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tracegoesrogue's review
5.0
This book is creepy as fuck and likely not for everyone. But I loved it.
bibliobethreads's review
This book was so brilliant, sick, weird and wrong (if you like that sort of thing!) Really liked the positive imagery throughout despite the somewhat macabre themes and the uplifting ending.
lamusadelils's review
3.0
Este es un libro simpático y peculiar. Con temas un tanto macabros, elementos góticos y un oscuro sentido del humor, gana mucho mas por la forma está contado que por su historia.
Muchos han comparado (positivamente) el estilo del libro a Gorey o Burton, y puedo ver porqué, pero desgraciadamente también tiene algunos de sus defectos.
Muchos han comparado (positivamente) el estilo del libro a Gorey o Burton, y puedo ver porqué, pero desgraciadamente también tiene algunos de sus defectos.
_egg_wash's review
5.0
*This was originally written for my blog
I had never heard of this author before but I was captivated by the beautiful design of this books cover.
This book is (mostly) set in modern day Germany. It revolves around a museum. This museum is not what one would expect - it does not contain war memorabilia not does it house fossils and loin cloths, this museum is dedicated to bring awarenesses to one of the world's most grim topics: suicide.
Now, before I go any farther I wish to point out that this book is not as dark and depressing as one may originally assume. As well as the museum's subject matter it also discusses other hard to deal with topics such as rape, but the author does not dwell on these occurrences, nor does he shove then in the readers face. These have a place in the story and are not halfheartedly shoved in for the sake of shock factor.
This is a difficult book to review as everything feels to be a spoiler as the author is so carefully secretive about everything, nothing is told to the reader until it needs to be.
Little Hands Clapping follows the story of multiple characters, from the beautiful Portuguese Madalena, to Doctor Ernst Fröhlicher, to Pavarotti's Wife, each person has their own intertwined story, their own quirks, and their own purpose. It discusses serious subjects, but manages to be light hearted at times and the authors humour is so weird and macabre I must admit that I am hooked! It elicits a laugh here and there that will leave the reader hating themselves for allowing a giggle to slip out during what would be a serious moment in any other novel. For anyone who has ever watched The League of Gentlemen, the dark humour is quite similar.
I do not want to say any more about this masterpiece as I fear that I have said too much about the plot already. I highly recommend this book to everyone and anyone over the age of 18 (as there is some swearing, sexual references, etc.).
I rate this 5/5 stars.
I had never heard of this author before but I was captivated by the beautiful design of this books cover.
This book is (mostly) set in modern day Germany. It revolves around a museum. This museum is not what one would expect - it does not contain war memorabilia not does it house fossils and loin cloths, this museum is dedicated to bring awarenesses to one of the world's most grim topics: suicide.
Now, before I go any farther I wish to point out that this book is not as dark and depressing as one may originally assume. As well as the museum's subject matter it also discusses other hard to deal with topics such as rape, but the author does not dwell on these occurrences, nor does he shove then in the readers face. These have a place in the story and are not halfheartedly shoved in for the sake of shock factor.
This is a difficult book to review as everything feels to be a spoiler as the author is so carefully secretive about everything, nothing is told to the reader until it needs to be.
Little Hands Clapping follows the story of multiple characters, from the beautiful Portuguese Madalena, to Doctor Ernst Fröhlicher, to Pavarotti's Wife, each person has their own intertwined story, their own quirks, and their own purpose. It discusses serious subjects, but manages to be light hearted at times and the authors humour is so weird and macabre I must admit that I am hooked! It elicits a laugh here and there that will leave the reader hating themselves for allowing a giggle to slip out during what would be a serious moment in any other novel. For anyone who has ever watched The League of Gentlemen, the dark humour is quite similar.
I do not want to say any more about this masterpiece as I fear that I have said too much about the plot already. I highly recommend this book to everyone and anyone over the age of 18 (as there is some swearing, sexual references, etc.).
I rate this 5/5 stars.
bobbiejowoo's review
5.0
This book is NOT for the faint of heart.
.
There is a macabre museum, the occasional suicide, cannibalism, and a creepy old man who has a knack for linguistics, enjoys eating spiders and can’t be bothered to do more than the bare minimum.
.
Where do I even start?
.
Little Hands Clapping definitely lives up to it’s description of “Dark Comedy” in a way that, I feel, no other book can. I find myself slightly uncomfortable saying this, but, I LOVED this book!
.
Dan Rhodes manages to weave together the stories of a multitude of characters and time jumps in a masterful and cohesive way that is not at all hard to follow. The pages are riddled with sarcasm and wit and even more humor.
.
This book is grotesque and quirky. Every time you hit a point where you think that the story could not get more disturbing or disgusting- SURPRISE! It does and yet, you also find yourself laughing. It is a rollercoaster of emotions and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I am here days after reading it- still giggling about some of the happenings in this morbid comedy.
.
If you do decide to read this, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.
.
There is a macabre museum, the occasional suicide, cannibalism, and a creepy old man who has a knack for linguistics, enjoys eating spiders and can’t be bothered to do more than the bare minimum.
.
Where do I even start?
.
Little Hands Clapping definitely lives up to it’s description of “Dark Comedy” in a way that, I feel, no other book can. I find myself slightly uncomfortable saying this, but, I LOVED this book!
.
Dan Rhodes manages to weave together the stories of a multitude of characters and time jumps in a masterful and cohesive way that is not at all hard to follow. The pages are riddled with sarcasm and wit and even more humor.
.
This book is grotesque and quirky. Every time you hit a point where you think that the story could not get more disturbing or disgusting- SURPRISE! It does and yet, you also find yourself laughing. It is a rollercoaster of emotions and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I am here days after reading it- still giggling about some of the happenings in this morbid comedy.
.
If you do decide to read this, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.
debumere's review against another edition
3.0
Nah. It had the makings of a book I'd love but it felt like they hadn't reached the word count so they padded it out. I liked the concept though and the end was nice but it just didn't hit the right buttons for me.
walking_reader's review against another edition
4.0
La lettura di questo libro mi ha lasciata sconcertata: è la parola migliore per descrivere le mie sensazioni dopo aver appena voltato l'ultima pagina. Perchè davvero non so cosa pensare: da una parte l'ho trovato disgustosamente macabro e raccapricciante, dall'altra parte mi è piaciuto un sacco. Altro motivo del mio sconcerto è la descrizione fatta di questo libro sul retro di copertina e anche da alcuni commenti: divertente? Dove questo libro è divertente? È contemporaneamente macabro, dolce e terribilmente triste, quindi del tutto spiazzante, ma di certo non divertente! Terzo motivo di sconcerto: l'edizione (copertina, carattere utilizzato, impaginazione) comunica inequivocabilmente che il romanzo sia rivolto a bambini, direi tra gli 8 e i 12 anni, e infatti io l'ho comprato nel reparto ragazzi della libreria di un centro commerciale, ma io non lo farei mai leggere a quell'età. Come minimo secondo me ci vogliono 15/16 anni, di certo non meno! A volte mi chiedo se gli editori leggano ciò che pubblicano. Comunque, al di là di tutto questo, mi è piaciuto, e tanto pure, anche se non credo che lo rileggeró mai più, specialmente in concomitanza con il pranzo: stavo male, quindi se deciderete di leggerlo ATTENZIONE: LIBRO DA CONSUMARE LONTANO DAI PASTI!!
lizdesole's review
3.0
Don't let the silly cover fool you. There is not a lot of silliness in this book. A lot of weirdness, yes, but not as much silliness as I hoped for. Maybe it was my frame of mind at the time, but it was fairly dark (bordering on bleak) for the most part, tied with a zany bow at the end