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cleverfoxwithcoffee's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
carlaabra's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was a slow and at times plodding read. I felt it could’ve been shortened considerably, especially the middle. However James’ characterization and development made it worth it (mostly). I liked the Reverend and particularly enjoyed James’ experiences as a child and teen. The writing style was blunt and a bit antiquated; it felt like it was written much earlier than 1997, which is a testament to the author’s ability to capture the time period (mid 1700s). There were so many characters I sometimes had trouble remembering who was who.
There is a review below that says James is a demeaning stereotype of an autistic person. I do not believe this is a fair characterization. James is meant to have no emotions at all. He does not have trouble reading social cues or processing stimulation, nor does he exhibit repetitive behaviors or hyperfocus on details. Instead he is like a sociopath with no empathy for others, nor even for himself since he does not feel pain personally. He cannot feel others’ emotions, however he can understand them enough to be able to manipulate them. He was mute until 11, but he understood language before and is perfectly fluent in speaking after that — this is not the speech delay typical of some autistic children. He also can heal extremely fast, faster than any human, which (in my mind) makes it clear that this is *not* just autism. The events towards the end of the book further show that this is an extreme, almost magical condition - think mutant X man.
Summary for myself : James, a bastard resented alternately by his mother and father, cannot feel pain, physical or emotional, and heals incredibly fast. He is also mute until he turns 11. Incredibly intelligent and uncaring, he is serious and single minded. Almost all of his family dies of smallpox and he leaves, eventually joining a circus act selling a crock analgesic by taking advantage of his abilities. He is “rescued” by an eccentric would-be scientist who also rescues other children with odd abilities, including two girls who are Siamese twins. James lives here and reads voraciously of anatomy and medicine; the girls eventually have an ill-planned operation to be separated and die in the process. James is re-kidnapped by his circus manager, but manages to enlist both of them in the Navy, where James becomes an assistant to the ship doctor. After that he goes to school to become a surgeon, hooks back up with his doctor mentor from the Navy, and James saves the man’s failing medical practice. They become extremely successful. However the man’s wife falls in love with James, who feels nothing for her; the man challenges James to a duel, loses but is not killed; they become best friends for a time until the man kills himself. At this point the town despises James for causing this drama, his practice goes under, and he decides to participate in a race to Russia; the winner gets to vaccinate the empress. James does well until being betrayed by his comrade, the circus manager who has been his servant all these years. James is rescued by the Reverend Lestrade and his party; they continue on to Russia but do not make it there first, so James loses. However on the way they rescue a mysterious and laconic gypsy they name Mary. Mary somehow magics James and makes it so he can feel physical and emotional pain; in fact all of the wounds he had received in the past but didn’t feel suddenly reappear on him in the present. James goes mad and is sent to an asylum. With his growing humanity, James falls in a painful love with another inmate named Dot. Dot dies and James is heartbroken. He recovers, leaves the asylum, and makes his way to the Reverend Lestrade along with Mary. He is received warmly and lives there, yet decides not to practice medicine (surgery) as he won’t be able to be as fast/effective/impersonal now that he can feel things. James lives his final years there peacefully and almost happily; before he dies he is present at an emergency labor and successfully completes a C section on the mother.
There is a review below that says James is a demeaning stereotype of an autistic person. I do not believe this is a fair characterization. James is meant to have no emotions at all. He does not have trouble reading social cues or processing stimulation, nor does he exhibit repetitive behaviors or hyperfocus on details. Instead he is like a sociopath with no empathy for others, nor even for himself since he does not feel pain personally. He cannot feel others’ emotions, however he can understand them enough to be able to manipulate them. He was mute until 11, but he understood language before and is perfectly fluent in speaking after that — this is not the speech delay typical of some autistic children. He also can heal extremely fast, faster than any human, which (in my mind) makes it clear that this is *not* just autism. The events towards the end of the book further show that this is an extreme, almost magical condition - think mutant X man.
Summary for myself :
ruthhelizabeth's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
Please read the content warnings before reading. In lieu of a plot, instead most of the book shows gratuitous trauma, violence and cruelty over and over again to seemingly only further a point that was bluntly shown in the first quarter of the book. The middle half of the book could be cut out entirely and it would barely affect the plot. The concept of someone who does not feel sounded intriguing, but instead of seeing things from their perspective, the protagonist stands listlessly around whilst seemingly unrelated traumas occur over and over again. The effect is that the book is remarkably dull. Very little is done with the historical setting, or with the character frankly. The moments of relief in this book come through when the story is shown through a different voice and towards the end, and I wished that the person who wrote those sections could have shown up for the rest.
The thing which really affronted me though, was the fact that the protagonist was characterised as what seemed to be an exaggerated, dated stereotype of an Autistic person. When you begin to read the book and all its horrors you realise how offensive this character is. As an Autistic person it was a pretty horrific read. Even after reading, I'm not sure what to do with the book as I'm not sure I even want it out there in the world for others to read such a jarring offensive caricature.
The thing which really affronted me though, was the fact that the protagonist was characterised as what seemed to be an exaggerated, dated stereotype of an Autistic person. When you begin to read the book and all its horrors you realise how offensive this character is. As an Autistic person it was a pretty horrific read. Even after reading, I'm not sure what to do with the book as I'm not sure I even want it out there in the world for others to read such a jarring offensive caricature.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Gore, Physical abuse, Blood, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Homophobia, Medical content, Sexism, Confinement, Death, Sexual harassment, Torture, Child abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Racism, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Murder, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Animal death, Misogyny, Rape, and Self harm
Moderate: Drug abuse and Drug use
reneereads's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
alonahami's review
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
mylogicisfuzzy's review
3.0
I liked this more than Pure, 3.5 stars. Well written and a fairly quick, interesting read. Still felt somewhat detached - similar feeling to Pure.
geertje's review
5.0
4.5 stars
Lest everyone thinks I'm the type of person to hand out 5-star ratings really easily: I've just been having two really good months of reading, okay? This book was no exception. I wish I could write like Andrew Miller; he has a way of making characters and scenes incredibly vivid with just a few words. My edition of this book is 337 pages, but it feels as if I've been on a long journey (in the best way possible).
Lest everyone thinks I'm the type of person to hand out 5-star ratings really easily: I've just been having two really good months of reading, okay? This book was no exception. I wish I could write like Andrew Miller; he has a way of making characters and scenes incredibly vivid with just a few words. My edition of this book is 337 pages, but it feels as if I've been on a long journey (in the best way possible).
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