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oxfordcommas91's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Death
Moderate: Drug abuse, Cancer, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness
Minor: Drug use
_serena_'s review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Patrick’s love for his niece and nephew is immense! But I love that this was as much of a healing journey for Patrick as it was for the children.
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
erikagibson126's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, and Car accident
Moderate: Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, and Homophobia
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
kickitupanotch7's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Grief and Death of parent
Moderate: Addiction, Terminal illness, Cancer, and Car accident
Minor: Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical content
avisreadsandreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death of parent and Grief
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Car accident, and Terminal illness
Minor: Addiction, Medical content, and Vomit
lynxpardinus's review
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Grief, and Medical content
Moderate: Alcoholism, Car accident, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Cancer, Confinement, Drug abuse, Racism, Alcohol, Drug use, Terminal illness, Addiction, and Sexual assault
Minor: Child death, Gaslighting, Genocide, Abandonment, Colonisation, Suicidal thoughts, Body shaming, Outing, Bullying, Child abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pandemic/Epidemic, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual content, Stalking, Xenophobia, and Religious bigotry
mjpens's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death of parent and Death
Minor: Addiction, Car accident, and Suicidal thoughts
znvisser's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Medical content, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Cancer, and Car accident
marpaige's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Terminal illness, Addiction, and Car accident
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
atoft's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Generally, the book takes a lighter tone which was a nice break from the heavier queer fiction I've read recently. Unfortunately, it feels like it's trying really hard to be funny, and only occasionally manages. The titular gay uncle, Patrick, is charged with looking after his young niece and nephew for the summer, with supposedly hilarious results. He spends most of the book talking to them in a way that no real person would talk to children, filled with quippy asides and obscure references. He's saying things not because they make any sense in context but because they are funny for the reader, or at least they're meant to be. That most of the cultural references are completely lost on me probably doesn't help.
The book does have some more dramatic and emotional threads to it, in the loss of the kids' mother and Patrick's friend, Sara, and in Patrick dealing with grief from the death of his boyfriend Joe four years earlier. The latter is the most effective, especially a scene in which
The majority of the book has us tagging along with the trio throughout their summer, exploring Patrick's extravagant home (the reward for a successful TV career from which he's now hiding) and trying out various fun activities in the pretty but constraining setting of Palm Springs. Along the way he invents ridiculous "Guncle Rules" in an attempt to teach the kids important lessons, such as the value of brunch. There are a couple of other subplots, mainly around Patrick regaining the confidence to continue his acting career, and his growing flirtation with an up-and-coming young TV star. A brief moment of tension is brought about when
Reading The Guncle is not an unpleasant experience; it means spending some time in a sunny and relaxing place where nothing of much importance happens. But it's a story that too often favours fun over sincerity, and whose characters often feel as hollow as one of Patrick's colourful pool floats.
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts