Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - A Amiga Genial

Lots of short chapters which helps move the book along. The book tells the story of two smart, quick friends, girls becoming women in 50s and 60s Italy. Deals some with themes of misogyny, lack of opportunities for women at that time, violent masculinity. It was hard to keep the characters straight. The cast of characters is pretty large and many have similar names.

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deenmachine's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Slow start -- the descriptions of the school competitions wore on a bit long -- but worth persevering. Damn does she know how to write a cliffhanger ending!! I love reading explorations of women's friendships and this one was deliciously complex, layered with class politics and competition but at the core it's about a friendship where they care more than they can admit about the other's opinion.

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robyn1998's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I finished this a few days ago and I still can't stop thinking about it. Especially impressive since I was so confused about all the characters and who they were throughout the book. But even that couldn't stop it from being a 5 star read for me! I found it beautifully warm and empathetic, as well as so relatable to the life of a child/adolescent. Learning about 1950s Naples was also a plus. I will definitely be picking up the rest of the books in the quartet!!

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77mimi's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

an incredibly honest depiction of girlhood, adolescence, the loss of childhood innocence and female friendship dynamics

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therecoveringbookworm's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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katherinewankelman's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Little women but in Italy and queer!

This was such a beautiful book—so easy to get lost in the prose and fully immersed in the story. This was such an incredible reflection on childhood, and more specifically, girlhood. I’m always impressed by books that can follow a character from a young age and have an accurate a reasonable voice for the character while still making it an engaging read. I am eager to read more by this author and truly beautiful work by the translator!

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libraryofchlo_'s review against another edition

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hopeful informative reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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lydiavsbooks's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

Because of its slow pace and throwing you straight in with a big cast of characters, it took me a while to really get into this one. Around the halfway mark though, it had me.

A slow gentle story of two friends growing up together in 1950s Naples. A raw yet soft tale of adolescence in the context of the poverty, violence and misogyny of its setting. I started off unsure of whether this would be for me, but ended up really enjoying it and now invested in the story of these two women and where they'll go next.

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