Reviews with content warning for Blood - The Life of the Mind

Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Life of the Mind by Christine Smallwood

9 reviews

macodi's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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stellahadz's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I think this is the kind of book that has to marinate in my mind for a while before I can figure out exactly what I think about it. It's well-written, has an interesting premise, and offers insightful and relatable commentary on academia, relationships, and the nature of existence in the 21st century (the phrase "boring dystopia" comes to mind). The miscarriage is described in fairly graphic terms, but it doesn't seem to faze the narrator at all - I think there's something to read into this about how by the nature of the times we live in, things that we think ought to be traumatic or catastrophic seem a bit mundane. I can see how this book isn't for everyone, but I liked how subtly philosophical it was.

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pandemoniumxjo's review against another edition

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This book is not what I was lead to believe by the reviews or the summary, just wasn't for me.

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siriface's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense slow-paced

Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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olpapi's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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smute's review against another edition

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challenging emotional inspiring reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

At first I was surprised to see so many negative reviews for this book, but having read it now I can see why some people might be put off by it. Firstly, it doesn't offer much in terms of plot. In fact, most of the action takes place outside of the narrated time. We begin post rem, learn a lot about past events, are even encouraged to anticipate future events, but the few weeks covered in the story are remarkably uneventful. Secondly, and not coincidentally, the text is deeply introspective, emotional, and it paints a gloomy picture of our (pre-)apocalyptic world. It made me laugh out loud more than once but much of its humor stems from the absurd contrast between the protagonist's resigned levity and her lostness in an indifferent world. But that's also where the story's magic lies. Smallwood manages to turn familiar mundane moments into relevant, poignant observations on life in the 21st century—on fear, privilege, guilt, resignation, powerlessness, acceptance, and even hope. What the story lacks in amusement it more than makes up for in hyper-examined introspection. Yes, there are a lot of stories about academics with low self-esteem, but rarely do they hit as close to home as this one. If that's your jam, you're gonna love it.

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jasperrodriguez's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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moraofthestory's review against another edition

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dark funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

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walskishere's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was an audiobook and I still feel like I would've taken it in better as a physical book. I would like to reread this as a physical book and be able to highlight stuff, especially since it's a literary fiction book. I think this has a potential to help shed light on the aftermath of a miscarriage, whether the baby was wanted or not.

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