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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
Conceptually this book is brilliant and a unique fantasy experience in my reading history. I suspect for those who need 50-50 character development to plot, or more heavy character development, might not be 100% in love with this book. I’m a very feely person, and there were no feels for the first 3/4 of the book. Action happens, there’s flat dialogue, there’s external conflict, there’s background on characters, but there’s reference to anger and love that only feels like words, not an emotional experience (which is what the strongest books convey in my opinion). Even the stakes never felt very high for most of the book, which they are in the book’s reality.
By page 300 when what I’ve been waiting for finally [begins] to happen, I was getting the feels a bit more but still waiting for the emotional connection for the characters to each other, themselves and to their city. The main characters are avatars for their boroughs, but I never felt the power in what that means, I felt that power the strongest in relation to geography but not its people - though we’re told about each borough’s people a few times. I wish the events and conversations between page 300 and 400 had been moved up earlier, and then expanded much more. The last 50 pages were amazing, interesting and surprising.
The book is 3.5 stars for me. I hope down the road I’ll reread this to see if I missed what I believe is missing and go to the rest of the trilogy.
By page 300 when what I’ve been waiting for finally [begins] to happen, I was getting the feels a bit more but still waiting for the emotional connection for the characters to each other, themselves and to their city. The main characters are avatars for their boroughs, but I never felt the power in what that means, I felt that power the strongest in relation to geography but not its people - though we’re told about each borough’s people a few times. I wish the events and conversations between page 300 and 400 had been moved up earlier, and then expanded much more. The last 50 pages were amazing, interesting and surprising.
The book is 3.5 stars for me. I hope down the road I’ll reread this to see if I missed what I believe is missing and go to the rest of the trilogy.
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The atmosphere of this book is out of this world. I loved the city-magic and how it engaged with the different aspects of the city. There was an amazing sense of space and I could feel the love for the city.
Buuuut I also had a couple of issues with the book. One is the quite obvious "NYC is awesome" that feels a bit old at this point, but frankly, it was kinda obvious this was gonna be the case going into the book, so I can't complain too hard. The second point is more along the lines of "what this book was trying to do feels impossible to achieve and I'm not sure how to feel like it". Like, it's simply impossible to represent any city with six people, you're always going to miss out on some aspects (I don't really know which aspects exactly as I'm not from NYC and have hardly been there). I had this feeling that four out of five central characters had roughly the same morals, even if they had gone through slightly different paths to get there, and that felt weird and a bit reductive. Brooklyn was a bit different maybe.Still, I never felt like the characters-other than Staten Island-clashed over their present-day morals and views. Most of their clashes seemed to boil down to stress, frankly.
Also, I found the conclusion of the book a bit conflicting with the rest of the book, although I can also see how it also followed directly from the rest.See, this whole book we hear how NYC is also its ugly parts. However, this doesn't seem to apply to republicans. Basically, all the various people, even serious criminals, are part of the city, but not the political party you don't like? That feels like cherry-picking, like you're the one who, in the end, gets to choose who and what makes the city. However, if I read this book as a subversion of the narrative where POC are kept out from being of the country's history or alike (I'm not American nor have I read Lovecraft, so I'm kinda guessing here), then it makes sense. Like in the end the story centers the voices that have been ignored so far, and pushes away the ones who traditionally push them away. That makes thematic sense. Also, I haven't read the second book, so I can't really make a definitive judgment on this yet.
Buuuut I also had a couple of issues with the book. One is the quite obvious "NYC is awesome" that feels a bit old at this point, but frankly, it was kinda obvious this was gonna be the case going into the book, so I can't complain too hard. The second point is more along the lines of "what this book was trying to do feels impossible to achieve and I'm not sure how to feel like it". Like, it's simply impossible to represent any city with six people, you're always going to miss out on some aspects (I don't really know which aspects exactly as I'm not from NYC and have hardly been there). I had this feeling that four out of five central characters had roughly the same morals, even if they had gone through slightly different paths to get there, and that felt weird and a bit reductive. Brooklyn was a bit different maybe.
Also, I found the conclusion of the book a bit conflicting with the rest of the book, although I can also see how it also followed directly from the rest.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Spend too much time in a city and you'll become one. This, at least, is the danger for me: I fall in love with places much more easily than I do people. Cities, especially. I've written love poems about them, that somethingness they have at night, the way their towers gleam, how I love even their rats, scuttling along the underground tunnels.
This has only happened to me in London, but every time I visit NYC I can feel a similar energy pulse, threatening to consume me. What if we really could become cities? What if you were so attached, so close, to a city, that it chose you?
In The City We Became, NYC is about to come alive. Literally. When cities reach a certain stage, they literally come to life and chose someone from the city to represent them, take on their power, and protect them. In the case of NYC, there are six - one avatar chosen for each of the five boroughs and a primary avatar who represents the whole city.
But like any birth, there can be complications. NYC is only one of billions, trillions, of cities - and they're all fighting in intergalactic space for occupancy. When one interloper invades NYC and threatens its survival, the avatars have to work together if they're to make it out alive.
What I love about Jemisin is the naturalness of her characters. She makes it normal for major characters to hail from different cultures, races, backgrounds, sexual identities, and genders. She's writing about NYC. NYC is one of the most diverse places on earth, and this book reflects that without feeling forced or purposeful. She's writing the city - this is what the city is.
Is this as masterful as Jemisin's other works? No. Does that stop it from being a fun read? Absolutely not.
It's like a Marvel film brought to the page only better, and it's also a love letter to NYC. It combines my favorite trope as well, which is a group of people coming together to tackle the same obstacle/chase a common dream/encourage each other's journey. Really, there wasn't much for me to dislike.
This is only set to be a trilogy but I now need stories for every great city that's part of this universe. (Some side notes: I now think the city of São Paulo is super sexy. I don't know much about the history/vibe of each NYC borough but I have to say, after reading this book, I think Staten Island is the worst.)
This has only happened to me in London, but every time I visit NYC I can feel a similar energy pulse, threatening to consume me. What if we really could become cities? What if you were so attached, so close, to a city, that it chose you?
In The City We Became, NYC is about to come alive. Literally. When cities reach a certain stage, they literally come to life and chose someone from the city to represent them, take on their power, and protect them. In the case of NYC, there are six - one avatar chosen for each of the five boroughs and a primary avatar who represents the whole city.
But like any birth, there can be complications. NYC is only one of billions, trillions, of cities - and they're all fighting in intergalactic space for occupancy. When one interloper invades NYC and threatens its survival, the avatars have to work together if they're to make it out alive.
What I love about Jemisin is the naturalness of her characters. She makes it normal for major characters to hail from different cultures, races, backgrounds, sexual identities, and genders. She's writing about NYC. NYC is one of the most diverse places on earth, and this book reflects that without feeling forced or purposeful. She's writing the city - this is what the city is.
Is this as masterful as Jemisin's other works? No. Does that stop it from being a fun read? Absolutely not.
It's like a Marvel film brought to the page only better, and it's also a love letter to NYC. It combines my favorite trope as well, which is a group of people coming together to tackle the same obstacle/chase a common dream/encourage each other's journey. Really, there wasn't much for me to dislike.
This is only set to be a trilogy but I now need stories for every great city that's part of this universe. (Some side notes: I now think the city of São Paulo is super sexy. I don't know much about the history/vibe of each NYC borough but I have to say, after reading this book, I think Staten Island is the worst.)
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
An incredibly creative take on a superhero story, wherein five denizens of New York City become avatars of the five boroughs of the city and unite to fight an evil villain (gentrification and white supremacy incarnate). Quippy, full of action and character, but I found the lengthy interactions between the five personified boroughs rather tedious. All of the characters in this book were nothing more than stereotypes-- this was the point, but I found it very boring. I LOVE Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy but this didn't resonate much with me. I also have never cared much for superhero stuff and I don't have a relationship with NYC (so I'm reviewing from a biased perspective)- but perhaps if you do, you will like this book more than me. This would make a good movie if the fluff and tedium were removed!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated