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welkinvault's review
emotional
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
lisajen's review against another edition
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
2.5
teeter101's review against another edition
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
cafffine's review against another edition
3.75
Fantastic dedication to the setting, really enjoyed the ‘unruly passengers stranded together’ story told from the perspective of an employee, it gave the trope a new feel.
Baxter was a lovely narrator as well, the through-line of dentistry felt arbitrary at first, but grew as you got to know him, it ended up being one of my favorite parts.
I do wish this had been longer, there were a lot of concepts being brushed at that I felt needed some more time or development to really fold into the broader story.
Baxter was a lovely narrator as well, the through-line of dentistry felt arbitrary at first, but grew as you got to know him, it ended up being one of my favorite parts.
I do wish this had been longer, there were a lot of concepts being brushed at that I felt needed some more time or development to really fold into the broader story.
ccpprrjj's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
3.75
This was. . .a really interesting book. I think it was technically a really well written book that explores a facet of history that I haven't heard much about. I really enjoyed Baxter's character. He's a dorky sweetheart who's good with kids and really needs sleep. The book also captured the feeling of sleep deprivation and fear and hopelessness and infinite work really well. It was hard to read about the characters getting so beaten down, but it was also important. The dialogue and pacing are what made it hard for me to get into the book. It kind of dragged and I wasn't super interested in anything that was happening with the characters other than Baxter. And the dialogue formatting was a little hard for me to read and created a bit of distance between me and the characters that tends to lessen my enjoyment of books. This book isn't what I typically read and it wasn't really what I was expecting, which is probably why I didn't like it all that much. It was still a good book, though.
lemoneverdeen's review against another edition
emotional
medium-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? No
4.0
raulbime's review
4.0
Every now and then I’m grateful that a prize did its work and led me to a great book. In this case being that this book won the Giller Prize, which, quite frankly, I don’t really follow; and coincidentally saw its win as a piece of news with a short description of the book that fascinated me.
This is a lovely book about a Black gay train porter, Baxter, working (being terribly overworked) in 1920s Canada. It’s the kind of work that excavates what’s overlooked, forgotten, buried, and ignored, and turns it into a poignant rich tale. I’m amazed with how the writer was able to take several themes difficult to explore in fiction all at once: homophobia and the devastation it wreaks; racism, in all its subtle and not-so-subtle manifestations; horrible working conditions the working class endures to earn a meagre living; the plight of the immigrant, and all else in between and intertwined.
I remember reading Baldwin talking about how difficult it was to write a Black and gay novel when he was asked about [b:Giovanni's Room|406235|Giovanni's Room|James Baldwin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1223664870l/406235._SY75_.jpg|814207], after it followed [b:Go Tell It on the Mountain|17143|Go Tell It on the Mountain|James Baldwin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348424233l/17143._SY75_.jpg|1027995], and why the book’s main characters were white. Baldwin went on to write a book with a Black gay main character later on, [b:Just Above My Head: A Novel|38457|Just Above My Head A Novel|James Baldwin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403171798l/38457._SY75_.jpg|248225], which I should, and plan to, read later. Undoubtedly it’s easier to be entrapped in situations where the story can turn into a blatant moral tale with the book serving as little other than political themes with characters and the plot given little flesh and taking the supplementary position in what would have been better suited as non-fiction. Which isn’t to mean that socio-political themes can’t be interweaved well into fiction; some of my favourite books carry these themes (all books do but that’s another conversation) and I tend to seek out books that do.
Baxter, our protagonist, saves up the spare earnings he gets working almost all day and night in service of the passengers on the train so that he can go to school to become a dentist. He is lonely with unfulfilled desire, and acting on his desire could mean the loss of his job and possibly jail time, and, as is the norm in such cases, finds release in few seedy encounters, having little in form of companionship. So, a pitiable state. Despite this Baxter is still empathetic, caring, thoughtful; a character who is very easy to love and root for.
That most of this book takes place in a train, however, made for boring stretches. Minutiae of the responsibilities of porters and workings and schedules of trains, which was well researched I must add, and impressively too, was just not interesting to me and I preferred when we slipped into Baxter’s mind and past. The passengers on the train as well, petulant, annoying, disregarding, and really not that different from a lot of service seekers or clients a century later, weren’t interesting either even when they did help to move the story with their ridiculous and even scandalous affairs. I guess I just loved Baxter and wanted the story to completely remain with him which is selfish of me in a way, but what a wonderful story all the same.
This is a lovely book about a Black gay train porter, Baxter, working (being terribly overworked) in 1920s Canada. It’s the kind of work that excavates what’s overlooked, forgotten, buried, and ignored, and turns it into a poignant rich tale. I’m amazed with how the writer was able to take several themes difficult to explore in fiction all at once: homophobia and the devastation it wreaks; racism, in all its subtle and not-so-subtle manifestations; horrible working conditions the working class endures to earn a meagre living; the plight of the immigrant, and all else in between and intertwined.
I remember reading Baldwin talking about how difficult it was to write a Black and gay novel when he was asked about [b:Giovanni's Room|406235|Giovanni's Room|James Baldwin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1223664870l/406235._SY75_.jpg|814207], after it followed [b:Go Tell It on the Mountain|17143|Go Tell It on the Mountain|James Baldwin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348424233l/17143._SY75_.jpg|1027995], and why the book’s main characters were white. Baldwin went on to write a book with a Black gay main character later on, [b:Just Above My Head: A Novel|38457|Just Above My Head A Novel|James Baldwin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403171798l/38457._SY75_.jpg|248225], which I should, and plan to, read later. Undoubtedly it’s easier to be entrapped in situations where the story can turn into a blatant moral tale with the book serving as little other than political themes with characters and the plot given little flesh and taking the supplementary position in what would have been better suited as non-fiction. Which isn’t to mean that socio-political themes can’t be interweaved well into fiction; some of my favourite books carry these themes (all books do but that’s another conversation) and I tend to seek out books that do.
Baxter, our protagonist, saves up the spare earnings he gets working almost all day and night in service of the passengers on the train so that he can go to school to become a dentist. He is lonely with unfulfilled desire, and acting on his desire could mean the loss of his job and possibly jail time, and, as is the norm in such cases, finds release in few seedy encounters, having little in form of companionship. So, a pitiable state. Despite this Baxter is still empathetic, caring, thoughtful; a character who is very easy to love and root for.
That most of this book takes place in a train, however, made for boring stretches. Minutiae of the responsibilities of porters and workings and schedules of trains, which was well researched I must add, and impressively too, was just not interesting to me and I preferred when we slipped into Baxter’s mind and past. The passengers on the train as well, petulant, annoying, disregarding, and really not that different from a lot of service seekers or clients a century later, weren’t interesting either even when they did help to move the story with their ridiculous and even scandalous affairs. I guess I just loved Baxter and wanted the story to completely remain with him which is selfish of me in a way, but what a wonderful story all the same.
donnaslibrary's review against another edition
3.25
appreciated the research that went into this book, fun as a Canadian girlie to read. overall, learned a little history but struggled to enjoy the writing.
hobbs1's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-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
4.0