi is swoon-worthy and made my heart melt.. Which was great for exactly half of the book.
With the Insomnia Con setting what I expected was a summer “coding camp” similar to ones like the Make School Summer Academy and others held on college campuses around the country every year. Many of these camps usually offer workshops to practice making programs, opportunities to make professional connections and to meet industry leaders, and very often have competitions where they can create and submit their own apps for a cool cash prize. I guess my expectations were misplaced because What I got, sadly, was high school drama with hook ups and a talent show that turned more into a dance competition? Dance? In a coding camp??
This was the start of when the book stopped working for me.
A large part of Dimple’s story revolves around her desire to develop her own app to catapult her into a successful tech career. The book talks at length about how much this matters to her, how she’s dying to make connections to help her on her way, and how she’s so different from other girls by being interested in coding. The book tells the reader all of these things but fails to actually show the reader these things. It’s easy to forget that the main characters are even at a coding camp because so little time is spent on it. The plot just gets plain weird and doesn’t seem to have any sort of focus, even the romance felt rushed.
Also I’m sorry, the dance competition was exceedingly boring to read. That and, well, the love story has already happened by then so the build up for that is finished as well. So what else was there? I thought heavily about skimming or just putting the book down at that point but I honestly wanted to know if Dimple would win the competition (the app one, not the dance one) and achieve her dream of becoming a high powered STEM girl. I was still optimistic that the book would get back to the code camp, but it never does. In fact, three weeks out of the six week camp is skipped completely as the story fast forwards to the result of the app completion. The more I read the more disappointed I was as the plot became more and more juvenile.
By the 3/4 mark it seemed like there was no story left to tell and was starting to seriously drag. So of course there had to be some drama to keep it going. I hated this part. Dimple’s actions in the later portion of the book quite frankly left me feeling confused because they didn’t make any sense whatsoever. It was frustrating and I quite frankly got a little mad at how Dimple treated Rishi in the latter half of the novel. Such a shame considering how amazing the story set up was and how strong the early chapters were.
The characters drift from dinners, parties, and dance practices with next to no time actually coding and it made for a surprisingly boring and mediocre read for me personally. Even despite my criticisms, When Dimple Met Rishi is still a sweet summer romance that shined in the first half of the book. Just because it didn’t work out so well for me doesn’t mean that it won’t work out for others, in fact I seem to be in quite the minority for this book. This book definitely had a lot of potential and I honestly wish that the tech girl part of the story could have been developed better and for the setting to be a little more convincing.
I absolutely adored the first half of this book. I could sympathize with both of the main characters, especially Dimple, whose mother reminded me of my own. I too was that nerdy awkward girl that felt uncomfortable wearing makeup and dresses and found happiness in front of a computer screen grinding out code to make websites and browser games. Like my mom, Dimple’s mother pushes her to be more feminine and doesn’t fully understand modern western culture. Dimple struggles with feeling like an outsider in both of her worlds, an experience shared by many American children with immigrant parents. It made me happy that this duality is explored in the novel as I think it’s important for children and teens that, like me, had difficulties with their cultural identity.
On the other hand there’s Rishi, who embraces his cultural heritage and doesn’t care whether or not he “fits in” with either group. He is still a modern young man adapted to western culture that also values tradition and believes with all of his heart in the fairy tale romance of his parents. He is exceptionally sweet and witty and is pretty much the ideal cute nerd boyfriend. The romance between Dimple and Rishi is swoon-worthy and made my heart melt.. Which was great for exactly half of the book.
With the Insomnia Con setting what I expected was a summer “coding camp” similar to ones like the Make School Summer Academy and others held on college campuses around the country every year. Many of these camps usually offer workshops to practice making programs, opportunities to make professional connections and to meet industry leaders, and very often have competitions where they can create and submit their own apps for a cool cash prize. I guess my expectations were misplaced because What I got, sadly, was high school drama with hook ups and a talent show that turned more into a dance competition? Dance? In a coding camp??
This was the start of when the book stopped working for me.
A large part of Dimple’s story revolves around her desire to develop her own app to catapult her into a successful tech career. The book talks at length about how much this matters to her, how she’s dying to make connections to help her on her way, and how she’s so different from other girls by being interested in coding. The book tells the reader all of these things but fails to actually show the reader these things. It’s easy to forget that the main characters are even at a coding camp because so little time is spent on it. The plot just gets plain weird and doesn’t seem to have any sort of focus, even the romance felt rushed.
Also I’m sorry, the dance competition was exceedingly boring to read. That and, well, the love story has already happened by then so the build up for that is finished as well. So what else was there? I thought heavily about skimming or just putting the book down at that point but I honestly wanted to know if Dimple would win the competition (the app one, not the dance one) and achieve her dream of becoming a high powered STEM girl. I was still optimistic that the book would get back to the code camp, but it never does. In fact, three weeks out of the six week camp is skipped completely as the story fast forwards to the result of the app completion. The more I read the more disappointed I was as the plot became more and more juvenile.
By the 3/4 mark it seemed like there was no story left to tell and was starting to seriously drag. So of course there had to be some drama to keep it going. I hated this part. Dimple’s actions in the later portion of the book quite frankly left me feeling confused because they didn’t make any sense whatsoever. It was frustrating and I quite frankly got a little mad at how Dimple treated Rishi in the latter half of the novel. Such a shame considering how amazing the story set up was and how strong the early chapters were.
The characters drift from dinners, parties, and dance practices with next to no time actually coding and it made for a surprisingly boring and mediocre read for me personally. Even despite my criticisms, When Dimple Met Rishi is still a sweet summer romance that shined in the first half of the book. Just because it didn’t work out so well for me doesn’t mean that it won’t work out for others, in fact I seem to be in quite the minority for this book. This book definitely had a lot of potential and I honestly wish that the tech girl part of the story could have been developed better and for the setting to be a little more convincing.
Quinn Blackburn (3 KP) rated Unwind (Unwind, #1) in Books
May 14, 2018
Render Unto Cesar
Shusterman takes dystopian futures a step above the ordinary in this dark coming of age tale. In the not too distant future a war was fought in the U.S. over abortion, the 2nd Civil War. To appease all sides an unthinkable accord was reached. Instead of abortion, between the ages of 13 and 18 you can choose to send your child to a Harvest camp to be unwound, taken apart and all their body parts donated to others. We are given three characters with differing perspectives through which we see the workings of this world.
One angry young man always in fights whose parents have given up reaching him. One orphan, a Stork, left on someone's doorstep years ago who doesn't make the necessary grades to keep her off the Harvest camp bus. And Lev, who was conceived and raised by his devoutly religious parents as a Tithe, someone specifically born to be unwound in the church's name. This unlikely trio meet on their way to be unwound and all three are at a loss as to what to do when a resistance movement effort frees them from the bus.
What about Lev's glorious destiny to be unwound for God; is he still chosen, still a willing sacrifice? Where do you go when society says you no longer have the right to live? Who will help you survive in secret until you are too old to be unwound? How can you avoid the bounty hunters who live to capture escapees? What happens to the soul of an Unwound? Do they live on, a second conscience, a wisp of memories, within the body of their new host? Does anyone have the right to decide who in society has the right to live and who would be more useful unwound?
The writer immerses us completely in this bizarre yet oh so familiar society giving us plenty of perspectives from every level. He even included tv and radio commercials to help us understand how normal it has become to consider unwinding another human being. The creep factor is high and sustains itself through all three books in this set. Unwind introduces us to the world of the unwound in a well told thought provoking tale that may have you questioning everything you thought you ever knew about yourself.
One angry young man always in fights whose parents have given up reaching him. One orphan, a Stork, left on someone's doorstep years ago who doesn't make the necessary grades to keep her off the Harvest camp bus. And Lev, who was conceived and raised by his devoutly religious parents as a Tithe, someone specifically born to be unwound in the church's name. This unlikely trio meet on their way to be unwound and all three are at a loss as to what to do when a resistance movement effort frees them from the bus.
What about Lev's glorious destiny to be unwound for God; is he still chosen, still a willing sacrifice? Where do you go when society says you no longer have the right to live? Who will help you survive in secret until you are too old to be unwound? How can you avoid the bounty hunters who live to capture escapees? What happens to the soul of an Unwound? Do they live on, a second conscience, a wisp of memories, within the body of their new host? Does anyone have the right to decide who in society has the right to live and who would be more useful unwound?
The writer immerses us completely in this bizarre yet oh so familiar society giving us plenty of perspectives from every level. He even included tv and radio commercials to help us understand how normal it has become to consider unwinding another human being. The creep factor is high and sustains itself through all three books in this set. Unwind introduces us to the world of the unwound in a well told thought provoking tale that may have you questioning everything you thought you ever knew about yourself.
The Soviet Gulag: Evidence, Interpretation and Comparison
Book
Before the collapse of the Soviet Union and the subsequent archival revolution, Aleksandr...
Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated My Absolute Darling in Books
Dec 31, 2017
Really struggled to get into this
This is one of those love/hate type of books, and unfortunately I fall into the latter camp. An extremely triggering and sensitive subject tackled here by author Gabriel Tallent - the topic of child sexual abuse written in the perspective of a young girl, Turtle, and her relationship with her father, Martin, who is responsible for abusing her. As she develops, she becomes more aware of her situation and the precarious horrors that she faces.
The major issue here is the gratuitous language used by the author, to describe Turtle's violent circumstance - it almost sounds pornographic rather than terrifying. While I can see Tallent's attempts to show Turtle internalising the language used by her father, it becomes overused and cliched. The pair are portrayed as gun-toting, hill-billy, survivalists and at one point, are even seen to read Deliverance. It is hyperbolic by the end in her bid to find justice, and for many survivors - this just isn't the case.
It does make sense why so many women have criticised his writing, he should probably try to stick to something a little closer to home.
The major issue here is the gratuitous language used by the author, to describe Turtle's violent circumstance - it almost sounds pornographic rather than terrifying. While I can see Tallent's attempts to show Turtle internalising the language used by her father, it becomes overused and cliched. The pair are portrayed as gun-toting, hill-billy, survivalists and at one point, are even seen to read Deliverance. It is hyperbolic by the end in her bid to find justice, and for many survivors - this just isn't the case.
It does make sense why so many women have criticised his writing, he should probably try to stick to something a little closer to home.
I have mixed feelings about this book. I can't say it's bad, because I've taught 95% of the projects before. they're great projects! But as an artist and art instructor, I've seen kids do more than what is in this book (for some of the projects). Some of the projects are very simple things you could find over the internet. Some are things you do in elementary school. It's got a broad mix of really cool projects with a lot of potential, and really dull projects that I know kids don't really respond to very well.
However, I did find three or four projects that are pretty cool, that I'm definitely implementing aspects of in my extended camp this summer!
That being said, this book is great for students who want to do art but don't have any kind of local art class institution, teachers who are looking for a good collection to fit a wide age range, and maybe homeschool parents who want their kids to have art but don't know where to start.
Kids art class teacher? not so much. You probably already know them.
However, I did find three or four projects that are pretty cool, that I'm definitely implementing aspects of in my extended camp this summer!
That being said, this book is great for students who want to do art but don't have any kind of local art class institution, teachers who are looking for a good collection to fit a wide age range, and maybe homeschool parents who want their kids to have art but don't know where to start.
Kids art class teacher? not so much. You probably already know them.
Lou Grande (148 KP) rated The Endless (2018) in Movies
Jul 20, 2018
I saw Benson and Moorhead’s Resolution (2012) back when it was released, so I was excited when I saw they would be teaming up again for The Endless. Especially when it was marketed as Lovecraftian with a cult theme. Maybe I built it up too much in my mind, because I was really disappointed.
Two brothers have escaped from a UFO Doomsday cult and participate in deproframming while eking out a meager existence. Until they receive a cassette with a message from one of the cult members. They decide to return to “Camp Arcadia” to “get it out of their system.”
The Endless is a slow burn that ultimately fizzles. It involves time travel and something vast and infinite in the woods. Normally I’d be right on board, but this movie was really...boring. I’ve never seen a bunch of white guys that looked so similar, and the setting gets monotonous after a too-long run time of 112 minutes. There are callbacks to Resolution that answer questions for that film, but raise more for the one you’re watching. The effects (when utilized) were meh. I expected cosmic horror and got—well, nothing, really.
Two brothers have escaped from a UFO Doomsday cult and participate in deproframming while eking out a meager existence. Until they receive a cassette with a message from one of the cult members. They decide to return to “Camp Arcadia” to “get it out of their system.”
The Endless is a slow burn that ultimately fizzles. It involves time travel and something vast and infinite in the woods. Normally I’d be right on board, but this movie was really...boring. I’ve never seen a bunch of white guys that looked so similar, and the setting gets monotonous after a too-long run time of 112 minutes. There are callbacks to Resolution that answer questions for that film, but raise more for the one you’re watching. The effects (when utilized) were meh. I expected cosmic horror and got—well, nothing, really.
Lorna Cant (51 KP) rated The Nightingale in Books
Jan 14, 2020
I honestly thought this was going to be a run of the mill WW2 story, but I was so wrong! These two sisters, one young, vivacious and spirited, the other older, settled and inclined to play it safe are so different, yet where it really counts each are as brave as the other.
Isabelle, the younger, is wild and impetuous. When Nazis invade their home town, she immediately wants to fight, regardless of the consequences. Taking an active part in the resistance she belies her years.
Older sister Vianne is more conservative. Married since she was 16, living in the family home that has been theirs for generations she is settled, keeps her head down and doesnt want to draw attention to herself.
Appearances can be deceptive. Even with Nazi officers billeted at her home, she proves that a mother is willing to do anything to protect her children, especially with her husband interned in a POW camp.
The stories these women have to tell are extraordinary, each of the finding in themselves a bravery they didn't know they had until they had to find it. Beautifully written, heart breaking. Extraordinary.
Isabelle, the younger, is wild and impetuous. When Nazis invade their home town, she immediately wants to fight, regardless of the consequences. Taking an active part in the resistance she belies her years.
Older sister Vianne is more conservative. Married since she was 16, living in the family home that has been theirs for generations she is settled, keeps her head down and doesnt want to draw attention to herself.
Appearances can be deceptive. Even with Nazi officers billeted at her home, she proves that a mother is willing to do anything to protect her children, especially with her husband interned in a POW camp.
The stories these women have to tell are extraordinary, each of the finding in themselves a bravery they didn't know they had until they had to find it. Beautifully written, heart breaking. Extraordinary.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Naked Jungle (1954) in Movies
Jan 29, 2020
Nothing to do with Keith Chegwin, thank God. Slightly stodgy romance as plantation owner Charlton Heston sorts himself out with a mail-order bride and gets more than he bargained for in the form of Eleanor Parker. He is very stern and formal and calls her 'Madam' a lot; she is self-willed and feisty; sexual tension hangs in the air like the pong from a backed-up toilet but they seem stuck in an impasse until ferocious marabunta ants start swarming through the neighbourhood. (The ants only appear in the final act of the movie; one could wish they'd turn up sooner.)
Hard to say which is more awkward to watch nowadays, the depiction of the locals or the gender politics, but there is a certain camp fun to be had once the army ants finally show up: there are various scenes of people watching the ants through binoculars, while Heston's aargh-I'm-being-eaten-alive acting is as earnestly stoic as you might expect. Just about succeeds at what it sets out to do, and the structure of the story is solid, but very old-fashioned and corny.
Hard to say which is more awkward to watch nowadays, the depiction of the locals or the gender politics, but there is a certain camp fun to be had once the army ants finally show up: there are various scenes of people watching the ants through binoculars, while Heston's aargh-I'm-being-eaten-alive acting is as earnestly stoic as you might expect. Just about succeeds at what it sets out to do, and the structure of the story is solid, but very old-fashioned and corny.
Merissa (13931 KP) rated Together Bound (Sentries #2) in Books
Jan 9, 2020
TOGETHER BOUND is the second book in the Sentries series and we continue with Todd and Nicky's story. I would definitely recommend reading this as a series as we deal with the same characters in the same world and if you don't, then this may not make any sense at all!
Todd and Nicky go undercover at a slave rehabilitation camp to try and find out if the Chancellor has gone crazy or not. It turns out he's not crazy, but he's not himself either! This is a dangerous mission, more so for Nicky in many ways, but Todd has his own battles to fight too.
I loved returning to their world and seeing how they interact with each other. I don't think this was as "hot and heavy" as the first book but there are definitely moments where Todd goes Alpha!
There is a great cast of characters in this book and I would love to hear more from them in future books. A fantastic ending that wraps up this part of their story nicely whilst leading onto the next... which I CAN'T WAIT FOR!!!
Definitely recommended by me and bring on the next!
Todd and Nicky go undercover at a slave rehabilitation camp to try and find out if the Chancellor has gone crazy or not. It turns out he's not crazy, but he's not himself either! This is a dangerous mission, more so for Nicky in many ways, but Todd has his own battles to fight too.
I loved returning to their world and seeing how they interact with each other. I don't think this was as "hot and heavy" as the first book but there are definitely moments where Todd goes Alpha!
There is a great cast of characters in this book and I would love to hear more from them in future books. A fantastic ending that wraps up this part of their story nicely whilst leading onto the next... which I CAN'T WAIT FOR!!!
Definitely recommended by me and bring on the next!
The Lightless Sky: My Journey to Safety as a Child Refugee
Gulwali Passarlay and Nadene Ghouri
Book
'To risk my life had to mean something. Otherwise what was it all for?' Gulwali Passarlay was sent...