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lidia7's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.75
Graphic: Sexual assault, Homophobia, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Rape
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Medical content
Minor: Abortion and Suicide attempt
eam006's review
challenging
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Sexual assault
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Suicide attempt
horourke's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.25
while I am generally a huge Lily King fan, I was disappointed with this short story collection. she is undoubtedly a talented writer, but aside from two standout stories (the titular “five tuesdays in winter” and “when in the dordogne”), the stories did not make an impact on me. I was especially off put by the inclusion of two stories in which the protagonist nurses a crush on another character, only for that crush to later sexually assault them. while the two stories were slightly thematically different, one dealing with a developing teenager and the other themes of queerness and homophobia, that same motif of sexual violence was disturbing to me.
the latter handful of the stories in the collection were quite short, around 10-15 pages each, and left me wanting more. I have the feeling that “Mansard” could’ve been great given a bit more plot to it. But overall, I found many of the stories to be quite forgettable.
However, “five tuesdays in winter” was a lovely tale of found family, as was “when in the Dordogne.” I cried at both, filled with emotion at how King can so carefully craft emotions and settings. I found myself picturing the summer depicted “when in the Dordogne” as my own summer as an adolescent, marveling at the cool older kids who looked after my friends and I. she was able to capture the feeling of summer as a young person so well, and crafted a truly beautiful story about the people who enter our lives for a short period of time but have long lasting effects on who we are.
While I’m overall a bit disappointed by this collection, it was worth a read for those two stories alone.
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Abortion
ksheaffs's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Death
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