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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
what the hell
despite "crossing" being a complete novel and not a short story collection of any sort, i can't help but have an impression it's like a puzzle made of random snippets to turn into one story. the book is extremely uneven– consisting of fragments i adored, many of statovci's thoughts on the issues regarding identity are well written and definitely worth the attention; but also of truly awful character choices that consistently reappear throughout the book.
while to a degree i can understand *why* bujar is such an awful person (i'm not exaggerating when i say tanja's chapters are some of the most uncomfortable ones i've read in a while), and i certainly appreciate how it actually makes sense, given his previously described adventures, it feels... grotesque, and while it's not bad per se, it makes me wonder whether it was a good decision– it sure did shock me, disgusted to a degree, but other than that, what was the point? i can't seem to figure it out
not to mention the structure of the book is rather repetitive: with every new place and period of time, bajur just follows the same pattern of action. sure, the details are different, and he gradually becomes worse, but other than that? i don't think there was much depth to it. i wish instead of describing all the new and unnecessary details the author focused on bajur's character more. it's weird: i have a feeling he was described with great attention to seemingly even unimportant information, and yet... he lacks depth. i can't explain it, i just caught myself thinking there would be something *more* while reading the book
i can't say i didn't enjoy the book, but it was full of faults– a very conflicting novel
despite "crossing" being a complete novel and not a short story collection of any sort, i can't help but have an impression it's like a puzzle made of random snippets to turn into one story. the book is extremely uneven– consisting of fragments i adored, many of statovci's thoughts on the issues regarding identity are well written and definitely worth the attention; but also of truly awful character choices that consistently reappear throughout the book.
while to a degree i can understand *why* bujar is such an awful person (i'm not exaggerating when i say tanja's chapters are some of the most uncomfortable ones i've read in a while), and i certainly appreciate how it actually makes sense, given his previously described adventures, it feels... grotesque, and while it's not bad per se, it makes me wonder whether it was a good decision– it sure did shock me, disgusted to a degree, but other than that, what was the point? i can't seem to figure it out
not to mention the structure of the book is rather repetitive: with every new place and period of time, bajur just follows the same pattern of action. sure, the details are different, and he gradually becomes worse, but other than that? i don't think there was much depth to it. i wish instead of describing all the new and unnecessary details the author focused on bajur's character more. it's weird: i have a feeling he was described with great attention to seemingly even unimportant information, and yet... he lacks depth. i can't explain it, i just caught myself thinking there would be something *more* while reading the book
i can't say i didn't enjoy the book, but it was full of faults– a very conflicting novel
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Crossing by Pajtim Statovci is a historical fiction queer novel that I feel like I needed more context when it came to the setting and time period of the story. While I liked Bujar's story as an unreliable narrator, I was just a little too out of the loop with everything else to really get invested in the whole thing.
The story felt predictable. While the origins of the characters are original compared to promoted literature (Albania / Kosovo), the way the queer character is handled is very "modern" and "idealised", even through her struggles. She switches countries in a snap of the fingers as soon as she feels like it, she is androgynous enough to pass for a woman without questions if she wants to... It's a very flat and accep able storytelling of a trans life with all the problems a trans character may face (rejection from lovers, suicidal ideation...). It also feels modern in the sense of contemporary / the way the trans character feels is very well adjusted to the contemporary discourse on that identity. This didn't feel deeply thought out, nor did it feel especially masterful in its treatment of the characters's cultural background or their gender identity...
emotional
sad
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:
Complicated
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Transphobia
While Statovic's prose flows beautifully, I couldn't find it in me to actually like the book (let alone the main character). Reading Crossing is like watching TV through frosted glass: everything lacks basic narrative definition to the point of opacity.
And the morally ambiguous behaviour of the MC, as I said did not endear him to me. I have the author's third(?) book, Bolla, on my shelves, so will read that one, but I'm not sure I "return" to his first one.
And the morally ambiguous behaviour of the MC, as I said did not endear him to me. I have the author's third(?) book, Bolla, on my shelves, so will read that one, but I'm not sure I "return" to his first one.
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes