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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
sad
creatively told but felt muddled. it took me a while to get used to the switching povs and narration style.
An interesting idea to update a well-known Greek myth (perhaps a spoiler to say which one it is, but I certainly ascertained which one it was fairly early on) but the characters didn't really carry it for me. This was the most disappointing book I read from this year's Man Booker shortlist.
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this was weird. i read it quickly but i couldn’t get into it, i was intrigued but not enthralled. it was beautifully written and i understand completely why it was shortlisted for the booker however i didn’t enjoy it, it wasn’t for me
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Dementia, Abandonment
Moderate: Child death
I liked the experimental writing style once I got used to it. You will hate this if you hate when authors don' t use quotation marks or when the story is told out of order. I knocked off half a star for being pretty predictable. It's very dark. If you know the story of Oedipus then you already know what's going to happen more or less. But then the context clues and foreshadowing beat you over the head with it. There's still a few shocking moments toward the end. I need to sit with this story for a bit. It was a lot. No happy endings here. Read trigger warnings and themes before reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Incest, Suicide
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Gretel has been searching for her mother for over a decade, phoning up morgues and hospitals, trying to find out what has happened since she left when Gretel was sixteen. When she finally finds her, she has alzheimer's, and it's harder than ever for Gretel to get the truth about the turbulent past they shared.
The first half of the novel is strange with a watery structure, different plots all swimming around together -- fitting given the story is set around the river where Gretel grew up on a boat. That said, it was clear to me exactly what was going to happen very early on in the novel -- as soon as all the characters were introduced it was obvious their relation to one another, so the rest of the book had no surprises whatsoever. This could have been intentional, as one of the characters is told what is going to happen to her and then has to wait and see how it comes to pass, but for me the effect was that it dragged a little. I like to be kept guessing and reading to find out what will happen next, rather than already knowing. Other books which are modern retellings of myths are able still to surprise you or at least make you feel something. I didn’t feel for any of these characters, it just felt like the writer was illustrating a myth, moving the plot from one point to another.
Lots of twee settings: a flat above a stable, the river boat on which they live, a small house with bright yellow stairs, an office where the definitions of words are written for dictionaries. Everyone always eating fish fingers. This did make it feel a little sentimental at times, but overall I did enjoy the aesthetic.
I think this was a good book, certainly committed to its attempt, I just don't love it myself -- due to the no surprises and the fact the plot for me personally was just not that interesting.
The first half of the novel is strange with a watery structure, different plots all swimming around together -- fitting given the story is set around the river where Gretel grew up on a boat. That said, it was clear to me exactly what was going to happen very early on in the novel -- as soon as all the characters were introduced it was obvious their relation to one another, so the rest of the book had no surprises whatsoever. This could have been intentional, as one of the characters is told what is going to happen to her and then has to wait and see how it comes to pass, but for me the effect was that it dragged a little. I like to be kept guessing and reading to find out what will happen next, rather than already knowing. Other books which are modern retellings of myths are able still to surprise you or at least make you feel something. I didn’t feel for any of these characters, it just felt like the writer was illustrating a myth, moving the plot from one point to another.
Lots of twee settings: a flat above a stable, the river boat on which they live, a small house with bright yellow stairs, an office where the definitions of words are written for dictionaries. Everyone always eating fish fingers. This did make it feel a little sentimental at times, but overall I did enjoy the aesthetic.
I think this was a good book, certainly committed to its attempt, I just don't love it myself -- due to the no surprises and the fact the plot for me personally was just not that interesting.
“Again and again I go back to the idea that our thoughts and actions are predetermined by the language that lives in our minds.”
I am trying to process this book. I cannot. There is so much—and I mean so much—going on. It feels fragmented, and yet it is not. I cannot tell if I like this book, and yet I enjoy it so much. Still...What is it trying to say? What is it not saying? What I do know: the ending is powerful; minds are powerful; a story well written is powerful; Everything Under is powerful. I’m just not sure if I can really say I like it.
Rating: 4.5/ 5 stars
I am trying to process this book. I cannot. There is so much—and I mean so much—going on. It feels fragmented, and yet it is not. I cannot tell if I like this book, and yet I enjoy it so much. Still...What is it trying to say? What is it not saying? What I do know: the ending is powerful; minds are powerful; a story well written is powerful; Everything Under is powerful. I’m just not sure if I can really say I like it.
Rating: 4.5/ 5 stars