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bookedbymadeline's review against another edition
fast-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
3.0
Easy, quick read at less than 200 pages. I read this in one sitting, and only finished because I have book 2 and have heard it’s better than Lucy Barton, plus as I said it’s a quick read.
Stream of consciousness writing style with chapters jumping from different points of time which could be confusing at times. I’m not a big fan of this writing style because it usually lacks depth and the characters felt one dimensional.
I felt detached to the characters because there’s a lot of telling instead of showing. Maybe it’s because of how short the novel is and it tries to span so much time in so few pages.
The book is an interesting exploration of a childhood lived in extreme poverty, neglect, tense mother-daughter relationships, and loneliness. I did appreciate some quotes that made me think but overall it’s not bad or great, just average and forgettable. I’m hoping other reviewers are right and book 2 (as well as another of Strout’s novels, Olive Kitteridge) is better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Death of parent, Classism, Medical content, and Grief
Moderate: Death
Minor: War, Murder, Genocide, and Homophobia
rhia_a's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Child abuse, Mental illness, and Confinement
ericageorge91's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The first time I read this book, I finished it feeling nothing but indifference. I thought the stories were random and meandering and I kept waiting for something to shift and for me to start really caring but it never happened. It felt like a literary version of waiting for my body to sneeze.
Going into it a second time around, knowing that there’s no plot to be had, allowed me to appreciate the story a lot more.
I knew Lucy was a lonely character, but it took the reread for me to notice that Strout is writing this story as an extension of the character’s loneliness. Lucy just seems to be chatting her stream of consciousness to the reader like we’re her friend lending her a listening ear and she loves us—just loves us! Reading it with the Lonely Bitch lens, I’m able to see how pervasive Lucy’s loneliness was and realize that her random stories (crying subway children, the Met statue of the father and his children) are more intentional than I thought.
References to child abuse (physical, emotional, sexual) and neglect, discussions of infidelity, war, gun violence
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Minor: War, Child abuse, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
rosalind's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
The whole experience of reading felt like sticking my fingers in someone else’s open wound; intimate, but not in a nice way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content and Child abuse
Moderate: Grief, Death, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Sexual content and Classism
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