Reviews

The Good Terrorist by Doris Lessing

cemoses's review against another edition

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3.0

My rating is 3.5. The book does go into some issues in about modern terrorists. Also the book was able to combine both some horrors of terrorism with humor.

However, I had some problems with the heroine. I found it hard to believe that Alice could be thirty-six and not know certain things; She seems like a very young girl not an almost middle age woman. Even if she were not very bright I think she would have obtained more wisdom. Also she is shown as being older than most of the other radicals. The author failed to explain why she was so much older than the others and why she stayed with Jasper so long.

izzy_reads7's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

everyonespal's review against another edition

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

2.25

Kinda of drag tbh.

jon288's review against another edition

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2.0

Leant to me by Naomi. I wanted to like it more, but found it a bit dull. I don't know what point it was trying to make exactly, but it didn't hit home for me

michaelashsmith's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

hasegawataizo's review against another edition

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3.0

One of my favorite parts of reading novels is seeing how someone else, someone different see the world. It was a satisfactory reading.

magsphil's review against another edition

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2.0

This book was well written but I’m confused about the point of it.

First of all- not a single chapter break in the entire book, just a long stream of consciousness from the main character, Alice. I definitely missed physical breaks separating parts of the book, but not having the breaks reinforced the non-stop nature of her life, fixing one thing and then moving on to the next.

One of the major takeaways was how the revolutionaries ignore their own needs and their communities for the sake of their greater ideological goals. I was hoping the story would show how Alice’s efforts to care for her comrades would pay off somehow, but that never happens. And what motivates her to put in this effort? She seems to be a judgmental person who doesn’t care for most people, but isn’t 100% behind the ideological goals of the group either.

The revolutionaries don’t succeed in their mission either, and it fails (probably because they don’t consider one another, only the end goal). None of the characters are employed, and a lot of them sorta sit around all day. I feel like this isn’t a great depiction of revolutionary groups, though I’m sure there is truth to this from lessing’s own experiences.

exdebris's review against another edition

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

4.25

thomas2591's review against another edition

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

1.0

thewaronhugs's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5