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4.27 AVERAGE
4.27 AVERAGE
Mateo, a young orphan whose mother died of AIDS in the 90s, is adopted by an affluent white couple who try to give him a better life. Growing up in NYC surrounded by artists (including his parents) Mateo struggles with creating his own identity while mourning the birth mother he never knew. Though he is at the heart of the story, the characters connected to him weave in and out as he grows up. Drugs, sex, secrets, the AIDS crisis and the strained relationships that come of teen angst kept me turning the pages to see how it was all going to pan out.
A beautiful, sweeping, time-hopping saga of the fight against AIDS, New York City, and the entangled lives of 3 generations of New Yorkers, tied to The Christodora.
Do not miss this book
Do not miss this book
This stunning book sweeps across three generations. I came across this book after reading Rebecca Makkai's 'The Great Believers'.
So we have Jared, Millicent & Mateo. M is adopted by Jared & Milli. Milli's mother is Ava, an avid AIDS right activist who is closely supported by Hector. Everyone is a central figure in this book, there are no 'supporting characters' and everyone undergoes so much turmoil.
The book is about many things, loss, love, strength, forgiveness but mainly it is about addiction and the helplessness of an addict and the demons that chase them. I'm not sure if the author was ever an addict, but his writing is visceral and so very realistic. The person I related the least was with Hector, he just could not get a grip - but what do I know of addictions?
This book is amazing and intense, I recommend anyone who is unaware of the AIDS epidemic to read this, it is a piece of art.
So we have Jared, Millicent & Mateo. M is adopted by Jared & Milli. Milli's mother is Ava, an avid AIDS right activist who is closely supported by Hector. Everyone is a central figure in this book, there are no 'supporting characters' and everyone undergoes so much turmoil.
The book is about many things, loss, love, strength, forgiveness but mainly it is about addiction and the helplessness of an addict and the demons that chase them. I'm not sure if the author was ever an addict, but his writing is visceral and so very realistic. The person I related the least was with Hector, he just could not get a grip - but what do I know of addictions?
This book is amazing and intense, I recommend anyone who is unaware of the AIDS epidemic to read this, it is a piece of art.
I romped through this, although the writing was pretty poor, and none of the characters were particularly likeable. I enjoyed the story and found it quite moving in parts.
Thanks to Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for providing the ARC. I would recommend this book although I don't think I could say I enjoyed it exactly. I was very interested in the subject, the early AIDS struggles. I have watched numerous movies and documentaries on that topic and I did like this fictionalized version of those same events. But I could not relate to any of the characters. Or I just didn't like them. I know liking them is not necessary to enjoy the book, but I thought for the most part they were unlikeable. A number of them have the problem of having love and compassion for their fellow man, but perhaps not enough for those right their noses. And some of them made decisions I found to be not plausible, even understanding their backstory. A worthwhile read nonetheless.
Christodora is, without a doubt, an accomplished novel. I've never read anything before where the AIDS epidemic was such an important element of the story. You would think given its scare factor, it would be more prominent in literature. I expect there will be more "AIDS stories" popping out soon, following the success of this novel.
Besides AIDS and everything around it, this novel is about family, relationships, adoption, sexual identity, hard drugs, mental illness.
I appreciated Christodora, but I wouldn't say I loved it. It took me a while to get into it and for some time, I couldn't keep the characters straight in my head, due to the back and forth jump in time and between different characters. Eventually, I got things right in my head as far as the characters were concerned, although I never got emotionally invested with any of them. Admittedly, it could have been a case of "it's not you, it's me" type of situation. It happens.
Nevertheless, I was impressed with this debut novel, so I'm looking forward to reading Tim Murphy's next book.
I've received this novel via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to the publishers, Grove Atlantic, for the opportunity to read and review this book.
Besides AIDS and everything around it, this novel is about family, relationships, adoption, sexual identity, hard drugs, mental illness.
I appreciated Christodora, but I wouldn't say I loved it. It took me a while to get into it and for some time, I couldn't keep the characters straight in my head, due to the back and forth jump in time and between different characters. Eventually, I got things right in my head as far as the characters were concerned, although I never got emotionally invested with any of them. Admittedly, it could have been a case of "it's not you, it's me" type of situation. It happens.
Nevertheless, I was impressed with this debut novel, so I'm looking forward to reading Tim Murphy's next book.
I've received this novel via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to the publishers, Grove Atlantic, for the opportunity to read and review this book.
Perhaps it was a question of expectations - some great reviews and favorable comparisons to 'City on Fire', which I loved, made me think I would enjoy this. But I should have realized that blurbs from the likes of Jay McInerney and Candace Bushnell were NOT exactly the type of author/critics whose opinion I respect! This wasn't horrible, but large sections of it read like, pardon the expression, 'chick-lit'; oddly much more attention is given to the myriad female characters (Milly, Ava, Drew, Issy, Esther) than the male ones. But I guess that is fair, since they are not only slightly more interesting, but much less major shitheads, as is virtually every male character. And whereas it was presented as an 'in-the-know' chronicle of the AIDS years, more ink is given to drug addiction, rehab and relapse (... and repeat) - which not only has been done to death, but Murphy adds nothing really new to the genre. Also, the non-chronological structure does NOTHING to improve the book - it is merely a gimmick that doesn't pay off. A minor disappointment all the way around.
I thought this book was going to focus more on various people living in the NY building (Christodora), and the 80s/90s AIDS crisis, but it really focuses more on drug abuse and addiction, as well as a handful of characters whose lives intertwine throughout three decades. There was also a super cringe-y sex scene (there were multiple, but one was extra terrible).
Lovely novel centered around the people who live in an nyc old settlement building named the Christodora. A cast of 3 generations including Ava, the matriarch bipolar public health advocate, her daughter Milly, an artist and her adopted son Mateo. Other characters weave in and out. And the time jumps are nonlinear from the 1960’s to present day.
The audiobook is performed by a cast of talents including my favorite reader Prentice Onayemi.
The audiobook is performed by a cast of talents including my favorite reader Prentice Onayemi.
I really loved this sweeping and moving novel about the AIDS crisis. It jumps back and forth in time from the 80s to a few years in the future following the lives of several related characters--activists and artists and writers. I was engaged from the very beginning--the writing is wonderful and I liked all of these very flawed people. There's some graphic sex and drug use, but nothing that didn't feel relevant to the story. A really wonderful book.