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raesengele's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Death, Domestic abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Animal death, and Blood
Moderate: Suicide, Rape, Xenophobia, War, and Cancer
Minor: Homophobia
The slur "gypsy" is used frequently throughout this book instead of Romanisomethingsoon88's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It took me a while to get into this book, it’s definitely more slow paced than my usual reads, but towards the middle it really founds its stride and I was fully engaged the rest of the way through. The author has really captured a specific feeling of mourning the loss of a loved one by cherishing every scrap of them that you have, worrying at the edges of your time with them. The grandfather is so well sketched and the author does a great job of grounding the relationship between Natalia and him in little moments of understanding. It really got to me at times.
The magical realism of the setting is interesting too, spanning essentially an entire lifetime and several major cultural shifts but seamlessly integrated throughout. The scene of the grandfather’s meal with the Deathless Man on the eve of the bombing has really stuck with me. There is such a strong nostalgia captured there tinged with both happiness and sadness. When there was a mention of the girl who played the gusle everything connected for me and it was amazing. I keep going back to it in my head.
The only downside was that I found the parts that leaned more into realism of Natalia’s life dragged on, and sometimes chapters felt longer than they needed to be.
However, it never fully felt like an issue because the author’s prose flows beautifully throughout. I was struck several times by the inventive metaphors and similes that were used.
Overall, I am glad I stuck with it! Not one I’d recommend to just anyone but definitely enjoyed it.
The magical realism of the setting is interesting too, spanning essentially an entire lifetime and several major cultural shifts but seamlessly integrated throughout.
The only downside was that I found the parts that leaned more into realism of Natalia’s life dragged on, and sometimes chapters felt longer than they needed to be.
However, it never fully felt like an issue because the author’s prose flows beautifully throughout. I was struck several times by the inventive metaphors and similes that were used.
Overall, I am glad I stuck with it! Not one I’d recommend to just anyone but definitely enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Ableism and War
Minor: Cancer and Rape
I couldn’t find any tags for it but there is use of a slur for Romani people throughout.
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