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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I had this book on mg shelf to read for some time, and after reading that it was going to be adapted into a screenplay I moved it to the top of my list.
Overall, I found it to be exhausting, but I’m not sure that wasn’t the author’s intention. The majority of the plot is emotional, so by the end I felt like I’d been hanging on the ride the whole time with the main character. I found the writing to be good, and the plot interesting, but I did feel like it dragged on at times.
Overall, I found it to be exhausting, but I’m not sure that wasn’t the author’s intention. The majority of the plot is emotional, so by the end I felt like I’d been hanging on the ride the whole time with the main character. I found the writing to be good, and the plot interesting, but I did feel like it dragged on at times.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury
I definitely thought this book was going in a different direction, and it delightfully (or depressingly? darkly?) differed from the expected path.
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
a find idea that falls flat
for me, the main character’s narrative and the author’s voice were in conflict. it seems Jonas had Points to Make and Ideas to Explore but found it difficult to portray these through the main character. any vaguely interesting ideas felt accidental.
there waw some exploration of aging & womanhood but nothing particularly enlightening. i think in the hands of a more skilled author these concepts could be handled with a lighter touch.
regarding the plot itself, the end third/quarter was rushed and obvious.
for me, the main character’s narrative and the author’s voice were in conflict. it seems Jonas had Points to Make and Ideas to Explore but found it difficult to portray these through the main character. any vaguely interesting ideas felt accidental.
there waw some exploration of aging & womanhood but nothing particularly enlightening. i think in the hands of a more skilled author these concepts could be handled with a lighter touch.
regarding the plot itself, the end third/quarter was rushed and obvious.
4.5
The writing style of my dreams! Throws in your face little moments of life that are uncomfortable, sweet, strange, and humorous. I enjoyed the capricious nature of the narrator’s emotions.
I’m not sure that I arrived at any particular moral, though it felt like the author was (perhaps?) attempting to bring me to one. There was plenty of food for thought throughout but I wouldn’t say this book worked for me as some sort of specific social commentary on women’s roles, or age and power, etc. Which is a good thing because I don’t like those kinds of books very much anyways. I simply enjoyed, or was disturbed by, the author’s ability to depict real-life moments of all sorts.
The final chapter threw me for a little bit of a loop, but I found the ending satisfying overall!
The writing style of my dreams! Throws in your face little moments of life that are uncomfortable, sweet, strange, and humorous. I enjoyed the capricious nature of the narrator’s emotions.
I’m not sure that I arrived at any particular moral, though it felt like the author was (perhaps?) attempting to bring me to one. There was plenty of food for thought throughout but I wouldn’t say this book worked for me as some sort of specific social commentary on women’s roles, or age and power, etc. Which is a good thing because I don’t like those kinds of books very much anyways. I simply enjoyed, or was disturbed by, the author’s ability to depict real-life moments of all sorts.
The final chapter threw me for a little bit of a loop, but I found the ending satisfying overall!
But of a bizarre story. The (unnamed) narrator is an English lit prof whose English prof husband is being investigated for affairs with students. Narrator is also nearing 60, which seems to be even more traumatic. She begins an obsession with Vladimir, a new novelist in their department, and a pretty unbelievable string of events happen. Honestly, what I took most from the book is how the narrator reads literature with such a critical eye and tries to get her students to move beyond first impressions.
dark
reflective
tense
Complicated depiction of me too movement with characters getting more and more bat shit crazy.
This was so unlike what I typically reach for. I know the cover has gotten a lot of flack but it’s just as unique as the book is. I’m not sure what genre to classify this as but I was INVESTED. sex, terrible character, academia, secluded cabins…. Idk it was just so different! Subtracted a star because the end was a little strange? Not bad but not what I hoped for.