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emmyh_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sarah_rachel's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I loved the idea behind this book, however, I think the point could have been made in about 400 pages less than it was. Inspired deep thoughts, good social commentary, too long.
footnote304's review against another edition
funny
reflective
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? No
4.0
saraklem's review against another edition
4.0
Whew! This book is to literary fiction what runway looks are to fashion: creative, potentially iconic, and unapologetically not for everyone. I think Lucy Ellmann nailed it, for the most part. There's a part of me that says it could have gotten its point across with a few hundred pages shaved off, and a part of me that thinks its length and density is a standalone character - especially because it wasn't until the last hundred pages that I started to feel it really rewarded the perseverence. It made me feel so much empathy for the narrator, for her kids, for my mom, for myself, for all of us.
kalliegrace's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
That was so.long. I think I overall enjoyed this, it's a stream of consciousness book with basically no plot. A middle aged mother in Ohio in about 2017. There are no paragraphs or sentences, every new thought just begins "the fact that..." There are endless lists and word associations, and truly just an encyclopedic narration of this woman's mind. There are many cultural touchstones that she keeps coming back to, Laura Ingles-Wilder's books being one of them which I'm more familiar with. A lot of commentary on Trump, and violence in America.
This is more boiled-down than a real person's actual stream of thought. Unless I'm the odd one out, a huge chunk of my waking thoughts is just a running list of what I have to do, what I have to remember, what everyone needs around me. I'm glad that was left out though, I don't need to hear how many loads of laundry someone else is doing in addition to my own.
There's a running mini-story of a mountain lion that pops up every now and then, separate from the run-on string of thoughts. The lion stalks prey, protects her cubs, is hunted and captured, injured, and ends up in captivity with her cubs. I don't really know what was meant by that, but to me it shows how a mother would prefer to be focused on raising her children until the violence of the outside world invades. That seems to run parallel to the thoughts of our narrator throughout.
If you're into experimental literature, you might check this out.
This is more boiled-down than a real person's actual stream of thought. Unless I'm the odd one out, a huge chunk of my waking thoughts is just a running list of what I have to do, what I have to remember, what everyone needs around me. I'm glad that was left out though, I don't need to hear how many loads of laundry someone else is doing in addition to my own.
There's a running mini-story of a mountain lion that pops up every now and then, separate from the run-on string of thoughts. The lion stalks prey, protects her cubs, is hunted and captured, injured, and ends up in captivity with her cubs. I don't really know what was meant by that, but to me it shows how a mother would prefer to be focused on raising her children until the violence of the outside world invades. That seems to run parallel to the thoughts of our narrator throughout.
If you're into experimental literature, you might check this out.
ahar7911's review against another edition
5.0
this book is about: zoo animals, p. chops, Indian mounds, SpaghettiOs, the word hydrangea, the numbness of muted beings, 2A, motherhood, nuclear family and nuclear war, the meaning of enormity, school shooters, the apocalypse, Alec Baldwin and Meryl Streep, cancer and sickness and death and loss, bridges, the solar eclipse, Persuasion, chicken (feed), pollution, marriage, deadbeat dads, the Gnadenhutten Massacre, the Ohio river, Bathesheba, Pepito, Zadok Cramer, Laura Ingalls Wilder, the Ivy League, Rachel Carson, David Attenborough, Tangier Island, iguana eggs, porn, dental hygienists, the Abominable Snowman, lady slipper orchids, the Silent Treatment, shyness, guns guns guns, the Amish, ducks, Newburyport
bakkuababy's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
i had to call my mum once i finished this. this was such an intimate and unique reading experience it felt like i was being let in on a secret i wasn’t supposed to know and at the same time it perfectly tackled current political affairs with its complex writing style which was very impressive especially towards the ending.
the side storyline of the lioness slowly coming together with our main plot had me holding back tears in the coffee shop. it was so special to be able to see through a mother’s pov ‘i became a mother before i learned to be a daughter’ LIKE PLEASEEEEE
the side storyline of the lioness slowly coming together with our main plot had me holding back tears in the coffee shop. it was so special to be able to see through a mother’s pov ‘i became a mother before i learned to be a daughter’ LIKE PLEASEEEEE
vganesh's review against another edition
the fact that. idk ill come back to it i couldnt do the stream of consciousness the whole book though its challenging for sure
whogivesabook's review against another edition
4.0
The beautiful thing about the book is that it just races through connections, thoughts, fears, to do lists... It is mundane, but therein lies the magic, pretty quickly you begin to learn her pathways. You become like a neuron, zipping down the ignited wires of her memories and ideas. A certain amount of Stockholm Syndrome sets in, you're confronted with this absolute WALL of text. But if you let it take you, you're whisked up into a familiar meringue of association and connection.
Sometimes I read her thoughts and I agreed, other times she said something really dumb and I marvelled at it. Because reading a character with flawed thinking and dumb moments is underrated. It makes them more human. Funnier sometimes. More tragic.
Very few writers can write a character well. Rooney and others today fall back on old tricks. Write a hollow shell and draw a few complicated situations (usually romantic) around them to disguise their simplicity. Don't worry about making them dynamic, they'll be mistaken for being interesting because they are involved in an interesting will-they-won't-they drama. Modern writers write simple characters because they're easy for a reader to customise. The reader reads them, fills in the gaps and ends up loving the characters because 'they' made them, not the writer. Instant bestseller. Zero cognitive demand.
Example:
If you took Ellmann's characters for a meal at a restaurant, you'd know what they'd order without thinking. You'd know what restaurant they'd enjoy. You'd know how they'd treat the waiter and how much they would tip. And anyone else who read it would be able to tell you, approximately the same. That's good writing. It's nourishing.
If you took Connell and Marianne for a meal, they'd spent an hour deciding what to order. End up eating bites of each other's food and squabble about who would pay. But you wouldn't be able to be sure of their choices. Because you can't 'know' them. You can guess. But someone else would guess entirely differently. You don't end up learning or growing. You just... consume.
Ordinarily, I usually start a book at half speed, I'm regular speed by the 100th page and then I zoom along at full speed until I'm finished.
You can't do that with a book that's 1000 pages. Instead you take little pit stops of a day or two. You need a break to process things. To gather your metal focus for the next section. I ended up reading the majority of this over two days and the rest of the time was just little blasts of 50 pages.
I got caught between the mental taxation and the sublime joy of exploring this interesting and engaging novel.
It is a tough book, but a rewarding book. I'd have liked more mountain lion and less creeks (if you read it, you'll get me).
If you are tired of books about superficial nonsense and really want a book to challenge you, but you're scared of the challenge, this is ideal because it uses superficial nonsense in order to stealthily elevate your reading experience... Pick this up (you'll need both hands).
In terms of book levels... I'd put this at about a 7.5... where Joyce is a 10, regular literary fiction is a 5 and your poolside bestseller is a 2-3 (at best).
Read this before you attempt Joyce. It would be a perfect palate cleanser.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.5)
Sometimes I read her thoughts and I agreed, other times she said something really dumb and I marvelled at it. Because reading a character with flawed thinking and dumb moments is underrated. It makes them more human. Funnier sometimes. More tragic.
Very few writers can write a character well. Rooney and others today fall back on old tricks. Write a hollow shell and draw a few complicated situations (usually romantic) around them to disguise their simplicity. Don't worry about making them dynamic, they'll be mistaken for being interesting because they are involved in an interesting will-they-won't-they drama. Modern writers write simple characters because they're easy for a reader to customise. The reader reads them, fills in the gaps and ends up loving the characters because 'they' made them, not the writer. Instant bestseller. Zero cognitive demand.
Example:
If you took Ellmann's characters for a meal at a restaurant, you'd know what they'd order without thinking. You'd know what restaurant they'd enjoy. You'd know how they'd treat the waiter and how much they would tip. And anyone else who read it would be able to tell you, approximately the same. That's good writing. It's nourishing.
If you took Connell and Marianne for a meal, they'd spent an hour deciding what to order. End up eating bites of each other's food and squabble about who would pay. But you wouldn't be able to be sure of their choices. Because you can't 'know' them. You can guess. But someone else would guess entirely differently. You don't end up learning or growing. You just... consume.
Ordinarily, I usually start a book at half speed, I'm regular speed by the 100th page and then I zoom along at full speed until I'm finished.
You can't do that with a book that's 1000 pages. Instead you take little pit stops of a day or two. You need a break to process things. To gather your metal focus for the next section. I ended up reading the majority of this over two days and the rest of the time was just little blasts of 50 pages.
I got caught between the mental taxation and the sublime joy of exploring this interesting and engaging novel.
It is a tough book, but a rewarding book. I'd have liked more mountain lion and less creeks (if you read it, you'll get me).
If you are tired of books about superficial nonsense and really want a book to challenge you, but you're scared of the challenge, this is ideal because it uses superficial nonsense in order to stealthily elevate your reading experience... Pick this up (you'll need both hands).
In terms of book levels... I'd put this at about a 7.5... where Joyce is a 10, regular literary fiction is a 5 and your poolside bestseller is a 2-3 (at best).
Read this before you attempt Joyce. It would be a perfect palate cleanser.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.5)