Reviews

Paul by Daisy Lafarge

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esmeraldnst's review

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dark 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? Yes

2.0

dariannafv's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.0

jam_03's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I think Lafarge does a wonderful job at slowly introducing Paul's faults. I felt like I was right there with Frances slowly realizing how terribly he treated her and how gross I felt by his behaviour. I loved the ending. It felt liberating when she finally left. I found myself feeling proud.

There were times when I wanted more from the story and its characters. However, it was nice how Paul's friends were all weary of Paul on her behalf.

Beautiful imagery of nature and architecture through the book.

johiggs's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.5

vishnu_'s review

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dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

literarycrushes's review

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2.0

My feelings about Paul by Daisy Lafarge are almost as complicated as the relationship it centers upon. Frances is twenty-one, recently graduated, and freshly unmoored by a messy situation-ship with an(other) older man. Unsure of what she wants to do with her life, she embarks on a loosely planned trip around France, where she’ll spend the summer working on various farms in exchange for room, board, and Life Experience. By a stroke of good or bad luck, depending on whom you ask, Frances’ first stop is Noa Noa, an eco-farm/commune run by Paul.
Paul is in his mid-forties and has a lot to say about everything. In Frances’ impressionable state, she confuses his largely mindless babbling with wisdom and knowledge and the revolving cast of characters drifting through his home as magnetism. So, she feels almost grateful when he develops an interest in her, despite the growing dread she feels in her gut whenever they’re in the same room.
The novel’s based on the artist Paul Gauguin, who, despite his artistic genius, was also a colonist who married multiple teenage girls while abroad. I had a hard time picturing any of the characters (especially Paul) as anything more than nebulous outlines, which felt purposeful but difficult to engage with. I was overwhelmed by Frances’ passivity as she allowed herself to be consumed by those (especially men) around her and frustrated by her debilitating inability to make a single decision or form a unique opinion. While I do get where this book was going, for me, Paul was the kind of intelligent novel that, while reading, I understood to be *well-crafted, * but one I just could not get into.