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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I decided to read The Bone People as part of the 2022 PopSugar Reading Challenge (Prompt #15: A book by an Asian-American or Pacific Islander author). If it hadn't been for that purpose, I doubt I ever would have picked this one up, because as intrigued as I was by the premise, I wasn't terribly motivated to read it otherwise. Having said that... After I finished reading it last night, I literally went to Facebook and posted this:
"Have you ever read a book and kind of hated it but at the same time have a deep respect for the artistry that went into creating it and have zero regrets about having read it? Yeah. That was The Bone People for me."
This was, at the moment, the best way that I could describe my feelings about it. Since then, I've had a bit of time to think and the conclusion that I've come to is that, while I didn't like this book and wouldn't personally recommend it, I have a deep respect for the artistry of Keri Hulme's writing and I can appreciate why people think that this book is so well-written. Because it is. And so, I gave it two stars for the artistry. The characters were also really compelling in the depth of their development. Unfortunately, that's pretty much where my "good things I can say about this book" end.
As well-developed and compelling as the characters were, they weren't very sympathetic. Not even Simon (the little boy) was a sympathetic character. (Now, that speaks to the level of Keri Hulme's artistry that she was able to take a child character and make me feel very little sympathy for him, except in very specific ways, which I'll get to in just a minute.) I understand, or at least I think that I understand, that the characters weren't supposed to be likeable. I got the sense, from the entire book, that the whole purpose of this story was to highlight and examine the flawed humanity of the characters and, to that end, it was incredibly successful. I just didn't particularly like any of the characters that it examined.
Another thing, and I want to make this abundantly clear to anyone who is thinking about reading this book, because no one told me: I was NOT prepared for the graphic depictions of child abuse and alcoholism that run through the entire story. In fact, the extreme child abuse is one of the major plot (if you can say that it has a plot) motivators. There are also mild mentions of suicide and suicidal ideation by both adult and juvenile characters, so there's that, as well.
In addition to incredibly challenging and potentially triggering content in the story, this novel was also difficult to read because it moves so. incredibly. slowly. I'm fairly certain that part of that is attributable to the specific edition that I was reading having text that is so densely printed that, when you look at the pages from a (not-too-distant) distance it doesn't even look like individual lines of text, but giant blurry grayish-black patches of ink on the page, but I also think that part of it was just that there wasn't really a clear plot to follow to speak of. I guess that the events of the story followed a kind of loosely-linear organizational structure, but you have to be paying close attention to be able to find it, let alone follow it. There were also a lot of sudden shifts in point of view between the three main characters with no clear delineation, so a lot of it felt like reading three overlapping and intertwined streams of consciousness.
I think that the things that I like the most about it were the elements of magical realism and Maori culture that were incorporated throughout the novel. It was also pretty cool to read a text that included actual Maori language (there was a handy page-by-page glossary with translations at the end of the book) because I haven't had that experience before. The style was artistic and I really respect and appreciate the work that clearly went into developing the characters; I also appreciate that Keri Hulme clearly had an intimate knowledge of the settings and culture in which the story was set, but it was still incredibly challenging to read for both stylistic/technical, as well as content reasons.
Ultimately, I kind of hated The Bone People, but I didn't hate it at the same time. I definitely cannot say that I liked it but, as I mentioned previously, I still gave it two stars because I can appreciate the artistry of it, but at the end of everything, it was really just a terrible "story" about terrible people.
"Have you ever read a book and kind of hated it but at the same time have a deep respect for the artistry that went into creating it and have zero regrets about having read it? Yeah. That was The Bone People for me."
This was, at the moment, the best way that I could describe my feelings about it. Since then, I've had a bit of time to think and the conclusion that I've come to is that, while I didn't like this book and wouldn't personally recommend it, I have a deep respect for the artistry of Keri Hulme's writing and I can appreciate why people think that this book is so well-written. Because it is. And so, I gave it two stars for the artistry. The characters were also really compelling in the depth of their development. Unfortunately, that's pretty much where my "good things I can say about this book" end.
As well-developed and compelling as the characters were, they weren't very sympathetic. Not even Simon (the little boy) was a sympathetic character. (Now, that speaks to the level of Keri Hulme's artistry that she was able to take a child character and make me feel very little sympathy for him, except in very specific ways, which I'll get to in just a minute.) I understand, or at least I think that I understand, that the characters weren't supposed to be likeable. I got the sense, from the entire book, that the whole purpose of this story was to highlight and examine the flawed humanity of the characters and, to that end, it was incredibly successful. I just didn't particularly like any of the characters that it examined.
Another thing, and I want to make this abundantly clear to anyone who is thinking about reading this book, because no one told me: I was NOT prepared for the graphic depictions of child abuse and alcoholism that run through the entire story. In fact, the extreme child abuse is one of the major plot (if you can say that it has a plot) motivators. There are also mild mentions of suicide and suicidal ideation by both adult and juvenile characters, so there's that, as well.
In addition to incredibly challenging and potentially triggering content in the story, this novel was also difficult to read because it moves so. incredibly. slowly. I'm fairly certain that part of that is attributable to the specific edition that I was reading having text that is so densely printed that, when you look at the pages from a (not-too-distant) distance it doesn't even look like individual lines of text, but giant blurry grayish-black patches of ink on the page, but I also think that part of it was just that there wasn't really a clear plot to follow to speak of. I guess that the events of the story followed a kind of loosely-linear organizational structure, but you have to be paying close attention to be able to find it, let alone follow it. There were also a lot of sudden shifts in point of view between the three main characters with no clear delineation, so a lot of it felt like reading three overlapping and intertwined streams of consciousness.
I think that the things that I like the most about it were the elements of magical realism and Maori culture that were incorporated throughout the novel. It was also pretty cool to read a text that included actual Maori language (there was a handy page-by-page glossary with translations at the end of the book) because I haven't had that experience before. The style was artistic and I really respect and appreciate the work that clearly went into developing the characters; I also appreciate that Keri Hulme clearly had an intimate knowledge of the settings and culture in which the story was set, but it was still incredibly challenging to read for both stylistic/technical, as well as content reasons.
Ultimately, I kind of hated The Bone People, but I didn't hate it at the same time. I definitely cannot say that I liked it but, as I mentioned previously, I still gave it two stars because I can appreciate the artistry of it, but at the end of everything, it was really just a terrible "story" about terrible people.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Drug abuse
During the first 10 pages or so, I thought I was never going to get through the entire 791 of them. Keri Hulme's writing style is very different from anything I've ever read before. Then, like eyes adjusting to darkness, I suddenly 'got it'. The next 500 pages were a feast to read. Mysteries surrounding the main three characters popped up and I was anxious to discover all of them. I read 250 pages on the first day...
Then, about 2/3 in the book, something happened; everything got turned upside down, inside out, and I lost track of things. Thankfully, later on in the story, the characters look back at what actually happened, but it's still not a 100% clear to me as to what triggered it all.
The last 200 pages or so were all dipped into some kind of Maori based hallucinogenic prose (I really don't know how else to describe it). There were interesting parts, beautiful parts, but in general, my thoughts were "What a shame!". In the end, we're still not given a lot of answers to the questions that are presented throughout the entire book, leaving me with a kind of unsatisfied hollow feeling. Maybe I should read it again sometime in the future in the hope I can find answers between the lines or something.
I would've given this 4 stars if the ending was more satisfying. Hence 3 stars now. Maybe even 3.5 stars because I really DID enjoy the biggest part of the book.
Then, about 2/3 in the book, something happened; everything got turned upside down, inside out, and I lost track of things. Thankfully, later on in the story, the characters look back at what actually happened, but it's still not a 100% clear to me as to what triggered it all.
The last 200 pages or so were all dipped into some kind of Maori based hallucinogenic prose (I really don't know how else to describe it). There were interesting parts, beautiful parts, but in general, my thoughts were "What a shame!". In the end, we're still not given a lot of answers to the questions that are presented throughout the entire book, leaving me with a kind of unsatisfied hollow feeling. Maybe I should read it again sometime in the future in the hope I can find answers between the lines or something.
I would've given this 4 stars if the ending was more satisfying. Hence 3 stars now. Maybe even 3.5 stars because I really DID enjoy the biggest part of the book.
I have struggled with this book since the early days of quarantine in March, in many ways because of a general unsettled feeling that accompanied my reading of it. The writing is beautiful, and I found poetry in the pages. Yet I continue to grapple with an uncertainty with the story: its content, and its supposed resolution.
I do not know if my deep discomfort with several key plot points point to a complex narrative that forces the reader to question deeply held beliefs, or if I simply find the portrayal of certain disturbing and heinous acts to be reprehensible and poorly resolved. I suspect it has more to do with the latter, for in the end, the reader's opinion of the text hinges upon one's own answers to the following questions: What must an individual learn/alter/do to earn forgiveness, and who decides if the forgiveness has indeed been earned? And when considering these questions, it becomes clear that none of the three central characters in the story are capable of making that decision. This is what gave me pause throughout the text until the very end, in spite of my deep desire to blithely accept the "happy ending" trope that nearly was supplied to the reader.
I do not know if my deep discomfort with several key plot points point to a complex narrative that forces the reader to question deeply held beliefs, or if I simply find the portrayal of certain disturbing and heinous acts to be reprehensible and poorly resolved. I suspect it has more to do with the latter, for in the end, the reader's opinion of the text hinges upon one's own answers to the following questions: What must an individual learn/alter/do to earn forgiveness, and who decides if the forgiveness has indeed been earned? And when considering these questions, it becomes clear that none of the three central characters in the story are capable of making that decision. This is what gave me pause throughout the text until the very end, in spite of my deep desire to blithely accept the "happy ending" trope that nearly was supplied to the reader.
Beautiful. Has stayed with me since i read it in high school. Gorgeous mix of pure poetry and Maori language. Like nothing else I've ever read. Rough subject matter, sure, but Kerwin Holmes is one of the best female characters ever written.
I really enjoyed this for the first half, then I became strangely distant and disengaged for some reason and ended up skimming the last 100 pages.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
I really wanted to get into this book, because I love New Zealand and I love the uniqueness of Maori culture, as well as exploring how pakeha culture is informed by the culture of the Maoris. Thus, I found the character's exploration of mixed heritage and the straddling of two worlds interesting, and I also enjoyed the narrative style of the book, which clearly takes a lot from Maori tradition. I could see links to the contemporary New Zealand indie films I love, so I enjoyed that as well. In the end, I found the plot difficult to trudge through - it's a slow book, and one that demands more attention than I necessarily had to give it. I had a feeling that it was saying a lot more than I could necessarily glean, and though my attention was caught through the first half or so it began to wander especially towards the end. A few weeks after reading, I can't actually remember how it ends. That said, I'd like to read it again one day when I have more patience.
Meaningful and unique. Huge recommend to everyone who's looking for something extraordinary to read.
It's a love story indeed, but not a romance. I've truly never read anything like it.
(Huge TW for child abuse though...)
It's a love story indeed, but not a romance. I've truly never read anything like it.
(Huge TW for child abuse though...)