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challenging
dark
tense
medium-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
this book fascinated and terrified with me. the BEST fiction i've read this year.
and i think john wray treated the whole subject of schizophrenia with respect while still creating a realistic, exciting book.
and i think john wray treated the whole subject of schizophrenia with respect while still creating a realistic, exciting book.
Few books in my collection receive the esteemed honor of becoming underlined/highlighted. I knew right away this would be one of them. A fantastic look into a schizophrenic teenager's mind, this book was compelling and beautifully written. The writing alternates between a stream of consciousness style and a more sterile narrative approach so the reader gets a glimpse into the main character's mind as well as the world around him and those involved in his life. This book is a definite contemporary to Catcher in the Rye but no less original; I would highly recommend it!
Enrolei muito pra começar essa leitura. E quando comecei enrolei um pouco no inicio também. Até pensei em doar o livro pra um amigo porque nao estava indo pra frente pra mim. Mas em algum momento durante a leitura comecei a me interessar do nada, feito um estalo. A personagem mais interessante com certeza é a mãe do personagem principal. Como ela foi descrita durante o livro me deixou com uma pulga atras da orelha durante toda a leitura. No fim, finalmente tudo se conectou e eu tive um sentimento satisfatorio de AHHHHHHHHHH, AGORA TUDO FAZ SENTIDO.
A quick read, but takes a little while to get into.
Really a 3.5. This book was really different, but I liked it. I would recommend it but not to everyone. It's a really interesting premise. At first I found the book hard to get into, but the pacing and the metronome-like beat of the book spurred me on. Wray's writing is brilliant; you can feel the tension building and he really makes the reader feel as if they're in the environment (underground in a subway). As the main character descends into complete psychosis, the writing appears precise and measured even though it could easily slip into chaos. The characters are good, but again it is a strange book. I think that's what made it better though. If you're looking for something different, I would recommend this book. If you give it time, it really is a wonderful book and a fantastic representation of paranoid schizophrenia.
It is well plotted with action followed by action and is a quick read more like commercial fiction in that manner. However, it is all about character; so more literary in that aspect. So a literary page-turner is something that not everyone can achieve and Wray did.
At first, it felt formulaic - switch viewpoints, create tension, introduce another character - but at the mid-point, I was absorbed and the reading was a rush just as the trains rush, as Lowboy rushes, as Violet rushes. It all worked together. There is a lot of dialogue which strikes me as a bit off. It seemed like it should be a work of howling silences.
Some of the language is overdone and the metaphors from Lowboy's pov too often use images that are well outside lowboy's world. On page 95 I think I counted 8 or 9 metaphors. Way too many. And some "like tidewater playing with a cigarette filter" are not good. When first of all has Lowboy ever seen tidewater?"
Still that is just quibbling and this book is a solid 4 for me.
At first, it felt formulaic - switch viewpoints, create tension, introduce another character - but at the mid-point, I was absorbed and the reading was a rush just as the trains rush, as Lowboy rushes, as Violet rushes. It all worked together. There is a lot of dialogue which strikes me as a bit off. It seemed like it should be a work of howling silences.
Some of the language is overdone and the metaphors from Lowboy's pov too often use images that are well outside lowboy's world. On page 95 I think I counted 8 or 9 metaphors. Way too many. And some "like tidewater playing with a cigarette filter" are not good. When first of all has Lowboy ever seen tidewater?"
Still that is just quibbling and this book is a solid 4 for me.
I felt like I should have liked this book more. Don't get me wrong, I liked it well enough. The story and writing was interesting and worth the read but it did not rock my world like I expected from all the hype. Not even sure how high on my recommendation list this would be...kinda meh.
I did not enjoy reading this book. As a piece of literature, it's fine, but the process of reading it was unpleasant. No one in this book is happy, and the mind of a paranoid schizophrenic is not a pleasant place to be.
This book had an interesting push/pull factor for me - sometimes I couldn't put it down and sometimes I was so mad at what happened that I couldn't keep reading. The author is an excellent writer and gives an interesting window into what the thought processes of someone with schizophrenia might be like. I HATED the end!!!!!