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dorkiki's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Mon livre préféré de 2023 je pense. Un million de cœurs sur Janina Doucheyko. J'espère devenir une vieille comme elle (à quelques détails près...)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Alcohol, Death, Animal death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
bedtimesnack's review
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Animal death
Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Blood, Grief, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Ableism, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Child death, Fatphobia, Confinement, and Sexism
noahfence's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
yeah, so. prepare to enter the world of janina duszejko. like, really prepare. its not for the faint of heart.
i have never read anything quite like this book. it is a story that will question your perception of madness, animals, astrology and religion—and you will probably finish it with a very different view of the world.
the plot follows the story of the sickly, elderly woman janina duszejko and her life in a lonely polish village on the border of the czech republic. the book drags you along on her investigation into the strange, unsettling murders of several members of the town’s hunting society, filling you with intrigue, awe—and perhaps horror, depending on your attitude towards animals. do you treat them like they have souls, or not? are you willing to face their wrath?
drive your plow over the bones of the dead is everything i could ever ask for in a book. the weather is strange, the animals are vengeful, the stars are sentient. it is a beautifully dark exploration into feminism, animal rights and murder, and although at first it may just seem like the story of a lonely old women, the prose grips you by the throat and really doesn’t let you go. you will come away from the book wondering if your horoscope could show you how you will die, and if you should really continue eating meat.
drive your plow over the bones of the dead is a deliciously dark read. so go on—take the plunge. 🤭
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Grief, Gun violence, Violence, Chronic illness, Medical content, Sexism, Cursing, and Mental illness
Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Drug use, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, and Misogyny
athenium's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Murder
Moderate: Drug use, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Grief, Violence, Bullying, Chronic illness, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming and Body horror
zickzackzachi's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Animal death, Cursing, Animal cruelty, and Gun violence
basonok's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.0
I lost track of the plot of the book midway through. I wanted to like this book but ableist and fatphobic commentaries ruined the book for me. I could see the author’s background in psychology possibly seeping into the writing, but it was in such an ignorant and irresponsible way towards neurodivergence and mental illnesses. While attempting to make a social commentary on the value of certain age groups, people with chronic illnesses and other groups in society, it was written poorly in my opinion and had at times the opposite effect in devaluing the appearance, mannerisms, and capabilities of other characters in the story (especially those not in the main character’s friend group).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Fatphobia, Body shaming, Mental illness, and Ableism
lilifane's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- 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? Yes
4.0
SO good!
This is a literary mystery set in a secluded village in the south of Poland. The protagonist is an older woman who is a hobby astrologer and likes animals more than humans. When people in the area turn up dead under mysterious circumstances, she has her own theory of what is going on, but no one is taking her seriously.
I actually wasn't expecting the mystery plot and was pleasantly surprised by the direction the story took. Loved the protagonist and her point of view, so interesting. Loved the quirky side characters and their friendship dynamics. Liked the themes of the book and the writing a lot. Also, the ending worked really well for me. The tone of the book is rather serious and reflective, but it has a subtle humor that I really liked.
The only thing I didn't enjoy were some of the monologues throughout the book. They were too abstract and too long for my taste.
This is a literary mystery set in a secluded village in the south of Poland. The protagonist is an older woman who is a hobby astrologer and likes animals more than humans. When people in the area turn up dead under mysterious circumstances, she has her own theory of what is going on, but no one is taking her seriously.
I actually wasn't expecting the mystery plot and was pleasantly surprised by the direction the story took. Loved the protagonist and her point of view, so interesting. Loved the quirky side characters and their friendship dynamics. Liked the themes of the book and the writing a lot. Also, the ending worked really well for me. The tone of the book is rather serious and reflective, but it has a subtle humor that I really liked.
The only thing I didn't enjoy were some of the monologues throughout the book. They were too abstract and too long for my taste.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Medical content, Murder, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, and Death
freckled_frog_boi's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Damn.. i don’t really know how to feel about this book.
Idk if i liked or disliked it. It was new though, and I was really engrossed towards the end. I wish there was a bit more foreshadowing, but I guess with an unreliable narrator, they don’t have to tell us everything.
I think this is my first Polish Translated text, and I think some meaning escaped me, but overall I liked the book even if I had a love/hate relationship with the characters.
Beware! Fatphobia and Romaphobia are rampant. There’s also a splash of anti-communism in there as well that could catch me off guard, even though within the location and time period it was common.
Idk if i liked or disliked it. It was new though, and I was really engrossed towards the end. I wish there was a bit more foreshadowing, but I guess with an unreliable narrator, they don’t have to tell us everything.
I think this is my first Polish Translated text, and I think some meaning escaped me, but overall I liked the book even if I had a love/hate relationship with the characters.
Beware! Fatphobia and Romaphobia are rampant. There’s also a splash of anti-communism in there as well that could catch me off guard, even though within the location and time period it was common.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Murder, Animal death, Body horror, and Body shaming
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Stalking
cianac118's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Murder, Animal death, and Death
Minor: Alcohol and Blood
thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.25
drive your plow over the bones of the dead is an incisive, atmospheric, and well-written read that isnt necessarily dark but deals w/ darkness, and is a powerful, revealing condemnation of human hypocrisy towards animals.
this book's filled w/ innumerable observations and insight abt life & death, the human condition, and animal treatment, some thought-provoking, and others sardonically true and darkly humorous, although the extensive discussion abt astrology isnt rly my thing. the characters are imbued w/ life and color even amid the bleakness of the landscape, and the main character's developing relationships w/ her increasingly close circle are subtly poignant. weirdly, the twist at the end shouldnt have been surprising, yet it still jolted me w/ the abruptness of its revelation.
needless to say, one cant talk abt this book w/o mentioning tokarczuk's biting denunciations of human treatment of animals, the hypocrisy and numbing, desensitized acceptance of it all. they're bewilderingly powerful and persuasive, though in hindsight i wish some discussion went into past necessity of certain aspects of this animal-related issue.
a surprisingly rewarding - though occasionally droning and weirdly paced - novel that invites a second reading and makes me interested in checking out tokarczuk's other works.
this book's filled w/ innumerable observations and insight abt life & death, the human condition, and animal treatment, some thought-provoking, and others sardonically true and darkly humorous, although the extensive discussion abt astrology isnt rly my thing. the characters are imbued w/ life and color even amid the bleakness of the landscape, and the main character's developing relationships w/ her increasingly close circle are subtly poignant. weirdly, the twist at the end shouldnt have been surprising, yet it still jolted me w/ the abruptness of its revelation.
needless to say, one cant talk abt this book w/o mentioning tokarczuk's biting denunciations of human treatment of animals, the hypocrisy and numbing, desensitized acceptance of it all. they're bewilderingly powerful and persuasive, though in hindsight i wish some discussion went into past necessity of certain aspects of this animal-related issue.
a surprisingly rewarding - though occasionally droning and weirdly paced - novel that invites a second reading and makes me interested in checking out tokarczuk's other works.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, Animal cruelty, Chronic illness, and Death
Moderate: Violence, Sexism, and Blood
Minor: Infidelity and Medical content