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graceesford's review
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Colonisation, and Drug use
kirkspockreads's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Confinement, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Colonisation, Homophobia, Racism, Toxic relationship, Genocide, Addiction, Alcohol, Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Minor: Miscarriage
princessnomi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.5
This was my first go at this kind of book and I liked it. Just a warning to others though (because I was caught off guard) there are extremely graphic descriptions of sexual acts. That was t the entire focus of the book but they are there
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Abandonment, and Addiction
tigger89's review
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I really liked this book, though I'm not sure it's a novel. Essentially, there is no plot here. If you're not interested in spending 192 pages alternating reading the philosophical musings of the narrator and listening to conversations, just walk away from this book right now, because it's not for you.
It's abundantly clear to me that the author is primarily a poet. Parts of this book felt like poems playing make-believe that they were a novel, but in a good way. Sometimes I'd read a line and just have to stop for a minute, letting it sink in. I don't know if this is auto-fiction or not, but there's so many similarities between the (unnamed) narrator and the author, even down to jewelry, that I couldn't help but imagine the author himself in place of the character. So it certainly vibed that way, though since he hasn't come out and said it(that I'm aware of) I'll refrain from making any assumptions about the author based on that reading.
I do have to warn that this book does not use quotation marks. Normally this doesn't bother me, as I can typically follow along without any problems. But I had a lot of issues following the dialogue here, specifically distinguishing between what the narrator was saying out loud and his internal monologue. I frequently had to re-read, and on multiple occasions I had to move on without comprehending. That said, ultimately it didn't bother me very much, but it might be a deal-breaker for some.
It's abundantly clear to me that the author is primarily a poet. Parts of this book felt like poems playing make-believe that they were a novel, but in a good way. Sometimes I'd read a line and just have to stop for a minute, letting it sink in. I don't know if this is auto-fiction or not, but there's so many similarities between the (unnamed) narrator and the author, even down to jewelry, that I couldn't help but imagine the author himself in place of the character. So it certainly vibed that way, though since he hasn't come out and said it(that I'm aware of) I'll refrain from making any assumptions about the author based on that reading.
I do have to warn that this book does not use quotation marks. Normally this doesn't bother me, as I can typically follow along without any problems. But I had a lot of issues following the dialogue here, specifically distinguishing between what the narrator was saying out loud and his internal monologue. I frequently had to re-read, and on multiple occasions I had to move on without comprehending. That said, ultimately it didn't bother me very much, but it might be a deal-breaker for some.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Racism
Moderate: Police brutality, Abandonment, and Colonisation
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