Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Stalking'
Death in Venice by Michael Cunningham, Michael Henry Heim, Thomas Mann
10 reviews
tommy_g's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Stalking, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Pedophilia and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Medical content, Chronic illness, Bullying, Death, and Mental illness
shrewdbard's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Reading Death in Venice, it got me thinking about how biographers of Mann thought him to be a pedophile, based on diary entries he wrote about his feelings towards his own sons. Thinking about how Vladimir Nabokov thought Mann was a hack. Thinking about how, although it escapes many people’s reading comprehension, Lolita is not a romance. Thinking about The Enchanter, the novella Nabokov wrote as a precursor to Lolita, where the pedophile narrator stops short of assaulting his victim, and is so wracked with guilt he kills himself. Thinking about, in Lolita, how Humbert Humbert meets a pedophile who targets young boys, and is disgusted by him. Doesn’t seem to realize they are ultimately the same. Thinking about the person reading the introduction, saying this was a more sympathetic translation, when it came across as quite damning to me. Thinking, thinking, thinking.
I loved the imagery where Venetian gondolas are compared to Death’s boat on the River Styx. Also, Tadzio as the sunrise itself lighting outside Aschenbach’s window every morning.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Stalking and Pedophilia
mattgroot1980's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The content of the story is pretty disturbing by 21st c standards, but as
Literature is this brilliant. Reader, know thyself.
Literature is this brilliant. Reader, know thyself.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Adult/minor relationship, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Stalking
paulathepudding's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia and Stalking
maess's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
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? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Stalking, and Terminal illness
cubehead27's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking and Adult/minor relationship
salma__m's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia and Stalking
vici24kl's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
0.5
This book is horrible!!! If you have any appreciation for yourself stay away from this book!! Another example why German classics suck :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Stalking, and Adult/minor relationship
edwardian_girl_next_door's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I read this book for an AP English class. Due to extenuating circumstances, I didn't get a whole lot of class/teacher-led instruction or conversation on this book, so my opinions are totally based off my first impressions and what I gathered from independent study.
The elephant in the room sticks out like a sore thumb, to mix metaphors.yeah, I'm talking about the *pedophilia*. Oh..........my goodness. I have to say my stomach was churning with disgust while I was reading this. I understand Tadzio represents Death, but the way the protagonist becomes obsessed with him was really horrible. In his artistic mind he lingers on and describes every physical feature - of a MINOR!!! - and even declares "I love you!" at one point to an oblivious Tadzio. He stalks this poor boy's every move and derives immense happiness from it. He never is explicitly sexual about it (although he does have a dream about the orgastic rites of the cult of Dionysus); it's more of a obsession/no proper boundaries/puppy love/aesthetic attraction situation. Maybe it's hard for me to see past this to understand Mann's literary objective. I've heard it takes people a few times to read Nabokov's Lolita before they can appreciate its more palatable and artistically sophisticated elements. But it was Really Hard not to focus on that. I was indirectly connected with a case of alleged child m*lestation and it was all I could think about. Not the best thing to dwell on while reading the middle-aged MC's drawn out, flowery prose about the body of a teenage boy. Again, I have the feeling my emotions are getting in the way of serious explication here, but I can't shake the feeling.
Other than that, there wasn't much to say. I'm not a short story or novella person, but the pace was pretty decent and the arc believable for the amount of pages. It reminds me very much of di Lampedusa's The Leopard. Basically, if you liked Heart of Darkness and slow, winding, 19th century European books about a white man having a midlife crisis, this one's for you! Just keep a garbage can nearby for the vomiting...
The elephant in the room sticks out like a sore thumb, to mix metaphors.
Other than that, there wasn't much to say. I'm not a short story or novella person, but the pace was pretty decent and the arc believable for the amount of pages. It reminds me very much of di Lampedusa's The Leopard. Basically, if you liked Heart of Darkness and slow, winding, 19th century European books about a white man having a midlife crisis, this one's for you! Just keep a garbage can nearby for the vomiting...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Stalking, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Death
dilettiert's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, and Stalking
More...