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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Boldly imaginative and confronting, this compelling novel places us in a contemporary world where a flu has given humans pink eyes and the ability to communicate with the world of animals and insects. No twee anthropomorphism here, rather an honest attempt to reflect the complex emotions that might be felt in the co-dependent relationships we have with the animals we have domesticated as well as the more straightforward motives of survival in the terrestrial and marine wilderness as human life encroaches further and further into it.
I’m really conflicted on how to rate this book. It’s strange and beautiful. I loved it and hated it. I found the animals’ thoughts confusing and disturbing but I couldn’t put it down and was devastated at the end. I think I need to read it again to really get it all. That said, I suspect I’ll be thinking about it and hearing Sue’s voice in my head for some time to come, even after one read.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Interesting, unique concept. I enjoyed the first third of this novel and the unusual main character.
Once the animals started to talk I found parts almost incomprehensible and I skipped over much of the animal dialogue. Honestly, I kind of wish I had DNF'd this once the road trip started..
Once the animals started to talk I found parts almost incomprehensible and I skipped over much of the animal dialogue. Honestly, I kind of wish I had DNF'd this once the road trip started..
It's not uncommon that books make me cry. This one hit differently. My throat is tense and the tears took a while to stop. I think I might cry thinking about it again. This book was not what I thought it was, although I wasn't sure what to suspect. The umwelt McKay makes here is utterly convincing, depressing, and amazingly real. Not a book for the faint of heart or mind -- this is a challenging book. Even the humans are hard to understand. Just like life.
This wholly original novel is unique in so many ways, not least of which is its premise: there’s a flu-like pandemic raging across Australia that allows those infected to understand what animals are saying. But being able to communicate with non-humans — including mammals, birds and insects — isn’t as wonderful as you might expect, for the messages, random, garbled and incessant, are frightening: the animals are calling for help.
I ate this book up in the space of a weekend. I would put it down and then itch to pick it up again. It’s spellbinding in a way few dystopian novels can be spellbinding. It posits a truly preposterous idea, yet makes it seem totally plausible.
The story is narrated by a kickass, foul-mouthed protagonist called Jean, who works as a guide at a local wildlife zoo. Jean has “issues” — she’s a hard drinker, a chain smoker and likes rough-and-ready sex with her married male friend, which she usually doesn’t remember the next day. She doesn’t normally get on with people, but she’s devoted to her granddaugher Kim, loves her wayward missing-in-action adult son Lee and has a soft spot for a young dingo called Sue.
The latter “relationship” is important, because when the pandemic hits the local area, and Lee turns up infected to “steal back” Kim and do a runner, it is Sue who provides the companionship Jean craves when she hits the road looking for her son. And it is Sue who is the first animal to communicate with her.
To read the rest of my review, please visit my blog.
I ate this book up in the space of a weekend. I would put it down and then itch to pick it up again. It’s spellbinding in a way few dystopian novels can be spellbinding. It posits a truly preposterous idea, yet makes it seem totally plausible.
The story is narrated by a kickass, foul-mouthed protagonist called Jean, who works as a guide at a local wildlife zoo. Jean has “issues” — she’s a hard drinker, a chain smoker and likes rough-and-ready sex with her married male friend, which she usually doesn’t remember the next day. She doesn’t normally get on with people, but she’s devoted to her granddaugher Kim, loves her wayward missing-in-action adult son Lee and has a soft spot for a young dingo called Sue.
The latter “relationship” is important, because when the pandemic hits the local area, and Lee turns up infected to “steal back” Kim and do a runner, it is Sue who provides the companionship Jean craves when she hits the road looking for her son. And it is Sue who is the first animal to communicate with her.
To read the rest of my review, please visit my blog.
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is no Dr. Doolittle. In this dystopian world, humans are exposed to animal communication to the point of squalor and madness. The main characters (both human and animal) are complex and messy, unpredictable and fundamentally unknowable. An often frustrating but memorable read
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Pandemic/Epidemic