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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
My favorite quote about this book from another Goodreads reviewer:
"While there are glimmers of poignancy and truth, they're mired in agonizing prose and anachronistic, infuriating minutiae." -Adam Perschbacher
It wasn't even the countless mention of wet shits that got to me (although the endless cycles of run, hide, hunt, shit & sleep to allow for tedious flashbacks did). No, it was this sense that the author was, rather arrogantly, trying to shock us with how raw she thought she could be. There wasn't anything raw about the story, or grounded or graceful, insightful, etc.- it just wasn't there. The most memorable thing was, in fact, the wet shits. The prose (and attempts to shock) reminded me vaugely of the character Vi in Todd Solondz's film 'Storytelling' as a naive attempt to inhabit a space one can't really fill. As with Vi, this author had trouble delivering a beginning, middle and end.
"While there are glimmers of poignancy and truth, they're mired in agonizing prose and anachronistic, infuriating minutiae." -Adam Perschbacher
It wasn't even the countless mention of wet shits that got to me (although the endless cycles of run, hide, hunt, shit & sleep to allow for tedious flashbacks did). No, it was this sense that the author was, rather arrogantly, trying to shock us with how raw she thought she could be. There wasn't anything raw about the story, or grounded or graceful, insightful, etc.- it just wasn't there. The most memorable thing was, in fact, the wet shits. The prose (and attempts to shock) reminded me vaugely of the character Vi in Todd Solondz's film 'Storytelling' as a naive attempt to inhabit a space one can't really fill. As with Vi, this author had trouble delivering a beginning, middle and end.
While the prose was lyrical and poetic, I found the plot to be wanting, the pacing to be abysmal, and the wilderness survival aspects to be run-of-the-mill. What really hammered in the nail, though, was the fact that it’s a trail narrative, and hardly anything is actually happening save flashbacks and exposition.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
emotional
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
I really liked the book a lot, but it jarred me that someone who hadn't been near another human being for months came down with smallpox. I'm pretty sure that's impossible, and it seems like something the author should have checked.
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
Hate the lack of quotation marks in the flashbacks
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
She really took choosing the bear to a whole other level
i had a hard time getting into this book and a harder time following it through.
adventurous
dark
sad
slow-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:
Complicated
I am so relieved to be finished with this book! Would have been a DNF for me if not for my deep book-club-related guilt. I read it over just a few days so it could be over with, bandaid-style, thinking of this review as my Great Reward.
This book is immersive, mincing, parabolic. This book is not subtle, complex, enjoyable.
Reads like 250 pages of the King James Bible (we get it, we get it), with the endingin plain sight on page two when she steals the smallpox boots .
How much disbelief were we supposed to suspend? The girl is just naturally good at everything? Why was there so muchpooping and vomiting ?
There was some truly beautiful writing in the last two pages of chapter 19. Wish more of it was like that.
This book is immersive, mincing, parabolic. This book is not subtle, complex, enjoyable.
Reads like 250 pages of the King James Bible (we get it, we get it), with the ending
How much disbelief were we supposed to suspend? The girl is just naturally good at everything? Why was there so much
There was some truly beautiful writing in the last two pages of chapter 19. Wish more of it was like that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Sexual harassment, Classism