Reviews

Bestiary by K-Ming Chang

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teacrew's review against another edition

challenging medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

I think I liked it? I truly don't know if I understood it. A wild roller coaster. Would love to hear from the authors POV

moshalala's review against another edition

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challenging medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

josie_wu's review against another edition

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4.0

3.5-4 stars. I've picked up and set down this book several times, but I finally decided to start it seriously last week. It's hard for me to gather my thoughts about this book. Chang is one of my favorite writers; her style is gripping, surreal, and grotesque. I grew to love her after following her poetry and flash fiction work. Her foray into the novel territory is certainly ambitious and unlike any book that I've ever read before. It does make me wonder if this style is unsustainable to the longer form; each voice sounded the same regardless of how it flitted between characters. The infrequent dialogue and constant flashbacks/stories within the story slowed the beginning's momentum. However, this novel is a magical, violent, ugly look at the way migration impacts motherhood across generations. It's a story about motherhood and mothering, storytelling and mythology. I'm excited to read more of Chang's writing.

mengzhenreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

I am not smart enough to fully understand this book but I still ate it up.

lsparrow's review against another edition

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3.0

memoir as fable or poetry... I found it impossible to follow this book. I wished this had been written as pure fiction as I liked the flow of the writing and the images.

eestellar's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious 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

4.0

I listened to the audiobook & read this book and I have never read anything quite like it before. It was trauma heavy and gross (lots of bodily fluids). The plot got lost in all the metaphors and poetic writing, I was confused a lot of the time, but even with all of the flaws I still wanted to continue the story.

Content Warnings