You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.

Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu

51 reviews

syinhui's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

This novel is as much about how far we dare go in the dark - to venture into the deep space in search for a new home - as it is about its title, How High We Go in the Dark, wherein the third story, Through the Garden of Memory, a mass of humanity found themselves trapped in a void of semi-darkness. With only the guidance of voices and the touch of other people, they come together to construct a human pyramid, reaching upward into the abyss in hopes of finding a way out.

I am astounded by how imaginative and tragic this book is while at the same time incredibly thought-provoking, hopeful and even intimate. The prose is rich and beautifully written and at times jarring by how death is normalized, by how death had become a way of life. I must say this is an awfully tough book to read, one I had to steel through by how devastating and hard hitting each stories are. The themes of death and grief are all over the pages, one chapter after another.

The prescience in 30,000 years beneath a Eulogy left me terrified. I was sobbing at the end of Pig Son. I've had some questions regarding the science and possibility of a micro singularity, the sudden leap in space technology which enabled an expedition expected to last for thousands of years and how exactly was the plague cured. And then the final chapter blew me away.

However, some of these stories were just a slightly different version of the other (about people estranged from their families, falling in love with a dying patient/client) and for a book about pandemic, I don't quite understand the choice for a wholly Japanese American cast of characters. Sure, it's interesting but it feels limiting and a bit ridiculous that we mostly get to see the aftermath from their perspectives.

Content Warnings

atamano's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

lottiegasp's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

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

3.25

This book depicts a world in the midst of a global pandemic, shifting from in each chapter to the perspective of a completely new set of characters, occasionally with some links to previous characters. Most of the characters are Japanese or Japanese American, like the author. Eventually it takes us further into the future from speculative fiction to full-on science-fiction as new technologies are used to manage, escape or cope with this virus-ridden world.

The book was well-written and captured various emotions and experiences about loss, feeling inadequate, and complicated relationships.

I generally prefer a story with enduring characters over slice of life vignettes, so I was not able to completely engage with the book. However, the ending did end up tying things together in quite an interesting and satisfying way.

Content Warnings

singrequiem's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

If you want to be emotionally devastated in just the most beautiful way over and over again - then this is the book for you. Gorgeous. I may come back and finish this when I am emotionally stable enough to really give it the proper review it deserves.

Content Warnings

lilifane's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

What a fascinating concept. I really love these kinds of works.
This is basically a short story collection in which each story is connected to the others in some way. These might be just little references to things we've read before, or deeper connections you only figure out later. And that's actually my favorite sort of short story collection.
All of these stories were also connected by recurring themes. Most prevalent life, death and grief. But also love, family and friendship. Additionally, very story was tied to a pandemic outbreak at the beginning of the book and how this event influenced the way people live and die in the future. The stories itself were little glimpses in the lives of their protagonists. We only get to see a small part of a specific time in their lives, and to me, every story felt very personal and intimate. You see how these people struggle, but also change the lives of others around them in small and big ways.
But it was definitely a very bleak and depressing read for the majority of the book. With a little bit of hope sprinkled into it. It was hard to read sometimes, and it took me longer than expected, just because I needed breaks to do something fun in between the stories.

Content Warnings