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ksilvio's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
elizo9's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Rape and Sexism
Moderate: Homophobia
carolinars's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Sexism and Grief
Moderate: Death and Pregnancy
Minor: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
beccalemon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Rape and Sexism
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Suicide
charliesshit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Rape and Sexism
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Suicide
cece_fin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
vahart's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Sexism and Sexual assault
llwatts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Grief
Moderate: Death
ashlightgrayson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Elizabeth's romance with her coworker, Calvin, takes up the forefront of about the first quarter of the story. It was funny to see how Elizabeth disliked Calvin at the beginning and then ended up initiating the romantic relationship with him. Their romantic relationship is very cute and loving. Even before they were dating it was clear that Calvin had a crush on Elizabeth, it just also completely went over her head for a while. Calvin and Elizabeth are both nerdy and fascinated with scientific research. They end up adopting a dog together that they adorably dub Six Thirty. Despite the healthy compatability in this couple, the dynamics of the relationship are still limited by the patriarchy of the time. Elizabeth and Calvin living together despite being unmarried is looked down upon by coworkers and other characters. Calvin is a great partner to Elizabeth. They listen to each other's interests, and Calvin even introduced Elizabeth to rowing, his own personal hobby. Elizabeth at some point has a very serious discussion with Calvin pertaining to her aversion to marriage. Calvin respects Elizabeth as an equal. His opinions on women's issues are reasonably progressive for a man of his time, but even then there are obviously instances where his privilege as a man becomes apparent. Asking Elizabeth to marry him without completely understanding what the implication is for her is one of the instances where this shows. Women weren't even allowed to open a bank account on their own until 1974. She is living in a time where marrying a man meant becoming completely financially dependent on him. You would lose the little independence you had. Thankfully, Calvin genuinely loves Elizabeth and respects her wishes. It's possible that if the circumstances were different Elizabeth may have agreed to marry Calvin. Regardless, it's refreshing to know that even if she continued to refuse, they respect and love each other enough to stay together.
Elizabeth's past is both relatable and interesting. She is estranged from her parents as her father was a professional preacher and scam artist. Besides that, her parents are also homophobic,
The men often serve as a vehicle to move the story along. This doesn't, however, undermine the relationships between the women in the story and the role that plays to the overall narrative. While working at Hastings Research Institute Miss Frank is a female coworker that consistently seeks approval from her male coworkers. This additionally comes at the expense of Elizabeth. Miss Frank is insecure and it manifests as judgement, jealousy, and bad mouthing towards her. Miss Frank and Elizabeth eventually meet again under different circumstances. This allows them to form a respectful bond with a strong sense of camaraderie, albeit due to an unfortunate event in common from their past.
Harriet is Elizabeth's neighbor, and over the course of the story they become amazing friends. She helps Elizabeth out as Elizabeth's life has major changes later in the story
This is a wonderful literary fiction debut novel that has a very strong hopeful feminist message. I'm impressed that this was this author's first novel, and I hope she has more to come in the future. I'm looking forward to following their work closely in the future.
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, and Sexual assault
chloeburnsboily's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Moderate: Sexism and Sexual assault