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liralen's review against another edition
3.0
Floating somewhere between three and three and a half stars. There are two stories here, intertwined: Frances takes off for the far reaches of Norway for the sake of an art internship; Yasha finds himself trailing his father across the ocean to seek out Yasha's mother, whom Yasha privately knows to no longer be in Russia.
I was pleased when the stories intersected, because I thought then that we might get more of Frances and of the cold far north. I love this idea of living in an abandoned asylum; of a former asylum repurposed as an artists' colony; of painting a barn in nothing but yellows. Yasha's mother does tend to take charge, though, to take over. Frances seems younger and both more and less sure of herself as the story progresses, and Yasha ever more like an insecure teenager, and both the asylum and the yellow paint fade into the background.
I was pleased when the stories intersected, because I thought then that we might get more of Frances and of the cold far north. I love this idea of living in an abandoned asylum; of a former asylum repurposed as an artists' colony; of painting a barn in nothing but yellows. Yasha's mother does tend to take charge, though, to take over. Frances seems younger and both more and less sure of herself as the story progresses, and Yasha ever more like an insecure teenager, and both the asylum and the yellow paint fade into the background.
kdferrin's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like this more but there were some weird random bits that were almost creepy that took away from the story
Spoiler
talking about their parent's underwear, if they are good kissers etc.jaclynday's review against another edition
2.0
The first word that comes to mind is “cute.” The second is “forgettable.” I wish I had connected with this story. It had the right parts, it had the well-drawn characters, but something about it never quite meshed. I know it’s a deceptively light book, hiding darker, deeper themes, but they never surfaced for me. It felt very flat and shallow. Cute too, at times.
shelfimprovement's review against another edition
3.0
Fine, but doesn't stick to your ribs the way I wanted. Full review to come.
shelleyrae's review against another edition
2.0
The Sunlit Night is the story of Frances and Yasha whose paths cross far from home 'at the top of the world'. Frances is completing an art internship while Yasha is in Lofoten to fulfill his father's dying wish. It is a story of family, grief, growing up and belonging.
I found Yasha to be a more likeable character than Frances, perhaps because his woes were less superficial than hers. His story was more interesting and developed than hers, and I didn't feel I learnt much about Frances at all. Unfortunately I wasn't convinced by Yasha and Frances's romantic connection either, though they had reason to form a friendship, I didn't think there was any chemistry between them.
What I did really like was the novel's unique setting. The Sunlit Night is set in Lofoten, an archipelago of six tiny islands in the Norwegian Sea, ninety-five miles north of the Arctic Circle. During the later spring and summer months, in which most of this tale takes place, the sun never dips below the horizon.
"These hours were characterized by a wildness of colors, the combined power of a sunset and sunrise. It was easy to watch the horizon for hours straight, the sun in perpetual motion, the sky turning orange and cranberry until at three it returned to blue, and I felt ready for bed."
I enjoyed Dinerstein's descriptions of the archipelago, though mere words barely do the beauty of this place justice (*google for photos*).
"The world was perpetually visible, so I looked at it. Conditioned by hours in the Yellow Room, I saw the landscape in colorblock. The midnight sun came in shades of pink. The fjords rushed up onto white-sanded beaches, and the sand made the water Bermuda-green. The house were always red. They appeared in clusters, villages, wherever the land lay flat. Mountains rose steeply behind each village-menaces and guardians. Each red house was a lighthouse, marking the boundary between one terrain and another, preventing crashes, somehow providing solace."
The Sunlit Night is not without its charms, there is humour, genuine emotion, and some lovely prose, but the plot is weak and the pace uneven. My attention wavered during the last third or so of the book, much of which didn't seem to quite make sense and felt rushed.
In the end, I would rate it as an okay read however others may be more appreciative.
melcabel's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.5
narflet's review against another edition
3.0
The sparseness of this sometimes annoyed me; coming over as pretentious rather than artistic. At other times, however, this was delightful and even humourous. The poor cat had the worst time though, I felt so bad for it. It deserved better.
boygirlparty's review against another edition
5.0
I loved everything, EVERYTHING about this book.
"[My father] liked to stand at his desk with all of his drawings out, smiling, talking about how miserable they made him.
How miserable they made him. How many cups of coffee he drank a day...'How am I supposed to keep making these third when nobody cares if they exist?... What does it matter if you do what you love, if what you love doesn't matter?'"
"He wanted something larger for himself, and why shouldn't he? He wanted to make his own work...He'd wanted to contribute something significant, something fine, to the profession.
The professionals had made his work feel like marginalia. But as the industry paid less attention to him, he had lost the joy in paying attention."
"[My father] liked to stand at his desk with all of his drawings out, smiling, talking about how miserable they made him.
How miserable they made him. How many cups of coffee he drank a day...'How am I supposed to keep making these third when nobody cares if they exist?... What does it matter if you do what you love, if what you love doesn't matter?'"
"He wanted something larger for himself, and why shouldn't he? He wanted to make his own work...He'd wanted to contribute something significant, something fine, to the profession.
The professionals had made his work feel like marginalia. But as the industry paid less attention to him, he had lost the joy in paying attention."
erinaceously's review against another edition
5.0
Readthisnow readthisnow readthisnow. So beautifully written, such interesting characters, and a unique story. I want to read it all over again.
suvata's review against another edition
4.0
Quirky little book that took me a while to get into, but once I did, it grew on me rapidly. An unforgettable 4.5 star read.
Read as part of Litsy Markup Postal Book Club #LMPBC Round 2 Group G.
Read as part of Litsy Markup Postal Book Club #LMPBC Round 2 Group G.