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4.21 AVERAGE
4.21 AVERAGE
Saw smth questionable — until i do further research
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
If you dislike dreams and the talk of them...skip this
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
You know, I'm something of a solenoid myself.
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
slow-paced
I really thought this was going to be for me… It really was not.
A number of people have loved this one, but my (admittedly rather harsh) impression was of a self-indulgent Lit Bro™ wankathon which conflates self-absorption with Serious Literature, and I just could not be bothered with it. Maybe I’d have appreciated the cleverness of it all if I had a literature degree or was analysing it for an essay (though thankfully, I am not). I did enjoy the many absurdities of life in communist Romania, but it wasn’t enough to hold my interest in the book.
I found myself increasingly resentful at the simple thought of picking it up, so I DNFed at about 140 pages (about 1/5 of the way through - I really tried). I even switched to the audiobook, but kept zoning out and forgetting to listen. Perhaps I’d have found something profound amongst the pages if I’d pushed through (I have my doubts), but my relief at deciding to DNF tells me that I made the right choice.
Was really excited to read it, so maybe my expectations were too high. Really interesting and vivid but got very repetitive at times. Will definitely pick up his other books though.