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3.15 AVERAGE
3.15 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Don’t read the reviews here. The book is short and they give away too much. It’s a beautiful book with a strong sense of place and mood. Don’t try to figure it out or make it fit your expectations.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein
Is anomalous
This novel is wildly addictive in its boringness. We are just listening to an unnamed narrator, caring for her unnamed brother, who emigrates for a time from an unnamed country, to an unnamed ancestral homeland, in an unnamed period, and in the shadow of an unnamed war, among unknown languages and villages who all seem afraid of the unknown.
The only thing that is clear or becomes as close to clear as we get is the main character is at least culturally y Jewish, awkward, and is most likely referring to WWII. We know she is weird, and has been formed into someone who is either meek or kept meek because she is a danger.
What hooks the reader is the feeling that something is off. But we are never really sure what IT is. There are curious lines placed here or there that make you think “what, that can’t be right” but then everything seems normal again until the next WTF moment.
This book is for anyone who likes weird fiction, are satisfied with ambiguous ends, or are looking for a debatable book club read.
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Racism, Xenophobia
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow and moody, quite weird. strongest in the last third.
An unsettling read to say the least.
This book is for the readers who find books like Lapnova by Moshfegh a masterpiece.
I found myself feeling unsettled the entire time I was reading this book and while no specific occurrence pushed me over, there were many moments such as the death of animals or the disturbing dynamic between siblings.
A Study For Obedience is a descriptive story following an unreliable narrator who clearly had been impacted by childhood trauma and carries that with them in the present moment. It’s a description of existence through silence and is eerily interesting with no real plot.
This is one of those books that are read to dissect.
If you enjoy works by Otessa Moshfegh or Mona Awad, this might be one to checkout. It is a very short read so the perfect road trip companion.
This book is for the readers who find books like Lapnova by Moshfegh a masterpiece.
I found myself feeling unsettled the entire time I was reading this book and while no specific occurrence pushed me over, there were many moments such as the death of animals or the disturbing dynamic between siblings.
A Study For Obedience is a descriptive story following an unreliable narrator who clearly had been impacted by childhood trauma and carries that with them in the present moment. It’s a description of existence through silence and is eerily interesting with no real plot.
This is one of those books that are read to dissect.
If you enjoy works by Otessa Moshfegh or Mona Awad, this might be one to checkout. It is a very short read so the perfect road trip companion.