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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
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:
Yes
challenging
emotional
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:
Yes
I skimmed the blurb for this thinking that it was going to be some quaint, cosy book set in a nursing home, and by the time I realised what this really was, I was absolutely HOOKED and too far in to back out. I will be thinking about this book for years to come.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
informative
reflective
medium-paced
After the initial shock of being introduced to 1000 characters with elaborate backstories in the first 50 pages, I appreciated what the author was doing. A very important and informative book.
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Okay I just finished this for ATL Book Club and holy shit this is probably the top choice this year.
Really character driven, multiple POV and carries individual character arcs throughout the story, with flashbacks and mystery and tension, all while bluntly discussing xenophobia, racism, islamophobia, discrimination, on top of adultery, loss of child, loss of partner, loss of family, ageing and politics as well.
It's a lot to unpack, and a lot to digest, but brilliantly written and it all interconnects at the end. Definitely rereadable, but as the book progresses it all escalates as the multiple sub-plots all intertwine.
A new author on the auto-buy list.
Really character driven, multiple POV and carries individual character arcs throughout the story, with flashbacks and mystery and tension, all while bluntly discussing xenophobia, racism, islamophobia, discrimination, on top of adultery, loss of child, loss of partner, loss of family, ageing and politics as well.
It's a lot to unpack, and a lot to digest, but brilliantly written and it all interconnects at the end. Definitely rereadable, but as the book progresses it all escalates as the multiple sub-plots all intertwine.
A new author on the auto-buy list.
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Devastating read with real-life implications. Very hard topics of racism, war and grief. Interesting and compelling discussion of how stories and narrative inform land ownership and belonging.
challenging
informative
sad
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
Hard for me not to find many things to like about a story centring a Tamil family set in Sydney. Paced perfectly, loved the unabashed *Tamilness* of it. Felt like a love letter to the diaspora community, and I felt the love.
The treatment of racism in the novel sometimes verged on didactic or caricaturish, and at times I wanted a bit more show and less tell.
But that’s a small footnote really - a great first read of the year.
The treatment of racism in the novel sometimes verged on didactic or caricaturish, and at times I wanted a bit more show and less tell.
But that’s a small footnote really - a great first read of the year.