1.97k reviews for:

Kairos

Jenny Erpenbeck

3.47 AVERAGE

miyou's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 51%

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L’écriture est HORRIBLE à lire. Je pensais que c’était peut-être un soucis de traduction mais en regardant plusieurs avis de lecteurs ayant lu en VO, il semblerait que ce soit un avis très partagé. Le style est véritablement laborieux, ennuyant et sans intérêt. 

Sans parler de cette sorte de “romantisation” d’une relation d’emprise malsaine, obscure, pleine de jalousie et de violence entre une étudiante à peine sortie de l’adolescence et d’un vieil intellectuel qui, littéralement, aurait pu être son père. 

Je me suis forcée pour atteindre la moitié mais j’abandonne. 

bioniquetamere's review against another edition

2.5

challenging informative mysterious reflective 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

elizaparr22's review against another edition

4.5

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

aeharju's review against another edition

2.0

slow-paced

lillimariechen's review against another edition

3.25

challenging emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

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Ich hasse Hans.

strawberry_jam429's review against another edition

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So much of that went over my head. Also reading 293 pages of Hans and Katharinas’ toxic age gap relationship was somehow like watching paint dry. (Katharina you’re better than this and Hans…when I catch you$!)

fleurlovesbooks's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH

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idk where the books is and i don’t care to look

thinkyman's review against another edition

4.75

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

connorreid1's review against another edition

2.75

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

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Just really not for me. Very dense writing style and gets quite repetitive as it goes on with regard to Hans abuse and Kathrina’s lack of autonomy. Apparently it’s very allegorical to that moment in time as well as showing what life was like in east Berlin at the time. Personally it’s not a period in history I’m too familiar with, so I went into this hoping the narrative would be engaging on its own, but it wasn’t, and I really do think the narrative style is quite inaccessible, unless you’re part of a minority who gets a lot of the references and allegories  

hayley_anderson's review against another edition

3.0

challenging mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes