Reviews

The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer

sampayn3's review against another edition

4.0

To say that The Shock of the Fall is an odd book would be an understatement. It is bizarre, scattered, chaotic even. But this disorder works in the story's favour, adding to the authenticity of the schizophrenia that it aims to portray. I've read a few mental illness novels, and I'd say that this is one of the best: it's vivid, raw, and completely engrossing. Nathan Filer, the author, has managed to craft the distinct voice of Matt, the main character, around an equally unsettling situation with his brother, Simon. The novel has many purposes: it's a mystery, a story of social problems, a highly politicised view of health care, and a coming of age narrative. Yet above all, it recalibrates stigmas surrounding mental health, proving that the sufferer is a victim. In this startling view of such illnesses, Filer succeeds most. If we are to make progress in this area of health, it must begin by changing the general attitude towards it.

inesnow's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-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? Yes

1.75

ali_w15's review against another edition

5.0

Beautifully poignant, graphic and insightful exploration of mental illness.

mcready_face's review against another edition

5.0

One of the most uncomfortable reads I've come across for a long time.

jjbankhead's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

biscuitmunroe's review against another edition

I picked it up entirely unaware of what I was getting myself into in the Prague airport and found myself upset that my flight to amsterdam had landed because I just had five pages left!!!

mortisaurois's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

kathrynnnnnn's review against another edition

4.0

Things I like:
1. It is narrated in a similar way to 'The curious incident of the dog in the night time' i.e. child like
2. Creative use of typography and illustration
3. It starts in the middle - no waffle set up plot stuff which makes it fast and grippy
4. I read it in 3 days - a real page turner

crucius's review against another edition

2.0

I am starting to repeat myself, but I can't help it. The Shock of the Fall is a so so book. Not terrible, but has absolutely nothing that will make it stand the test of time (as in weeks, a book like this will never be remembered in months let alone years). It's a banal attempt at portraying mental illness, but it is so blunt and so unsubtle, that in fact it doesn't portray it at all, but is merely a poor caricature. The usage of different fonts only show that the author is incapable of writing decently, and has to resort to this strategies to make the book more interesting. Hopefully, the author will improve his writing and become a successful novelist. But to do that, he has to ameliorate quite a lot. Most disappointing.

missbookiverse's review against another edition

3.0

Ich traue mich kaum es zu sagen, aber ich fand das Buch ein wenig langweilig. Die Figuren haben viel Herz und ein tragisches Erlebnis zu verarbeiten. Der Stil und die Formatierung sind gekonnt (es wechselt z.B. zwischen Parts, die an der Schreibmaschine und welche, die am Computer geschrieben wurden, was die wechselnde Schriftart verdeutlicht), aber von der Geschichte und dem großen Geheimnis hab ich viel mehr erwartet. Vielleicht bin ich da etwas versaut von den Mainstream Medien, aber wenn jemand mit einer psychischen Störung im Mittelpunkt steht, erwarte ich immer verblüffende Wendungen a la “Person XY war die ganze Zeit nur eine Halluzination” und so habe ich hin- und her gerätselt, nur um am Ende vor wesentlich unspektakulärere (wenn auch sehr schlimme) Tatsachen gestellt zu werden. Dazu kommt, dass ich ständig über die Erzählungen gestolpert bin. Es macht total Sinn die Story so verwirrend zu schildern, schließlich herrscht in Matts Kopf unglaubliches Chaos, aber die vielen undefinierbaren Zeitsprüngen und Andeutungen haben mir die Leselust geraubt.