Scan barcode
marinalikeaboatyard's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
A challenging but mind-blowing read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, and Suicidal thoughts
dougus's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
sea_raider's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
brandon_melcher's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
sad
fast-paced
- 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
brannigan's review against another edition
1.0
I have never experienced life in a decaying late-Soviet Hungarian work collective, but after struggling through the first third of this novel, I feel like I have.
It is a novel designed to disorientate, to bore, to make you feel a bit grimy. The prose is claustrophobic, with over-long and distractingly complex sentence structures; the characters are grotesque, their motives unclear; the plot is as thin and uninteresting as Mrs. Schmidt's paprika stew.
This is all well and good from an artistic standpoint, but it does not necessarily make for an enjoyable reading experience. Or you know, maybe I think life is shit enough already without seeking out little black holes of despair to read on my lunch break.
So, this book failed for me because it proved its point too well. I couldn't stomach more than a hundred pages. Maybe I'll return to it later, probably not.
It is a novel designed to disorientate, to bore, to make you feel a bit grimy. The prose is claustrophobic, with over-long and distractingly complex sentence structures; the characters are grotesque, their motives unclear; the plot is as thin and uninteresting as Mrs. Schmidt's paprika stew.
This is all well and good from an artistic standpoint, but it does not necessarily make for an enjoyable reading experience. Or you know, maybe I think life is shit enough already without seeking out little black holes of despair to read on my lunch break.
So, this book failed for me because it proved its point too well. I couldn't stomach more than a hundred pages. Maybe I'll return to it later, probably not.
jonbrammer's review against another edition
5.0
The epigraph by Kafka is illuminating: the influence is everywhere in this mysterious and bleak novel, especially in the section near the end where bureaucrats are attempting to translate each character into official government idiom. There is also some of Beckett's absurdism, and the tone is very 19th century Russian, especially Dostoevsky. The girl Esti echoes Stinking Lizaveta in the Brothers Karamazov, as a kind of human symbol of suffering.
The religious aspect of the story is most striking. The residents of the farm collective are trapped in a type of purgatory, as they wait for Irimias to arrive and redeem them. There is a Mary Magdalene character (Mrs. Schmidt), and Irimias supposedly returns from the dead, which is never fully explained. At the end, the characters are spread to the wind by Irimias as they wait for paradise to come at the manor, much like Jesus' disciples are scattered to spread the word of the Gospel.
Which makes me wonder about the title and the source of evil in the story. The doctor at the end is writing the novel as it cycles back to the beginning, and it is notable that he along with Esti's family are the only characters left behind at the collective. The symbol of the bell ringing at the beginning of the end was evocative, especially once the doctor finds out that it is just an "idiot" making the noise (Macbeth allusion?). The doctor returns to his chair, his drinking, and his writing. He embodies the malaise that trapped the other characters in the village. That he is writing the story means that he has some omniscience and power over the characters' lives. The tango in the title is the drunken dance the characters do as they wait in the bar for Irimias. This time loop is the trap that Satan has sprung for them. The book is saying that, although the Christ-figure is probably also a con man, and his promises of paradise are lies, the real evil is in the debauched stasis of the character's lives before his arrival.
Just my interpretation.
The religious aspect of the story is most striking. The residents of the farm collective are trapped in a type of purgatory, as they wait for Irimias to arrive and redeem them. There is a Mary Magdalene character (Mrs. Schmidt), and Irimias supposedly returns from the dead, which is never fully explained. At the end, the characters are spread to the wind by Irimias as they wait for paradise to come at the manor, much like Jesus' disciples are scattered to spread the word of the Gospel.
Which makes me wonder about the title and the source of evil in the story. The doctor at the end is writing the novel as it cycles back to the beginning, and it is notable that he along with Esti's family are the only characters left behind at the collective. The symbol of the bell ringing at the beginning of the end was evocative, especially once the doctor finds out that it is just an "idiot" making the noise (Macbeth allusion?). The doctor returns to his chair, his drinking, and his writing. He embodies the malaise that trapped the other characters in the village. That he is writing the story means that he has some omniscience and power over the characters' lives. The tango in the title is the drunken dance the characters do as they wait in the bar for Irimias. This time loop is the trap that Satan has sprung for them. The book is saying that, although the Christ-figure is probably also a con man, and his promises of paradise are lies, the real evil is in the debauched stasis of the character's lives before his arrival.
Just my interpretation.
ticianeaneane's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
morrisem90's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
booccmaster's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
unidentifiedgemstone's review against another edition
challenging
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? Yes
2.5
I can’t find any negative reviews so this is definitely a me problem. But wow this is horribly depressing and the writing is impenetrable. That’s the point so, again, it’s probably just that I shouldn’t have picked up this book