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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Stick with it. It starts a bit slow but picks up.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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:
Yes
Holy fatphobia, I made it into 88 pages before I decided that this book was not worth continuing because of the flat, one note characters, especially Ern- he was treated with some of the most blatant fatphobic tropes that I checked the publication date to see if this book was published earlier than 2010.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
This book had a lot going on😭 there were two timelines being explored at the same time and for most of the beginning it felt like it was for no reason? I didn’t understand why we were exploring these two povs until right toward the end. I also think I would have enjoyed this story a bit more if it wasn’t as jagged with its pov switches bc it felt like there wasn’t any rhyme or reason to the amount of chapters in one pov or the segues into the other pov most of the time.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
Gorgeous writing. Absolutely haunting story.
Update: I came back because I forgot to note one thing that stood out to me the whole time as problematic. Though how I felt about the writing is strongly positive overall, I hate when fatness is used as a plot device in this way.
That said: I'm still a fan of this story in general. There were sentences that made me say "Damn!" to myself in awe as I read. (I'll come back and note some favorites once I get my hands on a copy of the eBook. I initially listened to the audiobook and don't trust my memory to accurately quote the bits I loved most.) The way Medina captures pain and loss is masterful. And the overlaps of Louie and Noemi's stories were constructed beautifully with vivid imagery. It achieves what it set out to do successfully, minus the one major complaint I noted above.
Update: I came back because I forgot to note one thing that stood out to me the whole time as problematic. Though how I felt about the writing is strongly positive overall, I hate when fatness is used as a plot device in this way.
Spoiler
Ern's part of the story felt a little too reminiscent of What's Eating Gilbert Grape for me. I question how his fatness served the story at all. In my mind, it didn't have anything to do with how things shaped up. Rather, it felt like a trope tacked on only to elicit emotion and strengthen the rubberneckability of his mother's murder. He could have been bound to the trailer in another way. He could have killed his mother another way. His fatness and all of Louie's criticisms of it didn't add anything valuable—especially because Ern was so interesting regardless of his size.That said: I'm still a fan of this story in general. There were sentences that made me say "Damn!" to myself in awe as I read. (I'll come back and note some favorites once I get my hands on a copy of the eBook. I initially listened to the audiobook and don't trust my memory to accurately quote the bits I loved most.) The way Medina captures pain and loss is masterful. And the overlaps of Louie and Noemi's stories were constructed beautifully with vivid imagery. It achieves what it set out to do successfully, minus the one major complaint I noted above.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This story centers on people living on the Takoda reservation in Louisiana (a fictional tribe). The timeline follows Louie in 1980s and Noemi in present day. Deals with difficult themes of alcoholism and suicide (as well as other violence). There is a mix of indigenous folklore and real life situations. Reommend.