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pkane01's review against another edition
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
jovissp's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
isobelrose's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
esyjin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
mcloonejack's review against another edition
4.0
This book has been on my radar for years, and I’m I happy to report it didn’t disappoint.
As people have repeatedly pointed out since it hit critical mass, this is much more than a dystopia, worldwide sickness novel. For one, it’s an intricate story of an immigrant family trying to make it work.
The way Ma crafts a disease that both highlights the learned, pervasive behavior of slipping into routines thanks to the needs of capitalism but is also seemingly triggered by returning to things that remind us of being outside that routine is fascinating. It feels blasé to say it, but the disease *is* capitalism, and if you try to break away it locks you back in and kills you. It was even spread via implied unmitigated late stage capitalism in the form of unchecked international trade.
The attention paid to how religion provides structure for immigrant families and then those left on the edge of society too was also particularly captivating. I particularly liked how she did so without necessarily commenting on the actual belief systems; it was more about how having the beliefs/structure at all, for better or worse.
It’s hard to encapsulate exactly what makes this novel so engrossing, but once it gets it’s grip on you it’s hard to put down anyways. I read 3/4 of it in just a few hours.
As a side note: this was another plague book that seems to have had a boost in popularity in the early COVID times. If I was smarter, I’d write a dissertation about just why books like this, The Plague by Albert Camus and Station Eleven by Emily St. Mandel got so popular at that time.
As people have repeatedly pointed out since it hit critical mass, this is much more than a dystopia, worldwide sickness novel. For one, it’s an intricate story of an immigrant family trying to make it work.
The way Ma crafts a disease that both highlights the learned, pervasive behavior of slipping into routines thanks to the needs of capitalism but is also seemingly triggered by returning to things that remind us of being outside that routine is fascinating. It feels blasé to say it, but the disease *is* capitalism, and if you try to break away it locks you back in and kills you. It was even spread via implied unmitigated late stage capitalism in the form of unchecked international trade.
The attention paid to how religion provides structure for immigrant families and then those left on the edge of society too was also particularly captivating. I particularly liked how she did so without necessarily commenting on the actual belief systems; it was more about how having the beliefs/structure at all, for better or worse.
It’s hard to encapsulate exactly what makes this novel so engrossing, but once it gets it’s grip on you it’s hard to put down anyways. I read 3/4 of it in just a few hours.
As a side note: this was another plague book that seems to have had a boost in popularity in the early COVID times. If I was smarter, I’d write a dissertation about just why books like this, The Plague by Albert Camus and Station Eleven by Emily St. Mandel got so popular at that time.
lauraborkpower's review against another edition
3.0
Maybe not the right book to read during a pandemic, or maybe the absolutely perfect book to read.
Ma predicts a lot of what is happening now (fashion masks; money a bigger factor than humanity when making decisions) and she does it in earnest and with occasional dark humor.
Candace could be any of us, and her journey to NYC, then within the city as the fever really runs its course, and then across half of the country to Chicago, is as alien as it is familiar.
Nancy Wu narrates this audiobook and she does so with a strength and vulnerability that add to Candace's character development.
Ma predicts a lot of what is happening now (fashion masks; money a bigger factor than humanity when making decisions) and she does it in earnest and with occasional dark humor.
Candace could be any of us, and her journey to NYC, then within the city as the fever really runs its course, and then across half of the country to Chicago, is as alien as it is familiar.
Nancy Wu narrates this audiobook and she does so with a strength and vulnerability that add to Candace's character development.
keb3's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This was fab. Zombie apocalypse crossed with a literary takedown of late-stage capitalism. The fact that it was published in 2018 and yet absolutely nailed no many details of the covid pandemic was genuinely chilling. To begin with the lack of plot put me off a bit, but I was fully invested in the vibes by the end.
beth_shepherd's review against another edition
3.0
I found the parts of the book set during the pandemic intriguing and well done. The flashbacks drug down the pace and over-did on her point about the mundane routines that plagued the living and the fevered. I kept going in hopes the ending would pay off—but for me it did not.
sycomode's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
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? Yes
4.0