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dreareads_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved it. My friends and I talked about this book for HOURS sharing theories and interpretations. I will share later on!
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol
meganxstones's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
katerina_l's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
khanyisile13's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
It’s so unexpected, so different from anything I’ve ever read. It is pure imagination. One of those books that you have to unpack and unpack and unpack to see that all along, there were bits and pieces hiding in plain sight. The recurring themes and the ode to Alice in Wonderland in a university setting that makes you wonder what’s real and what’s not. But I think the strongest thing that stuck with me was this
How did Mona Awad even pitch this to her agents? It’s so ludicrous that it’s genius. I can’t not give it a five stars, not because of how it made me feel or that I related with any depth to any part of the story, but because of the sheer magnitude of the creation of this story. As you are reading you are falling down down down the rabbit hole, but you’re not even sure if you’re in the rabbit hole. It’s absurd and brilliant and I can’t think of anyone to compare Awad to. I would even say this is the kind of book teenagers should be studying from in English class with it’s string of references and comparisons, with its unique ability to put you directly into someone’s mind. Bizarre and thrilling, and not in a normal way.
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Self harm, Sexual assault, and Murder
andreyuhh's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Gore, Blood, Abandonment, Dysphoria, and Classism
laran_s's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis and Classism
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
dajul73's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
mallotar's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Sexual content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment
wannabe_lee's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Rape, Car accident, Abandonment, and Alcohol
loxeletters's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It was quite depressing at times, which is why I couldn't rate this as "funny" even though the satirical aspects worked well. I guess that is the horror of this book for me - I wasn't very affected by the gore, I was never really scared, more just very depressed by the ongoing loneliness of our MC.
I can't say I could've guessed most of the major twists, which is a plus :)
Speaking of which, I agree that it's quite disorienting and difficult to figure out what is real and what isn't, but I think that's the point. I mean... They even discuss in the book how disorientation can be valuable for writing lol.
I did think the final scene was maybe a bit too clean-cut.
But this is somewhat nit-picky!
My second issue was the prose - overall it was good, but some phrasings were a bit repetitive for me. Maybe some adjectives could've been cut out as well. But that's just my personal taste, I think.
Overall, a very interesting book, which leaves you questioning what is real and what isn't, while providing some much-needed cultural criticism — exactly my cup of tea!
Graphic: Animal death, Drug abuse, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Gore, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Sexual content and Car accident