Reviews

The Day the Sun Died: A Novel by Yan Lianke

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rbcajn's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging funny lighthearted mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

bookishjenx's review against another edition

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2.0

Challenge 9 of the #readharderchallenge2019: a book with fewer than 100 reviews on Goodreads.

I was very into the story at first and was enjoying learning about the town. But my god this book DRAGGGGGED, I found myself skipping through the last 1/4 because I was just bored. I finished but read a sentence of each of the last pages because I just couldn’t anymore.

eebeeni10's review against another edition

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3.0

There were times where this book was very difficult to read and after finishing it i was left with many questions and could barely remember what i had read but i know it was crazy

corvidquest's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

Wonderfully written, it begins satirical and darkly humorous, descends into the stuff of brutal nightmares, and reaches a conclusion both sad and beautiful. It's certainly political allegory, but Yan has plenty to say about human nature, and despite the surreal proceedings there is a lot to be gleaned about life in this part of China. Some may be annoyed by the writing style and the pacing, but I was enthralled.

aashima's review against another edition

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challenging tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

Moral decay and rampant corruption are explored through a child's voice in a village consumed by darkness and death.
Interesting conception and characters but lagging prose.
It's really hard to figure out whether the translation pulled it down or the original text.
In order to create a muddled-up dreamlike narration, the writer employs refrain a little too much than necessary.