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emeraldgarnet's review against another edition
4.0
The story of a family told with several twists and turns.
om4im's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
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? Yes
4.5
I love a killjoy.
captlychee's review against another edition
3.0
This book is competently written, in the sense that the author has done her writing courses an ticks all the boxes, but was it good enough to win th Miles Franklin award? Of course it was! those awards are handed out based on the characterisitcs of th e author, not the work.
Okay, so it tells the story of an Aboriginal family in a fictional town in New South Wales. They have he problems many poor people have, but there is much use of Aboriginal 'lingo' to add some local colour to it. The author is adamant that the problems depicted in the story are specifically and uniquely Aboriginal, but of course they could and have applied to other impoverished ethic groups throughout history and across the world.
Like [a:Russell Braddon|432037|Russell Braddon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1446234937p2/432037.jpg]'s [b:The Year of the Angry Rabbit|2335676|The Year of the Angry Rabbit|Russell Braddon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1496074289l/2335676._SY75_.jpg|2342275] the book ends with a bit of Aboriginal spiritualism which is at times fanciful but also realistic, which is something of an achievement. However, the only reason to read this book is if you are already committed to, and accepting of, the idea that the Aboriginal people of Australia are a special case of the conflict between the primitive and the advanced, or the indigenous versus the immigrant.
Okay, so it tells the story of an Aboriginal family in a fictional town in New South Wales. They have he problems many poor people have, but there is much use of Aboriginal 'lingo' to add some local colour to it. The author is adamant that the problems depicted in the story are specifically and uniquely Aboriginal, but of course they could and have applied to other impoverished ethic groups throughout history and across the world.
Like [a:Russell Braddon|432037|Russell Braddon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1446234937p2/432037.jpg]'s [b:The Year of the Angry Rabbit|2335676|The Year of the Angry Rabbit|Russell Braddon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1496074289l/2335676._SY75_.jpg|2342275] the book ends with a bit of Aboriginal spiritualism which is at times fanciful but also realistic, which is something of an achievement. However, the only reason to read this book is if you are already committed to, and accepting of, the idea that the Aboriginal people of Australia are a special case of the conflict between the primitive and the advanced, or the indigenous versus the immigrant.
gizmo_gadget's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Holy shit.
This book would have been five stars if it wasn’t for:
a) Steve (somehow #1 most hateable character despite only being portrayed in a positive light)
b) The fact I read Edenglassie first, and Lucashenko touches on some topics surrounding what it means to be Indigenous with more nuance and resolution there
c) The portrayal of domestic abuse was far too matter of fact for my traumatised ass, and getting through the middle of the book, where tensions were at their highest and everything was painfully up in the air, was a slog. It was too realistic for its own good, 10/10 hopeless drudgery, 0/10 revelatory or novel content for me
That being said, the end 100 pages of the book were fucking amazing. Trauma and all. Lucashenko has her satisfying-but-unresolved endings down to an art (though once again, slight preference for Edenglassie), particularly in the sense that all the book’s previous symbolism is braided together, and provides that final little shove that develops the characters to their final form.
I appreciated that the full cast of family characters showed the range of traumas and trauma responses that can come out of a fucked situation, and very maturely avoided hoisting unwarranted blame on the shoulders of individuals subject to the Trauma Cycle™️ and its intergenerational implications. I also enjoyed that the main character has like . the least character development out of her close family. She clearly has some Shit To Sort Out. But it would have sullied the flow of the book to pull her out of the role she was serving as the audience’s eyes to the whole-of-family conflict (emphasis on whole). The novel is not about any one person, but the web of intricately spun tensions that had weaved itself over lifetimes of successive dispossession.
Finally: Elvis’ demise made me sob like a fucking baby and if I had to pick a most important book character it would be him. Thank you for your sacrifice, Elvis :((
This book would have been five stars if it wasn’t for:
a) Steve (somehow #1 most hateable character despite only being portrayed in a positive light)
b) The fact I read Edenglassie first, and Lucashenko touches on some topics surrounding what it means to be Indigenous with more nuance and resolution there
c) The portrayal of domestic abuse was far too matter of fact for my traumatised ass, and getting through the middle of the book, where tensions were at their highest and everything was painfully up in the air, was a slog. It was too realistic for its own good, 10/10 hopeless drudgery, 0/10 revelatory or novel content for me
That being said, the end 100 pages of the book were fucking amazing. Trauma and all. Lucashenko has her satisfying-but-unresolved endings down to an art (though once again, slight preference for Edenglassie), particularly in the sense that all the book’s previous symbolism is braided together, and provides that final little shove that develops the characters to their final form.
I appreciated that the full cast of family characters showed the range of traumas and trauma responses that can come out of a fucked situation, and very maturely avoided hoisting unwarranted blame on the shoulders of individuals subject to the Trauma Cycle™️ and its intergenerational implications. I also enjoyed that the main character has like . the least character development out of her close family. She clearly has some Shit To Sort Out. But it would have sullied the flow of the book to pull her out of the role she was serving as the audience’s eyes to the whole-of-family conflict (emphasis on whole). The novel is not about any one person, but the web of intricately spun tensions that had weaved itself over lifetimes of successive dispossession.
Finally: Elvis’ demise made me sob like a fucking baby and if I had to pick a most important book character it would be him. Thank you for your sacrifice, Elvis :((
through_my_eyes81's review against another edition
5.0
Kerry Salter returns home reluctantly to what at first seems the same place that she thought she escaped from. She finds Durrungo has changed or maybe it’s her that has. Her backpack is stolen by the Greedy Mayor and her goal is to regain it and leave town.
renss's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-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? It's complicated
2.25
booksandlattesaddict's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault
jess_mango's review against another edition
4.0
Too Much Lip is at its heart a story about a woman on the run, from her family, from jail, and from the burden of being indigenous in Australia. Kerry Salter is close to being locked up when she hears that her grandfather, Pop, is dying. so, she hops on a stolen Harley and heads to her hometown. She wants to just stop in and see Pop and then be on her way, but she quickly becomes embroiled in family issues. There is the battle between siblings of who will take over the leadership role once their patriarch dies and then there is the issue where outsiders are trying to increase development on the family's beloved river.
This was an interesting and often wryly comic read about a brash young woman who as much as she wants to escape the life she was born into, can't help but trying to figure out what is best for her family. There is a lot of discussion in this book about the relationship between indigenous Australians and white Australians. The author herself is part Goorie, making this an #ownvoices read. This novel was nominated for several literary awards and won the Miles Franklin Literary Award in 2019. This book was finally released in the States in late 2020, but was well worth the wait for me.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!
This was an interesting and often wryly comic read about a brash young woman who as much as she wants to escape the life she was born into, can't help but trying to figure out what is best for her family. There is a lot of discussion in this book about the relationship between indigenous Australians and white Australians. The author herself is part Goorie, making this an #ownvoices read. This novel was nominated for several literary awards and won the Miles Franklin Literary Award in 2019. This book was finally released in the States in late 2020, but was well worth the wait for me.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!