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Benoît Huron

benoithuron@bookwyrm.social

Joined 2 years, 5 months ago

I’m Nobody! Who are you? Are you – Nobody – too?

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Benoît Huron's books

Currently Reading

2024 Reading Goal

75% complete! Benoît Huron has read 9 of 12 books.

Kei Sanbe: Erased, Volume 1 (Hardcover, 2017, Yen Press) 4 stars

Twenty-nine-year-old Satoru Fujinuma is floundering through life. Amid his daily drudgery, he finds himself in …

Once more with feeling

3 stars

Erased is a gripping manga that takes you on a thrilling journey through time, all wrapped around a deeply emotional core. The story centers around Satoru Fujinuma, a man with a unique ability – he can travel back in time moments before a disaster strikes. When his mother is murdered, Satoru is sent 18 years into the past, putting him back in elementary school. This isn't just a chance to prevent his mother's death, it's an opportunity to confront a past trauma and potentially save the life of a classmate who was abducted years ago.

What truly elevates Erased is the strength of the relationships between the characters. Satoru's interactions with his childhood friends and his mother are heartwarming and nostalgic. We see him forge new bonds and mend old ones, all while grappling with the weight of his knowledge.

But Erased isn't all sentimentality. The time travel aspect is …

Marie Favereau: The Horde (Hardcover, 2021, Belknap Press) 5 stars

The Mongols are known for one thing: conquest. But in this first comprehensive history of …

Revelatory

5 stars

This meticulously researched book, brimming with insights, shatters the simplistic image of the Mongols as barbaric conquerors and instead paints a vivid picture of a complex and flexible empire. Favereau sheds light on the ingenious social and political structures that underpinned the Horde's success and reveals a regime that fostered trade, religious tolerance, and a surprisingly sophisticated administration.

The book's greatest strength is its ability to challenge conventional narratives. Far from existing solely for conquest, Favereau argues that the Horde was a central hub for the Eurasian commercial boom. The “Mongol Exchange” facilitated the exchange of goods and ideas across vast distances, leaving an undeniable mark on the world we live in today.

As she concludes ”Nomads drove global history, too, and none more so than the people of the Horde.”