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eggmama's review against another edition
1.0
"The odd thing was that no one was speaking about the present. No one wanted the present. This was a war over the past and the future...There was no present. The present had disappeared."
The major thematic conflict of this novel lies between modern life and technology, and the past and traditions. It also speaks to the feelings, desires, and courage that we have while dreaming, but often lack in the waking world.
I feel bad giving this book a one star for a few reasons. First, this book is a translation, and translations, no matter how beautiful or true to the core of the story, are bound to differ from the original text. Something is inevitably lost.
Second, the writing style, while not my favorite, works well with the dreamwalking plot. Sentences are repeated two, three times, with subtle variations that provide emphasis and make more apparent the thin line between dreams and reality, this sentence and the previous one. Lianke's decision to use himself as a character in the novel is also a nice touch.
Third, this is apparently satire, but I didn't quite get it. I can attribute this "falling flat" because of my lack of knowledge about China and its culture and politics.
This book addresses heavy-hitting topics, but I feel like it could have been done more artfully. For me, it just dragged on, and I only found myself excitedly reading the last 40 or so pages.
The major thematic conflict of this novel lies between modern life and technology, and the past and traditions. It also speaks to the feelings, desires, and courage that we have while dreaming, but often lack in the waking world.
I feel bad giving this book a one star for a few reasons. First, this book is a translation, and translations, no matter how beautiful or true to the core of the story, are bound to differ from the original text. Something is inevitably lost.
Second, the writing style, while not my favorite, works well with the dreamwalking plot. Sentences are repeated two, three times, with subtle variations that provide emphasis and make more apparent the thin line between dreams and reality, this sentence and the previous one. Lianke's decision to use himself as a character in the novel is also a nice touch.
Third, this is apparently satire, but I didn't quite get it. I can attribute this "falling flat" because of my lack of knowledge about China and its culture and politics.
This book addresses heavy-hitting topics, but I feel like it could have been done more artfully. For me, it just dragged on, and I only found myself excitedly reading the last 40 or so pages.
clarkso6's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked how Lianke writes (I've read reviews that people hate this). I like the concept of the book. However, the two together felt odd and although I enjoyed the book, it's not a 5 star.
liesbethvv's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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? Yes
0.5
I cannot with this book.
0,5 points for the lovely cover (that of course tricked me into thinking Iād like it š )
0,5 points for the lovely cover (that of course tricked me into thinking Iād like it š )
divyashreesalvi's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
edulaia's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
caroline_norrish's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.5
curatoriallyyours's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
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? It's complicated
1.5
I straight up hated this book. It took half the book for the plot to get interesting enough to want to know what would happen (this is not an exaggeration - I struggled through the first half of this book, not wanting to pick it up) and the narrator kept repeating things over and over again and describing tableaus in excruciating detail for no plot-related reason. There were even one or two tableaus that the narrator definitely did not see, and yet they were described by the narrator as though he had seen them. I did not like the characters and was not invested in them enough to maintain motivation to keep picking this book up. I ploughed on because it was selected for a book club but I think I will be swearing off book clubs from now on because I have so many books I actually want to read that I cannot justify the time reading books I have no interest in.
lain_darko's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Grief
peco's review against another edition
4.0
Very imaginative and interestingly written. But of a lull at the halfway mark but picks back up again to a very satisfying conclusion. I want to read more of this guy
albapascala's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5