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deedireads's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
Matrix is a feast of language with a premise you can’t help but love. It’s really different from Groff’s other work, and it’s not my favorite, but I liked and appreciated it a lot.
For you if: You liked both Wolf Hall and Hamnet.
FULL REVIEW:
TL;DR REVIEW:
Matrix is a feast of language with a premise you can’t help but love. It’s really different from Groff’s other work, and it’s not my favorite, but I liked and appreciated it a lot.
For you if: You liked both Wolf Hall and Hamnet.
FULL REVIEW:
“It is because this prayer is enclosed within the chapel, she sees, not despite the enclosure, that it becomes potent enough to be heard. Perhaps the song of a bird in a chamber is more precious than the wild bird’s because the chamber itself makes it so. Perhaps the free air that gives the wild bird its better song in fact limits the reach of its prayer. So small, this understanding. So remarkably tiny. Still, it might be enough to live for.”
As the latest from Lauren Groff and her first novel since Fates and Furies, Matrix is one of the most anticipated books of the fall and longlisted for the National Book Award. I liked it a lot and admired it even more.
The novel’s main character is Marie de France, a real-life poet from the 12th century about whom virtually nothing is actually known. Groff takes a few of modern-day historians’ hints and theories and reimagines Marie as a smart, fierce, protective, headstrong lesbian who becomes a prioress at an abbey and builds a massive, self-sufficient community of exclusively women out of nothing. The book takes us from her early days at the abbey through her death in old age, with all her writings, divine visions, and ferocity in between.
What stands out most for Matrix are the words themselves. The prose flows and sings and is really, truly beautiful. In that way, it reminded me of Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. That’s what I loved most. The story, however, is more like that of Wolf Hall; a series of “and then, and then, and then” events strung together, with the focus more on the arc of the main character’s life than with any central conflict or plot. That may not be for everyone; I struggled a bit with the story in the middle, personally, but that gorgeous prose never lost me.
Either way, I can’t help but appreciate the feat of this novel and what Groff built out of virtually nothing. I would be absolutely shocked if this doesn’t get nominated for the Women’s Prize next year; it’s just their type.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
caseythereader's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thanks to Riverhead Books for the free advance copy of this book.
- MATRIX is gorgeous, painful, and powerful. Groff's writing carries you along its current through Marie's ups and downs, power grabs and moments of softness.
- This book is an ode to matriarchy, female friendship and sapphic love, and how these support systems propel us through even the bleakest of times.
- Though at times the poetry of the writing felt like it kept the reader at a remove, I still felt deeply for these women, cheering their victories and mourning their losses with them. Even if you know next to nothing about Marie de France or Eleanor of Aquitane (as I did not) this book is still quite engrossing.
- MATRIX is gorgeous, painful, and powerful. Groff's writing carries you along its current through Marie's ups and downs, power grabs and moments of softness.
- This book is an ode to matriarchy, female friendship and sapphic love, and how these support systems propel us through even the bleakest of times.
- Though at times the poetry of the writing felt like it kept the reader at a remove, I still felt deeply for these women, cheering their victories and mourning their losses with them. Even if you know next to nothing about Marie de France or Eleanor of Aquitane (as I did not) this book is still quite engrossing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Vomit, and War
daisyandherbooks's review
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
relaxing
slow-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
4.0
“For this community is precious, there is a place here even for the maddest, for the discarded, for the difficult, in this enclosure there love enough here even for the most unlovable of women.”
✨Matrix by Lauren Groff✨
This book was probably one of the most poetic books I’ve ever read. It is definitely a piece of literature
✨Matrix by Lauren Groff✨
This book was probably one of the most poetic books I’ve ever read. It is definitely a piece of literature
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Violence
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