Reviews

Folket i træerne by Hanya Yanagihara

dunnadam's review against another edition

1.0

I would recommend NOT reading this book. It has no point, many bad and terrible things happen, there are no likable characters. The book jacket gives away almost the entire plot. At 54% the narrator develops a theory that the turtles are causing longevity, this is given away on the jacket.
The book is not about longevity, it is a little about conquering a new people, mostly about things you won't want to read about.
There are about 100 footnotes, I read the first few and didn't care to read more, so I stopped, and then I thought if I'm not reading the footnotes, why am I reading the book itself? A thought I had many times as I was reading.
When I finished the book I was frustrated and upset. If I had been reading a paper copy instead of my Kindle I would have thrown the book across the room.

michaelwinstonclark's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence and Child abuse

trin's review against another edition

2.0

Even though this book is deeply unpleasant, I recall appreciating it when I read it (in 2013, the year it came out). The world building is imaginative and genuinely scary. But having read Yanagihara's follow-up, A Little goddamn Life, I actually like this less, because now I feel like I know the degree to which she just likes traumaporn. I weirdly miss the innocence with which I approached the horrors in this book, before I knew the author would only continue to return to this well; it is her sole source of water.

plantbetti's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

brisingr's review against another edition

3.0

This is like Lolita on crack; the tension in this book was utterly insane.

(do check trigger warnings before reading *any* of Hanya Yanagihara's works. If you're familiar with other of her books, well... this one was the worst)

amydarling's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

anastasia86's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

erinnbeattiee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

bethany_crenol's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad

2.75

lit_laugh_luv's review against another edition

4.0

4 stars (maybe 4.5?). I could write a literal essay about this book. I have such mixed thoughts - but ultimately, Hanya Yangihara has soldified two things for me:

1) She is one of my favourite authors
2) Her endings consistently make me screech/cry/gasp in some combination

Tempted to post a lengthy review if people are interested? I don't see this book get much attention but I feel my thoughts are as complex as they were after A Little Life!