F. Scott Fitzgerald
"I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life"
Before reading this book, I did not realize that classics could be enjoyable. Not only that, I didn't realize that classics could be easily understandable. The Great Gatsby was one of the first books that I read which showed me a book does not need laboriously flowery prose featuring words with fourteen syllables to be beautiful.
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Fitzgerald has a way with words that is equally concise, impactful, and poetic. This book showed me that simplicity can be beautiful.
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This book that showed me that even though my words can be simple, they are still beautiful.
Erin Morgenstern
"You may tell a tale that takes up residence in someone's soul, becomes their blood and self and purpose."
I have been immersed in books before, but never before had I felt like I was in a book until reading this one. Morgenstern uniquely utilizes second person point of view in portions of this novel that literally invite the reader to see the circus.
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As an avid book reader, this feeling of inclusion was so poignant that I cried upon the first time reading it.
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I want to make others feel that deeply, beautifully emotional, too.
Becky Chambers
"All you can do, Rosemary—all any of us can do—is work to be something positive instead. That is a choice that every sapient must make every day of their life. The universe is what we make of it. It’s up to you to decide what part you will play."
I have always considered science fiction to be fluff reading. This novel proved me wrong. This novel elegantly leads conversations about racism, xenophobia, and hatred with a cozy, easy to follow narrative about a ragtag inter-species team of mercenaries stuck on a long-haul space journey together.
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Chambers is graceful with her choice of words, and she carefully weaves hard conversations with a lush, unique science fiction world in a way that forces readers to navigate these uncomfortable topics in an approachable, thoughtful way.
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It's genius, and it is work like hers that I strive to produce.