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grumpikatz's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Rape
mllejoyeuxnoel's review against another edition
5.0
There are some characters who will stay with you for life. Jude St. Francis is one of the greats, and I'll carry him always in my heart. I loved this book for its beauty and its poignancy - every page of it.
suyagotz's review against another edition
5.0
4,5/5
this book was perfection, the only thing that bothered me was the too predictable ending, kinda like "what can i do to make this book even sadder and depressing now that everything is getting better?". although it was still beautifully written and i wasn't expecting a happy ending, i feel like there was no reason for it besides "shock value"
this book was perfection, the only thing that bothered me was the too predictable ending, kinda like "what can i do to make this book even sadder and depressing now that everything is getting better?". although it was still beautifully written and i wasn't expecting a happy ending, i feel like there was no reason for it besides "shock value"
karinasilvz's review against another edition
5.0
I cannot give this book any less than five stars.
I am sitting here, a mere half hour after having finishing the last page, with the book lain in front of me because I feel that if I let it out of my sight it will all have been a dream.
My hands are shaking and have been since at least halfway through the book, my face is still stained with tears, and my body and mind are exhausted from what just happened.
I have never, in my life, been finished with a book and been satisfied. My friends and family know this; there's always something I think the author should have done differently, some small decision that portrayed a character in what I thought was the wrong manner, some grammatical errors that I cannot believe have been overlooked. But, when I finished this book, all I could do was sob as I had been for at least the last forty pages. I heard whimpers of agony and had to remind myself that this was coming from my own body.
For the first time, I cannot be angry at any decision the author has made. The book is so shockingly life-like that I continue to forget that the author had anything to do with it, that she created these characters and their complicated relationships and backstories, that all the pain and wonder within these pages were not a chronicle of actual experiences.
I know that I will hold these characters close to my heart for as long as I live.
This is the type of book that I will selfishly not want to tell anybody about, the type of book that I want to read for the first time again and again so I can live in it, breathe in it, and let its world overtake mine.
There were moments where the things written in this book made me feel like somebody had twisted my heart into a bloody, mangled mess.
I honestly feel that the person I am changed every minute that I spent reading this book.
I want to write a review as eloquently gorgeous and heart-wrenching as this story was, but I simply cannot.
The title was perfect, because inside this paper and ink lives are thriving, people are laughing and loving and dying as realistically as they are in the real world.
I know with all my being that I will read this again and again, and I will live through it again and again.
I cannot give enough praise to Hanya Yanagihara; although I have been pretending she doesn't exist, it is only because her characters are so life-like that, in my mind, they live and breathe without her having to puppeteer them.
I honestly think that this book is the best book I have ever read and the best book I will ever read. I will hold it close to my heart, and I cannot thank the author enough for creating it, nor can I believe that another human being has the capacity to create something like this.
I feel like the world is now divided in two: people who have read this book, and people who haven't.
To the people who have, I hope you feel the same way as I do, as if anything you could say, any praise you could give, could never be enough.
I am sitting here, a mere half hour after having finishing the last page, with the book lain in front of me because I feel that if I let it out of my sight it will all have been a dream.
My hands are shaking and have been since at least halfway through the book, my face is still stained with tears, and my body and mind are exhausted from what just happened.
I have never, in my life, been finished with a book and been satisfied. My friends and family know this; there's always something I think the author should have done differently, some small decision that portrayed a character in what I thought was the wrong manner, some grammatical errors that I cannot believe have been overlooked. But, when I finished this book, all I could do was sob as I had been for at least the last forty pages. I heard whimpers of agony and had to remind myself that this was coming from my own body.
For the first time, I cannot be angry at any decision the author has made. The book is so shockingly life-like that I continue to forget that the author had anything to do with it, that she created these characters and their complicated relationships and backstories, that all the pain and wonder within these pages were not a chronicle of actual experiences.
I know that I will hold these characters close to my heart for as long as I live.
This is the type of book that I will selfishly not want to tell anybody about, the type of book that I want to read for the first time again and again so I can live in it, breathe in it, and let its world overtake mine.
There were moments where the things written in this book made me feel like somebody had twisted my heart into a bloody, mangled mess.
I honestly feel that the person I am changed every minute that I spent reading this book.
I want to write a review as eloquently gorgeous and heart-wrenching as this story was, but I simply cannot.
The title was perfect, because inside this paper and ink lives are thriving, people are laughing and loving and dying as realistically as they are in the real world.
I know with all my being that I will read this again and again, and I will live through it again and again.
I cannot give enough praise to Hanya Yanagihara; although I have been pretending she doesn't exist, it is only because her characters are so life-like that, in my mind, they live and breathe without her having to puppeteer them.
I honestly think that this book is the best book I have ever read and the best book I will ever read. I will hold it close to my heart, and I cannot thank the author enough for creating it, nor can I believe that another human being has the capacity to create something like this.
I feel like the world is now divided in two: people who have read this book, and people who haven't.
To the people who have, I hope you feel the same way as I do, as if anything you could say, any praise you could give, could never be enough.
thetrickyfox's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This is an averaging out review / rating. There are parts of this book that make it a masterpiece; parts of the prose, the depth given to the characterisations of the main cast, some of the inner monologues on specific struggles that almost make you want to print them out and present them to people as explanations. There are other parts of this book that make it deeply uncomfortable, but not necessarily in a meaningful way. At points, as has been said by many others before, it just feels like a fetishisation of suffering and a catalogue of horrors. These sections drag and feel needlessly detailed in ways the rest of the story doesn't. Some may think it adds positively to the book overall, but I'm not one of them. I'm not sure it's possible to write a complete list of content warnings for it either.
a_bookish_rose's review against another edition
2.0
DNF quarter of the way through. Far too deep and gloomy for me. And to hear reviews where it just gets worse ?! It didn’t give me motivation to finish this at all. And it was very hard to figure out who was speaking in certain parts at times, like from what point of view we were suppose to be in.
Couldn’t bare to carry it on.
Couldn’t bare to carry it on.
qwertyqwerty's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
jess_jingsi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ashleighlmgordon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Did this book take me over 2 weeks to finish? Yes.
Did this book break me in every which way? Yes.
Did I sit and whimper and wet snotty cry while reading this book? Yes.
This book is everything people say and warn you about before reading. Hanya Yanagihara's writing is simply beautiful. Heart breaking, but beautiful. These characters will definitely stick with me for a very, very long time.
Did this book break me in every which way? Yes.
Did I sit and whimper and wet snotty cry while reading this book? Yes.
This book is everything people say and warn you about before reading. Hanya Yanagihara's writing is simply beautiful. Heart breaking, but beautiful. These characters will definitely stick with me for a very, very long time.
notkaywa's review against another edition
dnf at 200 pages. right now, it's a bit too dull and overwritten for me. i feel like half of the first 200 pages at this point could have been taken out and nothing would be missed. maybe i'll pick it up again at a later time.