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4.25 AVERAGE
4.25 AVERAGE
What an incredible book. What an incredible story. Trent Dalton has got spunky writing and a mind like no other. I loved how he detailed his own childhood in this book. 100% worth the read. 5/5
challenging
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Loved it -- imaginative and funny, full of great criminal characters with unique personalities and surrealist magic.
medium-paced
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Truly a roller coaster. Radiant, heartbreaking and heartwarming all at once!
Beautifully and hauntingly written and leaves you hanging on every word with no idea what the next chapter will bring. An unsuspecting book which will now sit among my favourites ever read m.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Wow. I loved this book. I didn’t want it to end but I wanted it to end happy. I wanted all the stars and moons and skies to align for Eli and Gus.
Intertwined with details throughout. Details. That kept coming back round to meet the story again. That had relevance and depth and beauty. Although brutal, very very beautiful. The relationships between many different types of love, captured like I had opened my heart and poured my own experiences of love onto a page with words I never knew needed to be said. Or read.
Felt like I had stepped back in time with Trent and watched memories like being in Dumbledores pensieve when I read his chapters. I related with aspects of the feelings and the magic described in this book. The unlimited power of magic we have in us as children with our siblings and what as humans we can suppress and manipulate our minds into thinking.
Its a love story. But not another typical one. Its a story of love between different relationships that aren’t acknowledged as much as they should be. Thank you Trent!
Intertwined with details throughout. Details. That kept coming back round to meet the story again. That had relevance and depth and beauty. Although brutal, very very beautiful. The relationships between many different types of love, captured like I had opened my heart and poured my own experiences of love onto a page with words I never knew needed to be said. Or read.
Felt like I had stepped back in time with Trent and watched memories like being in Dumbledores pensieve when I read his chapters. I related with aspects of the feelings and the magic described in this book. The unlimited power of magic we have in us as children with our siblings and what as humans we can suppress and manipulate our minds into thinking.
Its a love story. But not another typical one. Its a story of love between different relationships that aren’t acknowledged as much as they should be. Thank you Trent!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: Set in Brisbane, Australia in 1985, Boy Swallows Universe follows Eli as he navigates life as best he can. With a father in prison, a mother addicted to drugs (with his stepfather being her dealer), and a mute brother, things are hard enough as is; but when he comes into contact with Tytus Broz, a violent drug dealer, he struggles to stay on the right path. And things only go downhill from there...
Genre: Coming of age, friendship, family, love, brotherhood.
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Thoughts While Reading:
Thoughts at 57%:
1. I live on the Gold Coast in Australia, and therefore I know many of the landmarks and locations mentioned in Boy Swallows Universe. It's so weird to be reading (or in this specific case, listening) to a book, and be really familiar with the places described. It makes is a tonne more realistic, that's for sure.
2. I'm torn about how I feel about this book. It's so depressing so far, and I guess I can relate with the main character a bit too much. Not that our childhoods were at all similar, I don't know. Maybe it's from working in child protection for way too long. Either way, I'm struggling with this book. It was a huge relief when the magic realism aspects became more pronounced (like with the phone), because it allowed me to disassociate from the story a bit more. It also made it read as more of a fictional story, which helped. But still, this is a hard read for me. This book had been on my radar for a while, and I have continually chosen not to read it, because I think I could tell that it wasn't for me. But then someone recommended it... Sigh. And here I am. People seem to love it, so maybe the ending makes it.
3. Don't get me wrong, Boy Swallows Universe is not a bad book. It can be downright lyrical at times, and it is definitely effective at painting a picture for the reader. I understand the decisions that Eli makes, and why, and I empathise with him. Objectively, this is a good book. Subjectively, I just don't like it
Plot: Set in Brisbane, Australia in 1985, Boy Swallows Universe follows Eli as he navigates life as best he can. With a father in prison, a mother addicted to drugs (with his stepfather being her dealer), and a mute brother, things are hard enough as is; but when he comes into contact with Tytus Broz, a violent drug dealer, he struggles to stay on the right path. And things only go downhill from there...
Genre: Coming of age, friendship, family, love, brotherhood.
----------
Thoughts While Reading:
Thoughts at 57%:
1. I live on the Gold Coast in Australia, and therefore I know many of the landmarks and locations mentioned in Boy Swallows Universe. It's so weird to be reading (or in this specific case, listening) to a book, and be really familiar with the places described. It makes is a tonne more realistic, that's for sure.
2. I'm torn about how I feel about this book. It's so depressing so far, and I guess I can relate with the main character a bit too much. Not that our childhoods were at all similar, I don't know. Maybe it's from working in child protection for way too long. Either way, I'm struggling with this book. It was a huge relief when the magic realism aspects became more pronounced (like with the phone), because it allowed me to disassociate from the story a bit more. It also made it read as more of a fictional story, which helped. But still, this is a hard read for me. This book had been on my radar for a while, and I have continually chosen not to read it, because I think I could tell that it wasn't for me. But then someone recommended it... Sigh. And here I am. People seem to love it, so maybe the ending makes it.
3. Don't get me wrong, Boy Swallows Universe is not a bad book. It can be downright lyrical at times, and it is definitely effective at painting a picture for the reader. I understand the decisions that Eli makes, and why, and I empathise with him. Objectively, this is a good book. Subjectively, I just don't like it