3 Mini Reviews

I am reviewing three books that I read earlier this year and took my sweet time reading/listening to. Here we go:



The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Format: Ebook
More info: Goodreads

I was very hesitant to read this book. I am not of a poetry person. I can only take a few poems at a time but I can never find myself engrossed in a book written in this format. However, this one completely grabbed me!

I fell in love with the main character, Xiomara. The way she described her emotions and the events in prose really called to me. I found myself feeling frustrated, sad, happy, inspired, and hopeful. I had no idea I was going to be so emotional with this book. I rate it: 5 stars


Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga
Narrated by Vaneh Assadourian
Duration: 3 hours 45 minutes
More Info: Goodreads

I am a sucker for books with Middle Eastern representation. I did not realized that this book was written in verse until after listening to it for an hour. 

This was breathtakingly written. The protagonist was a young girl from Syria who fled from her country with her mother to the US leaving behind her father and brother. This book dealt with the struggles of leaving your home and loved ones, assimilation to US culture, preserving your culture, Islamophobia, discrimination, racism, and war. It also had characters from different cultures: Syrian, Korean, Chinese, and American-Lebanese. The narrator did a fantastic job bringing the characters and story to life. I highly enjoyed this audiobook production. I rate it: 4 stars.  




A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena
Narrated by Tavia Gilbert
Duration: 8 hr 52 min
More Info: Goodreads

I have mixed feelings about this book. It had a great plot; it had me hooked and constantly wondering about what was happening. My husband and I listened to this book together and it was fun trying to share our different theories to each other. So that's what made listening to this audio production fun. 

What we both did not like were the characters and the ending. The characters were a little bit irritating for me. I could not find myself liking any of the characters but instead it had me rolling my eyes too often at them. And the ending...yes it was a twist that my husband and I did not think of, but it did not surprise me. In fact, my husband and I both said, "Really?!" This type of ending has been done a little too much with suspense novels lately. It has become tiresome. I won't spoil it though. You'll have to read/listen to it to find out. However, it was still a fun book that entertained us for a few days. I rate it: 3.5 stars.  

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That's all folks!
I hope you enjoyed my thoughts on these three books. 
Happy reading!