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justin92's review
3.0
I don't know why I was expecting more from this book, whether it was my prior knowledge of the movie Apocalypse Now or my lack of knowledge about the culture and events of the late 1800s and early 1900s Imperialistic movement. I anxiously waited for the fated meeting with Kurtz and his group. Once it happened, I was no closer to understanding his purpose than I was when I began reading the story. I had to read the added commentary that was my version of the book to catch things I missed, due to not knowing that specific time period. The book did not age well.
The story was relatively good. The narrator was good at explaining the events around him. I personally did not like his jump of time though. One minute he was on a boat, the next he was talking to Kurtz's "friend." He was in Kurtz's house, now he wasn't. The story has multiple spots where you have to catch on that the narrator is no longer where he was originally and transported to a new spot/time without actually letting the reader know.
The book could have received a 4 or 5 just by adding more to the story, especially Kurtz. The whole story builds up to this lackluster meeting. I did enjoy the story overall, just wished for more detail and a better streaming of the story.
The story was relatively good. The narrator was good at explaining the events around him. I personally did not like his jump of time though. One minute he was on a boat, the next he was talking to Kurtz's "friend." He was in Kurtz's house, now he wasn't. The story has multiple spots where you have to catch on that the narrator is no longer where he was originally and transported to a new spot/time without actually letting the reader know.
The book could have received a 4 or 5 just by adding more to the story, especially Kurtz. The whole story builds up to this lackluster meeting. I did enjoy the story overall, just wished for more detail and a better streaming of the story.
rottenjester's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
gmpipicella's review
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Challenging to read but beautifully written. Didn’t care much about it though apart from its detailed view of colonialism.
mephistoreads's review
3.0
There are some lines that hit you right in the gut but some of it is bland and not very affective. It falls to bring out the sufferings like Things Fall Apart but in its defense it is from the perspective of the side that creates the Other. While this thing is understandable, it still doesn't really work and falls short of the mark.
siennabug's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
byejohn's review
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
i struggle to give this a star rating. It was disturbing, and seriously racist even while seeming to claim some sense of moral disgust about racism and colonial exploitation. What I can say is, it didn’t pull punches in portraying the depravity of European savages.