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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
Hay una redundancia narrativa que complica la identificación con la protagonista, con los hechos expuestos. Y eso, en una novela de esta naturaleza, arruina totalmente la experiencia.
The rights to the book were just sold internationally, and judging by the comments it already has a global audience. Started reading it on Women's Day, where abortion again is a theme in Norway. And of course, even more so in the US. It's obviously pro choice, but manages to balance also with a message of the sacredness of pregnancy. Obligatory reading for all US lawmakers! (And everyone else...)
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I struggled to get through the first half but eventually the pace picked up and I understood more about the storyline. By the ending I couldn't put it down. It really made me reflect on the struggles of the women before me. Recommended.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Abortion
Moderate: Vomit, Alcohol
Minor: Suicide
"Nothing Grows by Moonlight," first published in Norway in 1947, is a rediscovered work revealing the unspoken struggles of women in a world that confines and ignores them. The story opens at a train station, where a man meets a mysterious woman. Over cigarettes and schnapps, she pours out her haunting past, recounting twenty years of pain and longing that have led her to this moment.
She recalls her youth as a small-town girl, dreaming of escape and beauty, only to become entangled in a doomed affair with her teacher. This relationship traps her in a cycle of heartbreak, hidden pregnancies, self-induced miscarriages, and societal shame. Her story becomes a indictment of the hypocrisy and cruelty women face under rigid moral codes that punish them for simply existing outside societal norms.
The novel offers a bleak sense of inevitability, capturing the psychological obsession and dependency that chains her to an abusive love. Her homelessness, both literal and emotional, reflects a soul searching for a place in a world that denies her autonomy and acceptance. Her longing for freedom and beauty stands tragically against the desolation of her circumstances.
For some, the novel’s sorrow may feel relentless and harrowing, yet the lyrical voice of the narrator lends a poetic light to the darkness, revealing a precious inner beauty even as her life crumbles. The prose, though sometimes heavy, gives a poignant and prescient voice to the female condition, reflecting the isolation and co-dependency many face in the pursuit of a life they are denied.
Nothing Grows by Moonlight is a haunting exploration of a woman’s yearning for life beyond the narrow limits of her birth.
She recalls her youth as a small-town girl, dreaming of escape and beauty, only to become entangled in a doomed affair with her teacher. This relationship traps her in a cycle of heartbreak, hidden pregnancies, self-induced miscarriages, and societal shame. Her story becomes a indictment of the hypocrisy and cruelty women face under rigid moral codes that punish them for simply existing outside societal norms.
The novel offers a bleak sense of inevitability, capturing the psychological obsession and dependency that chains her to an abusive love. Her homelessness, both literal and emotional, reflects a soul searching for a place in a world that denies her autonomy and acceptance. Her longing for freedom and beauty stands tragically against the desolation of her circumstances.
For some, the novel’s sorrow may feel relentless and harrowing, yet the lyrical voice of the narrator lends a poetic light to the darkness, revealing a precious inner beauty even as her life crumbles. The prose, though sometimes heavy, gives a poignant and prescient voice to the female condition, reflecting the isolation and co-dependency many face in the pursuit of a life they are denied.
Nothing Grows by Moonlight is a haunting exploration of a woman’s yearning for life beyond the narrow limits of her birth.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Rått om lengsel, besettelse, fattigdom og abort. Forstår «hypen» rundt denne klassikeren fra 1947.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced