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mimster's review against another edition
4.25
Not quite as good as her later ones but still streets better than many
booksnmessybuns's review against another edition
1.0
Unfortunately, this was dreadfully boring. I had to finally throw in the towel after 200 pages.
peachy__'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
wyemu's review against another edition
3.0
While I have always enjoyed everything I have read by Atwood, that's not to say that some of them weren't less enjoyable than others. I did struggle with this one at times, especially with the intense metaphors about body and body image. Rennie's issues post-surgery and her burgeoning relationship with Paul were a little confusing for me, as if I could almost grasp what Atwood wanted me to take from them but every time I thought I understood the meaning slipped away. Maybe that was the point. I'm also not entirely sure what happened at the end and I feel like maybe I should be able to work that out from what has already happened in the book, like Atwood doesn't need to make it explicit because, for anyone who's been following the story properly, it'll be obvious. Then again, maybe I'm suppose to be left wondering, maybe what happens is left up to my interpretation of the preceding events, in which case I still have no idea what I think happened. However, this in no way diminishes Atwood's writing for me and I will continue to be a die-hard fan.
cj24's review against another edition
4.0
I just finished reading a pretty dark book and needed one that I knew would be good so I went for a trusty Atwood. She never disappoints. I fell into this one and finished it only a few days later. Unfortunately, all of my Atwood’s never last very long because she is such a terrific writer!!
ellephuonglinhnguyen's review against another edition
3.0
All I could think of at that time was how to get away from Griswold. I didn't want to be trapped, like my mother. Although I admired her—everyone was always telling me how admirable she was, she was practically a saint—I didn't want to be like her in any way. I didn't want to have a family or be anyone's mother, ever; I had none of those ambitions. I didn't want to own any objects or inherit any. I didn't want to cope. I didn't want to deteriorate. I used to pray that I wouldn't live long enough to get like my grandmother, and now I guess I won't.
ajsterkel's review against another edition
2.0
Likes: Like all of Margaret Atwood’s books, this one is brilliantly written. One of the things I admire about Atwood is that she seems to have a deep understanding of unlikeable people. Her characters aren’t heroes. The main character in Bodily Harm, Rennie, is infuriating. I wanted to step through the pages and say “Girl, no. Just stop.” She makes a series of bad choices that end with her being locked in a foreign prison.
Rennie is a slow-motion train wreck. Sometimes it’s hard to look away. Rennie recently survived cancer, a burglary, and a cheating boyfriend. To get away from it all, she visits a Caribbean island to write a fluffy travel story for a magazine. As she befriends the locals, the island paradise spirals out of control. Rennie isn’t very smart. She’s oblivious to the fact that the locals are drawing her into their violent political revolution. The reader can’t do anything but sit back and watch Rennie sink deeper into political quicksand. You know this won’t end well for her.
Dislikes: This isn’t my favorite Atwood book. She has grown a lot as a writer since Bodily Harm was published. This is one of her early novels, and it shows.
Rennie isn’t always compelling to read about. She’s very passive and has no sense of self-preservation. She allows bad things to happen to her. I found my attention wandering while I was reading because she wasn’t doing anything. Things just happen to her, and she goes along with them.
My edition of this novel was printed in 1984. I need to time-machine myself back there and kick the ass of whoever was in charge of quality control at the printer. This book was so hard to read! There are missing words, missing punctuation, weird spaces. Some of the print is so faint that it’s nearly impossible to see. It was hard to get invested in the story because each page revealed a new printing horror. How did this even happen?!
The Bottom Line: Not Atwood’s best work. If you’re a hardcore Atwood fan, then reading her early work might be interesting. If you’re not a hardcore fan, then skip this one and read her dystopias.
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Rennie is a slow-motion train wreck. Sometimes it’s hard to look away. Rennie recently survived cancer, a burglary, and a cheating boyfriend. To get away from it all, she visits a Caribbean island to write a fluffy travel story for a magazine. As she befriends the locals, the island paradise spirals out of control. Rennie isn’t very smart. She’s oblivious to the fact that the locals are drawing her into their violent political revolution. The reader can’t do anything but sit back and watch Rennie sink deeper into political quicksand. You know this won’t end well for her.
“. . . the beige should not wear beige.” – Bodily Harm
Dislikes: This isn’t my favorite Atwood book. She has grown a lot as a writer since Bodily Harm was published. This is one of her early novels, and it shows.
Rennie isn’t always compelling to read about. She’s very passive and has no sense of self-preservation. She allows bad things to happen to her. I found my attention wandering while I was reading because she wasn’t doing anything. Things just happen to her, and she goes along with them.
My edition of this novel was printed in 1984. I need to time-machine myself back there and kick the ass of whoever was in charge of quality control at the printer. This book was so hard to read! There are missing words, missing punctuation, weird spaces. Some of the print is so faint that it’s nearly impossible to see. It was hard to get invested in the story because each page revealed a new printing horror. How did this even happen?!
The Bottom Line: Not Atwood’s best work. If you’re a hardcore Atwood fan, then reading her early work might be interesting. If you’re not a hardcore fan, then skip this one and read her dystopias.
Do you like opinions, giveaways, and bookish nonsense?
I have a blog for that.
oldmansimms's review against another edition
2.0
Standard early-career Atwood - always well-written but the plots tend to be "meh" to me.
leahthenerd's review against another edition
1.0
the second half was much more interesting but not enough. I'm glad to see other people saying this was one of her weaker one's because otherwise OH BOYO am I regretting insisting on reading all her works