Braydon

if i could id bump it up to a 4.5 but i put 4 because its not perfect. its remarkably close though. the book itself is gorgeous. rightfully so. it hits all the right notes, it challenges itself without insisting on it. vuong's descriptive capabilities are outstanding, his metaphors his prose his everything is just stunning. but as much as i love this book, i hate more than one thing about it. maybe im just too immature in my thinking; but the extremely physical descriptions of the intimate scenes with trevor felt very unnecessary?? the whole point is that this book is a letter to his mom, and i dont think anyone in their right mind would write like THAT to them. also the monkey-brain scene. i understand the importance it has in the overall plot and it is very beautifully executed to tie the whole story together, but it was very uncomfortable to read. lastly, this book is so sad. so so so so sad. i think it's suffocating, even. i know its intentional, and it leads to some of the most beautiful scenes in the book, but it felt like i was drowning. drowning in a river of disproportionate sadness. i dont think this book is bad at all, but its a bad metaphor for life. life is not unhappy unhappy unhappy, its everything. all at once. 9/10