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fia111's review against another edition
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
elenaxhere's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
medium-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
4.5
lauralantran_'s review against another edition
5.0
What a classic. "I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world."
hummusluvr69's review against another edition
4.0
There's a passage from this book that's absolutely absurd but made perfect sense to me––I'm wondering if y'all feel the same:
"The judge replied by saying ... he would be happy to have me state precisely the motives for my act. Fumbling a little with my words and realizing how ridiculous I sounded, I blurted out that it was because of the sun."
Simultaneously the most boring and fascinating (not to mention hilarious) narrator I’ve met. I think what gives this book the power to really twist your gut is the his tendency to view his world as a conglomerate of seemingly irrelevant and fragmented details that come together at the last moment––if you let them––to throw down some real thematic prowess.
There are already thousands of rambling pages about this book to which I'd rather not add; you're better off reading its humble 123 for yourself.
I am REELING from this sucker punch of a novel.
"The judge replied by saying ... he would be happy to have me state precisely the motives for my act. Fumbling a little with my words and realizing how ridiculous I sounded, I blurted out that it was because of the sun."
Simultaneously the most boring and fascinating (not to mention hilarious) narrator I’ve met. I think what gives this book the power to really twist your gut is the his tendency to view his world as a conglomerate of seemingly irrelevant and fragmented details that come together at the last moment––if you let them––to throw down some real thematic prowess.
There are already thousands of rambling pages about this book to which I'd rather not add; you're better off reading its humble 123 for yourself.
I am REELING from this sucker punch of a novel.
ba6a's review against another edition
3.0
interesting read but in my defense im not a fan of male mcs that do bad things and then go all woe is me but in the mc's defense it was not done in a "diary of an oxygen thief" way
i actually liked reading his perspective and his indifference to everything; it even made me feel indifferent to what he did, i wasnt rooting for him either but since he, our narrator, didnt care about what he did i couldnt care much either.
“I had a foolish desire to burst into tears. For the first time I’d realized how all these people loathed me.”
now the irony in that line was fucking hilarious
i actually liked reading his perspective and his indifference to everything; it even made me feel indifferent to what he did, i wasnt rooting for him either but since he, our narrator, didnt care about what he did i couldnt care much either.
“I had a foolish desire to burst into tears. For the first time I’d realized how all these people loathed me.”
now the irony in that line was fucking hilarious
tsubibo's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
sol4ce's review against another edition
3.25
it's a simple read and written easily. though, i do agree the second part is the only reason i'd ever recommend this novel to someone. nevertheless, if one is to say it's an anticlimactic ending or a boring buildup, i wouldn't disagree.
it is a novel i'm interested in talking about to someone who strongly disagrees with mersault's ideology of a meaningless life. as someone who can empathise with the concept of apathy, i do wonder how this novel is read through the mind of someone who can't.
it is a novel i'm interested in talking about to someone who strongly disagrees with mersault's ideology of a meaningless life. as someone who can empathise with the concept of apathy, i do wonder how this novel is read through the mind of someone who can't.