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khanyisile13's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It’s so unexpected, so different from anything I’ve ever read. It is pure imagination. One of those books that you have to unpack and unpack and unpack to see that all along, there were bits and pieces hiding in plain sight. The recurring themes and the ode to Alice in Wonderland in a university setting that makes you wonder what’s real and what’s not. But I think the strongest thing that stuck with me was this
How did Mona Awad even pitch this to her agents? It’s so ludicrous that it’s genius. I can’t not give it a five stars, not because of how it made me feel or that I related with any depth to any part of the story, but because of the sheer magnitude of the creation of this story. As you are reading you are falling down down down the rabbit hole, but you’re not even sure if you’re in the rabbit hole. It’s absurd and brilliant and I can’t think of anyone to compare Awad to. I would even say this is the kind of book teenagers should be studying from in English class with it’s string of references and comparisons, with its unique ability to put you directly into someone’s mind. Bizarre and thrilling, and not in a normal way.
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Murder, Sexual assault, and Self harm
andreyuhh's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Blood, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Dysphoria, Gore, Classism, and Abandonment
laran_s's review
3.75
Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis and Classism
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
dajul73's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Blood, Drug use, Alcohol, Addiction, Violence, Death, Toxic friendship, Cursing, Bullying, Kidnapping, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Abandonment, Murder, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Body horror, and Torture
mallotar's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Sexual content
wannabe_lee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Bullying, Self harm, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Body horror, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Death, and Drug use
Minor: Abandonment, Car accident, Alcohol, Addiction, Rape, and Alcoholism
loxeletters's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It was quite depressing at times, which is why I couldn't rate this as "funny" even though the satirical aspects worked well. I guess that is the horror of this book for me - I wasn't very affected by the gore, I was never really scared, more just very depressed by the ongoing loneliness of our MC.
I can't say I could've guessed most of the major twists, which is a plus :)
Speaking of which, I agree that it's quite disorienting and difficult to figure out what is real and what isn't, but I think that's the point. I mean... They even discuss in the book how disorientation can be valuable for writing lol.
I did think the final scene was maybe a bit too clean-cut.
But this is somewhat nit-picky!
My second issue was the prose - overall it was good, but some phrasings were a bit repetitive for me. Maybe some adjectives could've been cut out as well. But that's just my personal taste, I think.
Overall, a very interesting book, which leaves you questioning what is real and what isn't, while providing some much-needed cultural criticism — exactly my cup of tea!
Graphic: Animal death, Toxic friendship, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Alcohol, Classism, Gore, Murder, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Grief, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Sexual content and Car accident
stomachpains's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Drug use, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Alcohol, Blood, Kidnapping, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Body horror, Gore, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Classism, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
crimsontombs's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Gore, Murder, Self harm, Bullying, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Murder, Alcohol, Abandonment, and Car accident
svimm2056's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Mental illness, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Abandonment and Bullying