Reviews tagging 'Grief'

A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro

8 reviews

nineinchnails's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

the end threw me for a loop but i still really enjoyed this! there was a lot of loose ends (and ambiguity) which had this feeling a little anticlimactic but i’m sure i’ll get much more out of this novel on a reread. it does feel a little underdeveloped but it was still really engaging.

this was pretty eerie and atmospheric at parts - it almost felt like a horror, which does explain feeling slightly cheated by the ending. despite how short this was (183 pages) it felt much longer somehow; even the side characters felt relatively complex and well developed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Suicide, and Misogyny

Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Child death, Animal death, and Grief

Minor: War

Child neglect

risemini's review against another edition

emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Grief, Misogyny, Suicide, War, Child death, Death, and Death of parent

kitten_nuisance's review against another edition

reflective relaxing sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Suicide, Child death, Animal cruelty, and Grief

Moderate: Sexism, Death of parent, War, and Pregnancy

a_epistemological_crisis's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief and Suicide

Minor: Death, Suicide, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, and Animal cruelty

cordeliamartin's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Grief, Violence, and War

Minor: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Death, Abandonment, and Alcohol

amelialikesmatcha's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Ishiguro reached into my brain and rearranged the structure with this writing, he literally changed my brain chemistry after reading this one. very complicated characters and works backwards into the past off a post-war Japan with little genuine or non-narcissistic detail from the main character. perception of motherhood, cultural assimilation, and overall ability to connect to a reader without revealing any true emotion is impressive - worth the read 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Grief, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child death, and Child abuse

ajdotcom's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book reminded me of a David Lynch movie, in that I felt that there was some great thematic narrative just beyond my reach, but I didn't quite understand it. Ishiguro's minimalist style leaves room for reader inference, and the entire book, especially the parts set in Japan, have an overwhelming sense of foreboding. This contrasts with the parts set in England, where Etsuko is looking back at tragedy rather than feeling it coming. This book is complex, and I think it is about many different things- family, grief, cultural and generational differences, pre- and post-war Japan. I wouldn't recommend it if you need to "understand" a story or reach a satisfying ending (or really any ending at all)- I'd say this is written in a way that allows you to drift with the ominous flow of the storytelling. I was entirely wrapped up in it and the tone, moreso than the plot, will stay with me.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Grief, and Suicide

Minor: Murder

A major plot point is the recent suicide of the narrating character's daughter; the circumstances of this are discussed, but there is not a play-by-play description.

There are mentions of child murders at two points, the first with no explicit detail and the second with one graphic detail mentioned almost in passing. These sections make up a total of probably four sentences.

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Grief, Abandonment, Alcohol, Misogyny, Child abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Suicide, and Animal death

Minor: War, Violence, Alcoholism, and Domestic abuse