Reviews

Big Machine by Victor LaValle

mimooo's review

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adventurous funny hopeful fast-paced
  • 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

3.0

i feel like there were some loose ends and muddled character motivations (so what did solomon clay want? what was going on with him? when did ricky learn to drive?)… also not sure about the whole weaponization of the homeless plotline and could have been a lot more (para)political in its message (the rise of the despised) but it was written with a lot of verve and humor with lovable characters . a fun read

meganpkin's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious slow-paced
  • Loveable characters? No

3.0

This put me in a reading slump and I realise now I definitely don't do well with timeling jumping. Though I've handled it well before,  it slowed this story down so so much and it was hard to remember why I cared to continue but I did because it was a part of a reading challenge I gave myself. There was some beautiful writing in it, definitely mystery and magic/otherworldliness which I enjoyed. Even half way through the book There was a new mystery which would open and most weren't really resolved or satisfactorily resolved anyway. Personally I dislike when male writers attempt writing about abortion or pregnancy and it doesn't feel worth it, it can be done well as LaValle did in The Changeling but this didnt have the same justification and felt more of a male centered view that was supposed to explain the protagonist and it didn't feel worth the possible triggers would bring to a reader. I'm glad I finished it but juxtaposed to my experience with his other works so far, I didn't enjoy this one.

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candiecane333's review

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dark informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

2.0

Love the writing, characterization & world building. However the story itself is slow, boring & makes no sense to me. So many things happened, but nothing really happened 

unboxedjack's review against another edition

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adventurous funny reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

fracturing's review

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3.0

As a rule of thumb, the thriller genre is usually only slightly better written than romance novels. In that regard, this novel is outstanding. The fact that it could even pull off some light fantasy is even more commendable. But I'd still hesitate to call it great writing. The narrator's voice is a bit too contrived at times, like a middle aged guidance counselor trying to talk cool and hip to a bunch of high schoolers. It comes off forced. And some of the devices just got tiresome, like the toggling between two timelines during the climax of the book.

Overall though it was an enjoyable if slightly mindless read.

j_e_n_n's review

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No

3.5

pierceinverarity's review

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5.0

"Big Machine" tops my list of the best books I've read in many months.

Lavalle's work brings to mind "The Intuitionsit," if only based on the fact that he is a young African-American novelist whose crafted a genre-bending work with a most compelling and likable narrator.

Ricky Rice is a smart, funny, ne'er-do-well with a little heroin problem. His plot is launched when he is summoned from his job cleaning bus station restrooms in upstate NY. Ricky travels to the Burnham Library, outside of Burlington VT, to become a member of the "Unlikely Scholars" -- a group of small-time junkies and thieves who have been enlisted in a nebulous campaign to ... well, um, just read the book.

tshere's review

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3.0

Really liked this until the last chapter, when the book went predictable.

spinstah's review against another edition

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4.0

This is one of those books where I left it and wasn’t sure how I felt about it. Looking forward to the book club discussion.

audaciaray's review

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4.0

Great, inventive, sharp, and funny read, with interesting stuff about race, class, and religion thrown in for good measure.

One bit toward the end of the book really bugged me though - in a flashback, the main character accompanies his girlfriend to a clinic for an abortion, and he is in the room with her during the procedure. No abortion clinic that I know of allows this. It's a consent thing - the staff wants to make sure the woman is 100% sure of her decision, and they can't get informed, un-influenced consent with the woman's partner in the room. I mean, I know there are angels and soul-eating cats and stuff in the book and all, but the un-reality of the abortion scene really bugged me.