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joja_zch's review against another edition
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
No sé bien cómo juzgar este libro… no es un libro crudo, realmente. Habla de una época muy oscura en la historia de Chile, pero me da la impresión de que se queda en la superficie de lo que pasó. Creo también que no era el objetivo crear un libro crudo y minucioso, sino dar un vistazo desde el punto de vista de una joven que vivió, desde las lindes, esa época.
El hilo conductor es lo que cuenta este “hombre que torturaba” por quien la protagonista demuestra simpatía desde el primer momento; razón por la cual, el último capítulo,donde la protagonista y su pareja tienen la conversación sobre Frankenstein me parece sumamente importante, además que es algo que me pregunté durante casi todo el libro: ¿cómo desarrollar simpatía por una persona que hizo tanto mal, independientemente del hecho de haberse arrepentido y ayudado a esclarecer el horror que perpetró?
La forma de escribir, el tema del libro, las historias que cuenta me parecieron interesantes, pero no siento que deba ponerle 4⭐️. Quizás porque siento que se pudo ahondar más. El libro no despertó sentimientos fuertes en mí.
El hilo conductor es lo que cuenta este “hombre que torturaba” por quien la protagonista demuestra simpatía desde el primer momento; razón por la cual, el último capítulo,
La forma de escribir, el tema del libro, las historias que cuenta me parecieron interesantes, pero no siento que deba ponerle 4⭐️. Quizás porque siento que se pudo ahondar más. El libro no despertó sentimientos fuertes en mí.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, War, Murder, Police brutality, Torture, and Violence
rmperezpadilla's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Very heavy book, as should be obvious from the description. An unflinching collection of memories, documents, and imaginings of torture and disappearances during the Pinochet regime, how those horrors became quotidian, and how we think of them now, all understood through the frame of the twilight zone, a place of dreamlike unreality-based-in-reality.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Police brutality, Blood, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Gun violence, and Genocide
Minor: Suicide
sarahweyand's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I really appreciated what this book set out to do and thought the plot and structure of the story was very compelling. I enjoyed that the title, The Twilight Zone, is a dual reference to not only the TV show but also the nebulous region between recounting facts of history and imagining/humanizing it. The writing was well-done and the topics and themes were obviously very heavy and important.
I think I made a mistake by listening to this book on audio, which isn't something I say often. This book has a lot of timelines and listening to the audiobook was a little confusing in this regard. I also got the impression that there were quotes or excerpts throughout the book (maybe just at the beginning of chapters), but I didn't recognize this until over halfway through the book. I think this confusion didn't help with my comprehension and made things more muddled than they needed to be.
I probably wouldn't have picked this book up were it not for the literary awards reading challenge I created on StoryGraph. I'm always interested in being exposed to fiction outside of my comfort zone, even if it isn't my all-time favorite. Overall, I thought this was an engaging read and I'm glad I came across it.
I think I made a mistake by listening to this book on audio, which isn't something I say often. This book has a lot of timelines and listening to the audiobook was a little confusing in this regard. I also got the impression that there were quotes or excerpts throughout the book (maybe just at the beginning of chapters), but I didn't recognize this until over halfway through the book. I think this confusion didn't help with my comprehension and made things more muddled than they needed to be.
I probably wouldn't have picked this book up were it not for the literary awards reading challenge I created on StoryGraph. I'm always interested in being exposed to fiction outside of my comfort zone, even if it isn't my all-time favorite. Overall, I thought this was an engaging read and I'm glad I came across it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, and Torture
readingwithcoffee's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Incredible and concise prose about the surreal and haunting nature of what the worst of humanity can be under authoritarian that Fernandez excellently uses various pop culture such as the titular reference to the twilight zone, Edgar Allan Poe, Frankenstein, and more including videogames and pop music for springboards and analogies.
I do want ti give a heads up while I do not believe the book was ever condoning racism to Romani in Chile, it is present in the book and I think the wha it’s depicted by a more passive narrator who exists more as witness to her country then active may bother others, I did prefer his Fernandez wrote about the Mapuche.
I am familiar with this part of Chilean history but I don’t know everyone’s names so I am curious if every named character was a real person because it definitely was deliberate who is a named character and who is not. Something to check out on a reread.
I do want ti give a heads up while I do not believe the book was ever condoning racism to Romani in Chile, it is present in the book and I think the wha it’s depicted by a more passive narrator who exists more as witness to her country then active may bother others, I did prefer his Fernandez wrote about the Mapuche.
I am familiar with this part of Chilean history but I don’t know everyone’s names so I am curious if every named character was a real person because it definitely was deliberate who is a named character and who is not. Something to check out on a reread.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Violence, War, Sexual harassment, Torture, Colonisation, Sexism, Death, Physical abuse, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
anpen's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Murder, and Violence
marsspider42's review
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-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
2.0
I found this book quite difficult to get through. I understood the premise of the book, and what it was trying to achieve, but I found the structure overly complicated and confusing. I was not connected to the characters much at all, and I was not particularly interested in where the story was going.
The topics this book raises are interesting, and it is beautifully written in parts, but it is let down by a confusing structure and lack of forward momentum.
The topics this book raises are interesting, and it is beautifully written in parts, but it is let down by a confusing structure and lack of forward momentum.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Torture, Murder, and War
minary's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Kidnapping, Torture, Sexual violence, and Death
_inge_'s review
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Read as part of the octa finals translated fiction of the BookTube Prize 2022, rating and review forthcoming when this round of judging ends.
This book was my absolute favourite of this round. Unfortunately, it did not proceed to the quarter finals.
In this book, we learn about a difficult time in Chile under dictatorship. I suppose that there may be a lot of literature in Chile that commemorates and tells the stories of (fictional) people who were among the disappeared, their loved ones and the people who knew them. This reads like a plea to not forget. It's from the perspective of someone who grew up in violent social circumstances and pieces together just how violent and how close it was later in life. Many of the events in the book are not made up (as she keeps mentioning that 'she knows, is not imagining').
The author masterfully mixes jumps in time, makes storylines tie together, trying to make sense of things by drawing parallels, putting puzzle pieces together of memories that turn out to have been about the same events or people, and creating a timeline by using cultural references (TV shows, books, songs). Repetition is used as a means to show the relentlessness of what was happening.
As always when there are a lot of characters in a book I did sometimes lose track of who was who, but that didn't lessen the impression this book made on me. I listened to it on audio, maybe a print copy would have helped to flip back pages to remember how some loose ends connect. Definitely recommend picking up this book though!
This book was my absolute favourite of this round. Unfortunately, it did not proceed to the quarter finals.
In this book, we learn about a difficult time in Chile under dictatorship. I suppose that there may be a lot of literature in Chile that commemorates and tells the stories of (fictional) people who were among the disappeared, their loved ones and the people who knew them. This reads like a plea to not forget. It's from the perspective of someone who grew up in violent social circumstances and pieces together just how violent and how close it was later in life. Many of the events in the book are not made up (as she keeps mentioning that 'she knows, is not imagining').
The author masterfully mixes jumps in time, makes storylines tie together, trying to make sense of things by drawing parallels, putting puzzle pieces together of memories that turn out to have been about the same events or people, and creating a timeline by using cultural references (TV shows, books, songs). Repetition is used as a means to show the relentlessness of what was happening.
As always when there are a lot of characters in a book I did sometimes lose track of who was who, but that didn't lessen the impression this book made on me. I listened to it on audio, maybe a print copy would have helped to flip back pages to remember how some loose ends connect. Definitely recommend picking up this book though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Torture
smuds2's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
UNFINISHED
REVIEW RATING SYSTEM - [ 1 = FELT DECEIVED, 2 = NOT WHAT I EXPECTED IN A BAD WAY BUT WASN'T A WASTE OF TIME, 3 = WHAT I EXPECTED FELT LIKE MY TIME WAS USED AS EXPECTED, 4 = PLEASANTLY SURPRISED, 5 = THINKING ABOUT IT MONTHS LATER ]
RULES : (1) can not give anything a 5 outright, must either be a re-read or a update to score, (2) can not give incremental ratings, except for 4.75 which is functionally a "revisit in case it is actually a 5", (3) I should always end with a "this leads me to think" of 2-3 ideas this book roused in me.
REVIEW RATING SYSTEM - [ 1 = FELT DECEIVED, 2 = NOT WHAT I EXPECTED IN A BAD WAY BUT WASN'T A WASTE OF TIME, 3 = WHAT I EXPECTED FELT LIKE MY TIME WAS USED AS EXPECTED, 4 = PLEASANTLY SURPRISED, 5 = THINKING ABOUT IT MONTHS LATER ]
RULES : (1) can not give anything a 5 outright, must either be a re-read or a update to score, (2) can not give incremental ratings, except for 4.75 which is functionally a "revisit in case it is actually a 5", (3) I should always end with a "this leads me to think" of 2-3 ideas this book roused in me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Kidnapping, Torture, Sexual violence, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death, Murder, War, Gun violence, and Police brutality
sasuke's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Writing that escapes a clear genre; a blend of poetry and poetic prose, fiction and creative nonfiction that beautifully describes such a dark period of history and all the cruelty and horror human beings are compelled to commit against one another. This book took over my mind a bit, like it was haunting me, to the point I couldn’t put it down. The allusions to American/Western media are both thematically and historically relevant, and felt to me like specters of the American-born neoliberalism that took over Chile from that time, giving a sense of both political and economic reality. Also a wonderful coincidence that the book’s ending features an allusion to Frankenstein which I’m reading next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Torture, and Violence
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