Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
This book is beautiful. Half way through you have this will they won’t they moment and it turns out not exactly like I hoped/expected towards the end. I love that almost all of the characters are women with different perspectives and socioeconomic status. It’s so relatable. I cried throughout the last 3 pages.
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It was a tough read to get into, but I’m so glad I pushed through. It was at once incredibly provocative and incredible tender. The author pushed me to consider new ideas yet held me with such care while doing so. Prose that was both beautiful and heartbreaking, and a plot that was barely there yet still had so many twists and turns.
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The title really grabbed my attention & I enjoyed the themes that were discussed such as femininity, poverty, sexuality, fertility, friendship & basically unpacking what being a woman is.
However, the book was very slow-paced & I’d almost hoped that there would be more going on. That said, it was well-written but maybe too lowkey for me to fully enjoy?
However, the book was very slow-paced & I’d almost hoped that there would be more going on. That said, it was well-written but maybe too lowkey for me to fully enjoy?
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Very Dostoevskian in a way relevant to modern times. People may argue and rationalize away about the meaning or meaningless of life and its creation; but in they end they *act* as though meaning is default. This all culminates in the birth of the main character's, Natsuko's, child. With the decision to have that child coming at the cost of much criticism from her circle, namely, from a far more nihilistic character named Yuriko.
"I saw her for the first time. She was unlike anyone that I had ever known.Unprecedented in my memory or my imagination. She was new to me. Her voice rang through her body, loud as anything. I called to her, speaking in a voice that no one elsecould hear. Where were you? You're here now. I watched her, this new baby girl, letting her cry into my breast."
I do wish Midoriko's storyline was more well-fleshed out—considered how much her diary entries played a role in setting the stage for a major theme of the novel. But apart from that, this was a surprisingly good book. I look forward to reading All the Lovers in the Night next.
"I saw her for the first time. She was unlike anyone that I had ever known.Unprecedented in my memory or my imagination. She was new to me. Her voice rang through her body, loud as anything. I called to her, speaking in a voice that no one elsecould hear. Where were you? You're here now. I watched her, this new baby girl, letting her cry into my breast."
I do wish Midoriko's storyline was more well-fleshed out—considered how much her diary entries played a role in setting the stage for a major theme of the novel. But apart from that, this was a surprisingly good book. I look forward to reading All the Lovers in the Night next.