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dillonps's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
fien22's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jall_rym's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
aliferuz's review against another edition
5.0
Actually, I expect more heartwrenching scene from this book. Seeing how it set during dispute and war in Cyprus. But, I guess a book doesn't have to contain excruciating scene to make your heart broke. One of the main topic of this book is about nature. Plants and animals and how human take them for granted. How plants and animals also go through trauma and hardships. What makes it unique is there's a fig tree's pov, Ficus. She is a witness of history and how she talked about it always made me humbled and gloomy. She knew Defne and Kostas since they were teenagers. She knew their stories, and histories. On the other side, there's these some scenes of Ada and Meryem that brighten up the mood, a bit (at least to me). Their back and forth banter felt refreshing. Ada with her cynicism and Meryem with her chatty-self. In the end of the story, we would figure out the reason Ficus has this attachment to Kostas. Yes, the tree loves the man.
pained_creations's review against another edition
A tree is in love with a man.....
melbell016's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I really enjoyed the life lessons weaved throughout the story, and the fun facts about nature. I especially enjoyed the fig tree as a narrator - it was a surprising element but it lended itself well to telling the story. I learned a lot in this book.
zahraa_aj's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I'm so upset that I didn't enjoy this more! I love Shafak's writing, she can easily transport the reader to a different era with all of its small details in a single page.
Unfortunately, the plot didn't make much sense to me. The history of Cyprus and the symbolism of the fig tree in the story overshadowed characterisation. This is still a wonderful story to read and learn from but the characters are one-dimensional.
Unfortunately, the plot didn't make much sense to me. The history of Cyprus and the symbolism of the fig tree in the story overshadowed characterisation. This is still a wonderful story to read and learn from but the characters are one-dimensional.
annartyler's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
bibliobrandie's review against another edition
5.0
This was brilliant and I loved every minute of it.
hikeplayski's review against another edition
Abandoned at 30%. I really wanted to love this book, but I just could not get into it. The voices of the characters seemed cartoonish or exaggerated in the way YA novels sometimes are. There were some really beautiful passages, but I just could not get through it.