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floki56's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I was expecting a very specific book when I picked this up but Ocean really delivered in a different way. Internal conflicts and interpersonal dynamics are a main focus, and he weaves so many areas of little dog’s life into a satisfying synthesis. He also loves metaphor, goes on for pages and pages explaining new revelations in little dog, sometimes using extremely explicit descriptions (
Graphic: Drug abuse, Sexual content, Excrement, and War
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
may_lol's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Cancer, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Terminal illness, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
mxajlikesbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
bashsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, Alcohol, War, and Classism
Moderate: Cancer, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Medical content, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Cursing, Gun violence, Vomit, and Abandonment
Uses of slurs against LGBTQ+ folksredheadorganist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Homophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
It just wasn't for me. This would probably take multiple reads to unpack.naddl0r's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Racism, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Grief, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
srhi96's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Dementia, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Pregnancy
luciovalencia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Excrement, Abortion, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
wardenred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Sometimes being offered tenderness feels like the very proof that you’ve been ruined.
To be honest, I find it really, really hard to think of this book as a novel. It read more like a collection of essays with the occasional poem thrown in, or perhaps a memoir. In some ways, it felt like reading a journal.
I'm in awe of Ocean Vuong's raw, poetic prose; multiple parts of the book hit me really hard, especially everything related to the generational trauma of war hanging over the family, and also the author's thoughts about writing and language. I did feel like everyone but the narrator wasn't so much a character as the narrator's impression/memory/reflection of a person, an attempt to understand them from the outside. As for plot, it's... very definitely not the focus. There's a coming-of-age narrative, absolutely, but it really reads a lot like "this is something that happened, and I'm having thoughts and feelings about it, and here they are"; a collection of losses and gains and reflections upon them. Which is not bad in any way! The book is really, really good! Just... not what I usually envision when I think of novels. Then again, maybe it's just that I don't read that much literary fiction?
Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Racism, and War
stardustdreamer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Violence, Car accident, Abortion, and War
Minor: Vomit