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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A feast! And makes you think, and perhaps reconsider?
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I personally found this book boring and fell asleep not once, but 5 times while reading it. It felt like the longest 152 page novel I’ve ever read.
I’m not even sure how it can be called ‘a novel’ it felt very disjointed to me. It mentioned (in the acknowledgments) that ‘A Fools Gold’ was first published in Granta in Spring 2023. I think that worked well as a piece of writing in its own merit. I didn’t understand the concept of trying to flesh that out into the novel form.
None of the characters seemed to be properly developed and in the words of Martin (during his interview with Lenny)… “It all comes off a little, hm, a little muddled”
I felt like there was not a cohesive storyline or a satisfying conclusion. We were just introduced to characters who then disappeared and the focus became entirely on Lenny at the end, leading to a very abrupt and dissatisfying ending that left me asking “what was the point?”.
Yes, Natasha Brown makes a lot of intellectual and thought provoking points about a whole range of societal and political issues. Yes, these can make for great discussion. However, I personally found it disjointed and more suited to an essay format.
Lastly, I also think it was mis-marketed. Although I didn’t read the blurb until I’d finished the book, I think it was very misleading in the way the book was sold as a ‘Thrilling novel’, (Thrills?)‘she solves the mystery (what mystery??)’, ‘it dares you to look away’ (I could barely keep my eyes upon the page.)
Maybe, I am ‘culturally clueless’ (as Hannah is described) and that’s okay with me.
This was not for me. However, ‘Assembly’ is brilliant enough for me to have read it twice. I’m not writing off Natasha Brown just yet.
I’m not even sure how it can be called ‘a novel’ it felt very disjointed to me. It mentioned (in the acknowledgments) that ‘A Fools Gold’ was first published in Granta in Spring 2023. I think that worked well as a piece of writing in its own merit. I didn’t understand the concept of trying to flesh that out into the novel form.
None of the characters seemed to be properly developed and in the words of Martin (during his interview with Lenny)… “It all comes off a little, hm, a little muddled”
I felt like there was not a cohesive storyline or a satisfying conclusion. We were just introduced to characters who then disappeared and the focus became entirely on Lenny at the end, leading to a very abrupt and dissatisfying ending that left me asking “what was the point?”.
Yes, Natasha Brown makes a lot of intellectual and thought provoking points about a whole range of societal and political issues. Yes, these can make for great discussion. However, I personally found it disjointed and more suited to an essay format.
Lastly, I also think it was mis-marketed. Although I didn’t read the blurb until I’d finished the book, I think it was very misleading in the way the book was sold as a ‘Thrilling novel’, (Thrills?)‘she solves the mystery (what mystery??)’, ‘it dares you to look away’ (I could barely keep my eyes upon the page.)
Maybe, I am ‘culturally clueless’ (as Hannah is described) and that’s okay with me.
This was not for me. However, ‘Assembly’ is brilliant enough for me to have read it twice. I’m not writing off Natasha Brown just yet.
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
update: i decided to finish it because i was more than halfway through. i still stand by my statements below, but i do want to add that even though lenny’s a pretty horrible person, her narrative voice in the last two sections was by far my favorite: the most entertaining and thought-provoking. i’m glad i stuck around to read those. an intelligent novel, one that will probably take me a while to digest and decipher.
—
dnf at 59%. some chuckle-worthy ironic lines, but the journalistic article format of the first section wasn’t working for me, and i didn’t really connect with any of the characters in the second. just wasn’t for me, at least not right now.
[read for lesbian feminist book club]
—
dnf at 59%. some chuckle-worthy ironic lines, but the journalistic article format of the first section wasn’t working for me, and i didn’t really connect with any of the characters in the second. just wasn’t for me, at least not right now.
[read for lesbian feminist book club]
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
informative
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was such a thought provoking read. I've not had the pleasure of reading Natasha's first work, Assembly, but will be definitely be rectifying that as soon as possible. This is a short book, but it is jam packed with such intriguing narratives. I was sucked in by the initial opening story and I really enjoyed following up with the various characters as the book went on, seeing their point of view. It's so impressive to me that Brown wrote a book like this which so many different perspectives represented so convincingly. The topics of classism, capitalism, race and politics are something that I always have a hard time following and articulating opinions on. I felt that reading about them through the lens of this book was really helpful for me. You'd be hard pressed to read this book and not come away considering the state of things more deeply.
Thank you to Faber & Faber for an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Faber & Faber for an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.