3.39 AVERAGE


Awful, self-important hipsters. I could rant about this book, but it doesn't deserve the energy. Suffice to say: Handler sets quirkiness up as the ideal character trait (and the more quirky and unique something is, apparently, the more morally correct it is), has an awful cop-out and character assassination of an ending, and feeds into the shitty Nice Guy myth.

I got a good part of the way through this book and I just couldn't take it anymore. I think the author (who I didn't realize was Lemony Snickett) was attempting to write the way a teenager speaks, but the way he did it was agonizing to read. Not only that, but the fact that the book was incredibly long to have to listen to an angsty teenager whine about her relationship (which lasted a whopping 5 weeks) seemed cruel. I simply couldn't get through the rest! According to other reviews, the ending was redeeming, but I couldn't bring myself to get that far.

Every chapter ended with a reason -- "and that's why we broke up." But none of the chapters ended with the real reason, which is that she was dating a cheating asshole. Even though the whole book is an expression of her frustration at her complete naivete - the fact that she was too blind to see what was happening while it was happening - she's still naive at the end. Which I guess says something too. But I'm not sure that was on purpose.
Illustrations 10/10.

This was a good read but unfortunately it didn't really keep wanting to read more after each chapter.

Is it normal to be hurting because of a fictional breakup?

"43 Gründe, warum es aus ist" erzählt die Geschichte von Min und Ed, beziehungsweise warum es zwischen den beiden nicht geklappt hat.
Das Buch ist als Brief aufgebaut, der sich an Ed richtet. Sie gibt ihm 43 Gründe bzw Gegenstände zurück, die mit dem Scheitern ihrer Beziehung im Zusammenhang stehen.
Am meisten in Erinnerung geblieben sind mir tatsächlich die schönen Illustrationen dieser Gegenstände!
Das Thema finde ich super gewählt - es gibt viele Bücher über die ultimative Liebe, aber wenige, die sich so intensiv mit einem "Break Up", dem Ende einer Beziehung auseinandersetzten.
Zudem kann ich ergänzen, dass die Protagonistin wirklich reflektiert über das Ende ihrer Beziehung nachdenkt und schreibt, und nicht jammert. Für eine Jugendliche wirklich reflektiert.
Allerdings kann ich auch alle verstehen, die das Buch nicht besonders toll fanden, da der Schreibstil etwas eigen ist. Das Buch richtet sich die ganze Zeit an Ed per Du, was etwas gewöhnungsbedürftig beim Lesen ist. Nicht unbedingt mein Lieblingsstil, aber mal eine schöne Abwechslung!
emotional sad slow-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: Complicated

Daniel Handler is in love with words. They flow adoringly from his pen, spinning characters, metaphors, textures, flavors, sounds, and lovely, lovely stories. This is not one of them. The words are beautiful, the characters interesting (well, the 'arty' ones are) and the dialogue is rich and real. The plot, however, has lead wings, and just won't take off. By the last chapter I wanted to throw the book against a wall, the dreadful high school star athlete-arty girl relationship that was the focus of the entire plot (there wasn't even a juicy subplot as a distraction) was such a waste of Handler's gift.

Oh, the anguish of a teen break-up! Handler captures the intensity in a book that's funny, smart, and heartbreaking.