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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
reflective
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:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wonderful in every way, all the feels and all the inspiring, helpful, heartbreaking thoughts.
I can't get enough of Jeanette Winterson's writing.
Having some nutty Religious parents of my own it's really helpful to see someone else struggling then succeeding to manage despite it.
I can't get enough of Jeanette Winterson's writing.
Having some nutty Religious parents of my own it's really helpful to see someone else struggling then succeeding to manage despite it.
I felt like a part of me had been left on the pages of this book…I felt as she ended her journey of sexuality & discovery she ends feeling confused rather than completed—confused about her place in the world in terms of who she should love and how the topic of sexuality impacted those around her during this time. Being shielded from openly gay people, to the other end of the spectrum where one retracts from their openness and falls into the void of being “normal” - a shell of who they were supposed to be. A really amazing & thought provoking book <3
i didn't appreciate this when i read it in highschool but i think i would now
I’m so happy I’ve finally gotten around to reading this queer classic. It’s such a brilliant exploration of the ways that religion, family, and society can corrupt one another, and how sexuality and passion cut through it all to reveal a different kind of spirituality.
When her family banishes her, Jeanette is heartbroken by the illusion of being separated from God. But she nonetheless never comes to think of God as a betrayer: “The servants of God, yes, but servants by their very nature betray. I miss God who was my friend” (170). Temporarily displaced from God because severed from her people, Jeanette takes a leap of faith away from faith. And she’s aware, the whole time, that there’s no right choice in the matter. I’m stunned by the beautifully incisive monologues when we’re faced not only with Jeanette’s courage, but also her philosophical processes which eradicate any chance of an easy answer. I’ll end with my favorite quote from the text:
"I have a theory that every time you make an important choice, the part of you left behind continues the other life you could have had. Some people's emanations are very strong, some people create themselves afresh outside of their own body. This is not fancy. If a potter has an ideas, she makes it into a pot, and it exists beyond her, in its own separate life. She uses a physical substance to display her thoughts. If I use a metaphysical substance to display my thoughts, I might be anywhere at one time, influencing a number of different things, just as the potter and her pottery can exert influence in different place. There's a chance that I'm not here at all, that all the parts of me, running along all the choices I did and didn't make, for a moment brush against each other" (169).
When her family banishes her, Jeanette is heartbroken by the illusion of being separated from God. But she nonetheless never comes to think of God as a betrayer: “The servants of God, yes, but servants by their very nature betray. I miss God who was my friend” (170). Temporarily displaced from God because severed from her people, Jeanette takes a leap of faith away from faith. And she’s aware, the whole time, that there’s no right choice in the matter. I’m stunned by the beautifully incisive monologues when we’re faced not only with Jeanette’s courage, but also her philosophical processes which eradicate any chance of an easy answer. I’ll end with my favorite quote from the text:
"I have a theory that every time you make an important choice, the part of you left behind continues the other life you could have had. Some people's emanations are very strong, some people create themselves afresh outside of their own body. This is not fancy. If a potter has an ideas, she makes it into a pot, and it exists beyond her, in its own separate life. She uses a physical substance to display her thoughts. If I use a metaphysical substance to display my thoughts, I might be anywhere at one time, influencing a number of different things, just as the potter and her pottery can exert influence in different place. There's a chance that I'm not here at all, that all the parts of me, running along all the choices I did and didn't make, for a moment brush against each other" (169).
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced