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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
3.75 - Trent Dalton has this way of spinning stories that is so beautiful on the page. The prose in this novel is beautifully written and poetic while still retaining that rural Australian feel. I enjoyed the characters in this book, and how it went beyond the stereotypes of Australian historical fiction. The plot was a bit simple, but it was an enjoyable read nonetheless.
Started at a 3, then it got good. Captivating…
The book is kinda dark.
The book is kinda dark.
The first 100-120 pages could be condensed a lot. After that, it picks up.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don’t think I like Dalton’s writing style, but I enjoyed the telling of this story. I’m not sure I could have read it, though there are some aspects of the narration that I didn’t enjoy either. I feel there is an overuse of descriptive nouns that is unnecessary, but again, think this is Dalton’s style, which I don’t seem to enjoy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity, War
2.5 (rounded down, because The Boy Swallows the Universe was far superior to this and, still, only garnered 3.5 stars from me).
I pushed through and forced myself to finish this - admittedly, I skimmed here and there.
I was hoping Dalton's second novel will be more to my liking, as I wasn't as charmed by his debut, although I appreciated some parts of it.
I'm sorry to say that this novel did nothing for me. I thought it was half-baked and I could see the writer's hand in everything.
Before page 10 I had a couple of eye-rolling episodes because of some grandiose, self-helpy denouncements: Promise me you will make your life graceful, Molly. Promise me you'll make your life grand and beautiful and poetic, and even if it's not poetic you'll write it so it is. You write it, Molly, you understand? Promise me your epitaph won't be ugly like this. And if someone else writes your epitaph, don't make them struggle to write your epitaph. You must live a life so full your epitaph will write itself, you understand? ... This comes from the dead mother of a seven-year-old, the daughter of a grave-digger. Forgot to mention, it's the 1930s, Darwin, Australia. Such sophisticated pronouncements, coming from simple people ...
Things that bugged me were the unlikely situations, behaviours, speech, the under-developed, cardboard characters. Dalton tried too hard to be cute and whimsy. I was unable to fully immerse myself in the story nor give a damn.
Not my jam.
Beautiful cover.
I pushed through and forced myself to finish this - admittedly, I skimmed here and there.
I was hoping Dalton's second novel will be more to my liking, as I wasn't as charmed by his debut, although I appreciated some parts of it.
I'm sorry to say that this novel did nothing for me. I thought it was half-baked and I could see the writer's hand in everything.
Before page 10 I had a couple of eye-rolling episodes because of some grandiose, self-helpy denouncements: Promise me you will make your life graceful, Molly. Promise me you'll make your life grand and beautiful and poetic, and even if it's not poetic you'll write it so it is. You write it, Molly, you understand? Promise me your epitaph won't be ugly like this. And if someone else writes your epitaph, don't make them struggle to write your epitaph. You must live a life so full your epitaph will write itself, you understand? ... This comes from the dead mother of a seven-year-old, the daughter of a grave-digger. Forgot to mention, it's the 1930s, Darwin, Australia. Such sophisticated pronouncements, coming from simple people ...
Things that bugged me were the unlikely situations, behaviours, speech, the under-developed, cardboard characters. Dalton tried too hard to be cute and whimsy. I was unable to fully immerse myself in the story nor give a damn.
Not my jam.
Beautiful cover.
“Run, Molly, run.”
A slow lukewarm start led to the most beautiful story. I am not a fan of literature about war, but there was something about a young girl, a grave digger, and a connection to a pilot in the middle of the Australia outback, searching for an Aboriginal spiritual man that created its own attention. A magical reality, no less, that Trent Dalton immerses into Darwin in the mid 1940s, and he conjures up a sad family history, and an enchanting young girl, Molly Hook, who looks to the skies for her answers to life as Darwin is pummelled by bombs from Japanese aircraft. The imagery in this alone is so strong; deep and powerful representations of life coming and going, fleeting moments and the longevity of the souls of the brave and the heartless. There is endurance and hope just as much as there is hate and dread. Through Molly’s eyes, we relish in an innocence that has been tarnished by evil, coupled with still enough innocent optimism to make an adult still believe in miracles and saving graces. believe in miracles. The storytelling is vivid, legend worthy, a new-fashioned take on world history occurring only decades ago. It speaks to the era very simply, but enough to set the scene. And everything comes back to Molly. The anguish of a child having to live like a grown up, and deal with trauma and how to comprehend the truth. The very idea of lifting a curse to make things all better is part of that charter development for Molly, still holding onto that adolescent naivety.
I think I’d give Molly a crack at writing my gravestone epitaph.
A slow lukewarm start led to the most beautiful story. I am not a fan of literature about war, but there was something about a young girl, a grave digger, and a connection to a pilot in the middle of the Australia outback, searching for an Aboriginal spiritual man that created its own attention. A magical reality, no less, that Trent Dalton immerses into Darwin in the mid 1940s, and he conjures up a sad family history, and an enchanting young girl, Molly Hook, who looks to the skies for her answers to life as Darwin is pummelled by bombs from Japanese aircraft. The imagery in this alone is so strong; deep and powerful representations of life coming and going, fleeting moments and the longevity of the souls of the brave and the heartless. There is endurance and hope just as much as there is hate and dread. Through Molly’s eyes, we relish in an innocence that has been tarnished by evil, coupled with still enough innocent optimism to make an adult still believe in miracles and saving graces. believe in miracles. The storytelling is vivid, legend worthy, a new-fashioned take on world history occurring only decades ago. It speaks to the era very simply, but enough to set the scene. And everything comes back to Molly. The anguish of a child having to live like a grown up, and deal with trauma and how to comprehend the truth. The very idea of lifting a curse to make things all better is part of that charter development for Molly, still holding onto that adolescent naivety.
I think I’d give Molly a crack at writing my gravestone epitaph.
“What a great book!” I found myself repeating every other page. Beautiful prose, beautiful characters, beautiful story. It will stay with me for a while!
Trent Dalton is definitely a storyteller. However, elements of this book were a bit confusing and confronting. Some of it felt like an Indiana Jones Adventure story and then other times I was left scratching my head thinking what did I just read? Overall, I liked it because I mean, it's Trent Dalton but definitely not my favourite read of 2020.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No