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euro_trashed's review
5.0
I loved this book so much. I discovered it in a Tesco while on holiday, and was so intrigued by the title that I had to buy it. Such a strong debut.
briony99's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
phia888's review
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
scindapsus's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
4.5
nlgeorge73's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kingabee's review
2.0
My literary tastes revolve around two extremes - the high brow stuff and utter trash usually called something like "To Marry a Duke" and I don't find much enjoyment in the safe, middle of the road, commercial fiction. Either challenge me properly or provide with the cheapest kind of thrills. Knowing that about myself, I don't know what possessed me to suggest this book as our book group read. Not only did I force myself and everybody else to read this questionable work but also now all my recommendations are treated with distrust. See, my book club is not really into your typical book group reads and 'The Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian' has 'book group read' written all over it.
And of course, the quirky title! Don't we all love quirky titles! They are so... quirky! Some reviewers mentioned how confusing this title was for them, because, you know, it says 'A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian' and yet it's not! If you are the sort of person who is confused by the fact that a Booker longlisted bestseller called 'Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian' is not in fact a history of tractors written in Ukrainian, then this book will probably be intellectually satisfying for you.
It's a rather unimaginative and banal satire on Ukrainian immigrants in UK, a story of a young and pretty gold-digger, an old besotted fool and his two daughters who try to prevent the catastrophe and even resort to putting on hold old grudges, while uniting against this common enemy. The secret to good satire is to make fun of your characters but to do it with affection and affection is sorely missing from Lewicka's narrative. The characters are farcical caricatures who are nothing more than the laziest of stereotypes and copies of cliches the British reader was already familiar with. However, when the narrative switches to flashbacks from Ukraine decades ago, everything is very real and the same characters are supposed to be taken seriously, which produces a rather grotesque effect. There are also characters who are not even given this most basic, two-dimensional personality, they only exist as their name and function - like the completely superfluous narrator's husband.
The execution is equally lazy - the style is tedious, it's as if Lewycka used up all her creativity on inventing the pidgin English Valentina, the gold digger, speaks in. What's interesting is that she seems unable to speak in grammatically correct sentences even if she is among other Ukrainians and the assumption is that they are speaking Ukrainian (because why would they be speaking English? This is not a Hollywood film). Of course, Valentina's dialect is quite amusing but completely unrealistic from a linguistical point of view (if you don't understand the most basic English grammar, you won't know words like 'shrivel').
As far as books on immigration go, this brings nothing new to the table. It brings back yesterday's bread that is now stale. The only potentially interesting thing about it is the mini-reflection on how our sanctimonious left-wing, liberal views can conveniently disappear if we find our very personal interests threatened. All in all, though, there is nothing to shake us in this book, nothing to challenge us. Nothing to see here. Move along.
And of course, the quirky title! Don't we all love quirky titles! They are so... quirky! Some reviewers mentioned how confusing this title was for them, because, you know, it says 'A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian' and yet it's not! If you are the sort of person who is confused by the fact that a Booker longlisted bestseller called 'Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian' is not in fact a history of tractors written in Ukrainian, then this book will probably be intellectually satisfying for you.
It's a rather unimaginative and banal satire on Ukrainian immigrants in UK, a story of a young and pretty gold-digger, an old besotted fool and his two daughters who try to prevent the catastrophe and even resort to putting on hold old grudges, while uniting against this common enemy. The secret to good satire is to make fun of your characters but to do it with affection and affection is sorely missing from Lewicka's narrative. The characters are farcical caricatures who are nothing more than the laziest of stereotypes and copies of cliches the British reader was already familiar with. However, when the narrative switches to flashbacks from Ukraine decades ago, everything is very real and the same characters are supposed to be taken seriously, which produces a rather grotesque effect. There are also characters who are not even given this most basic, two-dimensional personality, they only exist as their name and function - like the completely superfluous narrator's husband.
The execution is equally lazy - the style is tedious, it's as if Lewycka used up all her creativity on inventing the pidgin English Valentina, the gold digger, speaks in. What's interesting is that she seems unable to speak in grammatically correct sentences even if she is among other Ukrainians and the assumption is that they are speaking Ukrainian (because why would they be speaking English? This is not a Hollywood film). Of course, Valentina's dialect is quite amusing but completely unrealistic from a linguistical point of view (if you don't understand the most basic English grammar, you won't know words like 'shrivel').
As far as books on immigration go, this brings nothing new to the table. It brings back yesterday's bread that is now stale. The only potentially interesting thing about it is the mini-reflection on how our sanctimonious left-wing, liberal views can conveniently disappear if we find our very personal interests threatened. All in all, though, there is nothing to shake us in this book, nothing to challenge us. Nothing to see here. Move along.
scunareader's review
3.0
Good character development and the story tickled me pink because I so well understood them....and you will too even if you aren't Ukrainian.
badger_badger's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
sb27's review
emotional
funny
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
An added poignancy reading this at the time of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Characters seemed a little exaggerated but added to the story. Not sure I laughed out loud.
Characters seemed a little exaggerated but added to the story. Not sure I laughed out loud.
eesti23's review
funny
lighthearted
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
This book was given to me by a friend and with its strange title I wasn't sure it was for me. However, the story of this older man who 'helps' a much younger lady from Ukraine by marrying her and the drama that then follows had me laughing out loud and quickly turning the pages. I found myself going through all the emotions the two sisters did from frustration to sympathy. A very good book.