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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
S P O O K Y.
I continue to enjoy the way that Joey Comeau writes kids. Which is not at all condescending, not at all precocious, totally and utterly human. Nailed it.
I continue to enjoy the way that Joey Comeau writes kids. Which is not at all condescending, not at all precocious, totally and utterly human. Nailed it.
3.5 stars.
I think the first words to come out of my mouth after closing One Bloody Thing After Another were: "What a strange little book." I'm tempted to just leave it at that and finish my toast, but it was more than just strange.
I didn't really go into this expecting something I would consider horror, and I still don't feel it was. It read more like a dark comedy with extra darkness. I do think it's gotten to be pretty difficult to scare me with literature, unfortunately. Not that I'm immune to being disturbed or uncomfortable, which I may have been briefly while reading. But what mattered to me is that the humor of this story was what I liked most, and without it I wouldn't have felt any connection. The fusion of two unlikely genres is something I generally enjoy in films more, but Comeau did a wonderful job making me smile during moments that could have been more sobering.
I look forward to reading more of his work.
I think the first words to come out of my mouth after closing One Bloody Thing After Another were: "What a strange little book." I'm tempted to just leave it at that and finish my toast, but it was more than just strange.
I didn't really go into this expecting something I would consider horror, and I still don't feel it was. It read more like a dark comedy with extra darkness. I do think it's gotten to be pretty difficult to scare me with literature, unfortunately. Not that I'm immune to being disturbed or uncomfortable, which I may have been briefly while reading. But what mattered to me is that the humor of this story was what I liked most, and without it I wouldn't have felt any connection. The fusion of two unlikely genres is something I generally enjoy in films more, but Comeau did a wonderful job making me smile during moments that could have been more sobering.
I look forward to reading more of his work.
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was really quirky and fun before the horror element set in. (Okay, it probably tried to set in in the first few pages but I kind of brushed it off for the moment).
I really like Comeau's blend of simple teenage problems lumped in with terribly dark supernatural elements that are tearing peoples lives apart which feels completely different from any other teenage horror novel. The characters are easy to relate too even when they're discovering ghosts or turning invisible. However there were definitely a few moments that made me squirm. But I guess that's what you are supposed to feel to do while reading a gruesome horror story.
Bit of a spoiler, but I would never recommend this book to hard core.
I really like Comeau's blend of simple teenage problems lumped in with terribly dark supernatural elements that are tearing peoples lives apart which feels completely different from any other teenage horror novel. The characters are easy to relate too even when they're discovering ghosts or turning invisible. However there were definitely a few moments that made me squirm. But I guess that's what you are supposed to feel to do while reading a gruesome horror story.
Bit of a spoiler, but I would never recommend this book to hard core
Spoiler
animal lovers
This short horror novel is hard to describe - but it is full of madness, violence, and monsters. It does not always make sense and perhaps that is the point.
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Really expertly structured for maximum emotional impact, and somehow oddly subtle even when dealing with page upon page of teen angst and gore. Comeau has a real knack for finding simple, creative ways to render, in literary form, human emotions and relationships, with all their peculiarities. Surely commendable is his ability to diagnose the troubling gap between caring about and/or loving someone being universal (excepting psychopaths) human experiences, and these experiences also being so uniquely staggering in their ultimate loneliness.
But for all his dazzling literary gifts, none of which he's a show-off about, Comeau's prose style is lacking. He's great at being simple and concise and conveying a great deal in few words, but he frequently achieves this concision by taking the easy way out and writing sentence after sentence that simply gets the necessary story details down on paper, lacking any creative storytelling edge. "Adam went on GoodReads and wrote a review. He was feeling a bit sad, but he also felt like writing that review." You know, that kind of thing.
But for all his dazzling literary gifts, none of which he's a show-off about, Comeau's prose style is lacking. He's great at being simple and concise and conveying a great deal in few words, but he frequently achieves this concision by taking the easy way out and writing sentence after sentence that simply gets the necessary story details down on paper, lacking any creative storytelling edge. "Adam went on GoodReads and wrote a review. He was feeling a bit sad, but he also felt like writing that review." You know, that kind of thing.
In terms of the books I've come in contact lately, this one specifically stands out. I have the hugest literary crush on Joey Comeau, particularly at the amount of meaning he can portray in simple and few words.
My favorite part of the book is the message you read at the bottom of the blank pages at the end, which I think wraps up the book perfectly (in a heart-wrenching kind of way).
Can't wait for more and more and more Joey Comeau!
My favorite part of the book is the message you read at the bottom of the blank pages at the end, which I think wraps up the book perfectly (in a heart-wrenching kind of way).
Can't wait for more and more and more Joey Comeau!
