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3.36 AVERAGE
3.36 AVERAGE
The comments on the back of the book are written in such precious language. "Thank heaven," "troubling," but I think that just matches the preciousness of every part of this book other than the main character - does she even have a name? The book is hilarious, shocking, and totally impulsive. She's a spectacle - the book is spectacular? Does that mean the same thing? - and you can't help but feel a little bit of affection toward her. Because she's so determined in this delusion she's created for herself! She constructs a totally fabricated but parallel vision of the world around her in which her view of adventure leads her to never leaving her house and alienating herself from all of the people in her life. And killing a parrot. Honestly, compared to the petty frenzy she stirs herself into, it makes the mundane aspects of a run-of-the-mill regular person life seem downright noble. I guess I relate to her, though. I mean, I would never stab anyone and I like my friends, but I get what she's looking for. I realize what she wants and I can relate to the place this desire is borne out of. I guess that's a piece of it, too. Feeling the way she feels even when you'd never act the way she does. And even though there's some admiration in her recklessness, it's almost self-affirming to realize that she's gone wrong. Also, she's funny! The book is hilarious!
“I ate a basket of chips while he lingered on the frontispiece: a dull brown map of the island, porcupines with lines illustrating I don’t know what: longitudes, latitudes. Turn the page, I urged him silently. Turn the page, plunge in!
‘I find maps interesting,’ he said.
So violently did I expel my breath, I spat in the map- one of those weird, nervous spits where you accidentally trigger a salivary gland and, as if your tongue has discovered your mouth’s G-spot, the saliva erupts in a concentrated jet” (25).
“I ate a basket of chips while he lingered on the frontispiece: a dull brown map of the island, porcupines with lines illustrating I don’t know what: longitudes, latitudes. Turn the page, I urged him silently. Turn the page, plunge in!
‘I find maps interesting,’ he said.
So violently did I expel my breath, I spat in the map- one of those weird, nervous spits where you accidentally trigger a salivary gland and, as if your tongue has discovered your mouth’s G-spot, the saliva erupts in a concentrated jet” (25).
This book was a wild ride and hysterical. Loved the writing style and tone, but really hated the narrator. I know you're supposed to but ugh she was so obnoxious and oblivious - but that made it even funnier.
I'm torn with this one. I don't think it is necessary for a protagonist to be likeable at all times; how boring would that be? Generally, the more broken the character the more I love them. However, there is usually something about the character to keep you hanging on- maybe a little charisma or remorse or... I don't know... a glimpse of humanity! There isn't much with this character...the parrot mimicking her tears is one time, maybe, when we see a little depth, but that's about it. The book is well written, though; the author certainly has a flair for language, so 2 stars for that and an extra star for the excellently drawn characters of Patty and her girlfriend, who see right through the narrator's shenanigans.
Sometimes I judge a book by the way it makes me feel when I'm reading it without bothering to examine where these feelings come from. This book made me feel aggravated and unhappy and I don't want to understand why. It was a fast read and not without spirit or a sense of humour or some level of identification or discovery but by the time I was finished I was too unsettled to want to think about it anymore. Although perhaps it was something I ate.
I found myself laughing at parts and rubbed the wrong way at parts. I understand that the protagonist is meant to be obnoxious in a variety of ways, but sometimes I was thinking to myself "alright alright, we get it" I did still want to know what happened though, so wanting to finish it counts for something.
THIS BOOK WAS EQUAL PARTS FUCKED UP AND FUNNY 5/5 STARS DEFINITELY RECOMMEND!!!!!!
I'm really torn over this book. On the one hand, I thought the writing was good and really evoked the main character and her emotional state and thought process throughout. But, on the other hand, the story, which felt like it had great potential, was not really enjoyable and was actually quite disturbing, especially with such an unpleasant main character.
Reading the summary on the book cover, I thought that the book's premise was not only interesting but had great potential. Unfortunately, the story strayed away from that quite a bit, not long after it became clear that the main character/narrator was not quite all there. She was not only arrogant and self-focused, but pretty much delusional, and her family and friends didn't seem to quite get that. Even when they realized something was off and tried to help her out, the approach just seemed off and the story became less enjoyable to read. Her obsession with a work of literature wasn't the problem, it was her entire mental state.
The ending was somewhat shocking, though it wasn't entirely unexpected, but I was disappointed with the last few pages. It just sort of let things hang, and then that was that.
Ultimately, I don't feel like I really enjoyed reading this book, though I have to admit that I felt compelled to read it in one day, just to see what happened. I admit I have a hard time reading books with strongly unlikeable or unpleasant characters, and this book reminded me of several others I'd read and disliked for the same reasons. But I do think the author writes really well, so I'd like to read something else by her, with the hope that it might be more enjoyable.
Reading the summary on the book cover, I thought that the book's premise was not only interesting but had great potential. Unfortunately, the story strayed away from that quite a bit, not long after it became clear that the main character/narrator was not quite all there. She was not only arrogant and self-focused, but pretty much delusional, and her family and friends didn't seem to quite get that. Even when they realized something was off and tried to help her out, the approach just seemed off and the story became less enjoyable to read. Her obsession with a work of literature wasn't the problem, it was her entire mental state.
The ending was somewhat shocking, though it wasn't entirely unexpected, but I was disappointed with the last few pages. It just sort of let things hang, and then that was that.
Ultimately, I don't feel like I really enjoyed reading this book, though I have to admit that I felt compelled to read it in one day, just to see what happened. I admit I have a hard time reading books with strongly unlikeable or unpleasant characters, and this book reminded me of several others I'd read and disliked for the same reasons. But I do think the author writes really well, so I'd like to read something else by her, with the hope that it might be more enjoyable.
dark
funny
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m a big fan of novels with lovably unlikeable protagonists, and Treasure Island!!! has that in spades. Or in sails, maybe. As infuriating as Levine’s anti-heroine is as she wrecks the lives of everyone around her through attempts to follow the “Core Values” of Stevenson’s Treasure Island, the humor and humanity of the story — not to mention some very sharp questions it raises about gender roles, literature, community, and ambition — make it far more fun to read this nameless narrator’s days than it would be to spend one with her. Bonus recommendation: one of my favorite novels of last year, Marcy Dermansky’s Bad Marie had just as wonderful a lovably unlikeable anti-heroine, if you like that sort of thing, too.
This is my first 5 star in a while ... I really loved this book but think someone else could just as easily hate it. It was definitely quirky. Told from the perspective from a girl obsessed with the book 'Treasure Island' and allowing it to sort of consume/ruin her life but she is clearly completely unaware of that and delusional. So it's hysterical in a sad way that anyone who has dealt with someone with mental illness might get. It's a really short read too, which always makes me happy : )