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salbulga's review against another edition
challenging
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
lelia_t's review against another edition
4.0
You need sharper wits than mine to get all the jokes in this book. I paused frequently to look up Yiddish words and refresh my memory on the Theseus myth - and no telling what all I missed - but I loved the romp of it all. Oreo has just the right amount of hubris (mixed with compassion and insight) to carry her through her mythic quest - besting crooks and lechers all the way from Philadelphia to New York City to find her father.
I have the impression Fran Ross delighted herself with every word she wrote, making jokes (“His laugh was like elm blight - very Dutch”), righting wrongs (the false hymen made of elasticium:), drawing on a rich cross-cultural array of resources. What saves the book from being a disorienting sojourn in an almost too-unique mind, is that Ross gives the reader a recognizable framework with the Theseus story, so you can follow along with anticipation of the clever ways Ross imports, for example, a Minotaur into a story set in New York City.
I have the impression Fran Ross delighted herself with every word she wrote, making jokes (“His laugh was like elm blight - very Dutch”), righting wrongs (the false hymen made of elasticium:), drawing on a rich cross-cultural array of resources. What saves the book from being a disorienting sojourn in an almost too-unique mind, is that Ross gives the reader a recognizable framework with the Theseus story, so you can follow along with anticipation of the clever ways Ross imports, for example, a Minotaur into a story set in New York City.
jaywithwhiskey's review against another edition
I verly loosely understood what was happening but I found the writing and storyline very confusing. I kept having to re-read pages over and over again. Each paragraph felt like it jumped all over the place and the unlinear storyline just made everything seem weird and frustrating. Ultimately, others like this and this is a classic so I guess it just wasnt for me but I did try!
mjoybo's review against another edition
challenging
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
grammapollyreads's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
gsheffy's review against another edition
was nowhere near enough prepared/didn't have enough time to read this properly... as a result (whether it be my own fault or not) i did not get this whatsoever.
sam_bizar_wilcox's review against another edition
4.0
An incredibly playful novel, equally as invested in language as it is in undercutting it, it surprises me that I finished reading this book half a year ago. Fran Ross takes myth and morphs it in the palm of her hand to something far more human and intimate. The result is a novel that echoes Odysseus, Oreo embarking on her own odyssey (telemachy?) in search of her father. Ross is not a priggish writer, painting New York-as-Olympus as staid or heroic. Rather, the novel is a romp. It's a wild, in-classifiable adventure that blurs Ebonics with Yiddish, the contemporary (or, mid-century) America with Hellenistic Greece. It's a meditation on race and intersectionality unlike anything that might be published even today. And it's incredible. A commedia dell'arte farce carrying the weight of history's great tragedies and epics. Amazing. Spectacular. Inspiring. Etc. Etc.
dllman05's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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? It's complicated
3.5
peachani's review against another edition
challenging
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism, Animal death, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Violence, and Abandonment
Minor: Death of parent, Rape, Sexual harassment, Incest, Physical abuse, and Racial slurs