Scan barcode
sbsreads's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Though this book is marketed as dystopian at first, it takes a reflective and emotional look into the aftermath of an apocalypse with fascinating glimpses into life before and how it affects those who survived. It was very different from most dystopian that I’ve read before and I loved the reflective nature of it!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Murder
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
This book is centered in an apocalyptic pandemic so it may be triggering.billyjepma's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"First we only want to be seen, but once we're seen, that's not enough anymore. After that, we want to be remembered."
Emily St. John Mandel taps into something sublime with Station Eleven, something that manages to speak to a particular moment in time while also capturing something universally timeless about living. The narrative and its characters may not have always resonated with me, but Mandel's beautiful writing and thematics quickly and repeatedly struck a nerve with me.
I usually latch onto the characters in a story, so while I liked the casts Mandel shifts between, I never felt as invested in them as I wanted. For example, I kept waiting for the story to peel back layers on specific characters or ideologies in the "present-day" sections, but those insights never really came. After all of the rich character development and exploration of the "flashback" stories—which, while familiar, are written with aching honesty and vulnerability—the present-day sections felt somewhat lacking.
That's not what's going to stick with me, though. The stories of lonely people discovering and fighting for their found families, the enduring hope they create together, the capacity for art and conviction to be what saves our souls in the end—that's what I'll remember about Station Eleven. I don't think the book even says anything profoundly original, but the unique angles it uses to approach those familiar ideas and genres make them feel new. Or, if not new, then timely and maybe even necessary.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Grief, and Medical content
Moderate: Violence, Adult/minor relationship, and Death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Death of parent, Torture, Suicide, Abandonment, Child death, and Vomit
owenwilsonbaby's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
"He woke to quiet voices. This had been happening more and more lately, this nodding off unexpectedly, and it left him with an unsettled intimation of rehearsal. You fall asleep for short periods and then for longer periods and then forever."
Compellingly written prose with a well-developed cast of characters. Whilst I wish Kristen's storyline had more events within it, I really liked the book and I think it is both hopeful and unsentimental about humanity, in a way that I suspect might be altered in the TV adaptation.
This book has a lot to say about art and community-building and the role these will play in coming crises. It felt resonant with ecological anxieties about climate change and social anxieties in the age of COVID-19. Some of the passages about process and industrialisation felt a tad oversimplified and neoliberal - surely an Amazon delivery driver or a factory worker making snowglobes has complex, nuanced feelings about their labour and their lives that goes beyond gratitude for a job - but everything else was thoughtful, interesting, well-paced and moving. I loved Kirsten and Miranda. What wonderful characters.
Compellingly written prose with a well-developed cast of characters. Whilst I wish Kristen's storyline had more events within it, I really liked the book and I think it is both hopeful and unsentimental about humanity, in a way that I suspect might be altered in the TV adaptation.
This book has a lot to say about art and community-building and the role these will play in coming crises. It felt resonant with ecological anxieties about climate change and social anxieties in the age of COVID-19. Some of the passages about process and industrialisation felt a tad oversimplified and neoliberal - surely an Amazon delivery driver or a factory worker making snowglobes has complex, nuanced feelings about their labour and their lives that goes beyond gratitude for a job - but everything else was thoughtful, interesting, well-paced and moving. I loved Kirsten and Miranda. What wonderful characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Pedophilia, Death of parent, Death, Medical content, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Child abuse, Confinement, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Cursing, Grief, Gun violence, and Mental illness
whirl's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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
4.0
The description of the start of the pandemic are a bit too spot on now that there has been a pandemic.. although it really highlights how lucky we’ve been that covid-19 was much less deadly!
The book has a nice pace, and just ambles through the lives of various survivors loosely connected to each other before the pandemic hits
The book has a nice pace, and just ambles through the lives of various survivors loosely connected to each other before the pandemic hits
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Ableism, Kidnapping, and Violence
Minor: Child death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Murder, and Suicidal thoughts
While the book describes a post apocalyptic world which is clearly more lawless and violent, it doesn’t go into unnecessarily detailed descriptions and is more about what happens to people’s minds and personality to live in such a worldlemonflower's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Medical trauma, Murder, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Gore, Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal death, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Chronic illness, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content
readerette's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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? No
5.0
I could not put this down. I was immersed. I've never experienced an apocalyptic story that came so close to feeling real--how things seem like they would really go if something world-ending came to pass. Aside from Part 7 being too long and unfocused for my taste, I loved it all: the writing, the characters, the relationships, the new world that came to be, the little things people remembered or cherished... Just beautiful. She's captured the little world within a world that each of us builds by way of the people we are connected to; the ones we know our whole lives and the ones we meet indirectly through their art or work or or mutual friends; the ones we meet early and the ones we meet later; the ones we lose for a while and the ones we lose forever; the ones who were part of some milestone and the ones who were a constant.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Death, and Violence
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Blood, Infidelity, Medical content, Pregnancy, Animal death, Death of parent, Murder, Suicide, and Cursing
emhunsber's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Death, Gun violence, Religious bigotry, and Violence
Minor: Pedophilia, Medical content, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Rape, Pregnancy, Drug use, Infidelity, Confinement, Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, Death of parent, Child death, and Alcohol
iamnita's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This book hooked me from the writing alone. The way in which Emily Mandel writes is just so beautiful you feel as though you're there, but you also appreciate how much work she put into setting all the scenes. While I anticipated I might get lost in the various points in time, and the POVs of various groups of characters, I found the way she wrote helped remind me who I was following. I never felt like I left characters too soon, or stayed with them too long. While the overall story is gripping, it's not shocking and can really be an easy read for someone who wants to explore a world in which 95% of the population is gone.
Lastly, the larger issues this story tackles are just beautiful. I find myself thinking back on this book often, and may do a re-read to highlight some of the beautiful passages and experience them again for their life lessons. Emily Mandel's notes after you're finished reading are just awesome.
Lastly, the larger issues this story tackles are just beautiful. I find myself thinking back on this book often, and may do a re-read to highlight some of the beautiful passages and experience them again for their life lessons. Emily Mandel's notes after you're finished reading are just awesome.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Chronic illness, Child death, Death of parent, and Death
questingnotcoasting's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
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
4.5
I've had this book since Christmas 2017 and have been meaning to get to it for years, but the hype often put me off because I didn't know if it would live up to my expectations. And then the last time I considered reading it was at the start of 2020 and I soon decided I didn't want to read a pandemic novel during a pandemic. However I'm so glad I finally got to it. It was so brilliant and I read it in two sittings. I often really enjoy a book with interwoven plots so I loved that it follows different characters and I found them all fascinating. At first I wasn't sure if I would feel more invested in some of the storylines than others but luckily that wasn't the case and I was never waiting to get back to a more interesting part. Mandel has created a fascinating world and I'll be thinking about it for a while.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Medical content, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Death of parent
Minor: Rape and Suicide
angieleal15's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Kidnapping
Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, and Mental illness
Minor: Suicide, Adult/minor relationship, and Rape