Category: 8 Sentence Book Review

Monstress 5: Warchild by Marjorie M. Liu

“The only plan that truly matters is the one you have for yourself.”

4/5 stars.
ebook, 174 pages.
Read September 20, 2021.

An 8 sentence review:

I won’t pretend that I always know everything that’s going on within each of the Montress volumes but with every single one I read, my body of knowledge of the world that Maika Halfwolf inhabits expands and I’m drawn further in. Further, with each one I read, I continue to be blown away by the artwork of Sana Takeda. Breathtaking beautiful, elegant, and vicious.

In this volume, the second war between the Federation and the Arcanics is in full swing and some messy sacrifices have to be made as Maika begins to show and embrace her darker side. The violence and seriousness of the plot are playfully balanced by the cuteness and resilience of Kippa, where even she too, has had to find her fierceness in the face of war.

This volume is a solid piece of work in Maika’s story and while there is little resolution by the end of this volume, it just means that the Liu and Takeda duo have more for their readers in-store, which I happily look forward to. While the collection of lore that is presented to the reader is overwhelming at times it is also one of the many reasons readers return to this world. Monstress is an acclaimed series of graphic novels for a reason and is not to be missed.

Five Little Indians by Michelle Good

My favourite of the five Canada Reads 2022 contenders too.

4/5 stars.
ebook, 330 pages.
Read from February 6, 2022 to February 18, 2022.

An 8-sentence review:

This is the 2022 Canada Reads winner and my favourite book of the five discussed. These two often don’t go hand in hand. This is a phenomenal story of five different Native Americans whose lives were traumatised and brought together by their time at residential schools. The dynamic depiction of the characters and their emotions draw you into their story, along with the intricacies of the suffering inflicted upon them and how it shaped their futures. While the ending is filled with hope, not all of the five get a happy ending. The characters and plot of this story are fictional but the history behind the book and the generational trauma it caused is very real and still lives on today.

This novel deserved the Canada Reads win, with the 2022 theme “One Book to Connect Us”, as this story shows a relevant and important part of Canadian history while following the journey of robust and relatable characters through their struggles. It speaks to our humanity, abilities to help others and as well as our capacity to heal, forgive, and move on. This story is an imperative example of Canada’s history and one that all Canadians and humanitarians should read.

8 Sentence Reviews

Why eight?

In an effort to get caught up on my backlog of reviews, I’m going to try a new format. I’ll dub them eight sentence reviews. They’ll be concise and to the point but will be no more than eight sentences. Why eight? I don’t know seemed like a reasonable amount to get the point across and perhaps bring some entertainment value.

For books that I feel deserve more or that I want to write more on, I will. Who knows, this might prove to be a really effective means of reviewing books, if it doesn’t then it will be a temporary venture until I’m caught up. Let me know your thoughts.

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