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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
Full disclosure: Audible did not let me finish the book and I had an hour and a half left. (Oh well.) There are parts of this book that are so beautifully written but the plot is rather confusing as it alternates between present time and the past. There are also quite a few characters with similar names.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
inspiring
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:
Complicated
A feast for the senses, a tug at the heart strings, a puzzle for the mind & a cast of deeply human characters caught in the currents of class, history, and family trauma. Roy’s prose is playful and creative and provokes an enormous well of feeling from beginning to end. Big fan
This book immediately captivated me with, perhaps, the most beautiful writing I’ve ever read. However, with great beauty comes great density for this read, as it is difficult to get through. I would give a second read a shot because the story was quite interesting overall.
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A surreal and transgressive story of a tragedy borne about by seemingly "small things" or inconsequential actions, but also shaped by the caste system and the lingering effects of British colonialism in India. The story takes place in Kerala in the 1960s and is framed around the death of a young girl, Sophie Mol, and the people whose lives are intertwined, though it is not clear from the beginning why they are connected to the tragedy. Admittedly, I was a bit lost as the disjointed narrative was initially hard to follow. The book would delve into the backstories of each character, but would jump ahead to the "present day" of 1993, when the twins reunite. I'm not sure if the narrative structure really worked for me; it's not that a traditional linear structure is needed, but rather, there could have been more buildup and tension around the circumstances and consequences of Sophie Mol's death. I still gasped at some of the reveals, but I wish I'd known that the death was what the narrative was framed around. It wasn't clear that there were stakes around the circumstances of the death!
In any case, there's a lot to appreciate, even if you do take the effort to mentally stitch together the fragments and threads depicted in the story. The prose loops around and diverges, often in lyrical fashion, and illustrates the complexity of love and loss of childhood.
Also BABY KOCHAMMA >:(
In any case, there's a lot to appreciate, even if you do take the effort to mentally stitch together the fragments and threads depicted in the story. The prose loops around and diverges, often in lyrical fashion, and illustrates the complexity of love and loss of childhood.
Also BABY KOCHAMMA >:(
Here's how it goes in my imagination. The author writes a novel on a series of many index cards, stacking them as she goes. But there are some left over! So she fills them with references to spit, pus, blood, vomit, pee, poop, sweat and ejaculatory fluid, adding those to the stack...but it was too much...the stack falls over and the cards are scattered in random order. Oh well, scoop that shit up and type it up cause she's tired of this story.
That is probably not how this book was written. I am probably too literal to 'get it.'
That is probably not how this book was written. I am probably too literal to 'get it.'
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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:
No
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Sexual violence