first reads with kindle paperwhite
Here’s a quick review of the first few books that I read on my Kindle (from an eye-strained person who used to read on her smartphone a lot).
The Five People You Meet in Heaven – Mitch Albom
My first Mitch Albom read. A moving and thought-provoking short read for those looking for answers in life while exploring the concept of death and what comes after. I liked its message about interwoven lives and how every action of ours can affect others, no matter how big or small they are. It did scream toxic positivity in some parts, though. Forgiving and forgetting does not always equate to healing. Some rights do not justify the wrongs done to a person. In general, it wasn’t extraordinary but it wasn’t bad either. It’s something I’d recommend to my grandma the next time I visit her.
Lost in The Neverwoods – Aiden Thomas
This one’s very disappointing. I can’t stress enough how gorgeous the cover is. I also heard so many great things about the author so I was excited to pick this up. It turned out to be something that wasn’t sure whether to be a middle-grade or a young adult book. As a Peter Pan retelling, the only redeeming thing it had was the nostalgia it gave. Forgive me, but I couldn’t stand any of the characters here. It could’ve saved half the length of the book if the main characters weren’t acting like children (hence, why I thought this could’ve been better as a middle-grade book). The plot twist also came out of nowhere and in summation, it’s just a lengthened fan fiction of that popular Peter Pan theory.
If You Could See The Sun – Ann Liang
This one’s for us, Kat Stratford girlies.
Reading this feels like a trip down memory lane. It took me back to my high school days when I was smart enough to have an academic rival, before college humbled me hard. The characters were surprisingly interesting and the plot was something I’d watch in an Asian drama. The only thing I could critique was the rushed, awful ending. So much more could have been explored, and literally anything else could’ve happened.
This piece was originally posted on WordPress on November 28, 2022 and migrated to BearBlog on March 19, 2026.