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lindseyhall44's review
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
“Let me sing to you now, about how people turn into other things.”
I received a copy of The Overstory as a birthday present, and honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew that there was widespread critical acclaim, but that was the extent of my knowledge. Never did I expect to feel, think, or see as powerfully as I did with the novel as my lense.
The Overstory follows an ensemble cast of characters, as trees shape and define their life experiences. Through themes of activism, growth, and ultimately life, the trees themselves will speak to you from the confinements of pages.
The format of the novel was immediately intriguing to me, as the parts are separated by the sections of a tree.
The roots and trunk may be, for some, (almost dauntingly) slow, but Powers is a master class in character studies, and the connection once finished reading will feel like the epitome of rewarding.
Although it was one of the most heartbreaking and gut wrenching works I have read in a while, it also offered a strangely hopeful note, that like trees we too can can leave a positive legacy behind.
I took off half a star because some of the mental health depictions I thought could have been written better.
I received a copy of The Overstory as a birthday present, and honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew that there was widespread critical acclaim, but that was the extent of my knowledge. Never did I expect to feel, think, or see as powerfully as I did with the novel as my lense.
The Overstory follows an ensemble cast of characters, as trees shape and define their life experiences. Through themes of activism, growth, and ultimately life, the trees themselves will speak to you from the confinements of pages.
The format of the novel was immediately intriguing to me, as the parts are separated by the sections of a tree.
The roots and trunk may be, for some, (almost dauntingly) slow, but Powers is a master class in character studies, and the connection once finished reading will feel like the epitome of rewarding.
Although it was one of the most heartbreaking and gut wrenching works I have read in a while, it also offered a strangely hopeful note, that like trees we too can can leave a positive legacy behind.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Ableism, Bullying, Death, Murder, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Kidnapping, Bullying, Grief, and Dementia
im_lovin_itt's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Police brutality, Suicide, and Death of parent
amelianotthepilot's review against another edition
slow-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? No
2.5
this book is sooo longgg
talking about a bunch of different people all connected eventually through their love of trees
talking about a bunch of different people all connected eventually through their love of trees
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicide attempt, Grief, Police brutality, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Death, and Medical content
lectora21's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent, Death, Dementia, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Infertility
seamoonstone's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I am an anxious person. I fear many forms of loss, loss of the people and things I love, in ways I can imagine for as long as I allow myself to. I’m certainly not alone in this experience, though it can be quite isolating, and I can understand how this fear could manifest as anger, which is a lot easier to share than fear, it seems. I see a lot of anger around me these days, and I’m working on seeing that anger as another manifestation of fear, rather than a new threat to me. We are all in need of some help, but it can be hard to admit that when the offer of help isn’t visible or immediate.
I think the essence of this book is that the only way to save ourselves is to begin to understand each other. Maybe it’s egotistical to interpret the one in need of help as us (humans), but I think that’s what each hero learns in The Overstory. Trees save them, in a way, by giving each of them a purpose in a world that often offers only empty pleasures and superficial rewards (not to say that financial security is superficial in a capitalist society) that leave one feeling bankrupt, so to speak, and they are often criticized and criminalized for choosing to follow this path. But only when the connections are made, often through means other than our limited capacity for speech and language, when one character reaches out to another and offers a hand or a meal or prolonged eye contact, is progress made in our recovery. These connections are also made through art—the stories of a family oak tree, of an ancient scroll, of a woman formed out of bark and roots, provocative graffiti—because these stories in the form of art offer an understanding of our history, draw us in, and bridge the gap between isolation and connection.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
Moderate: Death of parent
keegan_leech's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This was a re-read and it's still an absolute favourite book of mine. Despite its flaws, which were more noticeable the second time around, it remains stunning for that rare quality in a book to fundamentally change the way you think about the world. It presents both trees and the broader environmental crisis in a rare way and does it persuasively.
I think some readers might find it at times too saccharine, or—depending on how closely you agree with the novel's assessment of humanity's prospects—either overly bleak or wildly optimistic. But whatever you think of it, it's a book to provoke and change you. I certainly think about it constantly, and for that alone I'd recommend it to everyone.
The characters, prose, and structure of the novel are all good enough that it manages to walk the knife's edge of being a book I'd recommend to everyone, but there's no doubt that they are supports for the themes and content of the novel more than selling points in themselves.
I'd recommend it, even if all my criticisms sound off-putting. If you think there's any part of you that would like to marvel at trees and growing things, or wonder at the connections between living things, then please read this book.
I think some readers might find it at times too saccharine, or—depending on how closely you agree with the novel's assessment of humanity's prospects—either overly bleak or wildly optimistic. But whatever you think of it, it's a book to provoke and change you. I certainly think about it constantly, and for that alone I'd recommend it to everyone.
The characters, prose, and structure of the novel are all good enough that it manages to walk the knife's edge of being a book I'd recommend to everyone, but there's no doubt that they are supports for the themes and content of the novel more than selling points in themselves.
I'd recommend it, even if all my criticisms sound off-putting. If you think there's any part of you that would like to marvel at trees and growing things, or wonder at the connections between living things, then please read this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Police brutality
Moderate: Infidelity, Death, Death of parent, Torture, and War
Minor: Terminal illness and Confinement
indrabindra's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I'm not sure what I was expecting but this turned out differently. Poetic prose with clearly well researched facts dispersed throughout. I found character dialogue rather clunky, but the plot was captivating. Heavy handed with the mellowdrama to my taste. I don't think this is the "environmental fable" everyone says it is. It's a good story about trees and people, but it is not all-encompassing. Did not appreciate the endings for most of the characters, but I respect that ending a book is tricky.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Violence, and Police brutality
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexism and Cancer
prettyfunctional's review
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Police brutality, Violence, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Grief, Death of parent, Confinement, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, and Body horror
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Car accident and Sexual content
booksandmo's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Violence, and Suicide
Minor: Death of parent, Dementia, Forced institutionalization, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
max63815's review
challenging
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Definitely longer than I'd normally like, but I think that's the point. The books structure resembles a tree, and the author frequently talks about how the passage of time is so subjective relative to species. The author also critiques some people's fleeting engagement with ecological destruction before moving on to other topics. So the length feels like an intentional challenge, and a good way to reflect the scale at which the story is playing out.
The book had a diverse cast of characters, and I did like that there were so many of them and how their lives came together. But I found them very similar and two-dimensional at times. In particular I feel like Neelay got the short end of the stick, and the author often degraded him and his body.
I'm passionate about the subject matter, and found it a moving and depressing 10 hour read. I have quite mixed feelings that I'm struggling to articulate about the book as a whole, but am glad I read it and may look to re-read it one day.
The book had a diverse cast of characters, and I did like that there were so many of them and how their lives came together. But I found them very similar and two-dimensional at times. In particular I feel like Neelay got the short end of the stick, and the author often degraded him and his body.
I'm passionate about the subject matter, and found it a moving and depressing 10 hour read. I have quite mixed feelings that I'm struggling to articulate about the book as a whole, but am glad I read it and may look to re-read it one day.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death of parent, and Suicide
Moderate: Death and Police brutality