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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Wolf in White Van is an extremely powerful read; intricately constructed, it draws you in and captivates from page one to the final words. Darnielle pairs beautiful prose with gripping character depiction, making his readers reckon with their own conceptions of the boundaries between real and imagined, isolation and human connection.This book resonated so deeply with me -- as if it were a shout into the void, waiting to be heard.
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I can really see how so many people either love or hate this book. It’s a lot of 1st person POV and internal monologuing, which can definitely become boring . I also really enjoyed the narrative at some points as the character is giving readers a unique perspective (disfigured/disabled and trying to find connection).
I guess I didn’t really understand the gaming part of the story, and felt this was either underutilized or completely unnecessary. I’d probably enjoy this story more if there was a greater focus on the character’s day to day interactions. Or, if we were more involved in the fantasy world with the Sean’s introspective commentary that may have worked a bit better as well.
As it stands, this story didn’t really leave me with enough of an impact to stop and self reflect, so I do think it failed in creating empathy. I did sympathize for Sean and his situation, but there was never enough depth to really invest myself in his tale.
I guess I didn’t really understand the gaming part of the story, and felt this was either underutilized or completely unnecessary. I’d probably enjoy this story more if there was a greater focus on the character’s day to day interactions. Or, if we were more involved in the fantasy world with the Sean’s introspective commentary that may have worked a bit better as well.
As it stands, this story didn’t really leave me with enough of an impact to stop and self reflect, so I do think it failed in creating empathy. I did sympathize for Sean and his situation, but there was never enough depth to really invest myself in his tale.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt
A very deep and dark book that didn’t feel gimmicky. Schedule time to process after reading
For the first chapter or so of the book, I had a tough time not hearing John Darnielle's voice speaking the lines of the first person narration. But eventually the prose overcame my preconceptions and a compelling story emerged. The narrative kind of petered out in the final third of the book, however, and so despite the beautifully crafted words I was left empty. Still, I would love to see what the Mountain Goats frontman does to follow up this debut.
This books lost me at the end. I've seen many books that don't stick the landing, capitalizing on what came before, but this books actively shook me out of the headspace it had created. At the end we finally see the incident that has disfigured Sean and set up who he was in the rest of the book (the book is told in, more-or-less, reverse chronological order. And I just couldn't buy it, even though it had been clear it was coming.
To be clear, the beginning wasn't worth much either. It was a tour, initially of Sean's childhood home, and then a broader tour of other places of importance. There are hints inside this about Sean's story, but not enough to intrigue.
The middle was good, though.
Spoiler
The end sees the lead up to Sean's failed suicide attempt that left him disfigured. The thing is that while it was obvious that Sean had tried and failed to shoot himself, when we get to the scene, we see Sean's thinking, and I found it impossible to find his motivation. For a character driven story, having the climax, this crucial moment, be inexplicable utterly threw me from the story. To be fair, reasons to attempt suicide are often inexplicable, but being realistic doesn't help this as a story. But I think the bigger problem is that we have seen the character that the aftermath of the suicide has turned Sean into--and that is a very different character from the person who decided to try to kill him. I should also say, though, that I had an uneasy feeling about the ending before that moment--I'm not sure if that was just that I saw this ending coming, or if there was more to it than that.To be clear, the beginning wasn't worth much either. It was a tour, initially of Sean's childhood home, and then a broader tour of other places of importance. There are hints inside this about Sean's story, but not enough to intrigue.
The middle was good, though.
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Was more interested in the world and function of the in-universe adventure game than the dead child who played it. I’d knock the book for that, but it really was quite an interesting game!
This is a brilliantly written book. I will definitely read the next book that Darnielle writes. I listened to the audiobook, and the performance was quite good as well.
This book is amazing. It invoked a pain in me that I haven't felt since I screamed myself hoarse begging God to kill me. So I put it down about an hour from the end. The main characters thought process is so similar to mine, and his history with suicide is close enough to mine... that I couldn't breath listening to it. If you ever want to understand what it's like to live with depression. If you ever want to give an example of what it feels like to be depressed to someone who's never had to live with it, but you don't have the words to express it. Give them this book. I wish I could read it to the end, but I really like breathing. =P