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sidekicksam's review
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Wow. This book was a trip.
Requiem For A Dream is the story of four addicts and how their illness affects their life. Written in the most confusing style I have ever encountered (little punctuation, no quotation marks, single paragraph chapters), this was one of the toughest books I have read, ever.
This book is not one to go through lightly (or quickly, for that matter). The story itself, and the characters and their journeys, get a tight grip on your arm, dig their nails into your flesh until your skin breaks, then crawls under your skin and starts eating away at you. That is how uncomfortable this book made me feel at times.
Despite its heavy content and dense writing, Selby does an amazing job of portraying addiction and all its deprevity. The writing style also makes the reader feel the brain fog drug use can cause and the manipulative character of their addictions. I've seen some movies about drugs and read some books in which drugs play a role, but I've never seen it portrayed so vividly and accurately as Requiem for a Dream.
I don't know how to rate this, and I don't know if I'll ever pick this up again. But I'm happy I pushed through and read this.
Requiem For A Dream is the story of four addicts and how their illness affects their life. Written in the most confusing style I have ever encountered (little punctuation, no quotation marks, single paragraph chapters), this was one of the toughest books I have read, ever.
This book is not one to go through lightly (or quickly, for that matter). The story itself, and the characters and their journeys, get a tight grip on your arm, dig their nails into your flesh until your skin breaks, then crawls under your skin and starts eating away at you. That is how uncomfortable this book made me feel at times.
Despite its heavy content and dense writing, Selby does an amazing job of portraying addiction and all its deprevity. The writing style also makes the reader feel the brain fog drug use can cause and the manipulative character of their addictions. I've seen some movies about drugs and read some books in which drugs play a role, but I've never seen it portrayed so vividly and accurately as Requiem for a Dream.
I don't know how to rate this, and I don't know if I'll ever pick this up again. But I'm happy I pushed through and read this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Addiction, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Drug use, Violence, Infidelity, Police brutality, Sexual content, and Vomit
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