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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
4.5/5 stars, rounded up.
What I liked: the writing was gorgeous, lots of insightful class commentary and reflection on the politics of the 2016 election, the setting was detailed and vivid, and the characters were nuanced. When I started reading, it captured my attention and drew me in, making it an immersive and engaging read.
What I disliked: it felt very "meta" at times, being a book about a young writer growing up in Kentucky written by a young writer who grew up in Kentucky. It's difficult to write books about writing and I'm not sure that Cole completely pulled it off. Also, the main character made perplexing decisions and at times I found him annoying.
*Note that this book does not use quotation marks or chapters, which didn't bother me, but it won't be everyone's cup of tea.
What I liked: the writing was gorgeous, lots of insightful class commentary and reflection on the politics of the 2016 election, the setting was detailed and vivid, and the characters were nuanced. When I started reading, it captured my attention and drew me in, making it an immersive and engaging read.
What I disliked: it felt very "meta" at times, being a book about a young writer growing up in Kentucky written by a young writer who grew up in Kentucky. It's difficult to write books about writing and I'm not sure that Cole completely pulled it off. Also, the main character made perplexing decisions and at times I found him annoying.
*Note that this book does not use quotation marks or chapters, which didn't bother me, but it won't be everyone's cup of tea.
It was well-written… a bit flat for me in parts. The parts that included the grandfather and uncle resonated the most for me. I also like the way the main character’s parents were written as real people rather than caricatures. The relationship with Alma struck me as the least compelling/interesting, tbh. The author did a good job of showing place as its own character. All in all, impressive.
Thanks to @aaknopf for an ARC of #groundskeeping.
I seem to have a thing for books about struggling young writers.
I seem to have a thing for books about struggling young writers.
He's an angsty late bloomer from rural Kentucky who has outgrown his roots. She's a high-achieving Bosnian immigrant. They're both writers, making relationship things complicated. The novel is full of descriptive language allowing the reader/listener a deep understanding of the details. The ending left me wondering.
This was a quite dull, meandering (clearly autobiographical) novel about a writer who does some groundskeeping while studying.
The characters were all pretty unlikeable, especially the narrator himself. The girl he was seeing was just...terrible. There were constant conversations going on about the ethics of putting autobiographical content into your fiction novel. It just grew so tiring, along with the fact the narrator kept making dickhead moves. The male gaze element was also strong here.
It gets 3 stars because some parts were beautifully written, and I quite liked the portrayals of the conversations between the narrator (liberal) and his family (Trump supporters). But I'm very glad it's over.
The characters were all pretty unlikeable, especially the narrator himself. The girl he was seeing was just...terrible. There were constant conversations going on about the ethics of putting autobiographical content into your fiction novel. It just grew so tiring, along with the fact the narrator kept making dickhead moves. The male gaze element was also strong here.
It gets 3 stars because some parts were beautifully written, and I quite liked the portrayals of the conversations between the narrator (liberal) and his family (Trump supporters). But I'm very glad it's over.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very relatable (to me, at least), with sharp and poignant insights about class and rural America and the strange ethics of writing. I had trouble putting it down, honestly, always wondering what would come next. But I could never really pin Owen down. Even as I deeply related to him, I didn’t really root for him, or get him, or want him and Alma to work out. Not a ton of plot, just a lot of important and insightful conversations.
slow-paced
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
too insufferable even for me.
had some interesting takes on Kentucky and the bittersweet feeling of home, but all the characters were SO flat and boring.
had some interesting takes on Kentucky and the bittersweet feeling of home, but all the characters were SO flat and boring.
'I've always had the same predicament. When I'm home, in Kentucky, all I want is to leave. When I'm away, I'm homesick for a place that never was.'
The writing is really beautiful but the story itself fell flat for me. Especially the romance plot line…I couldn’t get over the feeling “do these two even like each other?”