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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
medium-paced
I ordered this one from the library after being told it is a sapphic story set in the 50s. Queer? Sapphic? A setting post 2010? Sign me up!
Little did I know that the author, a lesbian herself, had written the novel as semi-autobiographical. About a girl who is adopted by a committed Christian, raised to be a missionary. Until they find out that she is in love with another girl, and everything gets turned upside down. With "elder queer" support in the community contrasted with the typical queer-hating church community, and passages of folklore and stories woven throughout, I found it to be beautifully written. I'm not completely sure what is autobiographical and what isn't in book-Jeanette's story, but it didn't feel like it mattered so much when reading it. There was a number of quotes throughout that really stood out to me. Unfortun tely I was mainly reading during a CFS flare up meaning I can't remember the exact quotes, just that they stood out to me! I imagine I will come back to this one, and I am already looking to read some more of Winterson's back catalogue.
Little did I know that the author, a lesbian herself, had written the novel as semi-autobiographical. About a girl who is adopted by a committed Christian, raised to be a missionary. Until they find out that she is in love with another girl, and everything gets turned upside down. With "elder queer" support in the community contrasted with the typical queer-hating church community, and passages of folklore and stories woven throughout, I found it to be beautifully written. I'm not completely sure what is autobiographical and what isn't in book-Jeanette's story, but it didn't feel like it mattered so much when reading it. There was a number of quotes throughout that really stood out to me. Unfortun tely I was mainly reading during a CFS flare up meaning I can't remember the exact quotes, just that they stood out to me! I imagine I will come back to this one, and I am already looking to read some more of Winterson's back catalogue.
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This novel is magnificently written. I was hooked from start to finish. The protagonist’s resilience is inspiring.
This was quite an interesting book, but I can’t say I really enjoyed it. Jeanette as a character was deeply inquisitive and bold - her willingness to question religious norms and take a stand for who she is was amazing, especially considering the time she lived in. I admired that. Her mother, though? Absolutely insufferable. I can only imagine how exhausting it must’ve been growing up with someone like that.
That said - The writing style wasn’t really for me. I tuned out a lot while reading even though the book wasn’t very long. There were many injected side stories made to serve as references of some kind. I’m not entirely sure what they were meant to add, but they didn’t do anything for me and just felt unnecessary. Maybe I didn’t like it because it felt autobiographical in a way. We were told in the introduction that it’s still fiction, but it’s obvious some of her real-life experiences made it in, the character is also named after her (The author). I don’t enjoy reading memoirs and this felt too much like one.
Still, I appreciated the complexity of loving God while also loving women, and how hard it must’ve been for Jeanette to navigate that in such a hyper-religious, almost cult-like environment. I respect her strength, her audacity, and the fact that she even went back to that town later. Many wouldn’t.
The symbolism of oranges in the book was interesting as well. I didn't quite grab if she was the one obsessed with them or if it was her mother. I think it was her mother, but it felt like a metaphor for the kind of singular path she was forcing on Jeanette when in fact there are many fruits, many choices. It was a clever way of showing how people try to limit what others can be.
Even though the story had its comedic moments (and those probably kept me going), I just wasn’t a fan of the writing style. The ending came so suddenly it felt abrupt and jarring.
That said - The writing style wasn’t really for me. I tuned out a lot while reading even though the book wasn’t very long. There were many injected side stories made to serve as references of some kind. I’m not entirely sure what they were meant to add, but they didn’t do anything for me and just felt unnecessary. Maybe I didn’t like it because it felt autobiographical in a way. We were told in the introduction that it’s still fiction, but it’s obvious some of her real-life experiences made it in, the character is also named after her (The author). I don’t enjoy reading memoirs and this felt too much like one.
Still, I appreciated the complexity of loving God while also loving women, and how hard it must’ve been for Jeanette to navigate that in such a hyper-religious, almost cult-like environment. I respect her strength, her audacity, and the fact that she even went back to that town later. Many wouldn’t.
The symbolism of oranges in the book was interesting as well. I didn't quite grab if she was the one obsessed with them or if it was her mother. I think it was her mother, but it felt like a metaphor for the kind of singular path she was forcing on Jeanette when in fact there are many fruits, many choices. It was a clever way of showing how people try to limit what others can be.
Even though the story had its comedic moments (and those probably kept me going), I just wasn’t a fan of the writing style. The ending came so suddenly it felt abrupt and jarring.
I almost don’t have words for how much I enjoyed this book- the metaphors are so intense I was audibly omging for most of the end of this book. This is definitely the type of book I need to read again to fully grasp everything because it’s just so deep and amazing and open ended but also not. My heart broke a thousand times over for Jeanette and I resonated with a lot of the experiences and feelings she described thought my own experience has been very different. The writing is beautiful and I want to tell everyone to read this book.
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Loveable characters:
Yes
This book found me rather than the other way round, wow.
To every queer growing up in a religious household and having to find your own beliefs, read this!!
To every queer growing up in a religious household and having to find your own beliefs, read this!!
Funnier than I remembered from the first time around - in places, it's approaching Adrian Mole levels of humour but it's also got many more layers. It takes flights away from reality into fables and imagination, and of course her coming of age story is more of a confrontation between her attraction to other girls and her mother's strongly Conservative religious beliefs.
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
I liked the plot and topic but the writing is hard to follow, and has too many irrelevant elements to it. I had to skip a few parts.
parts of it were incomprehensible, and the main character is so unrelatable simply because of bad writing that I don’t think I ever once understood her thought process, or even that she had thoughts before acting.