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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If Dominic Sessa doesn't play Jonathan Abernathy in the film version I will RIOT.
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book wasn't in my usual comfort zone, but as I like a dystopian novel I thought I'd give it a try. I really enjoyed the dream like quality of it and as someone who has very vivid dreams, have reflected on it a lot whilst reading it. I would not say this is hilarious or funny though which the quotes on the cover suggest!
The premise sounded great, but the execution was bad. The main character is annoying, and the book's pacing was too slow to keep me interested.
cannot BELIEVE I got to take a writing class taught by this author she is a fucking genius!!! the class was about bending genre and how not every piece has to fit into a neat little box--I think this book is truly the pinnacle of that.
as depressing as it is, I found myself deeply identifying with jonathan abernathy. that raw social awkwardness you feel that makes you think you'll never be enough. making the wrong choice in a crucial moment of decision. pretending that nothing is wrong because if you even begin to acknowledge it you'll fall apart.
but there is a moment when abernathy claws through the darkness and understands:
as depressing as it is, I found myself deeply identifying with jonathan abernathy. that raw social awkwardness you feel that makes you think you'll never be enough. making the wrong choice in a crucial moment of decision. pretending that nothing is wrong because if you even begin to acknowledge it you'll fall apart.
but there is a moment when abernathy claws through the darkness and understands:
Everyone else's best is better and more exemplary than his best. This is because, he thinks, he is incapable and incompetent when it comes to being alive. There it is. There's the truth. He is an incompetent. The king incompetent of the incompetents.
And then comes a knock. Someone is knocking. And he remembers these are all just thoughts.
He tells himself: Jonathan Abernathy, you are good! Wipe your eyes! Slap yourself on the cheeks! Hock a loogie into the oncoming darkness and say: NOT TODAY! TODAY I WILL NOT FALL BENEATH!
the things you think about yourself do not define who you are. your circumstances may be shitty, and your thoughts might be dark, and maybe there are reasons for that, but you do not have to fall beneath. and goddamn if that isn't what I needed to hear at this moment of my life.
this book addresses the insatiable grind of capitalism and selling your soul to your job and the exploitative nature of loans and prisons. it talks about feeling like you're never good enough and still not quite getting over that hump no matter how hard you try. it explores how we hold our memories in our dreams and how vital each piece is to who we are, even if they're pieces we don't like. and it all happens in a narrative voice so ridiculously good it's hard to even describe. I just like,..,.,...,. please read this I am BEGGING you
Audiobook version not listed yet, but that's what I read. Really enjoyed this a lot.