Scan barcode
essentiallyene's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
marrrk's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Abandonment
jiibii's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"There's just this for consolation: an hour here or there when our lives seem, against all odds and expectations, to burst open and give us everything we've ever imagined, though (...) everyone knows these hours will inevitably be followed by others, far darker and more difficult.
Still, we cherish the city, the morning;
we hope, more than anything,
for more."
This book re-arranged me like outdated furniture.
It made me think a lot of things. It made me spiral completely out of orbit, from my own to the book’s, from the book’s to my own, and I think any work of fiction that makes you reflect so deeply on your life is worthy of merit.
It made me (further) ponder on the extent to which I (we) fall in love with those I do because I yearn to see a part of myself - either real or ideal - in the other? Do I tend to seek out people who will simulate externally the conversations I have internally? It managed to solidify and expand the belief I have that other people will always carry strong ideas of how you should be treading this earth, and how soul-stifling these expectations can become. Is it the case that I (we), tend to validate those other moral ideals over the ones that originate inwards, exactly because they’re external? These characters portray with a staggering accuracy, a disarming simplicity, the struggle that is having to swim against that current, to battle against the Expectation of Who You Should Be. That was one of the pearls in this oyster, the relation between what is inside of us and what is outside of us and how they perpetually inform and repulse each other, ouroboros-esque - how they dictate what we are attracted to and by, the fragments of our selves we need to make known by touching another whose edges complement our own…
The one thing that played the pitch-perfect transcendental chord on my heartstrings was the tone of both homage to and warning against simple domesticity. We see it in the undertones of all three of these tales, and we see it in the overarching story it is trying to tell. It isn’t anything new, but I had never seen its many facets captured so humbly and so earnestly, and in a way that so vividly mimics my own way of thinking. The lamentations of Mrs. Brown over the artistic constraints presented by the making of a home (which is also the validation some crave that homemaking can be seen as an art); Virginia’s desperate clawing at the situation her head recognises as necessarily remedial but her heart screams is ultimately smothering; Clarissa’s fierce defensiveness of her domestic lifestyle when presented with Mary’s radical views (prompting an immediate inner explanation as to why it is equally worthy)… they’re all fascinating in and of themselves, but to be presented with these characters’ inner monologue so as to know that they feel at times the complete opposite was a refreshing portrayal of the human spirit. It blankets the entire narrative and my breath was caught at having this shard of my self so clearly looking back at me.
This book was such a beautifully singular reading experience… I don’t think I could ever try to capture all of my thoughts with just the one reading.
Still, we cherish the city, the morning;
we hope, more than anything,
for more."
This book re-arranged me like outdated furniture.
It made me think a lot of things. It made me spiral completely out of orbit, from my own to the book’s, from the book’s to my own, and I think any work of fiction that makes you reflect so deeply on your life is worthy of merit.
It made me (further) ponder on the extent to which I (we) fall in love with those I do because I yearn to see a part of myself - either real or ideal - in the other? Do I tend to seek out people who will simulate externally the conversations I have internally? It managed to solidify and expand the belief I have that other people will always carry strong ideas of how you should be treading this earth, and how soul-stifling these expectations can become. Is it the case that I (we), tend to validate those other moral ideals over the ones that originate inwards, exactly because they’re external? These characters portray with a staggering accuracy, a disarming simplicity, the struggle that is having to swim against that current, to battle against the Expectation of Who You Should Be. That was one of the pearls in this oyster, the relation between what is inside of us and what is outside of us and how they perpetually inform and repulse each other, ouroboros-esque - how they dictate what we are attracted to and by, the fragments of our selves we need to make known by touching another whose edges complement our own…
The one thing that played the pitch-perfect transcendental chord on my heartstrings was the tone of both homage to and warning against simple domesticity. We see it in the undertones of all three of these tales, and we see it in the overarching story it is trying to tell. It isn’t anything new, but I had never seen its many facets captured so humbly and so earnestly, and in a way that so vividly mimics my own way of thinking. The lamentations of Mrs. Brown over the artistic constraints presented by the making of a home (which is also the validation some crave that homemaking can be seen as an art); Virginia’s desperate clawing at the situation her head recognises as necessarily remedial but her heart screams is ultimately smothering; Clarissa’s fierce defensiveness of her domestic lifestyle when presented with Mary’s radical views (prompting an immediate inner explanation as to why it is equally worthy)… they’re all fascinating in and of themselves, but to be presented with these characters’ inner monologue so as to know that they feel at times the complete opposite was a refreshing portrayal of the human spirit. It blankets the entire narrative and my breath was caught at having this shard of my self so clearly looking back at me.
This book was such a beautifully singular reading experience… I don’t think I could ever try to capture all of my thoughts with just the one reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts
theyellowbrickreader's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts
dreamofbookspines's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
First read in early college and read regularly for a few years.
Upon re-reading in 2022, I think part of what enchanted me about this book originally was the joy shining through a sad story. I was young and had seen the movie (though I don't remember which I did first, watch the movie or read the book) and the melancholiness appealed to me. The winding together of women's stories is well done and it doesn't get particularly confusing, because they're such different women.
Upon re-reading in 2022, I think part of what enchanted me about this book originally was the joy shining through a sad story. I was young and had seen the movie (though I don't remember which I did first, watch the movie or read the book) and the melancholiness appealed to me. The winding together of women's stories is well done and it doesn't get particularly confusing, because they're such different women.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Blood
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
candide_woodard's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
He's a talented writer but this book just wasn't for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
grantsharpies's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Blood, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Car accident
algeaard's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
«Maybe there is nothing, ever, that can equal the recollection of having been young together. [...] Richard was the person Clarissa loved at her most optimistic moment.»
«But there are still the hours, aren't there? One and then another, and you get through that one and then, my god, there's another.»
«But there are still the hours, aren't there? One and then another, and you get through that one and then, my god, there's another.»
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
Moderate: Terminal illness
heatherrhodus's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Blood and Terminal illness
Minor: Self harm
clairecin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
Minor: Suicide attempt