Reviews

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

rach_telf's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

sarahp85's review against another edition

3.0

It probably says a lot that I forgot to mark this book as read.

Everyone I know who have read this book absolutely LOVED it and it sounded like a real good book to me too but it just... wasn't for me?

Maybe I'm too stuck in reading YA/Fantasy but I really struggled to get through this as the pace was slow and it never really grabbed me. Or maybe I expected way too much as everyone hyped it up so much. I don't know. It has everything I like in a book yet I just... didn't really get attatched to anyone or anything. Thinking about getting the audiobook and "read" it again that way to see if I can get into it more. We'll see.

addy's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.25

kamma_josefine's review against another edition

3.5

i struggle to formulate my feelings towards this book, mainly because they are of mixed variety. i also think this read is important to me - idk how else to describe it other than a feeling of significance. first of, i really enjoyed the vibes that this gave off, creating such vibrant images in my head. second of, the themes which got discussed, held me interested nearly the whole way from start till finish. i think the way that this was set, new york in the world of theatre during the 1940-1960s, is way to rare. therefore, it became all the more special because of it. the storytelling was executed beautifully, in vivian's long letter to angela. i did feel, however much it saddens me to say, that their were some clear dry patches throughout the story that got me rather uninterested in what i was reading. it didn't keep the similar key storylines/elements once the second half had started, which ruined it a bit for me. i would still recommend it, if my positives is something you are looking for atm.

cindywelz's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

gracestryker1's review against another edition

4.0

Oh how I love being a woman

msilkwolfe's review against another edition

3.0

Hmmm. I generally like character-driven novels, and I’d classify this as one of those. My biggest issue, however, is that it seemed like multiple novels in one. It seemed to drag on a bit, and multiple times it seemed like it would’ve been a good place to end the book. I will say that the relationship described at the end (which seemed sorta random and not to fit with the rest of the book) was so eloquently described. I loved reading about a relationship that was without description, which felt so human to me. But maybe that could’ve been its own short story?? Haha.

katechore's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

lastpaige111's review against another edition

4.0

What a huge book. At first, I was peeved by the device of the narrator Vivian addressing someone named “Angela” to whom she is telling her life story, and bogged down by the weight of too many pages of wild excess she enjoyed. It was all so darkly alcohol and sex driven. But eventually, as Vivian confronts the mess she gets herself into, she becomes a full and deep character and her world much more than a playground.

By the end, I wanted to applaud. The soaring voice of the third act carried me through to the conclusion, and then I was sad we were saying goodbye.

Truly an unusual love story, this exceptional novel will stay with me.

akabah's review against another edition

2.5

I always enjoy Gilbert's books. Until this one- it seemed that her heart wasn't in it. It was a silly story about silly people, and I was thoroughly disappointed by it.