joegreenbooks

[joegreenbooks]

📌My Physics Expeditions━━━━━━ On Respectability Politics in Physics

I read an article where a well-known female physicist, I won’t name her said that in physics, appearance opens doors. while I understand that for her generation, this may have been necessary for survival, I think this mindset has become another way that the system holds people back. The idea that we must be polished, polite, and the “best version” of ourselves keeps women—and especially gender-nonconforming people—on a pedestal built by the patriarchy and maintained by others, including women in power.

physics isn’t about how you look. it’s about curiosity, questions, and engaging with the unknown. it’s not about who’s the most knowledgeable, because waiting until you “know everything” means you never get to do anything. doing is more important than perfection. we should value participation and inquiry, not just polish.

And for those of us who present more masculine or gender non-conforming, those standards are simply wrong. We don’t need long hair, suits, or a soft voice to be taken seriously. My doors didn’t open because I fit an image—they opened because I consistently showed up with ideas, questions, and genuine commitment to the work.

hearing someone so accomplished still impose these outdated standards feels disappointing. brilliance doesn’t excuse reinforcing respectability politics. science should be expansive, not exclusive. if the field wants to evolve, it needs to stop confusing professionalism with conformity.

(2)

*if one day, I end up with a biography, I’m screwed.

[joegreenbooks]

[joegreenbooks]

[joegreenbooks]

[joegreenbooks]

[joegreenbooks]

It’s uncanny how similar Trump is acting like Hitler. People are now doing the Nazi salute. They’re drawing the symbol. The KKK was seen in Kentucky asking people to join them. ICE has been ripping families apart. Companies have pulled back Diversity Initiatives. We’re no longer part of WHO and there won’t be any communication from the CDC at least until February 1st. We’re being censored and the news can’t be trusted. Thousands of Americans didn’t know there were protests against Trump yesterday outside the U.S. Quotes from The Handmaid’s Tale and Anne Frank have been compared to what’s going on right now.

According to The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Studies and Prevention the U.S. has officially been given a red flag alert for Genocide.

I’m exhausted but I will never stop being angry.

[joegreenbooks]

Bro absolutely COOKED with this.

EDIT: Y'all OOP is not whitewashing and brushing past the crimes of the fucking Taliban, they're simply pointing out that unlike the American elite- who have never suffered a day in their lives- terrorists like the Taliban usually go through some radicalizing event caused by poor life circumstances. That absolutely does not excuse or condone the horrible things they do, of course.

Also, Somali pirates and the Taliban were explicitly mentioned because this comment is in response to a couple of their former hostages saying said groups supplied them with soap and toothpaste, which the US government refuses to give to migrants. You can stop misinterpreting and derailing this post now, thanks.

[joegreenbooks]

Rebel Witch 🧙🏻

Review

LOVE!! I absolutely devoured this book—it was so much fun from start to finish. I don’t say this often (or like, ever), but I think I liked this book even more than the first one.

I loved the first book, but I never really believed the main characters loved each other. In fact, I thought they were toxic. But in this book? Their love actually developed, and it felt so real and raw. The romance tropes are basically the same as the first one—forbidden love, enemies to lovers, born to kill each other, close proximity—but this time, it was so much better because of the foundation laid in book one. The tension was higher, the emotions were more volatile, and it was just... sooooo good.

Another thing I loved was how seamless the author's writing is. The story doesn’t feel blocky, like: "Okay, this chapter needs an action scene. Alright, now we have to build the romance. Oh, wait—time for character development." Instead, the romance, plot, and character arcs just flow so naturally into each other.

The only thing I can say is that the final act felt a bit anticlimactic—at least, not as thrilling as the first book. AND WHY DIDN’T WE GET TO SEE THEM GET MARRIED?!?!

[joegreenbooks]

Illusion of Stars ✨

Review

I was expecting a fun but surface-level read, but that definitely wasn’t what I got. For some reason, I was really emotional while reading this—every time Hans was mentioned, I started bawling my eyes out. I’m not sure what wound this book was poking at, but despite my volatile emotions, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

What really stuck with me wasn’t the plot or even the romance—it was the main character. I was deeply moved by her character development throughout the book. At the start, she’s dismissive of herself and what she can achieve, constantly repeating, “I’m a nobody. What can I do?” But over time, she learns to recognize her strength and worth.

And yeah, this trope has been done a million times, but this time, it felt a little more personal, and that really struck me. I think it was because of the author’s note—she shared how not being seen was something she struggled with, and that added another layer of meaning.

Either way this book was powerful in its own quiet way.

[joegreenbooks]

Spanish Love Deception 🌮

Review

I loved this book sooo much, omg. I've been struggling with romance lately—every single romance I've read has been so goddamn boring. But this book reminded me why I love this genre so much. It felt like I was transported back to 15-year-old me, reading romance for the first time, giggling and getting butterflies.

Is this book groundbreaking for the genre? No. Did it blow my mind? No. Did it change the way I think? No, and it doesn’t have to—I love it just as it is.

There's a quote in it that I've been thinking about: "What's the minimum length of time with the power to change your life? A year? A day? A few minutes?" I'm not sure if the author can be credited with this quote since the main character mentions seeing it in a TV show, but this book is where I first heard it. I've pondered that question for a while, yet I still don't know my answer.

Such a wholesome and fun read!! Exactly what I needed.

[joegreenbooks]

Book Lover 📚

Review

The more I think about Book Lovers, the more positive aspects I can recall—but that doesn't change the fact that I was bored while reading it. I often found myself zoning out, and couldn’t be bothered enough to go back and re-read the passages I missed.

There were themes I wish had been explored in more depth, particularly the dynamic between Nora’s mother and her sister Libby. Nora views her mother as a symbol of hope and magic, while Libby, in one scene, complains that their mother treated Nora more like an adult than a child, placing too much responsibility on her. Nora brushes this off, and unfortunately, the topic is never revisited. I found this disappointing because of the missed potential. Emily Henry has touched on grief and parental loss in her previous works, and MAYBE that’s why this theme wasn’t given as much attention here. However, there are so many nuances and layers to grief that could have been explored, and I would have appreciated at least one conversation between the sisters about their differing perspectives on their mother.

That said, I did enjoy the dynamic between the two sisters. I also appreciated the message I took away from the book: that love evolves as people do, that compromises are part of loving someone, and that the deeper the love, the more it can hurt—but it never dims. Love isn’t tied to a singular place but moves with the people it connects.

Overall, I saw a lot of myself in the main character, but the story didn’t fully capture my interest or move me deeply. Will I still read Emily Henry’s books? Yes. Would I recommend this one? If I remember it.

[joegreenbooks]

Quicksliver 🦋

Review

Idk if this is a 3 or 4 stars.

Overall I'm a little disappointed, a lot of people were singinggg praises for this book so I thought it would be much better than…what I just read. DONT GET ME WRONG. It was fun, like I couldn't put the book down and…oh how I love Carrion. (I'm not making fun of anybody who liked the book, the praises just gave me high standards)

There were a few elements to it that I found intriguing but it was just that. Elements. Crumbs. This book had a lot of potential but there was something off about it. For example (though I did enjoy it): the romance. The transition from enemies to lovers felt like I missed a few chapters. One minute Fisher was belittling, humiliating etc, etc, Saeris and then next thing you know he's all sad smiles and gently holding her hands. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE TRANSITION. I want those moments where they're no longer enemies but also not lovers and maybe friends and they're caught staring at each other and then quickly look away or they don't realize they've been holding hands or you think they're going to kiss but they don't Iddkk.

Also. BIG ALSO

There was so much telling and no showing. From the backstories to world-building to the magic system, it was mostly told, not shown. You really wonder wtf 600+ pages was for. The characters were also so unfazed like why did everybody just forget about Everlayne for a second. There was no thrill, no stakes, these characters just lacked emotion.

I feel like this book would have been so good if it was crunched down to around 300-400 pages but alas I had to go through 600 MOTHERF**CKIJG PAGES.

Don't get me wrong I did really enjoy this book and I will probably read the next one.

P.S. To that one girl who said that Fisher was like Rhysand but dirtier…COUNT YOUR DAYS. Also I hate the name kingfisher. He fine though.

Edit: after some time I've realized I was being too nice, this shit is a 2. Yo ass better be glad I'm not giving a 1.