Reviews with content warning for Bullying - Shy

Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Shy by Max Porter

15 reviews

notcasino's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

It's an interesting book but the eriting style isn't something for me. Sometimes it's so loveable and relatble but sometimes it's also very confusing. I really don't know what to think about it.
It gives me really mixed feelings cause I like the topic but it's just... I don't know how to describe it.

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bealunn11's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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lostgwennel's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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chloeam3103's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.75

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vixenreader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Although a bit emotional detached and disorientating, this is a sympathetic book about young men unable to show any form vulnerability, thus causing them to act out in frustration and anger.

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fynn_jls's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

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deedireads's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-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

4.75

All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.

TL;DR REVIEW:

Shy is a tiny book that packs a gigantic punch like only Max Porter can. Dark but emotionally poignant, this book will break your heart in the best way. I loved it.

For you if: You like when a book experiments with voice and interiority through typography.

FULL REVIEW:

Whew, y’all. I need to read Grief Is the Thing With Feathers ASAP because Max Porter really just does it for me. I read Lanny back when it was longlisted for the Booker and it instantly became an all-time favorite, so I was very excited to read Shy. This one was darker and heavier, but just as emotionally poignant and distinctive.

When we first meet Shy, a teen who lives at a school for troubled young men, he’s sneaking out in the middle of the night with a backpack full of rocks. The main narration takes place over the course of only a few hours, but we spend a lot of time flashing back through his past — the voices, the violence, his struggle with impulse control and relationships with others.

There’s nobody who can put you inside a character’s head like Max Porter. His use of creative typography (for example, a character yelling at Shy might be depicted by giant text running across both pages of the open book), mastery of voice, and trust in the reader to keep up as he barrels forward combines perfectly every time. For this reason, I implore you: Always listen to AND read Max Porter’s work! Listen as you read along. Trust me, do not skip the audio or print editions!!! (Also, it’s so short. Only 2:16/136 pages!)

This book broke my heart in the best way that books can. Shy has a lot of trauma and struggle. He’s tunneling deep into the core of who he is and whether he can feel hopeful again. Porter shows us how impossible it is to know the core of someone, and that we are all individuals whose struggles are unique even when patterns emerge in behavior. He reminds us how easy it is to forget all that simply by making Shy himself so vivid.

Do it do it do it. Read this one.

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