Reviews

This was a really interesting exploration of grief and trauma.

I think we could have done with a little bit less repetition with the different scenarios but I understood the point of it.

Deffo a marmite type of book, I completely understand why some people hate it but also why some people love it. I enjoyed the read overall.

christineandbooks's review

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dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.0

piper_berlin's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

blackcatcuddles's review

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challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

skaitanti's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

coralinejones's review

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4.5

Beautifully written, magical realism, fairy-tale-like, fever dream of book that touches on guilt and grief, especially through that of a child. Incredibly sad and miserable, however. Please mentally prepare for the various types of abuse between mother and child. There isn't a single likeable adult on these pages and that is not to be understated. I really can't emphasize this enough. I was physically yelling while reading some of these chapters!

Oshetsky's writing is intriguing and very atmospheric. Sooo creative. Don't think I've read a book quite like Poor Deer. This novel feels like sitting alone in a quiet space engulfed in fog and smoke. Just only the faint sense of anxiety as you're unsure just how safe you are, but you can't be in too much danger, right? It's just a little fog.

One of my only critiques is that towards the end I think the narrative got a little lost, it wasn't as strong as some of the beginning chapters, but it's enough to keep you going until the end.

I can't sit here and say I enjoyed the book; not in that typical "I-Need-To-Tell-Everyone-To-Read-This-Now" kind of way; bleak and horrid as it is, I do not enjoy reading about little girls being misunderstood, the minor droplets of ableism here and there, how uncomfortable her mother made me... But goodness is this a read.

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